This Ricoh XR-20SP is a similar tale to the Praktica LLC in that it reminded us of the folly of film-testing a camera before thoroughly testing it on the bench. But this one has a happier ending.
The weather was nice, so we loaded this seemingly perfect Ricoh SLR with a bulk-loaded roll of expired Ilford FP4 film. And all seemed well until Caitlin noticed that the lens couldn't sharply focus on faraway objects.
Switching lenses, we realized that this was a camera fault (rather than a bad lens). Luckily, the service manual provided a viewfinder focus adjustment.
Surgery on a camera loaded with film
We loathe wasting film so we decided to try re-calibrating the camera's focus with the film still loaded. Luckily for us, this Ricoh's bottom cover can be removed without opening the film door. And the viewfinder focus adjustment is accessible in this minimally disassembled state.
With the bottom cover off, I adjusted the calibration screw with the lens focus set at infinity, looking at a faraway object (a rooftop antenna). Then I needed to verify the adjustment by using our auto-collimator to project an infinity focus target on the film itself with the shutter held open on 'bulb'. The National Camera Model 6810 that I used is shown below in this circa-1974 ad from The Camera Craftsman journal, followed by a diagram from its manual.
All told, I had to waste about five frames tweaking the focus adjustment, and another five frames were taken before I realized the camera was out of calibration (and thus out of focus).
It should go without saying that we would never sell a camera to a customer without confirming that the viewfinder focus is accurate. This is part of our standard bench test procedure and we would have caught the issue immediately had we bench-tested first. It's perfectly normal for a 42-year-old camera to need a few calibration tweaks like this.
And what about the Ricoh XR-20SP?
Once its focus was correctly adjusted, this Ricoh was a pleasure to use. It was designed to compete with the Pentax Super A, Minolta X-700, Nikon FG, and other lightweight mid-1980s manual-focus SLRs with program autoexposure modes. We particularly like its bright, informative viewfinder and the uncommon 'SP' (speed program) mode, where the camera controls exposure but limits its shutter speed choices to 1/250 or higher (helping you avoid motion and shake blur).
The camera above is the subject of this post. You can buy this camera here.
Film processing notes
We used bulk-rolled Ilford FP4 Plus. This film is expired but we're not precisely sure how expired (it's likely about 5 years past its expiry date). We developed the film at box speed (ISO 125) with Flic Film Classic MQ (a D-76-style developer) in 1:1 dilution in a UniRoller processor for 9:50. We used Kodak Indicator Stop bath and Flic Film Quick Fixer. The negatives were scanned with a Nikon Coolscan V ED.
This is the full set of negatives. The light leaks are of course due to the mid-film roll surgery.
Test photos
These photos were mostly taken on the way to a post office on a spring day in Montreal. We took a slightly different route than usual, passing through the borough of Outremont.
Note: the interrupted cracks and spray-paint lines on the wall look like a camera or scanner glitch but that's how it looked in reality that day (maybe part of the retaining wall shifted in a freeze/thaw cycle in the winter?)
Test photo before focus calibration
This clapperboard shows how the focus was off before calibration (it looked tack-sharp in the viewfinder). It's not atrocious but it's completely unacceptable to us:
And this photo below sort of shows the auto-collimator's Siemens star pattern projection on the film (it was a very long exposure, so it got blurred from movement):
Checking your own camera
If you already own an SLR and you're suspicious of its focusing accuracy, you don't need to spend well over $1000 on an autocollimator to check. You can do a quick check with inexpensive tools (matte translucent tape and a jeweller's loupe; a tripod will also come in handy). You need to do this when there is no film installed and your camera needs to allow releasing the shutter with the film door open (some Nikons require creative hacks to fire their shutter without film installed). Pull a few strips of tape (Scotch Magic tape or similar) taut from the top to bottom film guide rails (these are the inner rails; the outer rails are for the pressure plate and are slightly higher).
Now, set your aperture to its biggest opening (smallest f-number) and focus on a target subject using the viewfinder and fire the shutter in 'bulb' mode (it's helpful to have a locking cable release to hold the shutter open or use the 'T' or time mode if your camera offers it). Now, without moving the camera or lens, observe the tape on the focal plane opening with a jeweller's loupe, the target subject should appear sharp. This is a quick-and-easy check; I wouldn't recommend adjusting your camera by this method.
Rick Oleson, known for his Bright Screen fresnel focus screen replacements for TLR cameras, shared this slightly different approach that works if you own two SLRs and one is known to be in good working order. Read it here.