Vintage Canon TX (Steve, this one’s for you)

You must know by now that I am a Pentax kind of guy so when my friend Steve, offered me his vintage Canon film camera I had to refuse. It’s not that I didn’t appreciate the offer or don’t like any other cameras it’s just that I have to place some limits on myself. Otherwise a bad case of “GAS” (gear acquisition syndrome) might turn me into a “Collector” instead of a “Photographer.”

Although I am not immune to “GAS” I have managed to avoid the worst of it. Indeed, back in the 1970’s I purchased an Olympus OM-1N, 35mm SLR, along with a Vivitar 285 flash and three excellent lenses (50/1.4, 35/2.8 & 135/2.8) and used that “kit” almost exclusively until 2005 when hurricane Katrina’s flood waters destroyed my camera equipment along with most everything else. That’s 30 years with one camera and three lenses – not bad!

In any case, considering that I currently have five Pentax K-mount 35mm, SLR bodies, three flashes and eight lenses, I declined his generous offer but suggested he consider donating his camera to the Film Photography Project (http://filmphotographyproject.com/ ) . I volunteered to thoroughly check it out to make sure it works and send it in for him. Thus began my latest photo-project.

Since the camera had not been used very much in many years the first thing I did was check it out and clean it up a bit. It appeared to be in excellent shape and everything seemed to work as it should except the meter, probably as a result of a dead battery. A quick Google search confirmed that the Canon TX originally used a 1.35 volt mercury battery which is no longer made. I was able to find a PX625, 1.5 volt battery at Radio Shack which fit and presumably would power up the on-board light meter although the meter’s accuracy would be in question due to the higher voltage. I put the new battery in and sure enough, the meter came to life.

The next thing to decide was what kind of film to shoot. Since I am a fan of Kodak Portra and the weather was suspect I chose Portra 400 and loaded it into the camera. I put fresh “AA” batteries into my Vivitar 2400M flash unit (to see if the hot shoe worked) and headed off for my photo adventure.

First stop was a friend’s house for a party where I snapped a few photos with the flash and everything seemed to be working perfectly. The camera was an instant hit generating many questions and much discussion attracting attention as a curiosity from the last century should.

Next stop was breakfast (the next day) at a local café where the photo below was taken along with a few others that didn’t come out very good at all. It seems that the meter which I had been relying on was dying and became totally inoperative before breakfast was done.

This shot (above) was taken at f4 and 1/30 using my own version of the “Sunny 16 Rule” for indoors otherwise known as the “Best Guess” method. Another shot (below) taken at f2.8 and 1/60 using the same metering method yielded a satisfactory photo of my son basking in the overcast sky light from a nearby window.

 From there we proceeded to a nearby arboretum and snapped several photos of local flora and fauna. Using my “Best Guess” method they all came out acceptable which probably says as much about Portra’s exposure latitude as my own ability to operate in difficult lighting situations without a functioning light meter.

 

Here’s one of the more interesting photos taken at f5.6 and 1/125. I have no idea what kind of flower this is but it is really cool looking.

 Overall, I would say this vintage Canon TX works great for a 35 year old camera. The inoperative light meter is certainly not a deal killer for anyone interested in using vintage cameras and it’s heavy enough that swung by the camera strap it could easily be a formidable self-defense weapon in a pinch. The very distinctive shutter/mirror slap is one of the most endearing things about this camera. It kind of announces to anyone in ear shot that “Hey, I’m using a really old and interesting camera!”

All of the photos here were taken with the very sharp 50mm, f1.8 Canon lens. Included with it in the “goodie bag” was a beautiful 135mm, f2.8 lens which I did not try but appeared to be fully functional and in excellent condition, along with a couple “screw on” adapters for doing macro and close ups.

The camera is clearly a high quality but very basic Canon 35mm SLR from the 1970’s similar to the cult classic Pentax K-1000 except that the Pentax continued in production for over 30 years until near the end of the 20^th century while the Canon TX was replaced by another model after a few years.

The next step (now that I’ve finished my project) is to pack it up and ship it off to the FPP and its new home where it is likely it will keep taking great pictures for many more years.