On The Tracks

[srtr100]

I snapped this photo this afternoon shortly after it rained. This was a test to determine how good I am at lens repair. I purchased another lens on Ebay because the lens I had had oil on the blades. Well, the lens I received had fungus on the interior elements, I purchased a lens wrench and managed to get the thing opened and successfully removed all the fungus from the rear elements. Exposure info: Canon R100 with 135mm Minolta Tele-Rokkor-X ISO 400 @6000k 1/500s @f5.6, no filters. Black and white conversion and minor cropping done in Pix.On The Tracks.jpeg

[stevet1]

srtr100,

Nice picture to boot.

Steve Thomas

[Tintype_18]

Nice photo. If not too dangerous, lay between the rails and take an "infinity" shot.

[Ramsden]

Love the photo. I also take a lot of railway infrastructure, it just fascinates me. 

But, you're a braver man than I'll ever be, taking a lens to bits.

Respect!

Ramsden 

[srtr100]

I was able to do this job without fully dismembering the lens. I opened the aperture fully and reached in there with a cotton swab dowsed in isopropyl alcohol. I then covered another cotton swab with a microfiber cloth and wiped gently. I'll admit that I am rather squeamish about lens repair; I try to take the least invasive route on a lens. There is not a lot of info from the lens manufacturers to be found out. So, the choice is either Youtube videos or trial and error. Conventional wisdom would hold that the manufacturers would try to standardize their lens assembly process. Nope, not a chance, at least in the case of Minolta. The same focal length and series of lens could be constructed differently from one year to another. Not an easy process, but the reward is worth the persistence.

[srtr100]

I was contemplating doing something like that but nixed the idea on account of the atmospheric conditions that day. The rain created something of a mist which distorted the objects in the distance.