Topic: Testing shutter speeds

[choppert]

Wotcha,

My new 99p Ilford Sportman has arrived with rather 'creative' shutter speeds.

Found this simple way of testing shutter speed accuracy...

http://decisivemomentum.blogspot.com/search/label/Gear

Chops

[Francois]

There's also this guy who made an electronic tester that uses the PC's COM port.
Test Vitesse

The link is in French, so use google translate...

He also has a very nice collection of vintage cameras for you to drool over

[Pete_R]

OK if you've got a digi SLR and the shutter you're testing has a B or T setting to do comparative exposures using the SLR shutter. Did you try it Chops? How was it?

I think the old way of photographing the TV or computer screen is as good as any method for faster shutter speeds (=<1/60th).  Rick Oleson has a good description of the method here. It also shows tapering of focal plane shutters. [Edit] 'course, I should mention, this doesn't work with them new fangled flat screen thingys.

[Francois]

There was also a trick using 1 AA battery and a small photo transistor hooked up to the sound card. You record the sound and when you see a peak, it's the shutter.