i have a pentax k1000 reel camera............??

Question

the problem is that when i loaded it with a ISO 100 reel and set the shutter speed to 1/1000 the light meter indicates that the image is overexposed , even when i point it towards a dark region. all the other speeds work well,the problem only is with the 1`/1000 speed it always indicate ovrexposure even at f/22

Answer 1

The K1000 meter does NOT work properly at all light levels. If you have the manual, there is a chart showing you where the meter become inoperable. This would generally occur at the very extremes of lighting conditions. For instance, using ISO 100 film, you would have to be practically shooting straight into the sun with a telephoto lens to ever use 1/1000th of a second, so this is "out of range" for the light meter.

What you can do is to watch the meter as you approach 1/1000 from a slower speed and sort of extrapolate where it would end up at 1/1000. It might not budge at 1/125, begin to move at 1/250, approach the center at 1/500 and then shoot off the scale at 1/1000. In your mind, you can say that the needle would have just centered up if only the meter didn't shut down on you, so you can use that exposure.

If the K1000 is set up the way it used to be, the gap in the center of the meter actually represents 2 full f-stops. If you are at the bottom border of the center gap, the exposure will be under by one stop (EV -1.0). If you are at the top border of the center gap, the exposure will be over by one stop (EV +1.0). This information can be helpful when trying to extrapolate meter readings when the meter actually shuts down.

You might find a chart for the effective zones for the K1000 meter at the Pentax site or perhaps at some user groups.