Praktica MTL 3

Bottom plate: Ernemann tower and Q1 symbol.

The Praktica MTL 3 is an East German SLR made by Pentacon. It was produced in high numbers between 1978 and 1984. It is said to be based on the LTL 3. It's a solidly made camera with some rather crude and some advanced features.

The shutter

This is the best part about this camera. The MTL 3 has a metal curtain shutter. It moves vertically and is likely to work some 25 years after its production. Speeds are B, 1 to 1/1000s with a flash sync at 1/30s. Metal curtains are not known to get punctured easily as do cloth shutters.

Metering and Viewfinder

The MTL 3 has a metering system that is integrated in the mirror. This makes it important to handle the mirror with care, or rather, never to touch it at all. A needle on the right side of the viewfinder indicates the correct exposure; o is correct, + means overexposed, - underexposed. This metering system is the only battery-dependant system in the MTL 3. It takes PX 625 cells and without it, everything but the meter will continue to function. A switch next to the shutter release button stops down the lens and switches on the meter. This way, no battery power is wasted when the camera is not in use. A black wedge on the left indicates the film has not yet been transported.

Lenses

The standard lens supplied with the camera was a Pentacon 50mm f/1.8 lens. It has a m42 or Pentax thread. There's a switch on the lens to use it on auto or manual. The auto option allows full aperture composition even when the aperture ring is set to, say f/8. The lens is multicoated and has a 49mm filter thread.

Images

Top view.

Links

• Notes about Praktica MTL-3
• Matt Denton's MTL-3
• MTL-3 on www.collection-appareils.fr by Sylvain Halgand