Film cameras
Pentax ZX-5n User manual
User manual for Pentax ZX-5n. 96 pages in English. Read the original PDF, download or print a copy without registration.
96 pagesEnglish6.7 MB PDF

Loading your manual…Open PDF directly
Document details
- Brand
- Pentax
- Model / document
- Pentax ZX-5n
- Document type
- User manual
- Language
- English
- Pages
- 96
- File size
- 6.7 MB
- Category
- Film cameras
- Document date
- Not specified in catalog
Search available document text
Find a term, then jump to its page in the original PDF. Image-only pages may not be searchable; check the PDF for exact wording and diagrams.
Page 3 · Read text
FOR SAFE USE OF YOURCAMERA
Although we have carefully designed this camera for safe operation, please be sure to follow precautions
given on this page.
A WARNING This mark indicates precautions that, if not followed, could result in
serious injury to the operator.
A CAUTION This mark indicates precautionsthat, if not followed, could result in
minoror mediuminjuryto the operatoror damageto the equipment.
A wARNTNG A cnuroru
. The electronic circuits inside the camera contain o Do not use the flash near anyone's eyes, as it may
high voltage working parts. Never attempt to disas- hurt them. Be particularly careful with the flash
semble the camera yourself. around infants.
. Never touch internal parts of the camera if they be- o Never try to disassemble, short or recharge the bat-
come exposed from dropping the camera or for tery. Also, do not dispose of the battery in fire, as it
some other reason, as there is danger of an electric may explode.
shock. o Remove the batteries from the camera immediately
o Wrapping the strap around your neck is danger- if they become hot or begin to smoke. Be careful
ous. Make sure that small children do not get the not to burn yourself during removal.
strap caught around their neck.
o Do not look directly at the sun through the camera,
as viewing the sun for an extended period may
damage your eyes.
o Be sure to store batteries out of the reach of chil-
dren. Seek medical assistance immediately if acci-
dentally swallowedView original page 3Page 4 · Read text
PRECAUTIONSFOR YOURCAMERA C
Your Pentax camera is a high-precision mechanism. o Regular size color prints may cut off what appears
Handle it with great care. on the extreme edges of the film frame. Compose
your picture with a margin of safety at the edges.
Precautions when taking pictures
o Do not use the camera where it may come in con- Precautions for storage
tact with rain. water, or any other liquid, because o Avoid leaving the camera for extended periods in
the camera is not weather, water, or liquid resis- places where the humidity and temperature are
tant. Should the camera get wet from rain, splash- very high, such as in a car.
ing water, or any other liquid wipe it off o Do not store the camera in a closet with moth balls
immediately with a dry soft cloth. or in an area where chemicals are handled. Store it
o Do not drop the camera or allow it to hit solid ob- in a place with good dry air circulation to prevent
jects. lf the camera suffers a shock or impact, take the growth of fungus.
it to a Pentax service center for inspection.
. Be careful not to subject the camera to strong vi- Precautions for proper care
brations, shock or pressure. Use a cushion to pro- o Never touch the shutter curtain or mirror with your
tect the camera when carrying it in a motorcycle, finger or any other object.
car, boat, etc. e Use a blower and lens brush to remove dust accu-
. Condensation on the interior or exterior of the cam- mulated on the lens or viewfinder.
era may be extremely harmful to the camera o Never use solvents such as paint thinner, alcohol or
mechanism as it may cause rust. Furthermore, if benzene to clean the camera.
the camera is taken from warm temperature to a o Electrical problems may often be caused by water,
subfreezing one or vice versa, the formation of dirt or dust at points of electrical contact. Also
icelets may cause damage. In such a case, put the check for battery leakage, traces of dirt or grease,
camera into a case or plastic bag so that any or corrosion due to salinity or gas. lf you cannot
changes in temperature difference is minimized. Do correct the problems, have your camera inspected
not remove it from the bag until temperature has at a Pentax service center. Repairs of this natureF stabilized. are not covered under the terms of the warranty
and charges may be assessed.F www.butkus.usView original page 4Page 5 · Read text
lpD PRECAUTIONSFORBATTERYIJSAGEi
Other precautions Use two 3V lithium batteries (CR2 type).
o The temperature range at which this camera Misuse of the battery can cause hazards such as
functions properly is 50'C to -10'C (122'F to 1 leakage, overheating, explosion, etc. The battery
4'F). should be inserted with the " 1" and "-" sides fac-
o A camera which has been submerged in water ing correctly.
usually cannot be repaired. lf such an accident Battery performance may be temporarily hin-
should occur, it is advisable to contact a Pentax dered in low temperatures, but will recover in
Service Center immediately. normal temperatures.
o To maintain optimum performance, it is recom- Keep a spare battery on hand for replacement
mended that the camera be inspected every one convenience when shooting outdoors or while
or two years. lf the camera has not been used for traveling.
an extended period, or is being prepared for an lf the built-in flash is used continuously, the bat-
important photographic session, it is recom- tery may become warm, but it does not mean
mended that you have the camera inspected or that the battery is faulty; it is one of the battery's
test shoot with it. characteristics.
r Repairs deemed necessary due to usage of this Replace the batteries at the same time. Do not
product in an industrialor commercial application mix battery brands. type or an old battery with a
may not be covered under the terms of the new one. lt may cause explosion or overheating.
Pentax warranty.
. The PENTAX warranty provides only for the re-
pair of defects in materials or workmanship.
Damage of any kind cannot be repaired at no
charge under the terms of the warranty. lf the dif-
ficulty is caused as a direct result of the product
being used in conditions as outlined in the
"Precautions for Your Camera" section or any
other operation contrary to the instructions out-
lined in this manual, charges will be assessedand a repair quotation will be provided. 4
dView original page 5Page 6 · Read text
PRACTICALSHOOTINGGUIDE
Zooming the lens
Taking a picture when the main subject is not in Making a subject larger or smaller. ..p.65,66 the Autofocus frame.
C h a n g i n g i n - f o c u s r a n g e . ...................p .5 6
Focusing on a particular spot...... ........p.65
Putting yourself into a picture. .........'p.44
Flash photography Taking a picture in strong backlit situations with the
m ain subject in the shade. '........'......p.81
Takinga picturein low light situations. .....'........'p.37 Taking a picture of people with night scenery in
Minimizingthe red-eyeeffect. .............p.40 the backgr ound. ..........
Taking a portrait when the subject is in the shade. p.81
Taking a picture of people with night sceneryIn
the background.......,... ....p.82 Landscapephotography
Takinga picturein a roomy placesuch as a church
or receptionha||............ ---p.77
Exposuremodesilt€ilrll-l
I
I Taking a picture with the desiredexposuresetting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p . 6 0 , 6 4I Taking a picture of a fast moving subject. ......p.36,58 Taking a picture in strong backlit situations with the Takinga horizontallydynamicpanoramicpicture....p.53 .............p.81 mainsubject in the shadow.
I www.butkus.usTaking consecutivepictures of a moving subject. p.44
.,,'-.;. ..^-..,:.-.,.: .*iasd;u*@!--!*..-. -drView original page 6Page 11 · Read text
EASYTO USE (For beginners)
1. Loadingthe batteries 2. Attaching the lens
Open the battery chamber cover by using a coin. Align the red indexes on the lens and camera. Turn the
Load two batteries (GR2 type) according to the mark- lens to the right until it seats with a click. (See page
ings (*, ) in the battery chamber. (See page 13.) 1 6 . )
ring the shutter dial 5. Turning on the power
While holding down the aperture- While holding down the shutter Set the main switch to I ON l. See
A lock button, turn the lens aper- dial lock button. turn the shutter page 1 9.
ture ring to the t A I position. dial to t A I . (See pase 26.). The
(See page 26.) exposure mode will be set in the
Programmed AE Mode.View original page 11Page 12 · Read text
6. Loadingfilm 7. Selecting the Autofocus Mode
:,K: W
Open the back cover, insert a roll of film, align the end Set the focus mode switch to I AF ]. (See page 34.)
of the film leader with the red mark. and close the back
cover. The film should advance to the first frame auto-
matically. (See page 22.)
8. Composing the scene with the zoom ring 9. Focus on the subject and shoot
turn the viewfinder,While looking through
you desired thewww.butkus.uszoomcom- leaseF o c ubuttons L t l lhalfwayo n t h e tosubject.lock focus,Depressand thethenshutterdepressre-it obtain thering to the right or left until
position. (See page 30.) fully to take a photo.(See page 35.)View original page 12Page 14 · Read text
HOW TO USETHISOPERATINGMANUALEI
This manual is organized into the following sections. allowing you to optimize the use of the camera:
I . BASIC OPERATION III. ADVANCED OPERATIONS
(PREPARATION)Page 12 - 25 Page 43 - 89
tr. BASIC OPERATION IV. OTHERINFORMATION
(SHOOTING) Page 26 - 42 Page 90 - 95
o f f you want to begin taking pictures with this new camera as soon as possible, read section I and ll, "BASIC
O P E R A T I O N ( P R E P A R A T I O N ) "a n d " B A S I C O P E R A T I O N ( S H O O T I N G ) . "
These sections introduce only the basic functions of this camera. More detailed information can be found in sec-
tion lll and section lV.
www.butkus.usView original page 14Page 15 · Read text
(1)ATTAC}|I}IGTHECAIIERASTRAP
-
@
.2
o
o
!m u
Joz
!
I
m
!
u BASICOPERATION
{
oz ( PREPARATION) Fit the strap on the cameraas illustrated.
. There is a pocket on the strap so you can store the
finder cap, release socket cover, hot shoe cover or
any other small accessoryas illustrated.View original page 15Page 17 · Read text
-
E
t2
o
o
!m u
=o
2
!vm
!
u
_{
o3 3. tionTurn ofthethebatteryarrow chamberto lock itcoyersecurely.screw in the direc- 4. SetLGDthepanelshowsmain switchthetoinformationI ON ] andascheckshownthatabove.the
. When the battery is replaced, all camera settings re- o The LCD displayas shown aboveis givenas an exam-
main unchanged except the audible PCV signal ple and may be different if a lens is attached.
switching, red-eye reduction flash function and auto-
matic flash function of the built-in flash.
o The optional " AA-Battery Pack Fo" is also available
for this camera instead of using the lithium batteries.View original page 17Page 20 · Read text
(4) USINGTHESHUTTERRELEASEBUTTON
The shutter release button has two positions.- Depressingit down halfway (first position) turns on the ni
E exposure meter and autofocus system. Depressing it vv
v, fully (second position) releasesthe shutter. When tak-
o ing a picture, depressthe shutter releasebutton gently
o to prevent camera shake. MM !nu Not pressed Pressed halfway Pressedfully
r To prevent camera shake,depressthe shutter release down down
button gently. (firstposition) (secondposition) Ioz o Before loading a roll of film, slowly depressthe shut-
! ter releasebutton to learn where the first position is.
tm o The LCD indicationstays on for about 10 seconds !
after the button is releasedfrom the halfway position. u Depressingthe shutter releasebutton down halfway
_{ keepsthe LCD indicatoron. oz
www.butkus.usView original page 20Page 22 · Read text
(6) FILM LOADING
We suggest that you first operate the camera with no
- film loaded to become familiar with its operations.
@
t2 A u t o m a t i c f i l m s p e e d s e t t i n g
o This camera is designed to use DX-coded films with ISO
ratings from 25 to 5000. o!m
T
_-{ . When DX-coded film is used, the correct film speed is
oz automaticallycoded film, yousetcanfor setthethecamera.film speedlf you manually.use a non-DXSee
G I page 76.
m . Before loading film for the first time after purchase, !
u open the back cover and remove the protective card.
DO NOT TOUCH THE SHUTTER CURTAINS.
1. To open the back cover, slide the back cover re- =oz lease lever in the direction of the arrow.
2. Place the film cartridge in the film chamber as
shown in the illustration.
)
. Always load and unload film in the shade or by using
your body to shade the camera.
www.butkus.usView original page 22Page 26 · Read text
3-
E
32
o
o!m
T
6z
Gum T
v
' R e w i n d i n g a R o l l o f F i l m i n M i d - R o l , 3. Open the back cover and remove the film. Jo= lf you wish to unload the film before exposing all the
o A rolf of 24-exposure film takes about 13 seconds to frames, use this function.
rewind.
. Before opening the back cover, check that I Q ] is Set the main switch to the t ON I position, and then de-
press the mid-roll rewind button by using the protruding b l i n k i n g .
o When the camera is not in use, set the main switch to part of the strap clamp.
t h e I O F F ] p o s i t i o n .
. The shutter may be released a frame or more after . Do not depress the button with an object having a
the specified number of frames have been used as in- sharp tip.
. Before opening the back cover, check that I O ] is dicated by the number of frames on the film cartridge.
However, those extra frames may be lost in process- b l i n k i n g .
ing. When you take important pictures, rewind the
film when the filrn reaches the number of frameswww.butkus.usindi- cated on the film cartridge.View original page 26Page 28 · Read text
(1)USI]IGTHEPROGRATITEDAEI'ODE il,BASTCoPERATtoil(SHo0T[{G)
--
E
OFF 32 AL221611 8 s.64
c'
o
!m T
=oz
Purpose 2. Turn the shutter dialto I A ] while holding down
For easy picture taking, use this mode. In the the shutter dial lock button. The shutter dial can be o-oo_{ ProgrammedAE mode, the camera automaticallyse- released from I A ] in the same manner.
lects the best combination of aperture and shutter ze speedsetting allowing you to take pictures by simply . I P ] appearson the LCD panel to indicatethat the
depressingthe shutter releasebutton. ProgrammedAE Mode is set.
r See page 56, 58 and 6O for other availableexposure
How to set modes.
1. Turn the lens apertu?e ring to the I A ] position as
shown in the illustration.
. To move the lens aperture ring to the I A ] position,
turn the aperture ring while holding down the
aperture-A lock button on the lens. The lens www.butkus.usaperture ring can be released from the in the I A ] position
same manner.View original page 28Page 29 · Read text
(2)USINGTHEMULTI(6)'SEGMENTMETERINGMODE
M U L T I ( 6 ) - S E G M E N T M E T E R I N G
This camera incorporates a high-precision six-segment
TTL metering system. Light values are measured in six
segments within the image field, enabling an optimal ex-
posure to be made under a variety of lighting condi-
tions. With conventional averaged metering systems, -
underexposure of the subject results from the bright- @
ness of the background affecting the overall metering. o
With multi(6)-segment metering, the camera records Y S
the brightness in six zones within the image field and \r, T
uses these measurements to choose an exposure that !mv
will not underexposed the subject. The multi(6)-
segment metering system also calculates exposure val- o ;
ln the multi(6)-segment metering mode, the metering ues for a scene to automatically compensate for high- z l
system automatically measures light in six different contrast and other difficult lighting conditions. Even a @
zones, enabling proper exposure value in a wide variety beginner can achieve excellent results with ease.
of normal and adverse lighting conditions, such as a
backlit condition. IooIze
1. Set the metering mode switch to [ * ].
r When a lens other than an A, F or FA lens is attached,
use either center-weighted metering or spot meter-
ing. The multi-segment metering mode cannot be set.
See page 68 for selecting the metering mode.View original page 29Page 30 · Read text
(3) USINGTHE 3.POINTAF MODE
--
E
Io
o
!m v
Jo2
This camera incorporates 3-point autofocus system. o The subject will be focused properly even if the main
subject is slightly off the center of the AF frame.
IooJzo Set the AF mode switch to I C f j.
. The Spot AF Mode is also available in this camera.
See page 65 for details.
www.butkus.usView original page 30Page 34 · Read text
o lf a power zoom lens is attached, three zooming
speeds are available. Turning the power zoom ring
fully to the right or left, zooms the lens quickly.
Turning it slightly gives you slow operation. At an in-
speed.-- o termediateZooming theposition,lens withthethelenspowerzoomszoomat mediumfunction auto-
@ matically focuses the lens on the subject. However,
2o forhalfwayfinal focusing,down to focusdepressthe thesubject.shutter release button o ! o When the main switch is set to I OFF ] while a m I Pentax-FA zoom lens is in use. the lens automatically
Ioz retracts to its shortest physical length.
Usingthe PowerZoom Function
1. Push the power zoom ring forward until the words G-oo-'l IPOWERZOOM] appear beneath the power zoom
An FA zoom lens without zo ring.
2. Turning the power zoom ring to the right brings the the power supply contacts
subject closer (telephoto) and turning it to the left are shown in the illustration
makes the subject smaller (wide angle). To stop does not have the power
zooming, release the power zoom ring. zoom function (ie: FA28 -
70mm f ,/4 AL lens).
Power zoom
www.butkus.uscontactsView original page 34Page 36 · Read text
Q) SELECTINGTHE AUTOFOCUSMODE
--
E
Io
o
!m
!
_-{
oz
o For autofocus operation, set the focus mode switch to
t AF].
When you depress the shutter release button halfway
down, the lens automatically focuses. IooJze
o See page 48 for manual focusing.
www.butkus.usView original page 36Page 38 · Read text
3. To release the shutter, gently depress the shutter re- Predictive Autofocus Mode
lease button fully. When the camera senses subject movement during the
autofocus operation, the camera will automatically
r The shutter cannot be released if the subject is out of switch the focus mode to the predictive autofocus
focus. mode to measure the speed of a moving subject, and
I- o Depress the shutter release button halfway down. predict where it will be at the moment of shutter release
E While IO] is on, the camera-to-subject distance is to maintain sharp focus on the subject.
c2 fixed (focus lock). To refocus on another subject, lift
o your finger off the shutter release button. o lf the subject is moving too fast, the shutter may not
. mode is When the drive switch set to the be released. oTm Consecutive-Frame Mode lens focuses I EJ ], the T
each time you release the shutter.
. When using the SMC Pentax-F Soft 85mm t,/2.8 Ioz lens, set the aperture between t,/2.8 and f ,/4.5. See
(t page 52 for details.
Ioo-{
ze
www.butkus.us
** ..'.;*-*&"**r&";q,#ig*d'i " *'+r LF.- -,,.nView original page 38Page 44 · Read text
1
-
@
Io
o1t
m
7
=oz
G A I - J T O M A TI C F L A S H F U N C T I O N ( S M A RFTL A S FHU N C T I O N ) rlow tO ::et
This is a convenient flash mode that the flash dis- 1. Push the flash pop-up button to activate the flash.
charges only when it is necessary even if the flash is in 2. Depress the multi-function button until I n ] ap-
the popped-up position. pears on the LCD panel. Ioo=zo The Automatic Flash Function varies depending on
the selection of the camera's metering mode and the o Depress the multi-function button with the built-in
exposure mode as follows: flash popped-up position. lf the button is depressed
with the built-in flash retracted position, the PCV
Exposure Meterrng Mode mode will be switched.
Mode Multi-segment Center-weighted Spot
Automatic dis- Automatrc dis- Automatic i . . 1 f i ! ( ) ! a t i i c e i
Programed charge in low charge in low light discharge in With the built-inflash poppedup, depressthe multi-
A E light and backlit srtuatron low light function button until I E J disappearsfrom the LCD
srtuatrons s rt uattonwww.butkus.uspanel. Other
Exposure Forced emrssion Forced emission Forced emis-
Modes stonView original page 44Page 46 · Read text
---
E,
zom o
Consecutive pictures can be taken by holding down the The self-timer mode delays the shutter release, and is o!m 1 . C o n s e c u t i v e - F r a m eM o d e 2. Self-Timer Mode
7 shutter release button. useful for taking group shots that include the photogra-
pher. The shutter will be released about 12 seconds
How to set after the shutter release is depressed. Io2ct Set the drive mode dial to ttrl ].
How to set
. The camera focuses on the subject frame by frame in 1. Set the drive mode dial to I e)J.
this mode.
o The shutter cannot be released while the built-in flash
is being charged.
www.butkus.usView original page 46From the M. Butkus archive. Original publisher and archive notices are retained.
Check the model and edition against your equipment.
PDF verified 2026-10-10.
