Praktica BMS First Film Results

Okay I have just picked up my first film that has been put through the 1989 Praktica BMS.

The film was Kodak ColourPlus colour print film 24 exposures, 200ASA.

The developing and scanning to disc was by Hippo in Burnley Lancashire. This was a really good service, I dropped the film off on Thursday morning and picked it Friday morning ! The guy in the shop said it will be ready Friday at 10.00am, and yes it was, 10.00am the next morning ready and waiting for me. Developed and images put on a disc for £8.50. Nice friendly service, so will definitely be using them again on my next film.

Analogue Film Developing UK - Photo Hippo Lab.

So, lets see what a 36 year old Praktica can do in 2025! Can it still perform?

Marsden Hall Nelson

Marsden Hall Nelson

Marsden Park Silver Birches Nelson Lancashire.

Marsden Hall Nelson Lancashire

Main Gates Marsden Park Nelson Lancashire

The Main Gates Marsden Park Nelson Lancashire

The Stone Lion Marsden Park Nelson Lancashire.

The Duck Pond Marsden Park Nelson Lancashire

Marsden Hall Nelson Lancashire

The Sun Dial Marsden Park

'My Ladies Garden' Marsden Park

The site of the Old Weeping Ash Tree Marsden Park

Main Gates Marsden Park

Marsden Hall and Duck Pond

So in all I got 24 exposures and one blank where I accidently triggered the shutter. All were exposed okay, one was just off focus very slightly, but that was me moving the focus ring a little when altering the aperture ! That was my only dislike about the camera in use, it was too easy to move the focus when altering the aperture. You tend to 'chase' the diode lights in the viewfinder after you have focused and move the focus whilst doing so. In the end I gave up altering for the sake of a stop when the light changed after focusing, ignored the diode light and pressed the shutter anyway, after all there is loads of latitude with these modern print films. Colour slides might be a different matter of course!

Marsden Hall and Park Nelson Lancashire

I think the more you use this camera, the less you would catch the focus ring anyway. Also the exposure lights are maybe a bit too sensitive? They can put you off with the constant moving around the correct exposure point. But this is being very nit picky, The Praktica BMS is a very nice useable camera, the negs look sharp and evenly exposed, colour rendition is good, the viewfinder is clear and bright and easy to focus even with specs on, yes I really liked it.

Is it useable today on a regular basis ? I think it is, I will be using it again, the controls all work nicely and are in the right place. the shutter sounds sweet, focus action smooth, looked after this should go on for years.

They are relatively cheap, as are most of the other B series Prakticas, super value for money, there are lots of reasonable lenses to try out if so desired and they still have the classic camera look and feel to them. If you fancy one of these I would go for one that still looks good today, like it has had an easy life, many did not have that many films through them before their owners went digital, and popped them away in a draw, so should have years of use left in them. Pay a little bit more than average and get a really good one.

To sum up, I really liked the Praktica BMS, the results were better than I was expecting, it was nice to use, looks good, loved it. Now somewhere I have my B200, I really want to find it now and try it out after my BMS experience!

I hope you enjoyed the post, take care,

Philip