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February 2009
February 20, 2009
February 17, 2009
#1 Autographic Kodak Jr.
Not long ago, I blogged about an old 6x9 camera I'd gotten my hands on, the #1 Autographic Kodak Jr.. Well, with uncharacteristic speed, I've actually gotten a roll of film through it. I was happy to find that it is in as good a shape as it seemed to be. Worked like a charm.
My family and I went to a horse show as part of my older son's birthday gift. That seemed like a perfect chance to put this old camera to use. So, I loaded up a roll of Ilford FP4+ (125 iso) black and white film. This seemed the logical choice, considering the camera's capabilities and limitations. Shutter speeds are limited to 1/25th, 1/50th, T and B. I'd rather not shoot at 1/25th, so that left 1/50th. Apertures ranged from f8 to f32 and considering the guess and go 4 position focusing, I'd rather be stopped down.
Sunny 16 told me that 1/50th with 125 iso film would need f22 for "Winter" skies in AZ, so I took a chance, left the light meter at home, and shot at those settings.
With nine shots toa roll of 120 film on a 6x9 camera, how did I do? Well, I've got 2 to show you and I'm pretty happy about that.
I took 2 shots each of the ones I'm calling keepers, so that's 4 frames down. One shot was so badly framed that it was tossed, blame that one on the very challenging little finder...that's 5. One shot looks like I didn't get the front standard locked in to place correctly...that's 6. Three shots were so dull I wonder why I pulled the trigger...that's all 9.
Here are the two I'm at least willing to share. I like the virtual silhouette of this cowboy, walking over the show grounds.
I wish I'd pointed down just a touch on this one, it bugs me that I've cut off the bike tire. Even so, I like the old time feeling. The streaks of light showed only on this frame and the one right before it. Not sure of the source, but must be light from somewhere.
Overall, a fun camera to shoot and far more capable than you might guess, considering the age of the thing. I still see it as something of a miracle that the bellows was not rotted out after all those years...not to mention the still snappy shutter.
February 13, 2009
Descansos
I've been passing these roadside markers for 15 years now, since moving to AZ. They stand where loved ones died in car accidents.
It occurred to me many times that it might be worthwhile to try to capture some of the feeling of the memorials...or at least, how I imagine those placing them might feel.
Rested , the men would shoulder the coffin again, lift the heavy load, and the procession would continue. With time, the descansos from the church to the cemetery would become resting spots.""The first DESCANSOS were resting places where those who carried the coffin from the church to the camposanto paused to rest. In the old villages of New Mexico, high in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains or along the river valleys, the coffin was shouldered by four or six men.
Led by the priest or preacher and followed by mourning women dressed in black, the procession made its way from the church to the cemetery. The rough hewn pine of the coffin cut into the shoulders of the men. If the camposanto was far from the church, the men grew tired and they paused to rest, lowering the coffin and placing it on the ground. The place where they rested was the descanso. The priest prayed; the wailing of the women filled the air; there was time to contemplate death. Perhaps someone would break a sprig of juniper and bury it in the ground to mark the spot, or place wild flowers in the ground. Perhaps someone would take two small branches of piñon and tie them together with a leather thong, then plant the cross in the ground.
--Introduction/Dios da y Dios quita", from Descansos: An interrupted journey
As a photographic subject, Descansos have a built in emotional appeal. I've approached them many different ways, but I usually settle on a low point of view and narrow depth of field. If the background is in any way interesting, I will try to include it. Even with the narrow dof, the background can be useful for supplying an appropriate setting and context for the image. Including the road and traffic tells the story in a strait forward manner. In some cases, the background is a distraction that I'd rather not include. In those cases, moving the point of view to above the marker, and/or framing tight on the marker can be effective.
All three of the images in this post were made with a Jupiter 9 85mm f2 lens on various film cameras.
February 10, 2009
FSU Family Picture
Some time ago, I became a bit obsessed with putting together a "complete" FSU (Former Soviet Union) camera/lens kit. I wanted to shoot rangefinder cameras and old Soviet rip-offs (evolved, but still rip-offs) of Leica cameras seemed to be the way to go. Yes, quality can be spotty, but it can also be very good, and the cameras are relative steals.
"Relative" is a good word for it really. Problem cameras bought from an unknown someone half a world away in the Ukraine are hardly a sure bet. In fact, I went through a couple of cameras, at a loss each time, before finding good copies. I was a bit luckier with lenses.
So, here is what I ended up with...though, not what I started out with.
I think I'll go right to left, because that's how the story goes.
On the right, we have a FED 2. Not the most elegant looking of the FSU cameras, but pretty high up on the list. For my tastes, the Zorki 3 is the prettiest of them all, but a good cheap one is pretty tough to find. The FED 2 is solid and reliable enough, once you have one that is working, and the long rangefinder baseline is a nice thing for focusing in narrow dof situations. Of course, you miss out on some of the niceties that modern cameras offer, like a hinged film back (the whole thing comes off) and a film advance lever (uses a wind knob). Still, it feels good in the hand, the rangefinder/viewfinder is plenty usable and it peforms the basic function of light tight box very well.
Mounted on the FED 2 is an Industar 50, a competent, if slow, standard lens. I didn't "go after" this one, it just sort of followed me home. Works well enough though, and they're super cheap.
Next, headed left, is the Jupiter 8. It's a more modern standard lens, 50mm f2. I don't love 50mm and have no pictures to show from it.
Next in line is the Jupiter 9 (85mm f2). This is a pretty sweet lens. Not super sharp wide open, but good and appropriate for a portrait lens. Nice bokeh. This is the second copy of that lens I had, the first copy was in sad shape and, I think, suffered from inexpert "repairs." This good copy was purchased from a member of the Rangefinder Forum. Used gear from a forum member tends to be a much better bet than a random ebay purchase.
Moving on left, and mounted on a Zorki 6, is a Jupiter 12 (35mm f2.8). It's an awkward little thing to operate, with the aperture controls sort of inside the barrel of the lens instead of outside. The very large back element means it won't mount on some modern Leica Thread Mount cameras without interfering with the shutter. As hot as I was to get ahold of this lens, I'm ashamed to say I haven't actually shot anything with it.
Let's see, only two things left. On top of that Zorki 6, is a 35-135mm zoom finder. It doesn't actually zoom through the entire range, there is some masking involved as well. Even so, I can put one finder on the camera and cove more lenses than I actually have. Very handy.
That leaves the Zorki 6. In my opinion (I won't say humble), the Zorki 6 is the underated, undervalued camera of the FSU world. The Zorki 1 and FED 1 both have the charm of looking very much like the early Leica from which they were copied. Others in the Zorki and FED lines are less attractive than the "1" cameras, but offer this or that modern improvement while managing to miss the mark here and there. Still others, such as the FED 5, manage to be too butt-ugly to overcome any of their dubious technical accomplishments. The Zorki 6 though has some of the positive esthetic qualities of the FED 2 (please ignore the cheap rivited on name plate) as well as the FED 2's nice long rangefinder baseline. On top of those good qualities, the Zorki 6 adds an actual hinged film back, a ratcheting film advance lever, and perhaps the second best viewfinder of all the FSU cameras (behind the Zorki 3).
The only features a Zorki 6 gives up to a modern rangefinder camera are framelines for multiple focal lengths and a meter. Both things that can be done without just fine in many cases. One such case is in using the camera as a second body, to avoid the need to switch lenses or to provide a different type of film ready at hand.
Last year, I took a hike with a Bessa R3A w/21mm lens, loaded with 160VC film. The Zorki 6 came along with a 15mm lens mounted and Ektar slide film loaded. This made for a versitile and light weight kit for a hike in the desert hills.
Was my pursuit of this FSU kit worth the effort? I don't know really. I mean, I've got about $300 in to it and I'd have a tough time putting this much stuff together for less than that. On the other hand, working without a meter and using external finders is quite a challenge...when compared to modern alternatives. On the other, other hand, it sure can be fun to find out how much you can do with how little.
February 06, 2009
February 04, 2009
#1 Autographic Kodak Jr.
I actually do have a list of things I need to do, to get me along the path to my vaguely defined goals. It's tough staying on that path at times though, and when distractions like this come along, it's darn near impossible.
I've seen cameras like this in shops and on ebay many times. I've never really felt the urge to lay out the few bucks they go for and take a chance, but having one dropped in my lap is pretty much impossible to ignore. This one came out of my Mother-In-Law's home. Since it pre-dates her and her deceased husband, I can only speculate that it came from the generation before.
As you can see from the name plate, it's a #1 Autographic Kodak Jr. Cameras of this general type were built from 1914 to 1927 (approx). As near as I can tell, this particular model was built in 1914 only. That makes it about 95 years old!
Condition is really very good. Sure, the leather is a little rough around the edges, but the bellows are soft and seem light tight and the shutter and aperture are working perfectly. That's pretty amazing for a camera that likely hasn't seen the light of day for 50 years or more. Kodak sure built these babies well.
The camera was built to take A120 film. What is "A"120 film you ask? Well, that "A" ties in to the "Autographic" name. Apparently the film had a carbon paper backing that allowed the user to write on the negative after a picture was taken. There's a little narrow rectangular door on the back of the camera that gave access to the back of the negative. The user would take the shot, open the door, and use a supplied stylus to make a quick note, "Aunt Sally by the Seaside," or something to that effect. Once the note was made, you simply left the door open for a short time to allow that portion of the negative to be exposed from behind. The note made in carbon would naturally block the light. As a result, the note was transfered to the negative.
Very clever. Of course, no one has made film anything like that for maybe 60 or 70 years now. The good news is that, other than the carbon paper bit, A120 film is simply 120 film. I've got a fridge full of that!
So, what we have here is a nearly 100 year old shooter that takes readily available film. The camera has one minor issue that has to be addressed. The red window (used for viewing the numbers on the film's paper backing) has come loose. A couple of drops of glue will put that right and I'll load her up to see what she can do.
February 03, 2009
Test Shots
Ok, let's be honest. If these shots were brilliant, I wouldn't be calling them "Test Shots." I'd be waxing poetic (to the best of my limited abilities) over the qualities of the film and camera. But, fact is, these are pretty much quick crap I shot to determine how this particular camera would perform.
The camera is an old Kodak Brownie Hawkeye Flash. I bought a couple of these for very little money as "toy cameras." They've been tons of fun and I'm sure I'll get some good images out of them when the opportunity presents itself. In the mean time though, I'm limited to sitting the kid down in the front yard and shooting a roll from various distances to determine exactly how far away I have to be for a decently sharp image.
For these shots, I added the Kodak #13 close-up attachment I was lucky enough to find for a few bucks on ebay. As always, my younger (more patient) son was glad to help. Ok, I think he got some Wii time for his trouble...still I appreciate his efforts.
First shot from 4 feet. This looks to be about as sharp as it gets.
Next shot from 5.5 feet. You can see that we've lost a bit.
Of course, I could have just looked this up at the Brownie Camera page. Heck, the .pdf of the manual says between 3 and 4.5 feet for the Hawkeye with the #13 attachment. So, all I've really done here is burn a roll of film to verify what Kodak could have told me 50 years ago. Of course, may way is more fun.
I have 2 of these little wonder cameras (often available on ebay for a buck or two plus shipping). I've flipped the lens on the other one. That gets you a little closer focus and produces a pretty interesting effect on everything no centered in the frame. I'll shoot a test roll on that one soon...maybe even with the #13 attached. Close up and flipped. Should be interesting.
Cyanotypes
- My cyanotypes are hand made contact prints using digital negatives. I print on hot pressed water color paper. I love the process. Still working on getting these in order for sales.
Pinhole Images
- Lensless photography, what a concept. Pinhole images will generally be less sharp and often show movement blur because of the necessarily long exposure times. These characteristics can be put to good use in creating images of unique character.
