Whilst have a cup of tea in a cafe in Chichester on Saturday I noticed a chap on the opposite side of the road carefully taking photos with of all things a box camera. When I went across for a brief chat he produced another different one from a carrier bag. Must say having a friend who collects box cameras it gladdened my heart to see someone actually using one. Long may he continue to enjoy them.
I regularly use my film cameras, but the only time I've ever been asked "why???" was when using my No. 2 Box Brownie. Good to hear there are other users out there - trust you told him about the relic challenge?
Third box camera user popping in - just run a roll through a Zeiss-Ikon Baby Box Tengor, but the enlarger will only print at grade 0 so no prints until that's fixed... I llove my box cameras - after a day wrestling with the G10, DPP and Photoshop, it's so refreshing to go back to no tech. (Zou - big announcement coming soon) Adrian
Couple of weeks ago,the Edinburgh Botanical Gardens ran an open day, supplying pinhole cameras [taking Ilford 7x5 multigrade paper.Once developed, you could make a contact print, all in the darkroom they set up.] I also used my Linhof Technika 5x4 with the cut down 7x5 paper......fantastic fun. Note for users of this technique :- multigrade resin coated paper is about 8 ISO.
What sort of exposure times did you find were needed with the Linhof? I'm curious as I've a No 3 Kodak I plan to try out during the Relic Challenge, and am interested in the practicalities - especially as it will be a case of shooting within trotting distance of the darkroom. This does depend on me fixing the pinholes in the bellows first... still, I'll be in much worse shape should I get to 100+ so I can't complain! Adrian
For me (@ f138) 90 secs to 2 minutes on a typical Edinburgh day. I rarely use paper negs as without a preflash routine the contrast is too much for pinhole use.
based my exposures around 1/15th @ f8 [no bright sunshine, just soft shadows] BTW The chap running this event used a wheelie-bin as a pinhole camera...producing a paper neg at least 2ft x 3ft.
The darkroom I use has a lot of random boxes in it that once were pinhole cameras. Some are quite large, but none as big as the wheelie bin. I'm impressed by that, but I seem to recall that someone in California used an aircraft hangar as a pinhole camera didn't they? Now that's really impressive! Somewhere I have all the PDFs for printing my own Dirkon (http://www.pinhole.cz/en/pinholecameras/dirkon_01.html) One day I must actually make the thing... Adrian (unfortunately the next lot of pinholes I have to sort are in the bellows of my c1905 Kodak, and I really must fix them before the Relic Challenge)
Mike, As I've not got round to an official announcement yet - probably this weekend - the thread is here: http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?96275-The-Relic-Challenge-is-go! Precis - over the dates specified (a long fortnight), take out something older than you'd usually use - the older the better - and use it! There'll be a special thread in the Exhibition Lounge, and AP will run a special Reader's Spotlight for it. Go on your own, meet up with friends, make art, make snapshots, do what you will, but have fun with an old camera and show us the results and the camera. Couldn't be easier! He says, wondering which of the 70-odd cameras to use himself... Adrian
Did we agree on.results straight out of the camera..[ after the negs have been scanned. ie no photoshopping etc. ] ?
Erm... what about no camera? If the weather's good, I was thinking of using some ancient Ilford MG to make sun prints.
Actually, Kenny, I think you might be the first person to mention it. Personally I'm more likely to be printing wet, so is it in the spirit to say "as shot" when I fully intend to dodge/burn/fiddle with contrast settings to get what I want in the darkroom? My intention was for it to be fun, so I'd rather not stop people playing if they'd like - though I'd hope they say that they've tinkered. Taxor - I want to see those! Sounds great! It also fits perfectly into the idea of fun with old technology. Adrian
