Instant Box Camera Project

Joe VanCleave · Mar 24, 2015

A final update for today. I used a salvaged cabinet shelf as a support base atop the Bruneau's Pneumatic Tripod. Note the two tripod bushings; the tripod head has three such fittings available.

P1090944a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

Here's the underside of the support base, showing the tripod head and mounting hardware.

P1090945a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

I did a series of tests today under my back porch. Note the addition of the plate around the arm sleeve, that secures its mounting rings.

P1090943a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

My initial tests showed some fogging or flare along one side. After a few tests I determined it was caused by bright light from off-axis flaring inside the old Kodak Ektar lens. I added a makeshift lens hood and the problem was resolved. However, the aluminum focus rods were left unpainted, and they reflect too much light. I'll need to paint them flat black, while ensuring the paint doesn't interfere with their motion.

Here's the final test image for today. F/22 at 2 seconds, developed for 3 minutes, with red LED-illuminated inspection via the viewing port. No fogging. Next, I'll need to repeat these tests in bright sun.

Flower003a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

~Joe

bergytone · Mar 25, 2015

This is amazing, Joe. I'm still a newbie to paper negatives, so I learn something with every post of yours. You are an inspiration to all of us do it yourselfers. I am amazed at the tonality of your negatives too. Looking at the trays in your box makes me start to think how this could be somewhat automated, with something like a conveyor system, dunking them into a triple tank one stage at a time. If the tank was clear, maybe you could see the print as it develops to keep an eye one development. I'm not trying to redesign your system, I'm just thinking out loud. I visualize the thing like a giant polaroid one step, where the negative eventually rolls out the back of camera!
Keep up the awesome work, some day i know ill make one of these. I have had great success with my paper neg enlarger, an update on that soon. Ive been busy restoring an Omega D2 i picked up on craigslist....

Joe VanCleave · Mar 25, 2015

@Bergytone: Your idea reminds me of how those photo booths operate. I had the chance to see the insides of one, a few years ago in Flagstaff, Az. They use a carousel of chemical pots, with the paper on a motorized arm. The arm dips the paper into a pot for a programmed time, then pulls it out, the carousel turns to the next pot, and it repeats. They were doing reversal processing, so there was more than just three standard chemicals.

What I admire about these traditional instant box cameras is that everything is hand-processed. It felt like I was cheating when I installed a battery-powered LED system for inspecting the paper as it was developing.

I would encourage you, if you have a project idea, to take it and run with it.

~Joe

blindpig · Mar 25, 2015

Joe you might try using an aluminum blacking solution available at a sporting goods store in the gunsmithing/repair section. It's used for touching up scratched parts. The type I've used is a wipe on,wipe off type stuff and adds very little to the thickness of the aluminum if any and won't scrape off like paint might.
Just a thought.

ciniframe · Mar 25, 2015

I think it would be neat to have vertical processing tanks for this application. That should take up a very small footprint in the box. Trouble is I don't have any idea how to build such a a tank system or what you could could buy to use as a vertical tank.

Joe VanCleave · Mar 25, 2015

@Ciniframe: There were commercial versions of these cameras made almost a century ago, for itinerant photographers, that used vertical tanks. They looked like sheet metal construction, suspended below the floor of the box. Some also had paper safes configured similarly.

For building modern versions of such tanks, you could poly-weld some plastic together, but a poly-welding rig isn't inexpensive. It'd be far cheaper to solder together some sheet brass or galvanized steel, but then would have to figure out some chemical-proof coating. Or line the inside of each tank with an over-sized plastic baggie. Hmm, that's an idea. Each baggie would be taller than the tank, could zip-lock closed for transport, with liquid inside. Unzip each baggie, then fold down the top around the mouth of the metal tank. Might work. I'm thinking out loud here as I'm typing.

~Joe

Edit:
Here's an image of such a camera, found online:
Dead Link Removed

removed account4 · Mar 25, 2015

hi joe

that's a mandelette street photographer's camera. they were ferrotype cameras. (direct positive)
your camera ( and the afghan camera &c ) are a 2 step camera, you make the negative, and then a positive print.
i'm working on a reversal developer using coffee.
when i get it figured out i'll let you know, and you can turn your camera into a ferrotype camera too

ciniframe · Mar 26, 2015

I wonder if one could glue together 1/4 in. thick plexiglass (or am I thinking of clear acrylic) to form slot tanks? Of course the last time I priced a 4X4 ft. sheet of 1/4in. thick clear plastic the price took my breath away. And there would be extra expense to have the shop cut the pieces to correct size.

darkosaric · Mar 26, 2015

jnanian said:
i'm working on a reversal developer using coffee.

This sounds interesting for all of us ... reversal developer for traditional paper and films?

pdeeh · Mar 26, 2015

It would be nice... but reversal is a process rather than the property of a developer.

removed account4 · Mar 26, 2015

darkosaric said:
This sounds interesting for all of us ... reversal developer for traditional paper and films?

hi darko

you'd have to coat your own black paper or metal, or sheet of black film but ... maybe

pdeeh said:
It would be nice... but reversal is a process rather than the property of a developer.

hi pdeeh,

yes, and no

yes there is a reversal process. like to turn color images to slides -- or a developer, bleach, lights on, redevelop and fix sort of thing
but no ... the ferrotypes ( silver gelatin tintypes and paper tintypes / post cards &c ) from the beginning of the 1900s
used a developer that reversed the image or gave the look of a reversed image, through development, some were quite toxic others more benign
... but they were reversal-developers ( ferrotype developers ), and by now, forgotten secret formulas.

rockland colloid sells one in their tintype kits ...

pdeeh · Mar 26, 2015

yes but has it got a long toe?

removed account4 · Mar 26, 2015

pdeeh said:
yes but has it got a long toe?

i'm not sure what its feet are like ..

pdeeh · Mar 26, 2015

Joe VanCleave · Mar 31, 2015

A portrait I made yesterday under bright shade, f/32 for 3 seconds. She did a good job of remaining stationary.

~Joe

Andi001a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

Joe VanCleave · Mar 31, 2015

And later, a typewriter portrait (of an SCM Galaxy 12, for those of you typewriter fans).

Note the fogging at the bottom of the image, I've narrowed down the cause to light leaks in my paper safe. Today I fashioned a new safe from different materials with a different design, I'll post results with it soon.

Also note the light flare near the right side of the typewriter's platen, I think that's from lens flare coming from the bright light behind the courtyard wall window seen in the upper right. A lens hood might be the fix. Or possibly use my more modern coated LF lens.

~Joe

SCM_G12001a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

Joe VanCleave · Mar 31, 2015

Here's this morning's test after the redesigned paper safe box. Exposure: f/32 @ 4 seconds, grade 2 paper negative.

The light crescent-shaped mark in lower right is a handling mark, my fingers may have had chemicals on them. No fogging, the new paper safe seems to work fine, even after the side of the box being opened in direct sun for a minute.

~Joe

Front_Porch_Chair001a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

removed account4 · Mar 31, 2015

Joe VanCleave said:
And later, a typewriter portrait (of an SCM Galaxy 12, for those of you typewriter fans).

Note the fogging at the bottom of the image, I've narrowed down the cause to light leaks in my paper safe. Today I fashioned a new safe from different materials with a different design, I'll post results with it soon.

Also note the light flare near the right side of the typewriter's platen, I think that's from lens flare coming from the bright light behind the courtyard wall window seen in the upper right. A lens hood might be the fix. Or possibly use my more modern coated LF lens.

~Joe

SCM_G12001a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

love this joe !

but i am surprised you didn't type this post ON the scm galaxy 12 and upload that page
sorry i can't remember what that is called

Joe VanCleave · Mar 31, 2015

Ha! Actually, that's called typecasting and I do it on my blog.

~Joe

removed account4 · Mar 31, 2015

Joe VanCleave said:
Ha! Actually, that's called typecasting and I do it on my blog.

~Joe

EXACTLY ! ( couldn't remember the name -- thanks )

that's why i said it --- >> great stuff in your blog !

thanks

john

( wishing i still had my underwood (not-so) noiseless

Joe VanCleave · Apr 1, 2015

I took the Instant Box Camera out for a field trip today, first into my backyard and then further afield, to several city parks. Despite the wind, dust, pollen and whatnot floating about the spring breeze, the negatives came out fine. No light leaks, no lens flare.

Up to now, I've been making test images in bright shade, but today's images were all made in bright sun. My lens stops down only to f/32, and my light meter recommended about 1/2 second exposures on most of these, so I did 1 second exposures, about as fast as I can manage while still being fairly accurate. The results are not too bad for being over-exposed, there's still some sky detail faintly visible on several of these.

These first two are from my backyard:

Trellis001a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

Tree&Shed001a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

While these next three are at or near city parks:

Park&Tree001a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

House001a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

Altura_Park001a by jvcabacus, on Flickr

bergytone · Apr 1, 2015

Joe you are the master of paper negatives. Are these scans of the negative, or did you make positives and scan the prints? Also, are these all done with the arista EDU grade 2 pre flashed? Any filtering?
Just trying to study your work so i can save time when i get my 5x7 sliding box built up....one of many projects rolling around in my head.

Joe VanCleave · Apr 2, 2015

These are scans, I have not yet begun optical printing in-camera.

These are Arista EDU RC grade 2, no filtering and no pre-flashing. I'll start pre-flashing once all the bugs are worked out, but for now I wanted to reduce the number of variables.

I'm using Tetanol Centrobrom-S low contrast paper developer, diluted 1+10, and it seems to work fine.

Good luck on your project, please post your results here.

~Joe

spacer · Apr 2, 2015

Did someone say vertical tanks?
http://www.amazon.com/Click-Clack-E...315?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1428025319&sr=1-315

May not be perfect, but a bit more searching may turn up better.

Joe VanCleave · Apr 3, 2015

@Spacer: Those tanks might indeed work, although they'd require quite a big volume, compared to the 165ml I use in my small trays. I'm still working through how to make thin vertical tanks. One idea is to fashion non-liquid-tight tanks, made from thin model plywood or even galvanized steel, soldered together, then line them with plastic baggies (folded over the top of the tank, waste bin style) to make them liquid-tight.

~Joe

Instant Box Camera Project

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