Plastic Panorama

Deon · Apr 6, 2019

I have been shooting with a modified Kodak "Fun Saver Panoramic 35" disposable camera since 1992. I reload the camera in the darkroom or in the field with a changing tent as the 35mm film needs to be pulled from the cassette onto the take-up reel. So, when you advance the film it's being pulled back into the cassette. I shoot Kodak Tri-X film most of the time. I like how the old school grain paired with the cameras two element 25mm f=12 plastic lens looks. I have also shoot some out dated C-41 film with mixed results. Check out my website, direct link to my plastic panorama images as well as the three portfolios below this one.

https://www.deonreynolds.com/plasticpanorama

Best,

Deon

AgX · Apr 6, 2019

One should add that the photographs by this camera are technically correctly designated "panoramic", hower the term "35" is ambiguous at least as the film is not really exploited with an image size of 12x36mm.

But even with that lens and the smaller format that camera can take great pictures...

Thank You. And welcome to Apug!

Deon · Apr 6, 2019

"Roper" 9x22 feet, created from a very small Tri-X negative and a Fun Saver Panoramic throwaway camera. I scanned the negative and printed this image myself. Epson 7890 on 20Lb archival bond paper, we used wheat paste techniques for installation, only we used industrial wall paper glue. It's been up for one year now and looks as good as the day it went up.

Deon

AgX · Apr 6, 2019

What do you understand by wheat paste technique? I think of brushing both, underground and later the stuck print with glue. At least that is the pasting technique applied by professional poster stickers over here.

Deon · Apr 6, 2019

AgX said:
What do you understand by wheat paste technique? I think of brushing both, underground and later the stuck print with glue. At least that is the pasting technique applied by professional poster stickers over here.

Exactly how we do it! Here is a time-lapse video of us installing the "Roper" mural. The time-lapse spanned about an hour.

Deon · Apr 6, 2019

This is what the camera looked like when you purchased it at the grocery store checkout.

Deon · Apr 6, 2019

This is what it looks like after I reload it. Note the tape, this almost eliminates light leaks...

Deon · Apr 6, 2019

Ready to be reloaded with film. Note the yellow gel filter taped into the mask.

Deon · Apr 6, 2019

The mask in the above image was modified with a file to create an organic rebate edge. This is a page of negatives from the camera. I shoot every other image to keep the frames apart. This facilitates an easier experience with negative carriers or scan beds. I load TX-135-36 and get 15 to 18 images per roll.

MattKing · Apr 6, 2019

I'm impressed!

Truzi · Apr 6, 2019

The camera design was a fairly clever idea. The mask exposes a strip on the negative such that the image would be just the right height (about 4") when enlarged to print on the standard roll of 4x6 paper. This made it easy for minilabs to print panoramic photos, they didn't need to load a different paper magazine... just let it go longer before the cut.

I did something similar in my undergrad with a similar single-use camera. Except I removed the mask so I could have very wide-angle photos. It does give distortion at the edges, but it was fun. The one I used tended to lose the gears for the advance/frame counter when it was pulled apart, and that was always a pain to correctly re-assemble in a dark closet.
My mother found a cheap "re-usable" point-and-shoot panorama that I removed the mask from as well; it's much easier than the single-use camera, but not as much fun.

mshchem · Apr 6, 2019

Deon said:
The mask in the above image was modified with a file to create an organic rebate edge. This is a page of negatives from the camera. I shoot every other image to keep the frames apart. This facilitates an easier experience with negative carriers or scan beds. I load TX-135-36 and get 15 to 18 images per roll.View attachment 220931

I remember these. I wrote a letter to Kodak telling them how great I thought these were. I asked if they would make a reloadable version. I got some standard reply. If I remember the film plane is curved ??
I remember the prints I got back were quite nice.
Plastic Super Angulon XL

GREAT IMAGES !

mshchem · Apr 7, 2019

Deon said:
This is what the camera looked like when you purchased it at the grocery store checkout.View attachment 220928

The Lens hood looks like it should be on a Fuji GX617

AgX · Apr 7, 2019

mshchem said:
I asked if they would make a reloadable version.
Super Angulon XL

You could transplant the lens to a better body of a finder camera.

awty · Apr 7, 2019

What a great camera and awesome pictures you have made with her.

Cholentpot · Apr 7, 2019

Woah.

I've been doing this for a while but never got results even close to yours. I'm amazed!

I put a mask in an Argus C3 but I found the lens was not wide enough to get the results I'd like. And finding a 35mm or wider lens for the C3 was futile.

Before the C3 I used a Spirit SP Panorama plastic fantastic but I was never happy with the lens.

From what I've read, Kodak makes the best plastic lenses by far and away. I guess I should start looking for that funsaver...

ProgramPlus · Apr 8, 2019

Deon, I am really impressed with those photos. I'm intrigued by your use of the disposable camera. Is there something about this camera which which makes it better than the legions of IQ Zoom type 35mms point and shoot cameras with a "panoramic" mode?

AgX · Apr 8, 2019

One point is that it uses an ultra wide-angle lens, whereas most cameras that have a "panoramic" feature just enlarge the aspect ratio by masking a rather long focal length lens.

Jerevan · Apr 8, 2019

Just goes to show that you can do good things with next to nothing, too. Love that billboard. Inspiring stuff!

The "Rogue Wheat Paste Murals" project on your homepage is also a very beautiful and haunting.

Jerevan · Apr 8, 2019

AgX said:
One point is that it uses an ultra wide-angle lens, whereas most cameras that have a "panoramic" feature just enlarge the aspect ratio by masking a rather long focal length lens.

Good point. I wonder if 28 mm still would be too much "tele"? The cheapo plastic superwides seems to hover around 22 mm. I really enjoy the panorama view, and being able to "compose" in the viewfinder makes a real difference to me versus cropping afterwards.

Cholentpot · Apr 8, 2019

Jerevan said:
Good point. I wonder if 28 mm still would be too much "tele"? The cheapo plastic superwides seems to hover around 22 mm. I really enjoy the panorama view, and being able to "compose" in the viewfinder makes a real difference to me versus cropping afterwards.

28 is not wide enough.

I masked up a cheap SLR and mounted a 28mm 2.8 lens on it. It was not nearly wide enough. I think I masked over the lens with take so I can have a viewfinder panoramic view. I need to see it in the viewfinder otherwise it's no fun to use.

blockend · Apr 8, 2019

A very interesting project. 22 ft from a chopped down 35mm negative is most impressive. Good image too.

Deon · Apr 9, 2019

I have tried several different cameras to create the panoramic image. Most are total crap. But this camera the "Black Slim Devil", "Eximus Wide & Slim" or "Vivitar Wide & Slim" (all the same camera). It has a 22mm plastic lens of similar quality to the Kodak disposable. To make it panoramic I glued in the mask from a Kodak panoramic into the wide & slim.

Deon · Apr 9, 2019

Years ago (before digital) I forgot to bring along a very expensive Nikon Point & Shoot camera that we were using to photograph signage etc to help me captioning images created with medium and large formate cameras (book project). We purchased a Kodak single use camera to fill in for that expedition. that $10.00 disposable camera did a much better job than the $300.00 Nikon. We sold the Nikon shortly. This started my fascination with disposables...

AgX · Apr 9, 2019

But why do you insert a mask in the film chamber? That only makes sense if printing is done at a mediocre lab. Or if one produces so many photiographs that one no longer can keep up with what was intended to be panoramic or not.
More important is masking or otherwise indicating the aspect ratio in the finder.

Plastic Panorama

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