Too much lens/film/developer testing

Theo Sulphate · Nov 20, 2015

DannL. said:
Nothing quite a fancy as the Zero Image . . . .

http://www.brownie-camera.com/27.shtml

it also includes a video there, at the end of the page.

When I was a kid, a lady I knew had one of those; it was the most impressive camera I'd ever seen. She kept it safely in its box and only took it out for Very Special Occasions.

Have fun! I love 127 film and the pleasure of winding the film while looking for the next exposure number to come up in the little red window. An experience from days gone by.

blockend · Nov 21, 2015

Theo Sulphate said:
I love 127 film and the pleasure of winding the film while looking for the next exposure number to come up in the little red window. An experience from days gone by.

Something I do regularly on my three 120 folders. It's great that film manufacturers still offer a numbering facility that hasn't been needed on new* cameras for almost fifty years.

*toy cameras not included.

removed account4 · Nov 21, 2015

DannL. said:
21 days ago I started using exclusively a 6x6 camera that has no focus adjustment, no shutter speed adjustment, no aperture adjustment, and no light meter. It's interesting how quickly you can adjust to a new environment. I have shot more film in the past 3 weeks, than in all of the previous year. Very interesting. I think I've developed an allergy to sharp photographs.

+ 1 !

i developed this sickness 2 ...
it's very freeing to only push a button ...
so freeing that sometimes I use " normal cameras ... " the same way
I leave the lens at a fixed focus, leave the aperture at about 4
and the shutter at about 30

RalphLambrecht · Nov 21, 2015

darkosaric said:
So,

I bought myself old LTM Leica from 1930's, with elmar old old 5cm f3,5. Lens has cleaning marks, some dust inside, and 3-4 air bubbles. I took the grainiest and cheapest film (Fomapan 400), cheapest developer (APH09 1+50), no thermometer, no light meter... and (for me at least) results are looking just fine (attached scans from 10$ scanner - prints can look only better).

What I want to say is: just enjoy - every prime lens and every film and every developer is good .

depends who's hands you put them into

blockend · Nov 21, 2015

jnanian said:
so freeing that sometimes I use " normal cameras ... " the same way

Some of the world's greatest photographs have been taken with a zone focused, pre-set exposure camera.

ColColt · Nov 21, 2015

I still have an old Imperial and Brownie Hawkeye camera...with the flash attachment! Everything still works, including the flash. I had some ole flash bulbs and tried it a few years back. I think it used 620 film. I had forgotten just what a great flash they created...blinding.

DannL. · Nov 21, 2015

That's her. She's beautiful. I move up to the Hawkeye from the RZ67 and P67, believe it or not. In the process I payed off some outstanding debts. That was cool. The difference in camera weight was noticeable. I suppose some folks would not want to re-roll film onto 620 spools, but I find that easy. It only takes about 60 seconds per roll. Got my batch of AG-1B bulbs yesterday and fired one off. I hadn't burned any flash bulbs in over 40 years. That sure brought back some fond memories.

ColColt said:
I still have an old Imperial and Brownie Hawkeye camera...with the flash attachment! Everything still works, including the flash. I had some ole flash bulbs and tried it a few years back. I think it used 620 film. I had forgotten just what a great flash they created...blinding.

ColColt · Nov 21, 2015

It's been a while but I shot a roll some years back and forgot I had several shots left just recently! I don't know how old the film is in the camera but I'd say at least ten years. I may go ahead and shoot the rest and try and develop. I'm not sure what to use for that or even if I'll get anything after all this time.

DannL. · Nov 21, 2015

ColColt said:
It's been a while but I shot a roll some years back and forgot I had several shots left just recently! I don't know how old the film is in the camera but I'd say at least ten years. I may go ahead and shoot the rest and try and develop. I'm not sure what to use for that or even if I'll get anything after all this time.

That sounds like an adventure. I have two of these Hawkeyes now, one old and one newer. And both work fine with Arista.edu Ultra 100 film re-rolled. When I first started I was expecting the exposure to be way off. But, that was never the case, and eventually I realized how close the exposure was to being just right. I just tested the close-up filter which works great. The cloud filter will be tested next.

ColColt · Nov 21, 2015

When I finish that roll I think I'll try HC-110 Dil B for about 6 minutes and "see what develops"

DannL. · Nov 21, 2015

ColColt said:
When I finish that roll I think I'll try HC-110 Dil B for about 6 minutes and "see what develops"

Keep us updated on how that turns out. :munch:

Theo Sulphate · Nov 21, 2015

Advance one frame before tripping the shutter - the current frame may be exposed already.

The best practice is to advance the film immediately after the exposure, but whoever used it last may not have done that.

DannL. · Nov 21, 2015

jnanian said:
+ 1 !

i developed this sickness 2 ...
it's very freeing to only push a button ...
so freeing that sometimes I use " normal cameras ... " the same way
I leave the lens at a fixed focus, leave the aperture at about 4
and the shutter at about 30

I'm just too weak. If I have all those bells & whistles available, I tend to expend all of my attention playing with them. I suppose it's that false hope that if I have the perfect exposure, then somehow it's going to make my final print better. The "sharp image of a fuzzy concept" quote comes to mind. I'm now seeing that a "fuzzy image of a fuzzy concept" actually seems to work . . . somehow.

darkosaric · Nov 21, 2015

Ko.Fe. said:
Well, after using film P&S for years I could tell you what it is much more predictable.

I was looking for a long time to find best camera for me that I will carry in my bag when M3 is too big.
P&S - like Mju were first choice, but auto focus destroyed some very nice photos, so I tried with Minox GL, shutter fail, then some other fixed lens rangefinder - other problems arrised... on the end I find the Barnack with elmar ultimate choice that fits all my need in minimal package. While P&S are predictable in lets say 90% of time, Barnack camera will never stay on my way.

David Lyga · Nov 21, 2015

Mustafa Umut Sarac said:
best made camera ever and worst film made ever , basically no different from murder. I am sorry.

Not quite Mustafa. But, perhaps, in certain circumstances, close.

It does take both intelligence and experience to go without rules. I have often fantasized about freeing myself from a light meter (internal or external) but have the courage to do so only when the shots are not important. Light has a way of fooling the eye. The perception of its luminance level is relative, not, unfortunately, absolute.

Likewise with temperatures. The other day I put one hand in a water bath that was 90F ... then put the OTHER hand in the same water bath. One hand felt cool and the other felt slightly warm! But, the fantasy of doing without, doing with only the naked equipment and letting the camera be the actual eye in my head, is compelling and tempting. - David Lyga

blockend · Nov 21, 2015

David Lyga said:
Light has a way of fooling the eye. The perception of its luminance level is relative, not, unfortunately, absolute.

That's true at dawn and dusk, but I find daylight remarkably consistent. Going from a side of the street in brilliant sunshine to the other in stygian gloom will require adjustment, but it surprises many photographers just how predictable daylight is.

This was brought home to me last year, when I realised five slide films had come to the last day their process paid envelopes were still being honoured. I went out with a Nikkormat (dead meter), took a phone app reading at the beginning and used all five films. Every exposure was within tolerance. By comparison I've shot transparencies with matrix metering and had a much lower hit rate.

As light levels drop exposures can increase dramatically, and fool the eye, but I have no qualms shooting sunny 16 in the day.

DannL. · Nov 21, 2015

David Lyga said:
. . . But, the fantasy of doing without, doing with only the naked equipment and letting the camera be the actual eye in my head, is compelling and tempting. - David Lyga

Call it . . . flying by the seat of your pants.

Here are some simple shots from this week. No metering whatsoever. With exception of the long exposure shot, all where exposed with the same camera setting and film. I wouldn't have expected much difference in the exposures, had I used a camera that was adjustable.

Too much lens/film/developer testing

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