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Troubleshooting: Holga 120N

mikayla31

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Jan 29, 2021
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Texas
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(I am aware that I'm trying to troubleshoot a $30 plastic toy camera, lol.)

I shot a roll with my Holga, took it to the lab, they emailed a couple days later to say that there was nothing on the roll at all-- the film was that whiteish gray, as if it had never been exposed. I know for a fact that I had the lens cap off while I was shooting, and the film appeared to be advancing properly (i.e. the numbers were showing up in the little window), so what the hell went wrong? I am not mechanical in the slightest.
 
The shutter is broke. Did the camera ever work? It shouldn't be too hard to fix the shutter once you get the lens open. Banging the camera on the counter may fix it if there is something stuck in the mechanism.
 
Nicholas Lindan said:
The shutter is broke. Did the camera ever work? It shouldn't be too hard to fix the shutter once you get the lens open. Banging the camera on the counter may fix it if there is something stuck in the mechanism.
Click to expand...
It's worked beautifully for about 3 years; never had a single issue with it. Thank you for the advice!
 
Remove the back of the camera, point the lens towards something bright, and click the shutter: Do you see a flash of light through the back of the lens?

Oh by the way if you need to disassemble the camera, best not to forcibly unscrew the lens: IIRC, there's a small screw on the reverse side of the lens which acts as a stop. Be on the lookout for small loose parts, particularly springs which may have become dislodged. You may need to do some experimenting to figure out how to put it back together correctly, but there's really very little to these cameras.
 
Thank you so much for the insight! I've always wanted to disassemble one just to learn the mechanics of it. To your question: I had actually tried this after the exchange with the lab, and I could definitely see light. I can only guess that maybe tossing the camera in my bag after removing the roll of film "fixed" it.
 
The first film I put through my 120N came out extremely overexposed and blurry, like I shot everything on bulb. It wasn't in bulb mode. The shutter stuck open when tripped, and then slowly closed. A dab of oil in the shutter mechanism fixed the problem. It's possible your shutter isn't firing.
 
Thank you sir! It was a pleasure looking through your photo archive on here by the way. Gorgeous photos.
 
One of my Holgas got dropped and the shutter went wonky after that. It doesn't take much. You can take the front shutter and lens assembly off by unscrewing the tiny screws from the back/inside - I know there's a video out there somewhere, but I can't find it right now.

FWIW, I threw out the lens caps for mine.
 
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