When would you use a Holga instead of a real camera?

Markok765 · Mar 15, 2008

Title says it all.

Gay Larson · Mar 15, 2008

Just for fun, Marko anytime.

rkmiec · Mar 15, 2008

uh since when is a holga not a real camera. ;0
actually i use it when it fits the vision i have for a shot.also sometime as a snapshot camera.
i have also adapted a holga lens for my wista 4x5,now it is a real camera.

mabman · Mar 15, 2008

When it does what you want it to

Some subject matter lends itself well to the unique blurry/wavy look, and also in brighter light the vignetting on the corners of the frame become more apparent.

Where and what exactly that's good for is up to you. I admit I haven't yet found the "perfect" subject, but I'm trying to use it more often to find that out for myself.

jgcull · Mar 15, 2008

Take a look at Jersey Vic's holga work. Beautiful stuff! It will make you ask the same question rkmiec did. It's the same thought I had (though I know what you mean).

http://www.vmilin.com/

DylanCraver · Mar 16, 2008

Whenever I feel like it.
Which is more often than I'd like.

removed account4 · Mar 16, 2008

holgas are as real as a camera gets !
just don't think the fstop changes
when you go from sunny to cloudy

Dan Williams · Mar 16, 2008

jnanian said:
holgas are as real as a camera gets !
just don't think the fstop changes
when you go from sunny to cloudy

John, That is really good. It is in the class with Vic's signature line "Holga, if it were any more analog you would need a chisel"

Dan

Erik Hartmann · Mar 16, 2008

NO not a Holga.... But a DIANA.... one of the old ones. That is a real camera. Use it with a 400 iso film......

mooseontheloose · Mar 16, 2008

I've recently discovered that my Holga is great for exploring familiar subjects in a new way.

I was getting in a bit of rut photographically so I pulled out my Holga to see what it was capable of and it's been a pleasant surprise. Old subjects have been made new again, and it's inspired my non-Holga photography as well. I've been using the black and white filters you can get for Holgas and using them has added another dimension to the unpredictability of the images. Not always for the better, but in many cases I've had some nice surprises (so much so that I think I will submit them for gallery presentation at our end of year show). In exploring photographic subjects that I'm familiar with I've discovered (and am still learning) where the Holga really shines, and where my 'other' cameras might be more appropriate.

KWhitmore · Mar 16, 2008

In the winter I'll grab it and take it out on the coldest of days...the plastic doesn't make my hands and fingers freeze. That and it weighs nothing all...

brian steinberger · Mar 16, 2008

I find the holga to be a tool to use when a "distorted" or "dreamy" look seems suitable. I find it very useful for old things, especially buildings. Industrial subjects work great too. When printing, using heavy sepia toning or lith printing can result in beautiful prints. Alot of times I'll throw my holga in my bag along with my Mamiya 6 (real camera) and Bronica RF645 (also real camera... haha) and then I have a nice 3 medium format camera system all in one bag. Adding the holga doesn't add any weight either! Take it along more often and you'll find subjects that just scream HOLGA!

pauliej · Mar 16, 2008

Let's see, if I were going to Pamplona to take some pics of the bull running carnival, should I take my $20 Holga, or a very expensive (fill in your choice) HassleBlad, Rollei, Leica, or some other giga-buck camera/system? Well, this choice is easy for me, as I dont have any of the mentioned high dollar cams, but I DO have a couple of Holgas. I dont plan on visiting Pamplona any time soon either, but if I were, I am ready camera-wise. It never hurts to have a genuine Optical Lens at your disposal, I always say. I hope this helps someone.

paulie

rkmiec · Mar 16, 2008

better bring rubber bands for the film back when one of those bulls sends you flying thru the air or you need to defend yourself.

Silverhead · Mar 17, 2008

brian steinberger said:
I find the holga to be a tool to use when a "distorted" or "dreamy" look seems suitable. I find it very useful for old things, especially buildings. Industrial subjects work great too. When printing, using heavy sepia toning or lith printing can result in beautiful prints.

Amen to all of that, as I've done pretty much everything you've described and agree with you completely. I've discovered many ways that both the Holga and the Diana really take a lot of the conventions of "normal" photography and just throw them out the window. I've recently been shooting in Santa Monica at the Arlington West exhibition that's erected every Sunday on the beach, and my Holga has been producing images in a context that digital just cannot do...not without hours of work in Photoshop, anyway.

One of the things that plastic cameras can do for the photographer is relieve them of the burdens that too much technology can bring about. I personally feel that a weight has been lifted from my shoulders whenever I put my DSLR down and pick up one of my beloved little plastic hunks of junk, and it has nothing to do with how much the cameras physically weigh.

Holgas can also produce some really great portraits, under the right circumstances. About a year ago, I did a shoot for a local band here in L.A. I shot digital, color film (crossed), and B&W Holga...and they went absolutely bonkers over the Holga material. Go figure.

Considering that plastic cameras can do all of this stuff and more, I think the moniker of "real camera" applies just fine to these little buggers, thank you very much.

ronobvious · Mar 17, 2008

Define 'real' camera....

Markok765 said:
Title says it all.

Tell some pinholers they aren't using a real camera.
camera = dark box w/ a lens

Granted, toy cameras may fail the definition at the point of 'dark box', but they're close enough.

mark · Mar 17, 2008

Considering all a thing needs to be a real camera is to be a light tight box......Well hell........Ummmmm.......Damn, that crosses the Holga off the real camera list.

Marko, shoot what you want, when you want. It is that simple. Whatever camera you have at the time is the right camera for the job. SO the answer is..(Drum roll please)...If a Holga is what you got at the moment you want to take a shot, then it is the right camera for the job. If you are skipping shots because of the camera you have at the time, then you need to either rethink why you carry that camera at all or change your mindset.

Mike Kennedy · Mar 17, 2008

I got some strange effects by smearing a wee bit of Vaseline on a UV filter.
Used an old Nikon Fm & 50mm lens. Fun for a while.

pentaxuser · Mar 17, 2008

jgcull said:
Take a look at Jersey Vic's holga work. Beautiful stuff! It will make you ask the same question rkmiec did. It's the same thought I had (though I know what you mean).

http://www.vmilin.com/

I like the bit at the end when Jersey Vic says: A Holga, if it was any more analogue, you'd need a chisel. I smile every time I read it. If that's New Jersey humour then it carries across the Atlantic perfectly.

pentaxuser

brian steinberger · Mar 17, 2008

Check out Dead Link Removed. Go to the galleries and you'll be able to see many holga images. There are also many helpful articles.

smiling gecko · Apr 5, 2008

great thread!!

my diana and holga had languished as "wall art" at home for the past few years until recently.

i've started adding my diana and my less light-tight holga to my camera bag lately...they add precious little weight and bulk...and they offer an alternative way of creating images...each have their own "signature" and i like to use them to get another take on whatever has caught my eye.

for me they are as real as my mamiya6 and rolleiflex 6002. now, i just have to quit being too lazy/in a hurry/distracted/etc to use them.

smiling gecko · Apr 5, 2008

great thread!!

my diana and holga had languished as "wall art" at home for the past few years until recently.

i've started adding my diana and my less light-tight holga to my camera bag lately...they add precious little weight and bulk...and they offer an alternative way of creating images...each have their own "signature" and i like to use them to get another take on whatever has caught my eye.

for me they are as real as my mamiya6 and rolleiflex 6002. now, i just have to quit being too lazy/in a hurry/distracted/etc to use them.

Markok765 · Apr 6, 2008

Double post?

nsurit · Apr 6, 2008

I guess when I want to. I'm leaving on week trip to West Texas in the morning and have packed my camera from the other side. In addition to that I packed a Zero Image 2000, an Agfa Clack and my Diana. I'll be moving soon and foolishly put the Holga in storage which is how I ended up with one of the new Diana F cameras. The back up body for my other side camera is staying home. Figure if it dies, I'll just have to have fun with my other cameras. Bill Barber

Silverhead · Apr 7, 2008

Holga: a very real camera that produces very unreal images. God bless bad Chinese quality control.

When would you use a Holga instead of a real camera?

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