Adventures In Analog http://www.adventuresinanalog.com In order to understand the future you must embrace the past. posterous.com Sat, 19 May 2012 19:08:00 -0700 Analog Project 2012 - May http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/analog-project-2012-may http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/analog-project-2012-may

Photo_2012-01-22_20-04-26 Olympusxa204 Olympusxa205 Olympusxa206 Olympusxa207 Olympusxa209 Olympusxa208 Olympusxa210 Olympusxa214 Olympusxa218 Olympusxa221 Olympusxa222 Olympusxa223 Olympusxa224 Olympusxa226 Olympusxa227 Olympusxa225
See the full gallery on Posterous

Note to followers:

Sorry about being so late posting this video. My 6 year old Windows based laptop finally died, it was my only computer at the time. But that event forced me to finally make the switch to a Mac. I've spent the past 2 weeks configuring my new system, moving files over, buying new hardware, and settling in to the Mac way of doing things.....and it's great. Thanks for your patients.

 

In the month of May my Analog Project 2012 continued with the the Olympus XA. This camera released by Olympus in 1979 is a 35mm rangefinder featuring a 35mm Zuiko lens that shoots at f/2.8, an aperture priority exposure system with aperture that range from f/2.8 to f/22, and shutter speeds ranging from 10sec. to 1/500sec., and an ISO range from 25-800. This camera also features an exposure compensation switch on the bottom that changes the exposure by +0.5 - it's kind of a backlighting option to be used when shooting in the shade. The same switch serves as a battery check, and a self timer. The XA line of olympus cameras were very popular and featured several somewhat similar looking models over the years. The Olympus XA1, XA2, XA3, and XA4 all featured scale focusing and various forms of automatic exposure but the original XA was the only one in the line-up that existed as a true rangefinder. This camera has an all plastic body featuring a sliding clamshell design that also served as a power switch and lens cover - when closed the camera was seriously compact and portable. Folks with fat fingers such as myself might find the XA's focusing lever (located just below the lens) a bit hard to find and operate. It's somewhat recessed but does allow for your fingernail to rest inside a little slot or groove built-in to the little lever - once you find it....everything works great. I also found the shutter release button a bit too flat and went hunting for it too often when holding the camera up to my eye. Like a few other point-n-shoot cameras that I own, it needs to be raised just a little to make locating it without looking much easier. My XA came with an Olympus A11 flash that attaches to the side of the camera with a built-in thumb screw. The flash runs on a single AA battery and puts off a pretty good burst of light when shooting outdoors at night or indoors with low light. It's not great for long range illumination but will get the job done for most lighting needs. I will admit that I only bought this camera because it was a rangefinder but later found that Olympus put plenty of engineering behind this little compact camera as well as outfitting it with an excellent Zuiko lens. The XA is a keeper!

Check out a short video about my XA over on my YouTube Ch.

Also check out my Lomography Home where I have just a bit more to say!

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Fri, 20 Apr 2012 17:08:12 -0700 Rolling In Mini's http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/rolling-in-minis http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/rolling-in-minis

P570

Right on the heels of my awesome flea market finds (the Konica Big Mini HG and the Olympus T-20 flash) comes the Konica U-Mini. Found for under $5, this 35mm pocket point-n-shoot sports a 28mm fixed focus wide angle plastic lens that shoots at either f/6.7 or f/6.8 - I'm not sure which one. It also has two shutter speeds, 1/60sec and 1sec, a DX type auto ISO system with auto selections between 100iso, 200iso, and 400iso, auto film advance and rewind, auto flash with red eye, a tiny little LCD film counter, and a built-in lens cover that doubles as the power switch. This camera is also powered by a CR123 3volt battery which will be shared between my other Konica cameras.

The Konica U-Mini reminds me of the Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim with its all plastic design. Although not as wide as the Vivitar UWS's 22mm lens, I expect this 28mm lens to give me close to the same results. The camera arrived in mint condition with only a bit of dust on the lens surface which I wiped clean immediately. I'll be loading this camera up with a roll of film soon to test its worthiness as a Lomo camera.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Wed, 18 Apr 2012 16:51:03 -0700 Today's Flea Market Results http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/todays-flea-market-results http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/todays-flea-market-results

P534

A single roll of Seattle Film Works 35mm 200iso color film - expired June 1999. No doubt the layers of emulsion on this film has gone bad - how was this film stored? But I know no fear, I'll shoot it just the same! Price paid...10ยข

A fully functional Olympus T-20 electronic flash. No corrosion in the battery compartment and the front diffuser is still pretty clear. I installs two AA batteries and the flash charged and fired. It's my first ever Olympus flash - I'll introduce it to my Olympus OM-1n later today. Price paid...$3.00

A Konica Big Mini HG (BM-300). It's dusty, dirty, and grimy - plus plenty of scuffs and scratches. I swiped the battery from my other Big Mini, dumped it in, and the camera came to life. I'll give it a good cleaning in the next day or so. The camera still had a partially exposed roll of Kodak 200 Gold 36exp in it - I rewound the film back into the canister and plan to have it developed. It was most likely ruined my someone opening the camera back....but you never know, there may be recoverable images on the roll. Price paid...$6.00

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Mon, 16 Apr 2012 13:22:34 -0700 A different take on Instagram. http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/a-different-take-on-instagram http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/a-different-take-on-instagram The Retro Mojo of Instagram -- New York Magazine:
http://bit.ly/HSICTH

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Sun, 15 Apr 2012 17:21:41 -0700 Konica Pop http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/konica-pop http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/konica-pop

P497

Just added to my collection of backyard shooters is the Konica Pop. A fully automatic 35mm camera featuring a Hexanon 36mm fixed lens that shoots at f/4 and a pop-up flash......nothing more. This camera is in near mint condition and cost me less than a fancy Venti drink from Starbucks. My new Konica Pop is a compromise because I still can't find the Konica C35 EF3 in good condition at a price I'm willing to pay. Both the Konica C35 EF3 and the Konica Pop are identical in shape, form-factor, looks, and features with the exception of the C35 EF3 sporting a Hexanon 35mm f/2.8 fixed lens. I'm sure I'll find one soon enough.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Sun, 15 Apr 2012 14:41:02 -0700 Four Roll Leather Case http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/four-roll-leather-case http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/four-roll-leather-case

P488 P487 P484 P485 P486
See the full gallery on Posterous

The four roll leather case is finished. Took only 30min's or so to complete, not counting drying time for the dye. The leather has no stitching, only 4 rivets and 1 snap holding it all together. The plastic case originally had a belt clip but I cut it off because it cluttered up the look of the entire case once the leather was added. I also stamped "35MM" and the word "Four" on opposing sides of the case - meaning four rolls of 35mm film....ha,ha. I'm happy with the results - project complete.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Sat, 14 Apr 2012 23:26:00 -0700 Analog Project 2012 - April http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/analog-project-2012-april http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/analog-project-2012-april

Photo_2012-01-22_20-09-30 Konicabigmini155 Konicabigmini156 Konicabigmini157 Konicabigmini158 Konicabigmini162 Konicabigmini163 Konicabigmini164 Konicabigmini166 Konicabigmini168 Konicabigmini169 Konicabigmini170 Konicabigmini174 Konicabigmini175 Konicabigmini176 Konicabigmini177 Konicabigmini178 Konicabigmini190 Konicabigmini199 Konicabigmini200c Konicabigmini201c Konicabigmini202c Konicabigmini203c
See the full gallery on Posterous

In the month of April my Analog Project 2012 features the Konica Big Mini-302. This camera released by Konica in 1990 is an automatic exposure 35mm point-n-shoot featuring a 35mm lens that shoots at f3.5, auto focus, automatic film advance and rewind, built-in flash, self timer, and options to adjust exposure values by a stop or two. The big Mini's design is of a plastic build, it's light weight, has an attractive sleek and thin profile with smooth rounded corners  - fits nicely into any pocket. This camera would make a great companion for no nonsense shooting in most any outdoor conditions. This camera also adjusts the ISO automatically - when using DX type film the camera will select an ISO between 25 and 3200 and when using non DX film the camera defaults to an ISO of 25. If I remember correctly, DX film has a barcode below the sprocket holes which is recognized by some cameras as well as machines used during film processing. I've noticed that several brands and types of film that I've used recently seem to have barcodes, but I'm going to have to take a closer look because whats the point of shooting if the selected ISO is incorrect for the conditions in which I'm shooting. My biggest two complaints about the Big Mini-302 is the slow auto focus and the power and shutter button being too close together.

No.1 - The Auto Focus:
This camera has an infrared non-scan type auto focus system with a focus lock if you press the shutter button half way. But it seems to hunt a bit too long before it finds it's focus. I kept raising my finger to disengage the auto focus and start over but I may have been locking the auto focus by mistake. But once it finds it's focus, the shutter fires off quickly and the images are sharp.

No.2 - The Power And Shutter Button:
These two buttons sit side-by-side and are smooth to the touch as well as being flush with the cameras body. I have fat fingers which seem to always press both of the buttons at the same time. Sometimes the camera would shut off and other times the camera did nothing and I missed the shot. I remember complaining about the low profile and smoothness of the shutter button on the Olympus XA - I'm having the same feeling about the Big Mini-302. Once again I'm gonna have to add a dab of super glue right in the center of the shutter release button as a no-look indicator for my finger.

The Konica Big Mini-302 was actually my second choice behind the Konica Big Mini-F which also features a 35mm lens but it shoots at f2.8 - I'm sill on the hunt for at the right price. But for now the Big Mini-302 fits the bill and will remain in my collection of pocket point-n-shoot cameras.


Check out my YouTube Ch. for a quick video about this camera.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Fri, 13 Apr 2012 18:56:26 -0700 4 Roll Canister http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/4-roll-canister http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/4-roll-canister

P475

My next leather crafting project will be another film holder. I found this hard plastic canister made to hold film on eBay for only a few bucks. The bottom is stamped "Material Corporation, Patents Pending, Made In Japan." and the top has a cool etched diagram of rain drops, 4 rolls of film and 3 big arrows pointing towards the etched diagrams of film. Perhaps it means that the case is waterproof and also contains rolls of film. There's also a belt clip on the side but I plan to remove it because I don't want to stitch leather around it. This project will have the same look and feel as my other two leather film holders - I need to buy more tooling leather but it should be done in a few days. After the completion of this project I'm planning to make a leather film box that holds 10 rolls of 35mm film.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Fri, 13 Apr 2012 18:48:36 -0700 Leather Dark Slide Holder http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/leather-dark-slide-holder http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/leather-dark-slide-holder

P469

My prototype leather dark slide holder ended up being the final product. I re-stitched the edges which made the leather fit perfectly around the holder. I had planned to attach a lanyard but the whole thing fits in my back pocket so well that I decided to leave it as-is. The dark slide is housed inside a hard molded plastic holder thats normally attached to the back of a Hasselblad A12 film back with adhesive strips. You can find them online for under $20. I tested my finished projects ability to protect my Hasselblad dark slide if I accidentally sat down with it in my back pocket. It totally works - my dark slide survived and emerged from the holder as flat as when it went in.....Project complete!

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Wed, 14 Mar 2012 16:18:00 -0700 Analog Project 2012 - March http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/analog-project-2012-march http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/analog-project-2012-march

Photo_2012-01-22_20-12-28 Mamiyau255 Mamiyau276 Mamiyau258 Mamiyau259 Mamiyau260 Mamiyau261 Mamiyau270 Mamiyau263 Mamiyau266 Mamiyau267 Mamiyau268 Mamiyau269 Mamiyau275 Mamiyau272 Mamiyau273 Mamiyau274 Mamiyau278
See the full gallery on Posterous

 

In the month of March my Analog Project 2012 featured the Mamiya U. This camera released by Mamiya in 1981 is an automatic exposure 35mm point-n-shoot that features a sharp 35mm Mamiya / Sekor f/2.8 lens, shutter speeds that range from 1/8sec to 1/500sec, a built-in pop-up flash, 12sec self timer, and an underexposure warning alert. With zone focusing, this camera is easy to use and serves as a great all-around pocket shooter. I think this camera is best suited for simple daylight shooting with 200 speed film and not too dark indoor shots with 400 speed film as long as you use the built-in flash. My little DIY thumb-tack shutter release button has held up very well over the past year - it saved this camera from a life of never being used as it would have sat on the back shelf. It's another in a series of big bulky PnS from the 80's that I've added to my collection - I seem to have a soft spot for this style of 80's retro cameras. In my opinion these types of cameras (80's point-n-shoots) sits squarely in first place as an alternative to over priced boutique cameras that are all the rage in the Lomography scene.

Check out my YouTube Ch. for a quick video about this camera.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Fri, 09 Mar 2012 11:25:23 -0800 Spirit Level http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/spirit-level http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/spirit-level

P248

When looking through the viewfinder of most medium format cameras of this type - up moves down, down moves up, right moves left, and left moves right.....plus the reversing of any additional movement. All of this can cause one to loose their sense of balance within the viewfinders frame. After using my Bronica ETRSi over the past few years I've learned to recover quickly but I've always longed for a built-in level for days when I'm just not feeling it. This is a Hasselblad Spirit Level which attaches to the side of the Hasselblad 500 C/M accessory rail. When the bubble inside the liquid filled chamber settles within the center circle, the camera is level.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Thu, 08 Mar 2012 20:17:12 -0800 A Second Skin http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/a-second-skin http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/a-second-skin

P207 P206 P208 P209
See the full gallery on Posterous

Just finished stitching together another leather film holder. This one is for a single roll of 120mm film. The plastic container courtesy of Rollei Retro 100 Tonal. I stamped the lower portion of the leather with the numbers "120" to represent the film type. It turned out so well that I went back and stamped the numbers "35" on my previous leather film holder which holds dual 35mm film rolls. My stitching needs more practice but with each leather crafting project I'm only gonna get better. Next up is a dark slide holder....stay tuned.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Tue, 28 Feb 2012 22:51:34 -0800 Hasselblad Build http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/hasselblad-build http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/hasselblad-build

P161

The first 2 parts of my Hasselblad build arrived today. The once-over revealed that both are in perfect shape. They are currently wrapped up and re-boxed for safety until the A12 backs arrive in 2 days. A lens (the final part) is about 2 weeks out mainly due to my indecision on which one to get.....I simply can't decide.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Tue, 14 Feb 2012 13:24:00 -0800 Analog Project 2012 - February http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/analog-project-2012-february http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/analog-project-2012-february

Vuws Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0001 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0019 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0018 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0017 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0016 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0015 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0014 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0013 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0011 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0012 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0010 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0008 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0009 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0007 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0005 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0004 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0006 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0003 Vivitar_ultra_wide_and_slim_-_0002
See the full gallery on Posterous

For the month of February my Analog Project 2012 features the Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim. This all plastic point-n-shoot camera has built a small following within the lomography community behind it's ultra wide angle lens and it's ability to capture images in just about any lighting condition. The Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim features a 22mm fixed focus wide angle lens that captures with a fixed aperture of f/11 and a fixed shutter speed of 1/125sec.The results can be surprisingly sharp and clear when paying close attention to body mechanics (hold still) when shooting with this camera. It's all plastic design makes this one of the lowest weight cameras I own but that's not without sacrifices - the parts inside this camera are so cheap that it's likely to fail due to breakage if handled too roughly. The Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim is extremely easy to use, simply load the film, point.....and shoot. But remember to keep your fingers away from the lens or they'll end up in your shot due to the ultra wide angle lens being almost flush with the front surface of the camera. To see a short demo of my Vivitar Ultra Wide & Slim jump over ot my YouTube Ch.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:22:59 -0800 The Last Olympus Half Frame http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/the-last-olympus-half-frame http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/the-last-olympus-half-frame

P157

Here's my latest vintage camera - the Olympus Pen EF. It's yet another half frame camera added to my small collection of half frame cameras. It's so simple to use offering the operator a full range of ISO settings (25-400), and the use of an internal pop-up flash....thats it.

The Pen EF has a fixed focus 28mm f/3.5 D.Zuiko lens - so you just point-&-shoot! The automatic exposure sports shutter speeds of 1/30sec. (at f/3.5) or 1/250sec. (at f/22). The exposure calculation is done via the selenium light meter and the chosen ISO. If you plan on using the flash as fill light during outdoor daytime shots or indoors with low light simply slide the front mounted switch on the front of the camera down and the flash will charge in less than 5 seconds. The flash requires a single AA battery - and I love the little flash ready lamp that glows orange on the back of the camera when the flash is fully charged....it's so old school.

The Pen EF was sold by Olympus between 1981-1983 and I think most sales were in Japan. Once again half frame cameras give you twice the exposures on a roll of film. Half frame images are 18x24mm each vs. 35mm images at 24x36mm each. I really do love the simplicity of these fixed focus (sometimes zone focus) Olympus cameras with their worry-free exposure system - they truly are great cameras. This Pen EF is now my newest and 5th half frame camera behind my Olympus Pen EE2, Pen FT, Trip 35SP, and the Diana Mini Petite Noir.

Extra Note:
I mentioned in a post on Instagram that I've limited myself to only shooting 24exp rolls of film in half frame cameras - a 36exp roll of film produces 72 shots and thats just too many. Due to the unique frame size I try to take several extra shots of a subject from a few different angles - then choose the best one in post. I end up with about 25 keepers out of 48 captures.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:17:00 -0800 Stuck On E http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/stuck-on-e http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/stuck-on-e

P543

In response to a question:

Dear @patternfreak

I too have experienced being stuck on 'E". This seems to happen most when the film take-up spool fails to properly grab and hold on to the film leader after the rear cover has been re-attached. Simply remove the rear cover again and re-thread the film leader on to the take-up spool and making sure to wind the film advance dial a few times to make sure the take-up spool has accepted the film leader. There's enough film in the film canister to allow for extra winding of the film when loading a camera.

Also, take a close look at the top edge of the rear cover. There should be a little plastic stem on the left side of the cover - it sticks out about a quarter of an inch. That stem fits into a hole on the back of the camera. When the rear cover is removed (and the stem is out of the hole) the film counter resets itself to "E". Once the rear cover is re-attached to the camera and the stem is seated correctly in the hole, it enables the film counter to start counting when you wind the film advance knob on top of the camera. If the stem is missing the film will advance....but the counter will always remain on "E".

Good Luck

Randy (Dred242 and BokehImage)

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:37:15 -0800 Hyperfocal http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/hyperfocal http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/hyperfocal

P653

My attempt at restricting myself to shooting via the hyperfocal distance rule was strained at best. I kept going for the focusing ring on the lens thus throwing everything out of whack.

What is hyperfocal distance? Wikipedia gives two definitions:

Definition 1: The hyperfocal distance is the closest distance at which a lens can be focused while keeping objects at infinity acceptably sharp. When the lens is focused at this distance, all objects at distances from half of the hyperfocal distance out to infinity will be acceptably sharp.
Definition 2: The hyperfocal distance is the distance beyond which all objects are acceptably sharp, for a lens focused at infinity.

In a nutshell lets say I'm using a 53mm manual focus PRIME lens mounted to my camera and I manually set the focus to a set (static or permanent) distance away from me (say 15 feet away). Lets say I also want to use an f-stop of f/16 because it's a nice sunny day with average shady areas while walking down the street. The hyperfocal claculation would tell me that anything 10 feet away from my camera all the way to just over 30 feet away from my camera will be in focus. The goal is to only photograph subjects that fall within the range calculated by the hyperfocal calculation. This is a technique used by old-school street photographers who didn't want to waste time focusing, and constantly adjusting apertures when the subjects are moving. I can't tell you how many times I missed a shot with a manual focus camera because I was attempting to get a moving subject in focus. Using the hyperfocal distance will allow you more time to concentrate on framing, composition, and capturing the moment.

I was using an old rangefinder with a 24exp roll of Kodak Portra 400. I only took about 4-5 shots then gave up because my head just wasn't in the game - I was wasting shots. I guess I need to wrap the lens barrel with gaffers tape to keep from re-focusing....that's the ticket. Treating the camera as if it were a simple point-n-shoot camera but making sure subjects fall within range sounds easy but has turned out to be harder than I figured it would be.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Mon, 23 Jan 2012 23:02:00 -0800 Skin That 35mm Film http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/skin-that-35mm-film http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/skin-that-35mm-film

Photo_2012-01-23_22-58-37 Photo_2012-01-23_22-58-50 Photo_2012-01-23_22-58-48 Photo_2012-01-23_22-58-45 Photo_2012-01-23_22-58-43 Photo_2012-01-23_22-58-40
See the full gallery on Posterous

This 35mm leather film holder was totally inspired by Patrick Ng. I follow Patrick on flickr and last year he posted a photo of a leather case he crafted from sections of leather, rivets, snaps, a clasp and some thread all wrapped around a plastic Rollei dual film container. For me it was love at first sight, I had to have one. I'm sure many of Patrick's followers have offered to pay him to recreate his leather goods for them but I don't think he would - he's such a busy person. I was sure that if I had the right materials I could make one myself - so I set out to find what I needed. I got plenty of tools and supplies from Tandy Leather located here in the Bay Area as well as two sizes of clasps from Ace Hardware - the rest was donated by my mother-in-law who has lot's of leather crafting goodies stashed in her garage. I ordered the Rollei film with container on eBay and I plan to order at least one more. I've also got a roll of Rollei 120mm with container in route and should be here in the next day or so - it too will get wrapped. My mother-in-law gave me valuable tips and plenty of coaching before I got started, and my wife helped out with advise when I had to make decisions about cuts and rivet placement. This project took about 2.5 hours total and to be honest....it wasn't that hard. I plan to make at least two more of different shapes in the coming weeks. I don't own a fancy leather camera bag to hang my new little film holder from but I'll have one soon enough.

Patrick Ng is a connoisseur of fine writing instruments, elegant paper, travelers notebooks, leather goods uniquely hand-crafted by himself, vintage cameras, awesome GTD (getting things done) inspired organizational techniques, Moleskine art, world travel, and so much more.

Check out his flickr photostream at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/moleskineart/
And his website: http://scription.typepad.com/

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Sun, 15 Jan 2012 21:22:26 -0800 Target Brownie Six-20 HACK http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/target-brownie-six-20-hack http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/target-brownie-six-20-hack

P334 P333 P332 P331
See the full gallery on Posterous

Just finished reading a brilliant how-to post over on the FourCornersDark blog about hacking a roll of 120mm film to fit inside an Argus 75 that originally used 620mm film. I figured if it works for the Argus it should work for my Kodak Target Brownie Six-20....right? The hack is simple. Use a pair of toenail clippers to trim the outer edge from around both ends of a spool of 120mm film roll and it should fit nicely. I did it and it fit perfectly. I also sanded down the edges a bit to make sure that the spool would turn smoothly when advancing the film. The camera is now loaded with FujiFilm Neopan 400 B&W and ready for a test exposure later this week.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown Fri, 13 Jan 2012 20:45:00 -0800 Analog Project 2012 - January http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/analog-project-2012-january-37606 http://www.adventuresinanalog.com/analog-project-2012-january-37606

Photo_2012-01-13_20-43-11 Sprocketrocket_-_0006 Sprocketrocket_-_0004 Sprocketrocket_-_0003 Sprocketrocket_-_0002 Sprocketrocket_-_0001 Imgsr001 Imgsr028 Imgsr027 Imgsr026 Imgsr008 Imgsr025 Imgsr024 Imgsr022 Imgsr012 Imgsr021 Imgsr020 Imgsr013 Imgsr017 Imgsr010 Imgsr002 Imgsr009 Imgsr007 Imgsr006 Imgsr005 Imgsr004
See the full gallery on Posterous

The Sprocket Rocket

My Analog Project 2012 kicked off in the month of January with the Lomography Sprocket Rocket. The Sprocket Rocket is a 35mm film camera designed to shoot panoramic sprocket hole images. The camera is very slick looking with a throw-back retro design that looks like the Falcon Miniature from decades past. The Sprocket Rocket does great in bright sunlight with any color film - I can't wait to venture out at night with a roll of 800 speed film to see how it does. I haven't tried the double exposure feature which is done by winding the film backwards with the left-side top-mounted roll-back knob. I will admit that I've never been successful with double exposures.....but I'm willing to give it a try. The Sprocket Rocket is a wonderful and fun "not so toy" camera.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1290085/2011-Amazon_Square.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4aGe7y1naVtT Randy Brown Dred242 Randy Brown