Argus C3

Week 52 - Argus C3 purchased from ebay last year that I've used once before. The camera originally came in a leather case with a strap and I was carrying it around using the strap and the strap broke, causing the camera to crash to a concrete floor. Of course the camera being very sturdy, was not damaged but the film advance became jammed and while trying to unjam it, the sprockets on the film roll were torn. Thus, it was not possible to spool the film onto a Paterson reel and the roll was ruined. I thought I would give it another go, and use the camera to finish up my 2016 Film Camera Project.

The choice of film for this final roll was Film Photography Project's FPP EDU 200, I wanted to stick with a black and white film, since I have a fresh batch of Kodak D-76 mixed up, and I chose the 200 speed film because some of the slower shutter speeds were sticky on the camera. I thought if I shot on a partly sunny to sunny day, I could shoot Sunny 16 and stick with the faster shutter speeds. I ventured out and about town with my camera bag and two other instant cameras on an unseasonably warm winter day this week, excited that I was going to finish this project before the end of the year.

First I drove into downtown and parked, then walked around a couple of blocks near Merlin's Coffee shop, but I was just not inspired by too much there, so I drove out to Codorus State Park's Lake Marburg area. The water is really low right now, exposing some nice textured landscapes that are normally under water. I love shooting at Lake Marburg, especially with black and white films this time of the year. I had also packed my Lomo'Instant camera (the original, not the Wide or the Automat) loaded with the new Fuji Instax MIni Monochrome. The monochrome instant photos came out super and I was excited to see what was going to come out of the Argus C3 after developing. I was mindful of the film advancing on the Argus, so that I didn't have a repeat of the last roll of film with the torn sprockets.

I really enjoyed those couple of hours, I think this time of the year is actually my favorite to shoot, I like the contrasty photos that can be achieved with barren landscapes before the winter snows start falling. There also are not a lot of people around the local parks this time of year, not that I don't want them in my photos, I just prefer the solitude of composing photos surrounded by quiet.

I promptly unloaded the Argus when returning home to get the film developed and scanned for the final blog post on this project before the end of the year. After spending the past year shooting lots of different cameras and films, I'm ready to narrow it down to a few that I really like. For the coming year, I want to focus more on shooting with my instant cameras and getting into to my as yet unused darkroom and make prints. Experimenting with caffenol printing and making cyanotypes is on my list as well. I want to buy less crappy cameras and add just a few higher quality ones that I've had my eye on for a while. I have another year long project lined up that is a bit different than 2016 - look for an upcoming post for the details.

Konica C35 AF

Week 47 - Konica C35 AF that came in a box of free cameras that my stepfather obtained from a local newspaper listing. Modern Photography from April 1979, touts this as the "First Auto-Focus Still Camera," with a non-interchangeable 38mm f/2.8 Konica Hexanon, with apertures up to f/22, focusing to 3 1/2 ft. It has an electronically programmed shutter, with flash, powered by two AA batteries. Available film speed settings from 25-400. The magazine article lists the original price as $283. An in depth explanation of how the auto-focus feature works from the magazine article below-

“Adjacent to the viewfinder, on either side of the “Konica C35” nameplate, are the windows for the Honeywell patented Visitronic auto-focus System… the Visitronic autofocus Systems can be classified as a dual-image comparator linked to the lens by an electromechanical system. As you cock the shutter the lens moves completely forward to a ready position. When the shutter release is pressed, the lens begins to move backward, under spring tension, toward its infinity- focus position until it receives an electrical signal indicating proper focus. At this instant a claw engages a toothed rack affixed to the internal lens barrel, and the lens is automatically locked in proper focus position.”

— Modern Photography - April 1979

I loaded the camera with Fujicolor 200 film and carried it along for a visit to see my mother-in-law. We decided to go to Elizabethtown for the annual Christmas parade, though, my heart was not really in it with my mother's recent passing. I thought I would try to get a few snaps of my great-niece and nephews in the parade, but we were facing the sun, which I think hindered the auto-focusing and auto-exposure on the camera. The close-up shots that I took of Brenda and her mom came out much better, I may want to try this camera with some black and white film with the subjects closer to the lens. 

The roll was processed with Film Photography Project C-41 Kit (which I'm hoping will finish out my project before needing replacement) and scanned with Epson V500 Photo.

Deep Blue Gear 35mm Camera

Week 41 - Deep Blue Gear Waterproof Camera purchased for 99¢ at the local Community Aid. This is simply a plastic toy camera enclosed in a waterproof case. There is no battery and has a focus free 28mm lens. When I was checking it out in the store, I wasn't able to determine if the shutter worked, the shutter only works with film inside.  I couldn't find any information on the camera in a web search, but I believe that it is a snorkeling camera, I found a company called Deep Blue Gear that sells snorkeling gear.

I grabbed a roll of Kodak 400 from the supply of film that Brenda and I had bought from Craigslist a while ago. This guy had boxes of film that he was selling for 25¢ each, so we bought a 100 rolls, using it mainly for testing cameras, as who knows how the film was stored. Most of the rolls have turned out fine.

I went out and about Hanover on Sunday afternoon with the Deep Blue Gear and managed to use the whole roll of film in about an hour The camera is very light, no controls, just point and shoot. I could concentrate on composing photos, only the lens is much wider than indicated in the viewfinder. The resulting photos are much further away than they appeared in the frame. Now that I've tested it, I know I need to get in really close for the results I'm looking for the next time using it.

My favorite photos from the roll are the ones from the industrial area of Hanover along Middle Street. The film was processed with the FPP C-41 kit and scanned with Epson V500 Photo.

Disderi Robot 3

Week 37 - Disderi Robot 3 action sampler plastic toy camera purchased last year from ebay for $10 including shipping. The Disderi Robot 3 has 3 plastic lenses that look like the face of a robot, available in several color combinations. The aperture is f8, shutter speed 1/100th of a second, with each of the three lenses firing sequentially on shutter release. There is no battery required. The resulting photographs have three images per frame, a larger one on top with two smaller ones underneath. The viewfinder is simply a fold up plastic frame, which is really not very accurate, just point in the direction of your subject. 

I loaded the Disderi Robot 3 with a recently expired roll of Fuji Superia 400 and shot a few photos around the house. I carried it in my bag all week, it's very light, and used the rest of the roll on a walk around Baltimore on my lunch break. Street photography looks pretty cool in the 3 frame photos, especially with urban landscape patterns. It does make a grinding mechanical noise when firing the shutter, so don't scare anyone when taking a photo! It really is just a fun little camera when you want to get some different photos from your usual routine.

I processed the film in a Film Photography Project C-41 kit, and scanned on Epson V500 Photo with spot dusting in Photoshop.

Olympus OM10 - 52 Cameras, 52 Weeks

Week 33 - Olympus OM10 purchased from someone on Craigslist for $10. It came with a 70-205mm Vivitar Zoom lens, but I purchased a 50mm Olympus Zuiko f1.8 lens for it from ebay for $20 with free shipping. The camera came with 36 rolls of exposed color film that I plan to develop in the coming weeks (it could even take months). I'm not sure if the photos will turn out as the camera and film were in a storage shed for years.

The film for this week was expired Kodak Portra 160NC and the photos were shot around Baltimore, MD and Codorus State Park, Hanover, PA. My favorite photos are the sunrise over Lake Marburg and the field landscape with big puffy clouds.

I mixed a new batch of C-41 Chemicals for this roll, scanned with Epson V500 Photo and Spot Dusted and adjusted for levels in Photoshop. Adjusting for levels is simply scanning the film on automatic, opening the file in Photoshop and selecting the lightest and darkest points in the levels dialog box. This brings the colors into range with the least amount of manipulation of the file.

Generic Plastic Camera - 52 Cameras, 52 Weeks

Week 31 - Generic plastic camera purchased at Morningstar Flea Market Antique Mall for $10. The tag said "Argus 35mm Camera" on it and came in a bright yellow box with the words "Say Cheese" and "Storer Cable", whatever that means. It also came with a cheaply made pleather carrying case. I did an internet search but could come up with nothing on a plastic Argus 35mm camera, or anything using the other words on the box. I thought at best, it could be a generic Holga or Diana type of camera. It felt quite heavy, probably had a weight in the bottom of the camera.

On the front, the lens reads "Optical Color Lens, Auto Fix Focus 50mm Lens 1:6." It has a tripod socket on the bottom and a rewind release button. I used a roll of FPP EDU 400 Black and White film from the Film Photography Project, as my color chemicals were recently expired. Photos were shot on a morning walk around Hanover, PA and also around Baltimore, MD on my lunch break. I found that the lens was much wider than the viewfinder indicated, I could have gotten closer on some of my shots.

It was very humid on the day I was trying to wind the film onto a developing reel in the changing bag, which resulted in a first failed attempt where in frustration, I shoved the film into the tank to protect it from light. I cooled off a bit and went back in while in a cool air-conditioned room. As a result the film got a little banged up with a few scratches and creases. I don't think it detracts much from the low quality of the photos that I got from this camera, I was hoping for photos with a dreamy quality and a little vignetting. The film was developed in Caffenol and scanned on Epson V500 Photo.