26 Instax Packs - #24 - Solarization effect using the original Kickstarter Lomo'Instant camera with Hello Kitty Instax Mini Film. This effect is created by attaching the close up lens on the Lomo'Instant Camera, using 1m-inf focus setting, with flash, set at +2 exposure compensation.
It's an interesting effect, that is somewhat unpredictable, but then so is practicing lomographic photography. I think the results came out pretty nice, and I would like to try this again.
26 Instax Packs - #5 - Baltimore, MD - Fuji Instax Mini Stripe Frame in Lomo'Instant Automat just after dawn (except for Magnolia Blossom). Closeup lens used for flower bloom photos, all handheld, on auto setting without flash.
26 Instax Packs - #2 - Lomo'Instant Automat with Rainbow Instax Mini Frame celebrating the arrival of Spring in Baltimore, Maryland. Most photos made with close-up lens attachment.
26 Instax Packs - #1 - Lomo'Instant Automat with Winnie the Pooh Instax Mini Frame at the Nixon Nature Center.
Week 49 - White Bora Bora model of the Lomo'Instant Automat I received as a Kickstarter reward. This is an instant camera using Fuji's Instax mini film format which features a 60mm f8 (35mm equivalent) lens. The Automat has a fully automatic shutter with a +1/-1 exposure compensation button, bulb setting (up to 30 seconds), and the ability to shoot unlimited multiple exposures. It also has a tripod mount and there's a remote in the lens cap to trigger the shutter for selfies or to shoot long exposures with the bulb setting. It has zone focusing with three focusing distances on the lens - portrait, group and mountain (infinity). The flash can also be turned off, and there are flash gels to add color to your flash photos. My camera also came with Fisheye, Wide Angle, and Close Up lenses as well as a Splitzer accessory.
I have the previous model of the Lomo'Instant from the first Kickstarter, which I used in week 45, a camera that I've had for two years and enjoy shooting, but I wanted to get this new model hoping it would have better exposures. I found the Automat to be a little lighter and smaller than the original Lomo'Instant, and so far my impressions are that it has better exposure quality. The two have different lenses, which means that I'll be keeping both of them (I really just love all instant film cameras!) The Automat also has the nice added feature of the shutter remote in the lens cap.
I had ordered a boatload of Fuji Instax Mini film from ebay in anticipation of receiving the Automat - the new Monochrome, Black Frame and Sky Blue Frame. There is a treasure trove of unique film borders to be found on ebay for Fuji Instax Mini film if you're into that sort of thing. I found the outdoor shots with the Monochrome to be very contrasty in bright sun, but I really liked it with the close up lens on a slightly less sunny day. The Black Frame is nice with outdoor color shots and I think it looks great with brightly colored subject matter. The Sky Blue frame looks nice as well, looking pretty sweet on a close up photo I shot of silvery Dusty Miller still standing in my front garden. The focusing on the Automat seems pretty accurate if you use the guidelines in the enclosed brochure for the focusing distances for zones and for each of the lenses. There is less vignetting on the photos than in the original Lomo'Instant.
I have not had a chance to fully test all the features, but my first impression of this camera is that I love it already - light and compact to carry around, nice features to give you some control over your photos, and better exposures than the original Lomo'Instant. I think I'll be diving into the world of Fuji Instax Mini frames available on ebay, they all look so tempting!
Week 45 - Lomo'Instant Camera received as a Kickstarter reward two years ago. I decided to use the Lomo'instant this week in anticipation of receiving another Lomography Kickstarter camera in a few weeks, the Lomo'Instant Automat. I thought I could compare the new camera with this older model.
Last Saturday was a beautiful Autumn Saturday and I was eager to get out and shoot some instant film. I loaded my Lomo'Instant with expired Polaroid 300 film and headed over to Lake Marburg at Codorus State Park. The trees were in full fall color and the temperature was just slightly cool.
I want to really love the Lomo'Instant and when the photos come out right, I really love them. The results from the camera are quite unpredictable, but then maybe I need to use this camera a lot more to really get the settings down. Today, the photos were coming out really well. I find the best results with the camera are when shooting in sunny weather using the minus 1 or minus 2 exposure adjustment. There's so many things that can be done with this camera with the different settings that it has. There's two focusing distances - 0.4m to 0.9m and 1.0m to infinity. It has a bulb setting, unlimited multiple exposure capability, selfie mirror, exposure compensation, flash and the ability to turn off the flash, color flash gels, a wide angle 27mm 1:8 lens with attachable portrait, fisheye, and close-up lenses. There is also a tripod mount and threaded socket for a cable release for long exposures. I just haven't been able to fully explore all the different creative possibilities available with this camera. If only I had more hours in the day for film shooting (and of course an endless supply of instant film!)
Today, I was mainly focusing on capturing the fall color in the changing leaves of the trees at the park. I was looking for good framing and the right exposure. I tried a couple of multiple exposures and a selfie as well. Later in the evening, I took a portrait of Brenda with the attachable portrait lens using the automatic flash setting. I also grabbed two flash photos of our cats, but they were both overexposed, possibly because of their very light fur color. Brenda's flash photo came out fine, but the same settings with our cats, not so well. That's what I mean about this camera - I think that I've got it figured out, but then something throws it off.
Overall though, I am pleased with the way the photos came out, most of which have a little vignetting in the corners, an effect that I like with the Lomo'Instant photos. I'm really looking forward to the new Lomo'Instant Automat, hopeful that it will be much improved over the original Lomo'Instant. I'm also eagerly awaiting my order of Fuji Instax Mini Monochrome film from B&H Photo. I ordered a few packs with the intention of using it with the new Lomo'Instant Automat.
I really wanted to get out yesterday and shoot some instant photos with my newest instant camera, the Lomo'Instant Wide. I've haven't shot with it extensively to get a feel for the camera and I thought I could try using the close-up lens and the Lomography Splitzer. I had also packed two other cameras, my Holga WPC 120 and my handy Pentax Q10 mirrorless camera. I spent a good bit of time by the lakeside trying to capture some detailed photos of the shore debris and made a few mistakes, but that's how you learn the camera. I also took a walk out on one of the horse riding trails as there weren't any riders on such a chilly day. There's an area along the trail thick with tall needle-less pine trees that I've wanted to get back to take some photos. Here are a few samples from the afternoon.
At this year's family Thanksgiving celebration, I received a camera gift from a relative that was quite a surprise. My sister-in-law gave me her uncle's camera that he used in World War II as a reporter, a 1938 Agfa Karat 35mm camera. The camera has an Oppar f4.5 lens with bellows and uses two rapid film cassettes that can shoot just 12 photos. It was stored in a leather 1943 Eastman Kodak camera case and appears to be in working order. The focusing ring seemed to be stuck, so I took out a few screws and and loosened it and put a drop or two of household oil in it and is seems to be turning a little better now. It only had one empty film cassette, so I found a second one on ebay along with a few expired 12 exposure rolls of film to give it a try. I will need to transfer the film to the empty cassette and load it into the camera to feed into the second cassette. Fortunately there's a video on how to load the camera on YouTube. My sister-in-law gifted me with the camera as she knew that I would truly appreciate and care for it and it would probably have wound up in the donation bin at the Salvation Army otherwise. I'm still waiting for the second film cassette, but I should be able to get out and shoot with it on my upcoming vacation. I have several cameras coming my way, hopefully in time for my Christmas vacation. I backed a Kickstarter for the new Ondu pinhole line of cameras, pre-ordered a Lomo'Instant Wide camera from Lomography and ordered a neon green Holga camera from B&H when I heard the Holga factory had shut down last week. And this week, a good friend gifted me with a stash of expired Kodak Portra 160NC from an old dark room, both 120 and 35.
