Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.

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SET Man

Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« on: 8 Oct 2008, 06:57 am »
Hey!

   In these days of new "Digital Cams" coming off the line every 6 months. There is no longer much talk about the good old "Film Cams" these days. But still film cameras and films still have a spot in my heart, especially for B&W film. :D

   True that I don't buy film as often as I used too. And when I do it is for personal photos. I remembered back than when I used to talk to fellow photographs about B&W film, paper and chemical. It had been a while since I had a day out with film cams. And I just don't have time and space to print B&W at my current apartment right now.

    But recently I took my old camera for a spin and that rekindled my love of film cameras again especially with B&W film.

    So, I want to share this with you guys here of whom still have spot in your heart of good old film. :D

    I want to start with one of my favorite camera and probably one of the most famous family of camera of all time...



   The Kodak "Brownie No.2 E" A successor of a long line of the "Brownie Box" cameras. This model was made around 1919-1920. (I told NYAR Ravers that it was made in 1911, so it is now corrected) Anyway, the "Brownie No.2" was introduced with 120 format film of which still around today as "Medium Format" film. Because of this you can actually still buy film for this camera today!

   This one is still in good condition. I did some cleaning on the lens and viewfinders. Although there seems to be a little light leak here and there.  A very simple camera. With single shutter speed of about 1/30sec. and "T" or time exposure. With three opening for aperture of about f11,f16 and f22. The camera produce negative size of 6cmX9cm. You get 8 shots per roll.

    Anyway, this past August I took this camera along with me to the monthly New York Audio Rave get together. It took place at Jim/Hogg's and he got a beautiful house and back yard with a view of the Long Island Sound.  :D

   And here are pictures from this camera at the NYAR Rave (first posted on NYAR Aug. Rave thread)....



  View of the Long Island Sound from the backyard.



  The one and only Chris/lonewolfny42!   :notworthy: This shots were taken with "T" shutter of about 3 sec.



   The NYAR's gang.



   Jim/Hogg grilling.



  The weathervane



  Outdoor image with Michael/mcrespo and his wife Dervie.



   Me! :D

More here.... http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/sets/72157606932115006/

   The camera do very well outdoor especially on a sunny day like this. Not easy taking picture indoor with this camera especially with the kind of film speed back than and no flash for this camera. This is the reason why you don't see a lot of indoor shots of your grandma and grandpa :D

  A bit of technical side of these photos...

  Zero pixel :jester: I used the Efke 50 B&W film of which have ISO of 50 and this would be close to what the film speed used back than for this camera. Actually 50 ISO is a rather high speed back than in 1920. This is a very nice film by the way. With smooth tonality range due to the fact that it used the old emulsion formula of '50s-'60s ADOX film. Efke is made in Croatia. These were developed in Kodak D76 for 8mins at 20*C, one more minute than recommended because I knew that most of the shots will be a bit under. Digital conversion were made with my DSLR than I use Photoshop with mostly as I would do in traditional wet darkroom. :D

  Well, there you go. I hope you enjoy my little adventure with this simple box camera. A Kodak "Brownie" pretty much the predecessor of all what we would call "Point & Shoot" camera today. :D

   So, anyone here have film camera(s) that you want to share?

Take care,
Buddy :thumb:

JohnR

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #1 on: 8 Oct 2008, 09:19 am »
What a great series, Buddy! We forget how simple it is, fundamentally.

BradJudy

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #2 on: 8 Oct 2008, 01:16 pm »
Cool stuff.  It got me looking at film for a couple old cameras I have sitting around.  They are very basic ones, but it might be fun to try out.  I have an old Kodak Dualflex that I have never shot.  I'd have to check and see if the 120 developing places will take film on a 620 spool (or, I could buy 120, respool it to 620, then spool it back to 120 if I was careful). 

SET Man

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #3 on: 9 Oct 2008, 01:16 am »
What a great series, Buddy! We forget how simple it is, fundamentally.

Hey!

    Thanks John. :D I find that sometime it is good for me to go back to where I first started in photography. And that's with film.

    I few weeks ago I loaded up my film AF SLR, mounted on 35mm f2 and went out for a walk in the city. Funny thing happened. After I took a shot I look at the back of the camera like I would have with my DLSR!  :lol: I did that with for a few times actually.  :roll:

Take care,
Buddy :thumb:
   

SET Man

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #4 on: 9 Oct 2008, 02:10 am »
Cool stuff.  It got me looking at film for a couple old cameras I have sitting around.  They are very basic ones, but it might be fun to try out.  I have an old Kodak Dualflex that I have never shot.  I'd have to check and see if the 120 developing places will take film on a 620 spool (or, I could buy 120, respool it to 620, then spool it back to 120 if I was careful). 

Hey!

   Thanks Brad. :D

   The Kodak Duaflex is a good looking and simple TLR cam.

    Yes, the 620 film. I still don't get it why would Kodak made this format beside a marketing thing.

     There are places that you could still buy 620 film or like you've said respool 120 film on 620 spool. My local store here in NYC B&H Photo have 620...

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/shop/336/Other_Film_Formats_110_127_620_828.html

    But since I already have 2 extra 620 spools I usually just buy 120 and respool it on 620 spool, cheaper this way.

      As for developing. Since the only different between the 620 and 120 is that the spool core of 620 is smaller in diameter. So, any lab that could develop 120 can develop 620 film also. But make sure you ask for the 620 spool back. I've done this before with a local pro lab here in NYC.

    So, if you Kodak "Duaflex" still work. Load it up and walk around with it. If you do, don't forget to keep us dated on this. :wink:

Take care,
Buddy :thumb:

nathanm

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #5 on: 9 Oct 2008, 05:51 am »
Nice shots, I like the self-portrait especially. (You must be taller than this tiki torch to ride this backyard…) Then again, the incredible wardrobe choice of Chris is hard to not be taken in by.  Yep, the Brownie lends a different feel to simple snapshots.  Although there are perhaps too many light leaks for comfort, that's still something you never get with digital.  All the artifacts contribute to the end result.  It's an effect, but not quite as extreme as say a Holga or Type 55 Polaroid with all the edge funk intact.  I may have to get myself some kind of hand-holdable film camera one of these days.  I might be able to score a Crown Graphic from a guy at work.  I don't know what kind of condition it's in, though.

Russell Dawkins

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #6 on: 9 Oct 2008, 06:09 am »
Seems to me the smiles are a little broader and more relaxed - as if when you are being photographed it's less intimidating when the photographer is holding an old black box with a small hole in the front.

SET Man

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #7 on: 9 Oct 2008, 10:23 pm »
Nice shots, I like the self-portrait especially. (You must be taller than this tiki torch to ride this backyard…) Then again, the incredible wardrobe choice of Chris is hard to not be taken in by.  Yep, the Brownie lends a different feel to simple snapshots.  Although there are perhaps too many light leaks for comfort, that's still something you never get with digital.  All the artifacts contribute to the end result.  It's an effect, but not quite as extreme as say a Holga or Type 55 Polaroid with all the edge funk intact.  I may have to get myself some kind of hand-holdable film camera one of these days.  I might be able to score a Crown Graphic from a guy at work.  I don't know what kind of condition it's in, though.

Hey!

     I'm still try to figure out the light leak on this camera. Not sure if is because of loose film tensioner or from the frame number window of which I replace the old broken red plastic with a Rosco red gel filter.  :scratch: Oh! Well, it is not that bad for a simple 88 years old box camera. :lol:

    Good luck with the Crown Graphic. But make sure that the bellow is still good. :D

Seems to me the smiles are a little broader and more relaxed - as if when you are being photographed it's less intimidating when the photographer is holding an old black box with a small hole in the front.

     Russell, those smiles from these NYAR Ravers are just like those old photos from the past. :D

    I also got lots of looks and smiles when I walk around the street of NYC testing it  when I first got it. And even a few chats from curious passerby. :D

    People react differently when they see me with taking pictures with old cameras. And not just them I also feel and take picture differently with these camera too. A totally different experience than what we used too today :D

   I wish I had money and time to play around with them more. Not to mention maybe pick up a few more old cameras too. :wink:

Take care,
Buddy :thumb:

drphoto

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #8 on: 14 Oct 2008, 05:09 am »
Hey Nathan,

I've got a Crown Graphic, if ya wanna try it. It's currently on loan, but I could get it back. It's got a 127mm (I think) that has that sorta crappy quality to it that gives it's charm.

BradJudy

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #9 on: 19 Oct 2008, 03:04 am »
I stopped by a local camera shop today and the owner hooked me up for my Duaflex.  He had an extra 620 spool and respooled 120 film onto it for me for no extra charge - he showed me how to do it, but said he'd be happy to do it for me whenever I stopped in if he wasn't busy. 

I also picked up some 35mm B&W for my other cameras.  I loaded a roll into my Canonet 19, which I've never used, and I'll try that out.  The owner seemed quite excited about Canonets since they have a fast lens (mine is a 1.9-16 45mm, but they also made a 1.7 version) and were fairly well built.  I'll put a roll into my AT-1 once I'm done with these two.  Right now I want to make sure the older ones are working fine.  I'm feeling good about the Duaflex, but it's clear that the longer exposures on the Canonet are longer than they should be. 

It was a neat shop - no new cameras, only refurbished film cameras from a wide spectrum.  He even had several Canonets and said he could provide any required repair work.  They also do a lot of "toy camera" stuff there and the only new cameras they sell are Holgas and Dianas. 

Grumpy_Git

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #10 on: 21 Oct 2008, 10:29 am »
I used to work in a place like that in south London, my dad and both his brothers worked there too, one of my uncles was a co-founder.

I spent my weekends playing with everything from pos to canons, leicas, rolleis, speed graphics and the like.

The place is an Estate Agents now, shame as it was always busy, guess they jumped out when digital finally looked like hitting mass market.  :cry:

Nick.

gsm18439

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #11 on: 21 Oct 2008, 04:07 pm »
I still use a Canon F-1. I am on my second one. The first one died after 30 years and could not be repaired, but was replaced by an almost new one that I bought on ebay.

I still use B/W film, most recently Ilford XP-2; I have the processing and printing done at Black and White of Arlington, VA - true artisans.

I lug the camera as I travel internationally - no mean feat considering the weight of the brass body - and have no desire to switch to digital. The photographs are posted on www.garysmintz.com.

BradJudy

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #12 on: 23 Oct 2008, 10:46 pm »
I'm happy to report that my negatives look good.  I only had the shop run negs since I wasn't sure if the cameras were functioning properly.  I asked them to run prints now, so I'll do some scans and posts when I get those back. 

The Canonet was an exercise in learning to freehand manual.  It has an auto mode, but it only works up to ASA 200 and I was using 400TX film in it, so I had to go full manual with no light meter.  I looked up some tables online to give me a rule of thumb for outdoor shooting, and the negs looked decent.  I wandered through town a bit and then went over to a cool historic cemetery in the area for the rest of the role and to shoot the Duaflex. 

SET Man

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #13 on: 11 Dec 2008, 06:40 am »
Hey!

     At a recent NYAR Rave at one of our member Paul/Occam's beautiful home in Park Slope area of Brooklyn, NYC. I bought along one of my vintage camera and took some shots there.

    Since it was cold and we will be indoor flash was needed and this is perfect for one of the vintage camera I have.

    The 1956 Kodak "Signet 40" with matched flashgun using NOS Westinghouse M2B flashbulbs. The film used again was Efke 50, developed in stock Kodak D76. Again I used my DSLR to digitized them.



    The Signet 40 was a simple coupled rangefinder camera but dose come with a coated (or lumenized as Kodak called it) Kodak 46mm f3.5-22 Ektanon lens and speed range from 1/5 to 1/400. Interestingly enough the lens of this camera is radioactive because of one of the ingredient used to make the lens. Well, sound like a cool 50's things I guess :lol:

   And here are some of the pictures....



  Chris/lonewolfny42 and Paul/Occam




   The NYAR gang.



    Mark, Paul and Robin.



   Lily the cat

   The rest can be seen here...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8309248@N06/sets/72157610871638615/

   Overall I enjoy using camera and since it come with a matched flashgun this make it even more fun to use indoor. A very different experience shooting with this '50s camera with flash using flashbulbs. Actually this is the only camera I have with a flashgun. Of course flashbulbs are no longer made but you can find some NOS out there. Some flashbulb are more expensive then the other.

   One big issue I have with this camera is that it is unfriendly to glasses wearer. And it could be hard to focus accurately in very low light. Other than that it is fun '50s camera to use. Well, hope you like them. :D

    And lastly thanks those NYAR Ravers for letting me taken picture with my vintage camera and I hope you guys like the picture. :D

Take care,
Buddy :thumb:

JohnR

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #14 on: 11 Dec 2008, 10:26 am »
Flashbulbs??!!

Wow, that's pretty determined :thumb: Great shots there, I hope the Ravers like them too. How did you actually light and shoot the negatives though?

nathanm

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #15 on: 11 Dec 2008, 04:52 pm »
I dig that package art on the Signet 40!

There are a lot of cool sites showing underground cave photography using giant flashbulbs.  Pretty cool stuff.  Some of them have like a 2 second flash duration!

SET Man

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #16 on: 12 Dec 2008, 05:22 pm »
Flashbulbs??!!

Wow, that's pretty determined :thumb: Great shots there, I hope the Ravers like them too. How did you actually light and shoot the negatives though?


Hey!

   Thanks John. :D It is a slow process using flashbulb compare to the auto TTL flash we have today. :D And I did have 1 miss fire while I was there.

   As for copying the negs. I still haven't bought a scanner yet. I want one that could do 4x5 but a good one cost a lot.  :? But than I rather use that money to buy another lens that I want.

    Anyway, the process is like doing a contact sheet. I have a 12x12" optical grade glass sheet that I bought from a glass store to use to make contact sheet and a sheet of translucent white acrylic sheet to put negs on that rest on something that would allow you to put light under it. I used 150w bulb from my enlarger and 10" reflector. My tripod allow me to reverse the center post upside down, than I mounted my DSLR and make copy. I don't have macro lens but my zoom could copy 4 frames at a time, but I did 6 at a time. So, because of this the resolution is not that great after I cropped them up, still fine for the web and up to 4x6-5x7 print.

    I used this process to copy medium format before. Since the negs is bigger I used the film holder and the enlarger head but for 35mm it is a bit small. So, I guess I should by a scanner for this. Or! I could get a macro lens of which will be more useful :D

Take care,
Buddy :thumb:
   

SET Man

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #17 on: 14 Jun 2013, 04:45 am »
Hey!

   After I post about Kodak stop making acetate on another thread...

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=102670.msg1233553#new


   That reminded me of this thread... it had been a long while. But how about we cheer things up a bit with film and film camera the old fashion way?

   Well, this time it is a Zeiss Ikon Box-Tengor Type 56/2.


1951-1956 Zeiss Ikon Box-Tengor Type 56/2 by setpower1, on Flickr

 This is one of my favorite camera. Why? Because it is the happiest camera I've ever seen... look at that happy smiley face  :lol:


1951-1956 Zeiss Ikon Box-Tengor Type 56/2 by setpower1, on Flickr

  This camera was made by Zeiss Ikon of Germany between 1951-1956. It take 120 film of which is still available mostly in professional photographic stores. It is 6X9 format camera and a roll of film will give you 8 shots. There's no meter and everything is mechanical. There is 2 settings for shutter, one is instant of which I think and sound like around 1/25 or 1/30 sec and B setting. 3 apertures and 3 focus distant settings. It dose have double exposure prevention.

   I gave it a little cleaning and lubed it's simple shutter mechanism. And it works fine. I've only put one roll through it and the negative looks good. Don't expect super sharp pictures from this came... although in a bright light with smaller aperture setting it does a pretty good job. :D But in a lower light situation with lens wide open at f9 it is pretty useless, unless you use B (T) setting and your subject doesn't move.

   Here are some shots from this camera...


"IKEA Park Brooklyn" by setpower1, on Flickr



"IKEA Brooklyn" by setpower1, on Flickr


"Figure in the Garden" MoMA, NYC by setpower1, on Flickr


Me at MoMA, NYC by setpower1, on Flickr

   That's me above. Thanks my friend, Wes who took that picture for me at MoMA. He was using Olympus OM-D E5 that day... we had a good laugh that day  :lol:

    Anyway the film used was Efke 100... sadly no longer in production  :cry: ... developed in Kodak D76. I used cheap HP G4050 scanner, wish I had better scanner. It is a fun camera to take out for on a nice sunny day. It makes everyone who see it smile when they see it's happy smiley face :D

   So, anyone else here want to share story and pictures from your film camera(s)?

Take care,
Buddy :thumb:


   

   

   
« Last Edit: 9 Mar 2014, 01:11 am by SET Man »

low.pfile

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #18 on: 14 Jun 2013, 06:42 am »
bumpin

JohnR

Re: Vintage "Film" Cameras Talk.
« Reply #19 on: 17 Jun 2013, 08:33 am »
Nice work, Buddy  :thumb: :thumb: I'm still working my way through a roll of Tri-X on my last remaining vintage camera, a folding Zeiss Ikon Contessa....