Along with doing the solargraphy canister loading and re-loading, I also put B&W paper in the popcorn can camera (8×10) and the cocoa can camera (5×7). I have placed them inside the house, facing out of two windows. This is an experiment to see how an image looks without the Sun’s path being evident. What started this was a thought that I had regarding the ‘color’ that manifests itself on the B&W paper after prolonged exposure in a pinhole camera. Basically, are the UV, IR, and all the other wavelengths emanating from the Sun necessary for the colors to appear? I faced one camera NW and the other NxNW to cut down on direct rays from the Sun reaching the pinhole. Further, our replacement windows are untinted, double pane UV resistant coated. I will leave the cameras in place for at least a week before I try opening them.
December 29, 2008
Solargraphy Update
Above is an example of a Solargraphy photograph showing the Sun’s path over a long period of exposure.
Yesterday I took down the four 35mm canister pinhole cameras that Tarja sent to me from Finland, removed the exposed B&W paper, and reloaded the canisters along with the six cameras I made for myself. Then I placed my own cameras outside in different places to experiment with a one week exposure period. Her reloaded cameras are going to Cancun, Mexico with me in early February; hopefully they will make the trip both ways without customs opening them. Actually, I think I will take a lightproof envelope with me with extra paper as a backup.
The cameras were in place from November 22 to December 28, 2009.
Today I mailed the four photographic papers to Tarja along with a CD with the digital pictures of the mounting of the four cameras and a ‘normal’ view of the pinhole camera’s FOV to facilitate her developing of the images.
I am looking forward to hearing from Tarja as to whether or not I was successful.
Background:
Tarja is looking for ‘can assistants’ from anyplace in the world. She will send you, free of charge, pre-loaded canisters. You simply place them securely facing the Sun’s path in the sky, wait from a week to six months, remove them and send them back (the only expense to you). She will ‘develop’ the images and email them back to you.
The ‘film’ is B&W photographic paper. There is a certain ‘magic’ here. After a long exposure to light in a pinhole camera, an image in pseudo color appears on the paper. Tarja scans this image and manipulates it. The result is such as is seen above.
See the following website for information. This has been a fun, very inexpensive (~$5USD in postage) and painless project.
Tarja Trygg
Licentiate of Art
University of Art and Design Helsinki TAIK
School of Art Education
Hämeentie 135 C, 00560 Helsinki
December 16, 2008
Dimensions for popcorn can pinhole camera
I used one of those huge metal popcorn cans that appear out of nowhere during the holidays as a pinhole camera to use 8×10 and 10×14 inch photographic paper. It is about 10.5 inches high and 8 inch diameter.
Simply clean the residual grease and gunk (pophuskus greasis) from the inside of the can and lid, paint both flat black inside (ouside is optional) after drilling a hole 1/2 way up from the bottom for the pinhole to show through.
Add a pinhole per directions in other posts on this blog.
Enjoy!
The dimensions from one website are as follows (remember to look at my disclaimer at the bottom right side of this page)
FL 240mm
Pin hole diameter .649mm – #72 drill
F stop 370
ASA 6
AOV 80.5 degrees with 8×10 paper
Sunny exposure 90 sec.
Now all I need is a sunny day, yeah, right, in upstate NY ? Maybe in June.
December 15, 2008
Mounting pinholes on cameras, cans, boxes, etc.
I got a good deal on some outdated B&W photographic paper (out of date by years – sized 5×7 and 8×10), so I have been making two pinhole cameras from metal cans. One takes up to 7″ paper, the other 10″ without trimming.
Nothing special at all – just painted inside and out with semi gloss black paint and then a second coat of flat black paint on the insides. I used the calculator on mrpinhole.com for the pinhole dimension that matches the diagonal of the paper and the diameter of the can the closest for the best focus. It appears the exposure times will be ~60 seconds for the 5×7 and ~90 seconds for the 8×10 on sunny days. Also, I’ll be able to try some solargraphy with them.
Anyway, I figured out a way to blacken out the area around a pinhole to cut down on reflective glare within a camera. The problem with black marker is it is not thick enough to do the job without several coats. Black paint will find a way to enter the pinhole, making it very,very hard to remove it without making the pinhole larger and deformed.
The method I discovered is very simple.
1) Put a roll of black electricians tape in a freezer.
2)Wait a couple of hours to make sure it is as cold as it will get.
3)Immediately drill a small hole through the tape roll (I used a 3/32″ drill, if I need more, I will use a 1/16″ drill) into and through the paper roll. Don’t press too hard as it will heat up the drill and tape, it took about 5 seconds to drill through each time with a brand new drill bit. Two or three evenly spaced holes around the diameter should do the job well, giving you a lot of masks to use.
4)Wait a couple of hours for the tape to return to room temperature.
5)Peel off a section of tape with a hole and using the pictures below as a guide, put the tape over the pinhole(of course with the pinhole itself showing through the hole, trim it, put another piece on the other side of the pinhole, mount with the pinhole showing through the hole in the camera, tape over the edges.
In the pictures below I was making six film canister solargraphy cameras. The last picture shows them ready to have the photographic paper installed and a final layer of tape around the tops. The pinholes themselves have a ’shutter’ made of a piece of electricians tape with the end folded over as tab for removal. The method should work with other types of pinhole cameras.
December 10, 2008
Images from photographyhacks.org
I made a new page for the images from the website. They are in no particular order by name or type.
The Iris image is from the website.
Update on the Duaflex IV Part2
The shutter on the Duaflex stopped working during the night. I perhaps should have left the punch and hammer on the workbench nearby.
I figured it was time for disassembly of the winding mechanism and shutter button by removing the side cover. It always looks simple, just remove two screws and voila! , there it is all neat and pretty, just waiting for you to quietly and slowly begin the examination. NOT! As usual in these things, as soon as the second screw was loosened, parts started shifting and by the time the cover was lifted there were parts all over the workbench. Gratefully, it all went back together with a minimum of fuss and bother, I put a couple of small drops of sewing machine oil on the plastic springs, pivot points, etc and re-assembled.
At this point it is time for Murphy’s Law to come forth. It did. The shutter would still not work correctly (please remember that at this juncture both lenses and the aperture wheel are gone, and a new pinhole has been cemented in place.), then, out of nowhere an oblong hole near the inside bottom of the camera appeared. I know what you think – it was there all the time – I know better – it manifested itself. Anyways- a small drop of oil on the pivot point inside freed up the shutter instantly. Whether or not the last one drop of oil would have been all that was needed I don’t know. But, it would be a good place to start if you find yourself with a sticky shutter Duaflex IV and, of course, if that oblong hole is already there.
December 9, 2008
Update on the Duaflex IV Part1
This camera is a forerunner of the current method of building automobiles on assembly line using robots. The parts that are most likely to need adjustment or replacing are mounted first, then everything else is glued, stapled and welded over them.
Short version- using pliers, tin snips and screwdrivers- I removed the entire lower lens assembly except for the shutter. Suddenly, it started working. The pin punch and 20 ounce ball peen hammer I was about to use must have intimidated it.
So, it will be a pinhole sprocket hole camera (perhaps a new name is needed here – perhaps “2HPS” Camera) ?
I do have a possible tip/suggestion for pinhole cameras. This is untried and certainly there are people who have scientific ‘proof’ that it will not work without even trying it. To prevent tiny pieces of dust from getting in the pinhole, I am going to glue a ’slip cover’ over the pinhole. A slip cover in this context is a piece of very thin glass normally used to cover specimens on microscope slides. If this works, it would also help stop the supposed introduction of dust into DSLR cameras when the mirror operates when using a pinhole cap – something I have reservations about. I personally feel the dust in DSLR’s when using pinhole caps is introduced via that two inch hole that is open to the world when lenses and body caps are removed and replaced. Or, is that silly, thinking that more dust will come in via a two inch hole than through a .3mm hole when the mirror moves ?
I feel the massive influx of dust in DSLR’s when using a pinhole body cap is more probably dust that was already on the sensor. Dust on the sensor is very hard to notice in normal usage with optical lenses and the opposite is true with pinhole lenses. Each and every piece of dust on the sensor is visible when looking at an enlarged digital image from a pinhole camera. The dust is the most in focus part of the picture. It is then very easy to look for some devious method of dust introduction upon one’s sensor than admitting one’s sensor was already dirty.
December 8, 2008
Use that old 620/616 camera
In my constant quest for the different, I ran across this item at an auction site. It is an adapter to let you use 35mm film in the old 620 and 616 format cameras and also available for the 120 format. It costs $10USD! Finally, someone who knows how to merchandise! Instead of selling it for $49.99 and not getting any takers, it is priced in the LOMO style – cheap and fun.
The images show the sprocket wheel holes as the entire width of the film is exposed and the format is panoramic. There are pictures on their Flickr site, the addy is on their website.
See the website below for information. Now I have to CLA the Kodak Duaflex IV that is in the drawer, the shutter is very sticky.
I had a hard time deciding whether to place this post here or on my other blog where I have information using unmodified equipment, as this is not an invasive modification. Since the idea of sprocket holes appearing as an integral part of an image is more in keeping with this blog- well, here it will be.
Update: I received the package from the website. It is simply a pair of wooden dowels modified to be press fit on the 35mm canister and then placed into the camera. I figure it would take me a couple of hours of fiddling around to copy it, so the price is reasonable. Now, if I could only find the package – hope it didn’t drop in the trash can. Further Update – It is March 2009 and the package is still missing – I’ll probably have to re-order.
A Second Yashica A
This weekend I ran across an online auction for a Yashica A that needed CLA (clean,lubricate,adjust) with just an hour + left to run. The bid was around $10USD. I put in a bid of $13.98 on a whim and won it for just over $11. With S&H it came to ~$18USD.
So, I will be doing the modification to a second Yashica A as I have covered on my photographyhacks.org website and in the pages to the right under the same name. The website has a couple of pictures that I didn’t carry over.
This modification was the most gratifying so far in that to a casual looker, it appears to be an original camera. The only difference being the lower lens is now a pinhole. That plus the aperture and shutter still work afterwards. The photographs taken so far are above my other cameras in detail. Do a tag search on Yashica for the original post with photo.
Update March 2009: The camera still sits here. The ‘leather’ is flaking off, so it will be a project for outside to cut down on the mess of complete removal. Maybe I’ll go to Tandy Leather and get something neat to re-cover it.
December 7, 2008
Photographyhacks.org RIP
I have decided to let my website photographyhacks.org die a natural death after June 2009. It is too much expense to maintain a non-income generating website and too time consuming to play with HTML code every time something is changed or added.
In order to maintain the information I have on the website, I made a page entitled photographyhacks.org and I placed the information from the website there. The images in general aren’t worth the effort to move. So, now is the time to look at the pictures if you wish. The images from the tutorials are still there.
UPDATE 12-10-2008: I found a quick way to zip all the images from photographyhacks.org. I will put them in a gallery on their own page. They will include, in no particular order or filename convention, cross-eye stereo, images that originally were embedded in the projects, and normal (for me) snapshots.
