It was a good weekend ….

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Friday night was warm for the Halloweeners. Saturday and Sunday I spent quite a few hours at a model train show with the club of which I am a member. I wish my legs and back were about fifteen years younger, I had to call both days off early and go home to lay down. Concrete floors do that to us old people. I took a few record shots with my Canon P&S, nothing interesting for here, just some possibly to use on our club website.

The parts and pieces are in place to start two different projects. A small model railroad layout for my home, something I have never had; and the stereo twinning of the Olympus XA2 35mm cameras that I mentioned a while back. 

The results aren’t complete yet on the digital Kodak twins, the software doesn’t seem to be able to latch on to the fuzzy detail from the pinhole lenses. I will have to try doing just stereo pairs rather than the anaglyph images I was hoping for.

The pamphlet for the 2009 one day NYC bus trips came last week and I purchased a ticket for the second week of May. Something to look forward to. Along those lines, my Wife and I will be taking our first trip to Cancun, Mexico in February.

NYC Day Trip

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I posted about 60 pictures from my trip to NYC yesterday (10-04-2008) on my companion blog TDC.

My Other Blog

They are all from my DSLR.

This and That

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The rain continues, despite the TV weather predictions of it stopping soon. 

I was helping a friend drop off some accumulated stuff at the town landfill this morning when I had one of those short lived moments of lucidity that seniors have. He pulled into the dollar store at my request and I ran inside to see if they had any of those $1.00 plastic 35mm cameras left. Yup, must be fifty or so hanging there. I grabbed eight of them and a couple of dog snacks. Hey, with ranch dressing they aren’t half-bad. 

Maybe it was the recent posts here and on my website regarding duplicate pinholes that spurred a sleeping neuron or two to life. Short version of a long story – there are eight duplicate pinholes sitting on my workbench with the paint on them drying. 

Later I will see if it is going to be possible to make the shutter stay open when the release is held down. If not, I’ll have to cobble up another method. What to do with them ? Two thoughts – the photography group I am in doesn’t seem to share my interest in pinhole photography, so I could bring them to our next meeting all loaded with film and use them as pass-outs. That might get some interest going.  The other is to sell them on an online auction site. Hmmmm… perhaps both, I’ll have to see what develops. Darn, I promised myself I wouldn’t use that phrase again.

The trip to NYC is coming in a week. I’m still indecisive as to where to wander and what equipment to take. I know the DSLR is going with the 28mm prime. The pinhole question looms – dare I haul along the stereo pinhole or should I take one of these new plastic jobbies, or stick with my favorite wooden pinhole with the Graflex roll film back ?  So many places, including the sidewalks are persona non grata to tripods in NYC making the pinhole good only in parks. The police are supposed to allow amateurs a certain time period for tripod use on sidewalks, providing you are not obstructing pedestrian flow. I prefer to not get into a timing or perception issue with the NYPD. Decisions, decisions ………..

Update – I’ve decided to take my monopod and the wood camera. Of course, that might change

It is a dark and dreary day ……….

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Perhaps I will see what develops ……….  Enough of that ! 

I do have a personal website, nothing for sale and no opinions on current affairs.

Update March 2009: The website below is now being forwarded to this website. All information is on a page named photographyhacks.

There is an article with details on the Yashica A conversion to pinhole, another on those screw on wide angle adapters, and more photographs.

Today I am going to attempt working with the stereo pairs I have from my homemade pinhole stereo camera. I will probably do one in P***oshop and another in a freeware stereo program. When I get done, if either are decent, I will post them in a message here. They will be in both stereo pairs for crosseyed viewing and in anaglyph format for use with red/cyan glasses.

I just found that the NYC metro system has a 1 day pass for $7.50, available at automatic dispensers. Compared to the double decker bus day pass it is a bargain. I believe I will get one first thing. A note to remember for newbies on the NYC Subway system- in less traveled areas of Manhattan (possibly other places also) there are entrances that only go in one direction. With my last fare used on my card, I went through the turnstile and got in an uptown terminal – yup – I wanted downtown. So, back through the turnstile, up the stairs, across the street, back down, purchase another fare ticket and get on the correct train.  Like I have said in an earlier posting here, I am but a country bumpkin.

A new, old toy

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Last night I spent a few hours deciding what I was going to try to accomplish during my one day trip to NYC in two weeks. The first trip I took was an eye-opener. The upstate farmboy wasn’t quite ready for the sheer size of it all. Most of the time was spent walking around trying to see as much as possible and taking very few pictures. I found a free 1 1/2 hour walking tour of the Union Square area every Saturday afternoon, so that is the main goal. Perhaps a quick run through Chinatown  also.

A few years ago I purchased, entirely on a whim, a Bronica ETRS MF body and f2.8 75mm lens. Last month I happened to run across them, pushed in the back of a drawer. A little searching and I found a roll film back and righting eye-level viewer on an auction site. They arrived and today I found time to put the four together. 

First problem was the roll back wouldn’t dismount. Some searching on the web and the problem was solved. A small protrusion on the dark slide that pushed on a pin to allow the body to let go was not centered, thus sliding behind the pin, rather than depressing it. A little twist with pliers and instead of going at 6 o’clock it now goes at 7:05 – reliably pressing the pin. Grabbing a roll of B&W from the freezer, I placed it on the workbench to thaw,

Second problem was the roll back wouldn’t open. I pressed the safety tab and tried to push the slide, but nothing. This is a very complicated system compared to the Graflex roll backs I am used to. After verifying in the PDF file I had from the web, I went back secure in the knowledge that it SHOULD open. Sliding a small jewelers screwdriver alongside the safety catch, I must have moved some grime or dirt aside and it opened. Tomorrow I am going to shoot a roll. This gives me 10 rolls of B&W 120 film to develop. That qualifies them for a place high up in the ‘to do’ list. 

The digital pics from the Louden NH race sucked. Very drab and the P&S mini zoom wasn’t enough to get any detail. DELETE ALL/YES