Week 126 - Boots Pakmatic

Boots Pakmatic, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

This was a charity shop find for £5. It has a range of shutter speeds and an f2.8 lens. There is a built in un-coupled selenium exposure meter, but the settings are all manual. Though branded as a "Boots" camera, it is in fact made by Braun of Nurnberg.
126 film is no longer made, and all that is available is long expired. I have a couple of ISO100 Boots brand films labelled develop before 1996, and have loaded one of these, I set the ISO (or rather ASA) on the meter to 50, as the film will probably have lost some sensitivity with age.

photo from week 125 - Coronet Midget

paxton pavillion, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

The camera was made decades ago, when film was less sensitive, so this photo, taken in bright sunlight was quite over-exposed, a sluggish shutter might also be a factor.

photo from week 125 - Coronet Midget

hand sculpture, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

It was rather fiddly, but my attempts to load some old 16mm Ilford FP4 into the Midget seemed to work. I don't think I'll be using this camera regularly, but at least I've squeezed a few images out of it.

Week 125 - Coronet Midget

Coronet Midget, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

Very much a novelty, this camera has become quite collectable frequently fetching over £100 on Ebay, I didn't pay anything like that for mine, though it is not in first class condition.
I've loaded it with some re-spooled 16mm Ilford FP4 film.

home made 16mm reel

home made 16mm roll, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

For the Coronet Midget that I'm using in week 125, I had to make a film spool, as there was only one with the camera. It was rather fiddly, but seems to have done the job.

photo from week 124 - Kodak Brownie Super 127

Victoria Hall, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

I held a yellow filter over the lens for this one to bring out the clouds a bit.

photo from week 124 - Kodak Brownie Super 127

reflected self-portrait with Kodak Brownie Super 27 camera and hard hat, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

The camera has a single fixed shutter speed and no "B" setting, which means that without flash, indoor photography is a bit of a non-starter. As expected, this photo was very underexposed, and I have done my best to salvage it after scanning.

photo from week 124 - Kodak Brownie Super 127

a little light urbex, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

The curlyness of the Efke 127 film allowed it to escape the restraints of the film plane mask in this camera, resulting in curved film in places, giving rise to unfocussed areas. Ironically this has made an image reminiscent of the tilt shift technique.

Week 124 - Brownie Super 27

Brownie Super 27, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

This boxy and quite chunky camera was made between 1961 and 1965. It takes square images on 127 film. There are two apertures, but only a single shutter speed and no "B" setting. The door on the front left opens to reveal a flash gun.
I've loaded it with Efke 100 black and white film.

photo from week 123 - Agfa Optima 535

Hymn by Damien Hirst, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

A giant bronze version of a well known anatomical model.

photo from week 123 - Agfa Optima 535

reflected self-portrait with Agfa Optima 535 camera and light weight hat, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

Although I was near the window, I knew the auto exposure would set the lens at full aperture in order to keep the shutter speed as fast as possible to allow hand holding. There was an element of luck in getting the focus more or less correct.

photo from week 123 - Agfa Optima 535

pilgrimage, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

I wanted to test the fully automatic exposure system in a variety of lighting conditions, in the dimly lit turbine hall at Tate Modern, I rested the camera on a parapet to keep it still. I wasn't sure how long the expousre would be, it seems to have been around 1/4 second.

Week 123 - Agfa Optima 535 Sensor

Agfa Optima 535 Sensor, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

The Optima Sensor range was in production from the 1960s to the 1970s, they were increasingly sophisticated as time went on, this one has an electronic shutter with a fully automatic exposure system giving speeds between 15 seconds and 1/500th second. The f2.8 40mm lens has zone focussing symbols on the top, and a scale underneath.
I loaded it with a roll of Fuji Superia X-tra ISO 400 colour negative film.

photos from week 122 - Bencini Comet III

foam padding and gas cylinders, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

The last two frames from the roll of Macolor, it was a very overcast day, and the cylinders were in a shady corner, so the results aren't too bad considering...

photo from week 122 - Bencini Comet III

horse chestnut and highland cattle, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

Another regular subject, but this time with added cows!

photo from week 122 - Bencini Comet III

reflected self-portrait with Bencini Comet III and polystyrene hat, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

Although this is a very basic camera, it does have a "B" setting and a cable release socket, so I was able to put it on a tripod for this indoor shot, the exposure was around 2 seconds.

Amateur Photographer column about the Brownie 127

A Collector's Life For Me, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

This week's AP magazine carries my article about the Brownie 127.

Week 122 - Bencini Comet III

Bencini Comet III, a photo by pho-Tony on Flickr.

This is another 127 camera, it takes 16 exposures on a roll, there is a single shutter speed and aperture, and focussing is possible.
The Bencini Comets came in a range of styles, this is one of the more unusual "vertical" designs, which at first glance looks more like a cine camera.
I've loaded it with my last but one roll of Macocolor negative film.