Week 300 - No. 3A Autographic Kodak Camera

I suppose week 300 is something of a milestone, so I decided to mark it by using this large old Kodak folder. It was made between 1914 and 1934 and used the A122 film, to take postcard sized negatives, which would then be contact printed. Needless to say the film is long obsolete, so I'm using 120 film, which is about 25mm narrower than the postcard film. By using an old 120 film, I worked out how many turns of the spool were needed to advance the film between exposures. If my calculations are correct, I should get five exposures out of the roll.

photo from week 299 - Pentax efina T

I like the way the organic yellow flowers play against the hard lines of the yellow edge marking.

photo from week 299 - Pentax efina T

The obligatory self-portrait with dubious headgear.

photo from week 299 - Pentax efina T

There was already a film in the camera when I found it, it was on frame 5 of a 40 exposure film, so I decided to finish it off. This is two consecutive frames, taken at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, and showing Anthony Caro's piece "Promenade".

Week 299 - Pentax efina T

This compact little APS camera came from a charity shop and cost £1. There is a partly used APS cartridge already in it, a 40 exposure film, on frame 6, so I plan to finish the rest of the film off this week.

photo from week 298 - Pentax Auto 110 Super

Yellow traffic lights controlling a pedestrian crossing in Malaga.

photo from week 298 - Pentax Auto 110 Super

The sunlight was streaming in through the bathroom window, so there were no worries about hand holding this one, and of course as a single lens reflex, there is no problem with accurate focusing at close range.

photo from week 298 - Pentax Auto 110 Super

I used Lomography Peacock film this week, this is a tungsten balanced slide film, which I cross-processed in the Tetenal C41 kit. These two frames were taken at CAC Malaga, a contemporary art centre, in both cases the camera was placed on the floor in anticipation of a fairly long exposure.

Week 298 - Pentax Auto 110 Super

The Auto 110 Super is a slight development of the Pentax Auto 110 that I used in week 46. The main differences are that Super has a self-timer, a 1.5 stop exposure compensation button and a single stroke wind-on, as opposed to the two stroke wind-on of the previous version.

photo from week 297 - Baldixette I

One of my regular subjects, the University of Sheffield Arts Tower, seen here through five exposures made with a slight turn of the camera between each.

photo from week 297 - Baldixette I

Although there appears to be a cable release socket incorporated in the shutter release, I was unable to find a cable release which would screw into it, so for this one I had to carefully depress the shutter release by hand. The exposure was around 12 seconds.

photo from week 297 - Baldixette I

I was given a few rolls of expired (2002) Fuji Reala 120 colour negative film, so I thought it was about time I gave it a try. The camera is very basic, so not really a fair test for the film, but other than the saturation being on the low side, it seems passable.

Week 297 - Baldixette I

The Baldixette is one of many simple 120 roll film cameras from the 1950s. It has a collapsible lens barrel (cheaper and more robust thean bellows) and a simple shutter with 1/50th and "B". There are two apertures, f9 and f16, and a scale focussing front element.
I've loaded it with some Fuji Real colour negative ISO400 film, which expire in 2002.

photo from week 296 - Optomax 110 Telephoto camera

Two sheep and a Henry Moore statue at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

photo from week 296 - Optomax 110 Telephoto camera

Targets and arrows, observed from a safe distance.

photo from week 296 - Optomax 110 Telephoto camera

The film expired in 2002, and at ISO400 would have been grainy at the best of times. This was taken on a dull August Bank Holiday weekend, and the carousel horse was in the shadow of the canopy, so all things considered, the quality is about what you might expect.

Week 296 - Optomax 110 Telephoto Camera

Something of a novelty, this is a pair of binoculars which houses a 110 format camera. There is no control over focus or exposure, so good light is needed. I've loaded it with some expired Kodak Gold ISO400 film.

photo from week 295 - Split-Cam

I find that modern architecture often makes a good subject fot the "splitzer" approach. This is the Alpine House at Kew Gardens.

photo from week 295 - Split-Cam

This was taken at the Saatchi Gallery in London, the lighting is artificial but very bright, even so the negative is rather under-exposed and has been rescued in post-processing.

photo from week 295 - Split-Cam

The Split-Cam is not a precision instrument, and it's a bit hit and miss when it comes to composition. This one was taken in Kew Gardens, the large ornamental lake that normally reflects this building is replaced by a floral bed from nearby.