Holga 120N & Ilford Delta 400

 

I took my Holga 120N out again the other day. I really like the 6x6 negative ratio size. The quality is surprisingly good for a plastic "toy" camera. This time I shot at Ft Harrison State Park and Eagle Creek Park in central Indiana on a cloudy / overcast day. I used Ilford Delta 400 in 120 size and developed it with Ilford Ilfotec DD-X 1+9 ratio for 9.5 minutes. The negatives were scanned with an Epson V800 Photo Scanner.

The results

Holga 120N - A Plastic Cult Toy Camera

Much has been written about the Holga. It’s a cult toy camera. All plastic with point and shoot with very few features or controls. You simply load it with 120 film set one of 4 distance setting, slide the aperture switch to either sunny or cloudy, aim and shoot. It’s that easy.

The main feature of the Holga line is they tend to be light leaky and the lens gives a soft / distorted vignette. This quirkiness gives the image it’s unique, “every picture is different” vibe. The plastic is a 60mm f/8 piece of plastic. You can set the camera to take 12 or 16 shots.

Practical? No, Fun? Yes

I’ve had mine for about 5 years. I recently took it out and shot a roll of Ultrafine Xtreme 400. I shot the roll in downtown Indianapolis on a grey but bright day. Film was developed using Ilford Ilfosol3 at 1+9 for 4.5 minutes. Negatives were scanned using an Epson V800.

I dig the camera. Here are some images.

35mm Sprockets & A Holga

I've wanted to shoot 35mm film with sprockets in a 120 film camera for some time.  Finally, got around to it.  I like the look and had seen it done several times.  After researching how to do it, I decided to temporarily hack my Holga 120N.  Here is an earlier blog post on my DIY hack

Hacking My Holga To Shoot 35mm Film With Sprockets

I think I did it right, so I went out to shoot a roll of FujiColor Superia 400.  I shot in the daylight outdoors after a studio digital model test shoot.

Everything seemed to work A-OK.  I rerolled the film into the canister in a dark bag.  I then processed the film using C-41 chemistry purchased from the Film Photography Podcast Store. At the same time I developed a roll of C-41 shot in a normal 35mm film camera that I trusted as a development control.

Basically, it didn't work (the control did).  All of my shots were super soft (beyond normal Holga soft), and all were way under exposed.  I didn't get images on about 1/2 the 14 photos.  The others were dark and had colors hard to extract.  

My normal flatbed scanner used for 35mm film wouldn't work.  Therefore, I used a small light box with a DIY template and photographed the negatives with a Nikon D810 using a Nikkor 60mm Macro f/2.8 lens.  That part was fairly straight forward.  Here's the scanner bed hack

I then brought 3 images into Adobe Photoshop, reversed the image and played with the colors using curves & levels.  Each image was different with it's own unique look.  

Here are a couple more of the photos from around the studio.  One of model Gracie Be leaving the studio and one of a train passing by the back of my studio.

Come on, honestly, these images are sh*t, but you know what they are kind of cool.  It was a super fun experiment. I'm definitely going to give it a go again with a different camera.  Anyway, playing with / experimenting with film is a good Yin to my digital studio Yang.  Dig it.

I Have A Need, A Need For Sprockets

Recently I got the itch to shoot a roll of 35mm film with exposure all the way into the sprockets. Kind of a cool look, and I've never done it before.  Online I went to see how it could be done.  After reading a few blog posts, checking with Twitter friends, & watching a few videos I decided to give it a try by slightly hacking my Holga 120.

The Holga is a 120 sized film camera with limited / no controls.  It's simple so it's easy to mode & there were plenty of blog posts and videos on using one for sprockets.  OK, here we go I said.

My technique is to cut a plastic screw-top bottle cap in 1/2 and use it as the stabilizer for my 35mm roll, tape up the red window, and mode the receiving reel so the 35mm film doesn't slip around.  I also read up on how to advance the film using the Holga "clicks".

Here is what I finished last night in pictures

First, my camera and the split cap

Back open, and receiving spool removed

Gaffer tape handy and ready to tape over the red window so I don't get light leaks.  This is important since the 35mm film doesn't have backing paper like 120 film

Once side taped up

Inside too, why?  Well, why not

I didn't see this requirement on any of the blogs or videos (the recommendation is just to tape the film leader onto the spool).  However, I wanted to make a small channel the the film could wind in to keep film somewhat stable.

Bottle-cap jammed in.  The top one has the closed side facing down. The bottom side of the cap has the cut side facing out with the closed side down.  I taped the bottom side down, but didn't need to on the top 1/2.  It was snug.

The film fit perfectly between the 2 halves of the bottle-cap, and I cranked the film onto the receiving spool.  I closed the back, taped it shut (mainly because I had some gaffer's tape already cut off the roll) and cranked the film 42 clicks for the first shot.

 I've got a model shoot tomorrow in the studio and will bring this Sprocket Rocket with me.  After the shoot I play around with the roll.  I'll probably develop it pretty quickly and will followup.  The only challenge at this point is to figure out how to scan the film.  I'll deal with that later.

Camera fun

Holga 120N Is Beautiful

Yes, I have a Holga 120N.  I got it as a freebie gift from my niece who lives in Prague.  Not sure where she got it, but she knew I still shot film. She said, "Uncle Steve, you want my Holga and a bunch of expired film that I have?"  It took me about 3 seconds to respond to that email.  The Holga is a cult, toy camera.  A medium format beauty!

Literally, the day I got the camera in the mail I saw the announcement the Chinese (Hong Kong?) manufacturer was stopping production.  A sad day, but hey, I got mine.  Soon after I got the camera I loaded it with a roll of Ilford XP400 Super 120.  And took it on a road trip out east and then another roll about a month ago.

The Holga 120N is simple to use.  There is really nothing to it.  It is a classic toy camera.  Very flimsy, plastic, plastic lens, minimal controls.  On my version it has a 60mm lens, 4 zone focus options on the lens, a sunny / cloudy setting (f/8 & f/13), and a N / B selector on the bottom.  The N mode is 1/100 second. What you also have (which screwed me up on one roll) is a 16/12 shot selector on the back.  Really, just a slider over the red window that tells you if you have the included in box insert for 16 shots.  

You'll note on the photos that they have that classic Holga toy camera vignetting and softness around the edges.  

I also did a roll with the 16 image selected.  Unfortunately, I forgot to put in the insert for 16 shots and it screwed up the roll.  However, it's kind of cool effect.  Semi double exposures.

The Holga is a fun camera to play with, but toy camera enthusiast already know this.  Get yourself one and enjoy.  Next for me is to try it with a roll of color film or sprockets on a 35mm roll.  Dig it.