Photos I've Taken - Vivitar Champion II

This was shot in the evening at Crown Hill Cemetery in downtown Indianapolis during a photo club photo walk.  I brought various film cameras to test & play with.  This camera was pretty beat up and many of the shots had pretty bad light leaks.  Very lomography-like.  The film door on the camera had to be forced open & the film advance was not smooth.  Shot with a roll Mitsubishi MX-III 400 film.  I got the camera at a local Goodwill Outlet, so what do you expect.

Split Personality? - Nope It's The Split-Cam

Time to discuss another toy camera.  This time it's the Accoutrements "Split-Cam" with Image Fusion Technology.  That's right "image fusion technology" - impressed yet? This has all the requirements to be a toy camera.  It's plastic, it's low tech, & it produces unique or light leaky photos.  And, it's made in China.  The company that sells them is Accoutrements who has the tag line "Outfitters of Popular Culture"...OK, if you say so.  I bought this beauty new in package on eBay.

The unique feature of the Split-Cam is that you have black plastic sliders that slide in front of the lens & the viewfinder.  Each slider is 1/2 the size of the lens & viewfinder that cuts the image in 1/2 horizontally.  Simply slide one slider closed and the other open both on the viewfinder & the lens.  Next you take a photo.  Push the little switch on the back of the camera to re-cock the shutter (you don't advance the film yet).  You then switch the sliders, recompose the photo and shoot again.

If you do it correctly you get a "fused" photo, one on top and one on bottom with a fuzzy line in the middle.  In theory it's a good idea, but on my camera, it didn't work so well.  The sliders didn't stay shut or open completely every time, or sometimes I forgot to change the slider.  My first roll was just a test, so not surprising.  The biggest issue with my camera is the line between the top and bottom half is not crisp.

But hey, repeat to yourself Steve, "It's a toy camera".  No one that sees the bumblebee colors would think anything other than that.  Even the instructions say's "taking pictures with the Split-Cam is about trial & error.  Forget everything you've been taught about "good" photography.  This is fun photography.  This is art photography".

Specs are fairly limited.  The lens is a fixed f/8 aperture with a fixed shutter speed of 1/100.  There is no hot or cold shoe.  The instructions say you can use any 35mm film but then says it works best with 200 ASA film outdoors / bright sunlight.  More instructions "he Split-Cam is not equipped with flash. Outdoor use is recommended".  Also, it's not really a run & gun camera so using it indoors at a party probably isn't going to work.

As you can see, the camera doesn't have much detail.  The front has the slider switches next to the viewfinder & the lens.  The top has the film rewind knob, the shutter release & the counter.  The back the viewfinder, the shutter re-cock switch and the film advance knob.  That's it.  Load it with a roll of 35mm film and go out an play.  

Here are a couple of photos using a roll of expired Mitsubishi MX-III 400 ASA color film that I took while out on a long bike ride and a street shoot downtown.

Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis

Used car lot in central Indiana

Picture I've Taken - Kodak Easy Load KE30

A photo I took with the no so easy loading Kodak Easy Load KE30.  Another one of my Goodwill Outlet finds.  This is the point & shoot that digested 2 rolls of film before I figured out how to use it.  For a 30 cent point & shoot camera with some cheap Mitsubishi film the quality is OK.   A formal blog post on the camera to come.  

Picture I've Taken - Prinz Alternative EZ-200

Time to share a photo between camera reviews.  This is a very light leaky photo from my recently purchased Prinz Alternative EZ-200.  A plastic toy camera that allows you to switch between normal & panoramic settings.  I kind of dig the panoramic look it produces.  Shot this with a roll of Mitsubishi MX-III film.  Very soft due to the plastic lens and the film.  I suspect the light leak is actually from the film since it's way past expiration date.

Panoramic Paradise - The Ultronic Panoramic

I purchased the book "Fantastic Plastic Cameras" by Kevin Meredith at Half Priced Books recently.  It's a reference book that details many cheap, plastic cameras.  A fun read.  One of the cameras listed is the Ultronic Panoramic.  The ultimate in cheap, plasticy, toy cameras.  AND, it shoots exclusively in Panorama mode. Here's the book.

OK, it's not a "real" panoramic photo, but it gives you the illusion of one.  In the viewfinder and the film plane opening is in the shape of a panorama.  Approximately the top & bottom 15% of the photo is blocked off. This produces a black band on the top & bottom of the photo.  It's actually kind of cool.  Thus the look of a panorama.  Not X-Pan cool but not bad for a cheapo camera.

This is strictly a point & shoot.  No manual settings for anything.  It takes 35mm film.  There is no ASA scale or switch, so this leads me to believe any ASA rating is A-OK.  The lens is recessed slightly in the camera body with a cheap plastic cover that slides over when not in use.  The lens focal length is rated at 28mm which is definitely wide angle.  Focuses down to about 2 1/2 feet.  Researching the camera indicates that the lens is fixed f/11 with a shutter speed of 1/125.  So a wide angle lens with good depth of field.

I bought mine new on E-bay for about $15 including shipping.  I know I could have bought it for almost nothing in a flea market / junk store, but hey, I wanted one, so I bought one.  I loaded it with a roll of Mitsubishi MX-III 400 - 12 for the test.  Just point & shoot.  Nothing to fiddle with.  You see the panoramic effect in the viewfinder, so there is no guessing.  The lens is not very bright, there is no hotshoe or flash, so you either need a bright day or high ASA (and associated grain).  I therefore shot my first roll on a fairly sunny day at my sister's lakehouse.    

The camera worked great.  As expected due to the quality of the film and the plastic lens the photos were soft and the colors not crisp.  But still, kind of fun. The only downside is that the camera feels really cheap.  If you drop it, I suspect it will break easily.  However, with all that I'll probably run a roll of better film through it and try to get some better images.

Kodak Easy Load 35 - I Defeated The Beast

OK, as a follow-up to my post on my Kodak Easy Load eating film.  Well I think I tamed the beast.  I put another roll of Mitsubishi MX-III 12 through it today and it worked.  Yep, loaded OK, snapped 12 shots, it made that whining sound, I pushed the button that rewinds the film, and it appears to have worked.  Now I have to simply get the film developed to see if the camera really works.

Ultimately, this camera may be more of a pain than it's worth, but hey, this is all for fun anyway.

Stay tuned to this bat channel.

Not So Easy Load - Kodak

Here's the story.   So, I go to the Goodwill Outlet.  This Kodak Easy Load KE30 is sitting there all lonely asking me to buy it.  OK I say, for less than 25 cents, you're mine.  I take this cute little beauty home.  I'm a good guy that way.  I give her 2 AAA batteries.  Thanks, Steve, she's telling me.  

I go out Sunday and want to shoot a roll during a model shoot in studio.  Yes, yes, I know, model shoot in studio, and you're whipping out a point & shoot film camera for BTS photos.  But oh no, this camera says NO, I'm the only cute one here, so she revolts.  Can't get the film to load correctly, and when I finally think I have it - it doesn't advance.  I open the film door to fix it, and the film auto rewinds all the way back into the film can.  One roll dead.  

No problems my precious, I load it with another roll, and after work tonight I shoot 12 images (see there is a reason I bought a brick of 12 image rolls on eBay). I'm thinking this camera is pretty sweet.  Easy, no dramas, just point & shoot.

OK, so I'm finished with # 12 and the camera makes this sound like the film is rewinding.  I think, cool, I'm at the end.  I then open the film door, and the film hasn't rewound back into the container.  I have to yank it out and you see the results.  Argh, I forgot to push the little button that rewinds the film....face palm.  

I'll give it one more try this week, but if I can't get the camera to load and rewind correctly - trash bin for you.

Yashica MG-1

The next camera up for review is this beauty.  The Yashica MG-1, black version.  I really enjoy this camera.   I have both the MG-1 version and the Electro 35 GSN.  More on that camera later.  The Yashica MG-1 is a big 35mm film rangefinder.  I consider it a poor person's Leica.  Super cool camera.

I picked the MG-1 up last year at the Irvington Flea Market in Indianapolis.  I bought it for $20.  It was super clean, but it didn't have a battery so I couldn't check the light meter or check if the speed properly set.  However, I was willing to take a flier.

The battery is a 5.6V mercury type.  Not made any longer so I bought an equivalent at BatteryPlus, and POW it works.

So here are the specs.  The camera totes a Yashinon 45mm f/2.8 lens.  A perfect street photography lens.  This is an aperture priority camera.  You simply set the aperture and the camera sets the speed.  There is a simple light meter with red & yellow exposure arrows in the viewfinder on the top.  You simply 1/2 push the shutter release and if no lights come on you are good to go.  If the red arrow comes on, simply turn the aperture ring the direction of the arrow (or you will be overexposed).  If the yellow arrow is illuminated open the aperture or you will be too dark.  There are corresponding lights on the top of the camera.  ASA range from 25-800 which is set on the bottom on the lens.  Aperture is f/2.8 through f/16.  Shutter speed from 2 seconds to 1/500 second.  

There is a hot shoe and when you set the little knob on the top from Auto to flash you have a 1/30 sync speed.  I find this weird because this is a leaf shutter so you'd think it would be faster.  One good thing about the shutter...yep, super quiet.  No mirror slap on this camera...no sir.

Everything else is manual.  Just set your ASA based on the film, focus (there is a focus center spot in the viewfinder), set your desired aperture and click the shutter release.  The light meter will tell you if you need to open up or close the aperture.  Thats it.  Easy.  Another cool thing is that there is a shutter release lock.  This is important to avoid accidental shutter releases since the shutter release button sticks out pretty far.

Here is a photo of the top of the camera and the back.  Very clean

I've run multiple rolls of film through this camera.  It does have a few light leaks that appear now and again.  However, the camera works fine.  At first I thought the light leaks were due to the film but it always happen so I imagine there is a seal issue.  I've taped the camera up a few times with electrical tape and that seems to help, but that's a pain.   

Bottomline, this is a sweet, cool looking camera that's simple to use, but not much setting flexibility.  Perfect for street photography.

I recently ran a roll of Mitsubishi MX-III 400 color film through it and had good subtle colors.  Here you go:

Construction equipment in full sunlight

Construction equipment in full sunlight

Aiming the camera at the sun just as it dipped below the trees

Hey look, it's me