Pentax PC35AF

I'm starting my 52in52 2017 project.  One film camera per week.  Possibly a cheapo point & shoots I pick up at Goodwill or a flea market or maybe an expensive camera purchased online.  I have MANY such cameras to select. Therefore the selection process will be a challenge in itself, but a good problem to have!

First up is a recently purchased Pentax PC35AF.  Shoots 35mm film.  The PC35AF feels very well built.  Not a cheap plastic toy camera, this thing is mostly metal.  It reminded me of my much loved Olympus MJU, although it's a bit bulkier and wider.

I bought the Pentax at Goodwill for a stupid cheap price of $2.99.  

What I like about the camera is it's cool looks.  I totally dig the red shutter release button and the small red switch that pops open the lens cover.  There is no manual way to open the lens cover so if you break off the red cover release switch you're screwed.  

The camera has a street photography perfect f2/8 35mm lens.  The shutter is super quiet.  The camera has an autofocus which is cool.  ISO range is only 25-400, so no low light for you.  You do have a pop up flash released using a red switch on the bottom.  Flash is automatic.  Film is advanced using a thumb wheel on the top back of the camera.  Mine is a bit tight, but smooth. A 10-second self timer on the shutter release.  I wasn't able to determine if you can take double exposures, but I don't think so.

Here's the top, bottom & back

I shot a roll of of Ilford XP2 400.  Easy to use.  Flash was responsive.  Overall a fun camera to start the year.  I'll definitely be using it again.

52in52

I've enjoyed shooting film the past couple of years after years of digital only.  Adding to the enjoyment is I've started developing and scanning my film as well.  This provides more control over my workflow and cuts the cost.

Well, in 2017 I've decided to do a personal film photography project.  I'm regularly playing with a film camera so I thought I would do a 52 in 52 project.  I'm going to shoot a different film camera each week in 2017.  

I have well over 100 different point & shoot and SLR film cameras so I have LOTS to work with.  I'll combine the project with my street photography, studio work and general snapshots.  The goal is to try different film types as well.  This gives me an opportunity to try different cameras and then write about them. 

Let's see if I can do this consistently.  Should be fun.  By the way, here is what I have to select from.

30+ Year Old Kodak Tri-X Pan

I was going through an old box of photography "stuff" that I inherited from my Dad.  I found a bunch of reusable film canisters and what appears to be almost a full 100' roll of Kodak Tri-X Pan.  I have no clue how much film is still in the roll, but I figured I'd give it a go.

I rolled several short rolls (12'ish exposures) to give them a try. Using the bulk film roller was very straight forward. OK, rolled one backwards which was a bit of a learning experience. The cassettes were a bit stiff to open, but I think that's needed to keep them from popping open. 

  

I put tape at the end of the film, but after shooting a couple of rolls, I'll need to tape them better.  One roll had the film come off the spool after I shot it.

How do you like my labels. Very professional, NOT.  Hey, not a biggie.  Anyway, for the first roll I shot it with a camera I know was good to go.  A Canon Sure Shot which I've used several times previously.  I then sent it off to The Darkroom to take home developing possible issues out of the equation.  

Well, got them back and hey, it works!!  OK, it has very minimum contrast (this photo was taken on a sunny day), but I like the fact that I can use a 30+ year old film that my Dad owned.

Yashica 44 - A Mini TLR

I was given this really cool Yashica-44 earlier in the year.  I looked in pretty good shape.  All the moving parts moved, the shutter seemed to be smooth and the glass clear.  The only issue was that the film advance and focus dials are very loose.  Not fall off loose, but not tight.  No problems.  I was happy to add it to my collection.  The only challenge...yep, it shoots an odd sized film, 127.  While the film is still available, it's somewhat hit or miss to find and kind of pricey.

About a month ago I tried to figure out how to shoot 35mm spockets with it, so at least I could give it a go.  No joy, couldn't figure out how to get it set up.

OK, I decided to break down and buy a couple of Rera Pan 100-127 rolls from Freestyle Photo in LA. Each roll was $12, so I bought 2.   I hadn't shot the camera before, so I wasn't sure if it was going to work or a dud.  For this reason I decided to only shoot one roll, have it developed and see if it worked.  If it didn't then I'd have a spare roll of 127 to shoot in any other camera I came upon that needed it.

A few weeks ago I was NYC so I decided to give it a try.  Guess what, it worked!!  Easy to load, and everything seemed to go smoothly.  I metered the camera using a Luma-Pro that I had.  Loading was straight forward, just like any TLR.  

I'll definitely use it again, and this time I'm going to also investigate how / if I can roll my own 127 film.  A few of the shots in NYC.  I love the old-skoolie look of the film, the massive amount of grain and the soft focus.

Model Photos with a Yashica EZS Zoom 70

I picked up this Yashica EZS Zoom 70 at a Goodwill store.  A fairly straight forward, limited feature 35mm film point & shoot.  It's got a cool look and fits easily into my hand.  A bit bulky for my taste for a point & shoot, but I wanted to give it a go.  I've always had good luck with Yashicas.

The camera was super clean when I got it.  Battery compartment completely clean, lens clean and operated smoothly.  I probably paid less than $3.

I decided to take it to a recent model test studio shoot.  I've gotten into the habit of bringing a film camera during my test, fashion and model shoots and popping off a few frames.  I've started a series on my Facebook page called "Girls On Film".  Get it, the Duran Duran song...??

Anyway, I shot about 1/2 roll of Ilford XP2 Super 400 film during my shoot with model Anastasiya Finogenova with LModelz Model Management.  I just had her pose casually against various backgrounds.  In all cases the flash fired (set to auto) which gave it a somewhat blown-out look which was cool.

I developed the film myself and scanned it using my cheapo Epsom V370 scanner.  I REALLY like the results.  Totally surprised at the quality and vibe from the film camera.  I'll definitely use it again (this weekend maybe??).

A couple of photos of Anastasiya...just cropped in Lightroom and a touch of Clarity added.

NYC Street Photography

I'm in NYC attending to some family matters, and guess what?  I have all day Saturday free.  Hmm, what to do? What to do?  I know, street photography.  I came prepared.  I'm primarily going to shoot film, but am bringing digital too.

I was going to take a small kit, but I decided to bring 4 cameras.  Here's what I brought.  One note, I did switch out one camera from the photo at the last minute.  The kit

• Nikon D810 with a Nikon MB-D14 vertical battery grip
• Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 & Nikkor 28mm f/2.8 lenses or the D810
• A bunch of 32GB memory cards
• Olympus MJU-1 point & shoot film camera
• Pentax K1000 film camera (I was originally going to bring my Yashica Electro 35 GSN but wanted an SLR without a light meter (my K1000 meter is dead)
• Yashica 44 TLR
• Luna-Pro light meter (for the K1000)
• 2 rolls of Rera Pan 100 127 film for the Yashica 44
• 9 rolls of various Ilford B&W film including 1 roll of Lomography 400 color film

I know it's a lot.  Most people will bring only one camera / one lens, but I wanted to play with film with an SLR, a point & shoot and a TLR.  I also wanted to bring a workhorse digital camera (that I use in the studio)

I plan to spend about 10 hours just walking through the city.  Once I run out of film, I'll switch to digital....

Here we go!  I'll report back with pictures.

Another Try At Sprockets - My Thoughts on the Setup

My first go at shooting with sprockets on a Holga 120N was "quasi" successful.  It was a good test, but the quality was just OK.  Do I give up and hold my head low you ask?  Why no, lets give this another go.  Why you might ask?  Just like everything with my film photography...it's just for giggles.

OK, this time I've decided to use a Yashica 44.  I was given this camera by a friend and I've never shot it before.  The problem is that it uses 127 film.  Since I don't have any 127 film (medium format), I figured it would be a good candidate for SPROCKETS.  Right on.

OK, here's what I'm going to do based on a test I did tonight with some dead film.  It's probably more complicated than it's worth, but like I said above, it's just for fun.  Note, this is all going to be in a large black changing bag.  First, I'm going to open a cartridge of 35mm film & unwind it.  Next, I'll tape the film ends on both sides of a 127 spool (I bought one on eBay).  Next I'm going to roll one side onto the spool and while holding it in place put it in the camera and load the other spool in the receiver side.  Then I'll close it up.  Out of the bag I'm going to tape up all up to minimize light leaks.

OK, we'll see how this goes.  Once (if) done I'll let you know.