Kodak Disc 4000

Another junk sale photographic relic for you today.

The Kodak Disc 4000 is a point and shoot camera produced for Kodak’s own disc film in 1982.

It has a fixfocus 12.5mm 2.8 lens and a built in flash.

It still works too, though even if you managed to find some disc film it would be 20 years out of date and I doubt any lab on earth would process it for you.

The disc film cartridge format was quite innovative, but the quality of the prints it produced was so poor it was discontinued before the end of the 1980s.

I quite like the design of this camera, it is very slim and the brushed metal finish is lovely.  The shape and design is not that much different to some modern digital point and shoot cameras.

I paid £2 for this relic, with its original case and receipt!

The receipt says it was originally purchased in Portugal in the the summer of 1986, I guess as a holiday camera.

The original owner paid 12,600 Portuguese Escudo for it, about £50 in British money, which, in 1986 was quite a lot.  A mid-range point and shoot camera these days would cost around £150-200.

 

 

Nikon L35AF2 One Touch

New camera!

This little beauty was a junk sale bargain, £4 with original case and batteries.

I’ve heard a lot about the previous model to this, which is now somewhat of a cult classic.

After some research, I was pleased to see that this model had the same awesome 35mm 2.8 lens as the original.

As a high end compact, it can be described as the Olympus [mju:]-2 of the 1980s

I loaded it with Ilford Delta 400 and took it out to London.

I was not disappointed with the results, even on that cloudy, overcast day.

Holga & London’s South Bank

It was my birthday last week!

It’s the same date as World Pinhole Day!

I don’t currently own any pinhole cameras, so I took Holga with me for my birthday trip to the Globe Theatre.

I took a few snaps of the Globe and area around it on a roll of Kodak T-max 400.

I had a great day and got some good results from Holga (which is never guaranteed)

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mamiya C33

 

The Mamiya C33, a Professional TLR camera with interchangeable lenses, that was made in the late 1960′s.

This one is my girlfriend Helen’s, from her vast collection of classic cameras.

This camera is huge and heavy even by medium format standards, it only just fit in my Billingham Hadley Pro.  It would live quite happily on a tripod or in a studio.

The 80mm 2.8 Mamiya-Sekor lens combo is in great condition, clean and sharp with a snappy, accurate shutter.

The body, however has not aged as well. the metal is scratched and the covering is peeling off.  On my first attempt at loading a film, the film spool mechanism fell to pieces. I eventually managed to get a roll of Kodak T-Max 400 into it and went for a stroll to my local church to get some test shots.

As you can see, a spring from the film spool had got caught in the camera mechanism, causing an obstruction on all 12 frames!

As the area that was actually exposed was quite impressive, I removed the spring loaded another T-Max 400, and returned to the church yard a few days later.

I had never used Kodak T-Max before, and in conjunction with the superb 80mm Mamiya-Sekor produced some awesome tones and detail.

I developed it in my usual Ilford Ilfosol 3 and scanned with the Epson V500

 

 

The Mamiya focuses very close, but the parallax from the twin lens set up is horrendous! I assure you that the leaf was beautifully composed in the middle of the viewfinder.

The Mamiya C33 gets great results, but is just massive and heavy to carry.  If you want a TLR and can’t afford a Rollei, buy a Yashica, your back will thank you.

mes photos de EXPOSITION PARIS 1937: junk stall found photos

Its car boot (junk) sale season again.  I will share all the photographic bargains I pick up with you.

First this season is a selection of old photographs from the Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne, held in Paris in 1937.

This souvenir collection is of 12 credit card sized photographic prints, and is a great example of 20th century modernist architecture.  It is also a fascinating historical find, with pavilions from Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia, two years before WW2.  The Soviet monolith looks like a model from Fritz Lang’s ‘Metropolis’. 

I hope you enjoy this collection as much as I did:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Olympus [mju]-2 Blackpool Snapshots

 

 

 

I’ve been a busy boy recently, with thematic analysis reports and other goings on, but I finally got round to ordering some more Ilford Ilfosol 3 developer form Silverprint.

On my recent week away in my hometown not a minute went by when I didn’t have this little camera with me.  It is perfect for slipping in your pocket for those quick snapshots.  Not only is it tiny but the lens is amazingly sharp and fast.

Here are some snapshots of Blackpool from a roll of Ilford Delta 400:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Olympus [mju:]-2 & the decline of the seaside holiday camp

 

Pontin’s Holiday Camp in Blackpool was hugely popular in the 1950′s & 60′s.

It would be packed every summer, attracting the big name entertainers of the day to perform and judge ‘miss lovely legs’ contests.

Later, in the 1990′s & 2000′s it was still open for business, its brightly coloured chalets running parallel with the sand dunes.  By then, though, it was looking tired and dated and certainly didn’t attract the numbers of visitors of days gone by.

Now, in 2013, it looks like a derelict POW camp, its smashed windows surrounded by barbed wire.

Its a great shame, with some clever investment it could have risen from the ashes as a desirable destination.  But, as with a lot of Blackpool, the funds dried up and it was left to rot and fall apart in the salty sea winds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

Olympus [mju:]-2 (Stylus Epic) & the St. Annes sand dunes

Even in the worst March weather the UK has seen for hundreds of years, Helen and I were lucky enough to get a couple of sunny days in Blackpool.  So we headed to St. Annes and the gorgeous sand dunes.

Away from the tourists and concrete, the sand dunes are a natural beauty and great to visit whatever the tide.  During my creative years I spent many an afternoon on the dunes with various friends and cameras.  I always try to visit when I return.

It was late afternoon and the sun was dipping, ready to set over the ocean.  We left the Mini by the side of the road and went for a sandy climb.

The Olympus [mju:]-2 (Stylus Epic) is a great carry round camera for such a trip.  

It was loaded with Ilford Delta 400.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blackpool Tower Ballroom & View from the top

 Blackpool Tower, the Eiffel inspired iron monolith that dominates the Lancashire coastline.

I grew up in Blackpool, so I saw the tower looming in the distance for over 20 years.  It is still nice to visit it every once in a while though.  Especially the stunning ballroom with its famous rising Wurlitzer organ. The ballroom features in my family history too, my grandparents honeymooned in Blackpool, and Grandma was in the Ballroom when WW2 ended!

The top of the tower has been through a few changes over its life, and even mine.  When I was young the viewing platform had a souvenir stall and an old red phone box, from which I always rang my sister.  They have been replaced with a large viewing window and glass floor.  These days I still call my sister at the top, but from my mobile phone.

I loaded the Nikon F2 with Ilford Delta 400 and clicked on the 35mm 2.8.

I got a great shot of the ballroom and some nice views from the top.  I like to share my photography adventures with you film by film, so there will be external shots of the tower in later posts.

Fujifilm instax mini 10

 

The Fujifilm instax mini 10

The ultimate party camera!

It was a big hit on a recent trip to Blackpool for a double birthday celebration.

The credit card sized prints are great fun, and party goers love to watch them develop.  They are also cheap enough to give away at about 50p each (less than $1 U.S).

These cameras are still available new, in various colours and models.

Mine was a gift from my psychology study buddy Kat.

These are great alternative to Polaroid if you want to get into Instant film photography.  All the fun of a ‘Roid but less of the unreliability, expense and mess.

I scanned my party photos in two batches for easy online sharing. 

I had an awesome weekend and came home with a great collection of instax prints.