Author: Graham

For this episode, we welcome Nicole Small to discuss her homemade cameras, her love of pinhole photography and how she found herself as a (self) portrait artist. 

You can find her work in these locations and follow along with the discussions:

https://www.nicolesmall.com/tag/art/

https://www.instagram.com/nicolesmall_oneonone/?hl=en

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXbIGe6luBekTIvnKBhYIow/videos

She mentions friend Mark Boucier and how he got her into photography.

The use of micro drill bits vs. pins for drilling pinholes. Here’s a link to some:  (https://smile.amazon.com/XLX-Circuit-Carbide-Tungsten-Jobber/dp/B01LWP84P7/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=micro+drill+bit+set+.10&qid=1588605831&sr=8-2)

Nicole works quite a bit with Cyanotype and the variant Cyanotype Rex developed by Terry King:

http://www.f295.org/main/archive/index.php/t-898.html

https://slykasstuff.tumblr.com/post/155772150296/comparing-different-cyanotype-techniques

http://www.viewcamera.com/pdf/2005/king.pdf

Also, direct positive cyanotypes:

https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/positive-cyanotypes-in-camera.59879/

https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/new-positive-siderotype-iron-based-photography-process-using-iodine-starch-as-colorant.139850/

Direct positive black and white processing links:

Color Direct Positive Filter Set:

https://www.freestylephoto.biz/31636-Arista-RA-4-Color-Filters-6×6-in.-21-Pack

Nicole talks about one of her biggest influencers, Randy Mayer a large-format photography teacher she bumped into at a camera store who became an influence in her technical photographic life and pushed her into doing a solo exhibit. 

Contacts:

OneOnOneArts on Facebook

https://www.instagram.com/nicolesmall_oneonone/?hl=en

Camera Builds

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXbIGe6luBekTIvnKBhYIow/videos

Graham@homemadecamera.com

Nick@homemadecamera.com

Ethan@camerdactyl.com

https://soundtrapstudios.com/Sound_trap_studios/Home.html (Robbie Cribbs)

We start off the show with a discussion on how to make an enlarger from photographic stuff most photographers have around the house. 

Then, there’s a talk about a pinhole project Graham is putting together which Nick insists should be called the Kraken 612 Triclops Predator. We also talk about Nicole Small (https://www.instagram.com/nicolesmall_oneonone/) ahead of the next episode when she will be our guest for the whole show. 

Chris Peregoy’s Pinhole Blender site is mentioned (http://www.pinholeblender.com/) along with the Mr. Pinhole pinhole calculator site (https://www.mrpinhole.com/calcpinh.php)

Also talked about is JOE VAN CLEAVE’s Advent Camera: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mg3utTjG2ZE&t=477s

Nick tries to steal Graham’s Canomorpic name for his own project, (though he does write it Can-O-Morphic so it may get past the Trademark police), a whole-roll 360 degree camera.

We talk about Perry Ge’s work adapting various lenses to his Pentax 6X7 and a special pimp-out accessory for his X-Pan.

Lastly, one of the ugliest cars ever, the Local Motors Rally Fighter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rally_Fighter makes a cameo.

Thanks Robbie! http://soundtrapstudios.com/Sound_trap_studios/Home.html

We start out with a variation on the Desert Island Camera question, a Quarantine Island camera and morph that into talking about cameras we can build with junk you have hanging around the house. Hint: Kites, Rockets, Coconuts, Plasti-Dip and Hardie Board. 

Then, we use the Google Random Number Generator to give away several sets of Holga Masks and an early Kraken 612 development model. 

Through the end of April you can get 15% off a Kraken 612 using the code RELEASETHEKRAKEN15 at my Etsy Store. 

https://www.etsy.com/shop/FrozenPhotonCameraCo

You can see all about the Kraken 612 at http://frozenphoton.com/

We move on to a discussion about what we’ve been doing in life and in cameras:

Nick: Hiding out at home and finishing up some regular work. Finding half-done projects. 8X10 camera build.

Ethan:  Crowd-sourced Ventilators.  Formed (joined?) small International group of 8-12 people to work on non-digital ventilators for people who may need lower-tech ventilators that get around the need for expensive and possibly hard to source digital components.  After starting with valves. In one week produced 2 working prototype, ready for testing. This ventilator uses mechanical/pneumatic controllers instead of digital ones. The key is a 4-way diverter valve, allowing a degree of analog logic control of the airflow.  Working on patent language (not for patent, but for clarity of communicating the concepts and design). Online source of projects. Ethan’s team, openventilator.io . . . , is now ranked 5 and may go to number one by the time you hear this.  

http://openventilator.io/en_US/

Graham: LIFE: Teaching online. Different. No commute time to get my head ready. Routine is good. Most students seem to be taking to the format. Starting up a DND game. 

Cameras: To get my mojo back, I took out a Bronica EC-TL for the first time in a long time. The Kraken is on sale. Changed the license. Shot my 4 X 10 but haven’t developed yet. 

Nick talks about long sticks in the time before drones.

Thanks Robbie! https://soundtrapstudios.com/Sound_trap_studios/Home.html

We start our discussion with potential destinations for a dream photographic trip anywhere in the world.

Dave and Simon, the DangerBoyz, made a documentary film about shooting a photograph in a huge disused World War II oil storage tank in Scotland. Not only did they shoot the image in the tank, but they also set up a darkroom and developed the film and made a large format print of the tank. They talk about the film, how they met, and why they wanted to tackle this improbable task. 

The discussion ranges from rock climbing to trash bag cameras, paper negatives in the dark and bickering with the world’s longest echo.

No interview with Si and Dave would be complete without a discussion about their documentary film, One Shot: Inchindown (https://inchindown.com/) and what it took to make a very large print from a negative they exposed in the super huge oil storage tanks in Scotland (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inchindown_oil_tanks). 

Dave and Simon talk about what project they are currently working on (is Simon a bat?). Could lava tubes be in the future? Glass plates in a fjord?

We talk about what we’ve all been doing lately: Graham has been printing copies of his 6X12 camera that has now been renamed the Kraken and has an official release date (April 16, 2020). Ethan calls dibs on the use of the name Chupacabra (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chupacabra), Graham challenges Ethan for reserving the name, loses the argument but wins in the end. 

Nick’s been in Tuscon this week, away from the dark skies of the Northwestern winter. He arrived with a broken medium format camera so he stopped at Monument Photo (https://www.google.com/maps/place/15+E+Fort+Lowell+Rd,+Tucson,+AZ+85705/@32.2650815,-110.9734827,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x86d67161ca413fd7:0x533e55b0f04641b0!8m2!3d32.2650815!4d-110.971294) and bought a 90-year-old Zeiss Ikonta that works wonderfully. 

Ethan made a 3D-printed toilet tank flap holder. He loves to flush now.

Dave has been doing some photo mash-ups with swirl-spirals, triptychs and wax paper. 

Simon Hanging off ropes upside down in the tanks. There’s a lot going on down there.

We move on to shoutouts. 

Graham points out the Instagram feed of Thomas Berg (@ThomasBergPhoto).

Earlier in the episode, Ethan mentions Nikki Glaser (https://nikkiglaser.com/). He also gives shouts to Simon, Perry, Johnny from the Classic Lenses Podcast (https://www.classiclensespodcast.com/)

Nick mentions Werner Herzog’s Cave of Forgotten Dreams (https://www.ifcfilms.com/films/cave-of-forgotten-dreams)

Dave mentions Mikey Sturgess and his Holga posts.  (https://michaelsturgess.com/) and Valde-North (https://twitter.com/jeremynorth?lang=en).

You can get in touch with us thusly:

Ethan (Ethan@cameradactyl.com)

Nick (Nick@homemadecamera.com)

Graham (Graham@homemadecamera.com)

Dave (DavidSAllen.com)

Simon (You’ll know it if you run into him)

The show’s not over once the music ends. (Cryptic hint of the day)

https://www.podbean.com/eu/pb-pciyd-cf62b1

We start off by talking about Ethan’s successful Kickstarter, the Brancopan. It’s been made real by you, the listeners along with others.

This week our guest is Jeff Perry from 20th Century Camera (https://20thcenturycamera.com/) We learn about Jeff’s real age (he’s nine, folks) and how he got started in photography and then built an automatic Jello Shot machine.

We find out that while Jeff likes modifying old cameras, part of his design ethic is to make any modifications reversible so the cameras can be restored to their original operation. 

Jeff’s not only a camera modifier but also is a designer of full cameras, shutter systems, and the like.

Jeff makes a line of developing “reels” in sizes from 2 by 3 to 8 by 10 for sheet film (listen to the show for the full list or visit https://20thcenturycamera.com/). We get the story of the development (pun!) of these devices.

We roll on to our goals for 2020.

Graham has purchased but not yet received the book, Build Your Own View Camera!: An Easy and Inexpensive Passport to the Professional World of Photography for the Hobbyist by Bert West. He’ll let everyone know what it’s like when he gets it. 

Jeff mentioned Peter Gowland (https://www.petergowland.com/) and Norman Dean (@analognmd on Instagram) who makes roll film backs for Polaroid Land cameras.

Graham mentions: 

Ryan Wyss https://www.ryanwyss.com/cold-camera/2020/1/9/cold-cam-v2 

Mina Saleeb asked if Graham was going to make a 6X15 or 6X17 version of the 6Twelve. The answer is not right now but maybe soon. 

Michael Catalano mentioned that he is in the process of creating a 6X12 as well.

Get in touch with Jeff: Jeff@20thcentury.com Web 20thcenturycamera.com IG: @20thcenturycamera IG@Jeffery.Who FB 4JeffPerry, 20thCenturyCamera

Nick@homemadecamera.com

Ethan@homemadecamera.com

Graham@homemadecamera.com

Podcast@homemadecamera.com

HomemadeCamera.com/giveaway

Apologies to anyone who expected this show to be released on the 21st of October, our usual release date (not that any of you actually notice we release on the 7th and 21st of each month); it was delayed due to Graham updating his computer to MacOS 10.15 and Audacity (audio editing) not updating their software to work with MacOS 10.15. He had to scramble a bit to find a computer with the old operating system but find one he did and here’s the result. 

Ethan has gone off for a European Vacation so Nick and Graham, left to their own devices come up with a show about… 90 minutes in length. They open the show with a discussion of modified Holgas and how to determine the frame sizes on slit masks and then move on to a chat about the interaction between elements in a photograph is the foundation of an interesting image.

Then, to completely annoy Simon, Perry and Johnny of the Classic Lenses Podcast (https://www.classiclensespodcast.com/), they talk about using modern cheap manual focus lensesthat have been designed to go on modern digital autofocus cameras for homemade film cameras. These lenses are excellent and cheap (did we mention cheap?) and, once a shutter system is devised, can create a competent camera build. 

Nick bought a 100 year-old Kodak Panoram camera from an antique store and the design of its swing-lens opens up possibilities. If you don’t know about the Panoram, here’s Mike Ekman’s page on it: (https://www.mikeeckman.com/2016/10/kodak-no-1-panoram-kodak-1900-1926/). The Nodal Point issue is also discussed and here’s a reference on that: (http://www.hugha.co.uk/NodalPoint/Index.htm)

Graham thanks Neil Piper of the Soot and Whitewash podcast (https://anchor.fm/neil-piper) for reviewing the 24Squared which could be back on the market in a few weeks.

They start off talking about bokeh and bokeh balls and Downton Abbey.

Ethan gives a short zine update and then Nick talks about Field of View vs. Perspective.

Narrow terms for optics:

Perspective: The geometry of point of view.

Field of view: With a normal lens, we see about 42mm is the same as our eyes.

Wide-angle lens distorts image: The distortion is an effect of our brains. We can’t normally see it that way so our brains have trouble figuring it out.

Barrel distortion and pincushion distortion are optical effects of lenses that can be corrected in lenses.

They then move into an open discussion about things to think about when building a large format camera. Advantages, disadvantages, concerns, etc. are covered.

The conversation about field of view is continued.

Depth of Field/Equivalent calculator https://www.pointsinfocus.com/tools/depth-of-field-and-equivalent-lens-calculator/

Ethan talks about a new project he has been working on, an 8X10 3D printed camera and why his head smells like soup.

They all talk about what they’ve been doing lately. Nick is thinning stuff out (no, not his hair, though that may also be the case); Graham went to a Viking and Mead Festival where he shot portraits of people in costumes, he’s working with developing more Holga Masks, including a panoramic insert and a 645; Ethan is working on a Day-Into-Night camera. It’s also worth noting that Nick and Ethan appeared on the Sunny 16 Podcast talking about this day-into-night (or night-into-day) photographic challenge the Sunnies are foisting off on the rest of the film photography world (https://sunny16.podbean.com/e/ep-171-made-for-the-job/)

@kouichihirawa was mentioned as Nick’s shoutout.

Graham’s shoutout was to All Through A Lens Podcast (https://allthroughalens.podbean.com/)

Ethan shouted at Al Gore and the Internet. He lost the argument. 

This week the gang talk about cameras that are their own dark rooms. They’re not quite instant cameras but they can produce a final positive image in about ten minutes. Some call them Afghan Street Cameras, Kamra E Faoree, Cuban Polaroids or any number of different names but they all amount to about the same thing: Pure fun for the homemakers of cameras. Hey, maybe we should use that as our new name. 

Here are some links to videos about the cameras: 

https://www.afghanboxcamera.com/

“Cuban Polaroid” is ultra-low-tech camera, darkroom all in one

They also talk a bit about direct positive reversal process:

Joe Van Cleave https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PFQXaDdl60

Don Froula https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50YgsRDYjL0

Finally, they issued a challenge to the listeners to produce a camera that self-develops images (film or paper).

Bonus! Here’s evidence of Nick’s clear insanity. A Wearable Amphibious Autonomous Photo Lab:

Ethan Moses of Cameradactyl and Butter Grips fame (http://www.cameradactyl.com) officially joins the team as our third wheel (3rd lens?). We get his history and interests and he entertains us with stories of crossing the country looking for Photographer’s Jeans and buying them wherever he can. 

They also talk about camera sizes (turns out smaller is better for Graham while bigger is better for Nick and Ethan likes anything smaller than 1.6 Kiev 60s). 

Future plans are discussed and Heather Oelklaus and her new work is brought up (http://www.camerakarma.com/#!/HOME). 

Graham reveals his pinhole camera-building spree. The Canamorph is the interesting one (https://www.instagram.com/p/B0L-piiHfJ7/).

Nick talks about a wheelbarrow and not going to his local county fair. 

Ethan brings up the possibilities of printing distortion-free singlets (how is that NOT a band name?) like this thing: (https://transferencia.tec.mx/en/2019/02/21/eureka-they-find-the-formula-to-solve-an-old-optical-problem/)

If you’re still with us at the end (which is THE recommended course of action), you can hear our theme music. Thanks Robbie!

In this episode, Nick and Graham welcome back Ethan Moses from Cameradactyl to talk about his new camera, the Homunculus (don’t worry, we talk about why it has that name). This camera actually got its start on a previous episode of the podcast where Nick pestered Ethan to develop a camera based on Mamiya Press lenses and a 2X3 Graflok back (same as the RB67 back). Well, this is the result.

Most of the show directly relates to that subject but they also talk a bit about travel photography (Graham is just back from a 2-week vacation in North Carolina), a new 135 panoramic camera Ethan is working on for a friend of his and traipsing through the New England winter on a motorcycle and sidecar. 

Graham talks about Ball Photo in Asheville (http://www.ballphotosupply.com/index.html  Seriously, they’re way better than their website). Go there. Make a pilgrimage. 

Also of note: We’re using a new system for recording shows. It is a bit rougher than what we were using before but it reduces a 4-5 hour editing job down to 1 hour. Bear with us, pleas