Experiments in Primitive Photography

<p>Just thought I'd share a bit on finding new joys in old technologies and bringing a kid along for the ride. I have a Nikon D-300 and love it, but have always been a bit of a closet Luddite, and was finding myself at a loss to show my 11-year old son just how a camera works when it is all electronic. So rather than break out the K-1000 (which would have been the logical step), we went even more primitive and built pinhole cameras (out of Altoid tins, inspired by <a href="http://www.merrillphoto.com/pintoidhowto.htm">http://www.merrillphoto.com/pintoidhowto.htm</a> ) - because they have a much shorter exposure time than shoe boxes and fit in your shirt pocket. We used six-plus year old Kodak Polycontrast III RC paper I had in the garage for our paper negatives, and went out for some basic guess-work for our first set of exposures (more experimenting will ensure in the future). Then for the real fun part. I wanted to develop the pictures at home, so my son could see the images appear on the blank paper under the old safelight, but in keeping with the experimental spirit of the project we hunted down one of the coffee-based home-made developers (we used the high octane caffenol at <a href="http://tomoverton.images.googlepages.com/caffenol">http://tomoverton.images.googlepages.com/caffenol</a> ), but replaced the instant coffee with instant espresso. And it worked. They are no Ansel Adams prints, but my son was enthralled, and ready to go out shooting again, and looking forward to more odd experiments in photography (which, in the end, will have him learning optics, physics, chemistry and even aesthetics). Anyway, hope this inspires folks to try something new, and take someone else along for the ride!<br>

<img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/8594770-lg.jpg" alt="" width="604" height="401" /><br>

<img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/8594771-lg.jpg" alt="" width="604" height="401" /></p>

<p>And in the grand scheme of experimenting, we forgot to reverse the image in the scan in making the positive...<br>

<img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/8594829-lg.jpg" alt="" width="604" height="401" /></p>

<p>great Rodger. Pinhole is major fun and you're right it will teach him a lot. But more than anything else it will teach him what light is and does, something that's far harder to grasp with split-second exposures.</p>

<p>Excellent. Well done. Especilly for the coffee developer.</p>

<p>EXCELLENT! Great fun for you and your son, I'm sure. The photos look very Fox-Talbot like in the final result. Might be an added lesson to do some reading with your son about him and his process. Most of all, enjoy the time with him, they grow way too fast.</p>

<p>Rodger:</p>

<p>Many Thanks for the links and the inspiration!</p>

<p>Cheers! Jay</p>

<p>I will never forget when my mom taught me darkroom work and when I saw that first image (of my cat) just appearing in the developer tray. There's an undeniable magic to the experience. You get many gold stars for sharing that with your son!</p>

<p>Now this is inspiring! I love all my DSLR crap, but i love photography even more.... whatever form it takes.</p>

<p><strong>3/3</strong><br>

You didn't use the rule of thirds and the image is a bit soft.</p>

<p>Sorry, I couldn't stop myself. Sounds like fun, and thanks for providing the links.</p>

<p>WOW, Rodger. You're a great parent and teacher. In our world of instant everything, what an inspiring gift to give your son. It reminds me of the quote, "Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime." This lesson will follow him throughout his life. Bravo.</p>

<p>Coffee developer? Never heard of it. Absolutely fascinating. What fun!</p>

<p>My grandfather was a professional photographer. He had a photo studio and two 6 x 9 camera's. In his darkroom he had a monstrous enlarger (Fit for 8'' by 10'' negs) hanging on the wall.</p>

<p>He did baryte paper, which had to flush for a day. I've still got his negs and some prints, they are 100% OK, some after 70+ years.</p>

<p>Two things I'll never forget: The developing of the paper, when the image came out, and the glossing machine, a big heated chrome plate he put the shots on. When the prints were dry, he loosened the holder canvas and one by one they 'd pop off by themselves, perfectly brilliant.</p>

<p>I have 15 camera's and about 50 lenses, and two sons. Neither of them developed the slightest interest in photography. That's a real bummer. </p>

<p>But maybe I'll have grandchildren... it may skip a generation... </p>

<p>Dirk.</p>