john_mcinnis

My first camera was a fixed focus Brownie. It did nothing to interest me in photography. The first decent camera I ever used was a Mamiya 35mm SLR that I got issued by the govt. And trained on. I later bought a Minolta 110 SLR Mk II to use instead of my issued Nikon Fm2 that took up too much space in a backpack for work trips in outback Alaska.

Just finished a test roll of Fujicolor Superia 400 in a new to me Agfa Super Solinette. I'll probably finish a roll of Ektar 100 that I started a week ago in my Agfa Record III. Then, since I don't do darkroom work, I'm going to try a different lab that seems to offer a little cheaper and faster service.

I assume flash is not part of your plan. In any situation where shooting in variable low light meter failure may be a problem. Rather than depend on my memory and often faulty exposure guesses, my inclination would be to get a copy of the Black Cat Extended Exposure Guide which uses estimates of lighting in unusual situations to give you a starting point. You compare your lighting to the listed situations and set the guide. Then bracket from there. You can preplan your options for probable expected conditions and quickly adjust as you go. It lets you quickly do what if comparisons. It's a handy inexpensive little pocket tool. Even with access to a good meter, I'd really want that as a backup. It's quick to use, no batteries, and will give you something to work with in situations where a meter may fail miserably. The starting points it gives for dark lighting account for reciprocity failure possibilities. You can check it out by Google.

 

Also think long and hard about DOF in that situation. If the lighting is really low, carry a small red lens flashlight to read your settings. Sounds like you're setting forth into one of those love/hate situations, love the challenge but hate the possibility of wasting too many shots. One reason I still like film. It forces me to think.

Not the prettiest example of the Isolette II's but she'll be out with me this weekend shooting my first two rolls of test film.

 

Pretty is as pretty does. Good shooting.

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Agfa Record III w/ Apotar lens. Test shots with ARISTA EDU PAN 100.[ATTACH=full]1366110[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]1366110[/ATTACH] Also, testing this upload function.

Sorry about the double upload. I think I have it figured out. Better next time.

Agfa Record III w/ Apotar lens. Test shots with ARISTA EDU PAN 100. Also, testing this upload function.

About the only time I would, maybe, use this app would be when checking aperture and/or speed settings on my camera. Otherwise, I'd just take paler notes on the rare occasion it might matter.

I have a Kodak No. 2 Folding Cartridge Premo circa late 19 teens. It has shutter speeds of 25 and 50, and aperture 1, 2,3, & 4. I've found it likes Ilford PAN F 50. Assuming the apertures translate to f11, f16, f22, f32, I've set the camera with my Luna Pro light meter and never yet had a bad exposure. The slow shutter speed on these cameras, and their lack of ergonomics, means they're never gonna be snapshooters. But they are completely able to do decent B&W landscapes, and posed still life and portraits. Solid basic photography with basic cameras.

I've gotten in the habit of carrying a couple of prints of good photos I've made with the camera if I'm using a really old folder. A lot of folks are curious how good a picture they make. Showing them a couple of good prints satisfies their curiosity and adds to the WOW factor for folks who've never actually seen the old bellows rigs being used. Of course, you have to be prepared for the occasional protracted conversation that can arise, too. But, I'm retired. So, I'm seldom in a hurry. :-)

A few weeks ago, I decided to see what I could do with my Kodak No. 2 Folding Cartridge Premo in 120 using it strictly hand held. I normally use it on a tripod or braced against some other solid object. This was just an experiment because the camera has the ergonomics of a broken concrete block when hand held. Nevertheless, it was instructive to see that tolerable hand held photos can be made with a hundred year old machine of relatively low quality with limited shutter speed and exposure settings.

 

The finished photos below were taken with ILFORD PAN F 50, processed/scanned by the Darkroom, and minimally straightened/cropped with Photoshop Elements. Shutter speed was uniformly 1/50 with exposures eyeballed on the old Kodak 1 through 4 aperture settings. The prism viewfinder on the camera is only useful to get within the ballpark for framing when hand held. I caught some flare in the lower right quadrant of a couple of photos which, fortunately, cropped out nicely. Other than that, they are what they are.

All the photos were taken in the Old Town section of Olive Branch, MS.

 

ENTRANCE TO THE PARKING LOT SHOPS AT THE NORTH END

 

SHOPS ALONG PIGEON ROOST ROAD

 

BARBER SHOP AND BEAUTY PARLOR

 

FIRE DEPARTMENT ON PIGEON ROOST RD

 

HOUSE ACROSS FROM CITY HALL

I have been unable to attach one to my no. 2 folding premo. There is a mounting hole beneath the shutter lever. But my cable releases block movement of the lever when pressed which stops the function.

Okay ... so a couple of questions that admittedly I should probably know already, but I'd like your recommendations on film speed and brand of B&W film one might use on these devices. I suspect I'd be taking a few shots of people, and some objects, as opposed to scenery. But in any case, I'd probably be outside. Based on most of the photos that I believe came from this camera, they were pretty much all taken outdoors. SO should I just stick to ISO 400 or use something slower? And brand-wise, Kodak Ektar or Fujifilm?

 

John, you mention the need to mask the view port. Is that because the speed /sensitivity of modern film is such that too much light enters the camera via that opening than would would have caused issues back in the day? interesting....

Ilford Pan F Plus 50 works nicely in these old cameras. It's probably more in lone with the film the camera was built to use. These cameras are best at deliberate photography. I always shoot either off a tripod or braced against a wall or a tree. Aperture 1 or 2 at 1/50 in bright sun. If you have a light meter, it helps. Be really careful to svoid flare. Without a lens shade the lld lenses are really subject to flare. Keeping the sun over yojr shoulder is an old rule that works.

 

The film view window needs to be covered because modern films are way more sensitive to red than the old films. So, it's best to do film advances with the window uncovered in the shade. Then replace the black tape over the window. The film backing paper will help against light leak onto the emulsion. But bright light could still cause a problem even with the red filter.

The manual on Mike Butkus' site is for the Kodak Junior 1A, the Autographic model, which is otherwise the same as the same as the Junior 1. (Send Mike the $3 donation -- his site is a unique, valuable resource.) The camera takes 116 film, close to but not the same as 120; this Google page lists various ways of adapting 120 film:

Google

Good catch on the film size, and good info on the adapters.

Actually, there is a manual on Butkus.org that covers both the no.1 and 1A Junior.

 

I'd go with the actual ID plate to determine what the camera is.

 

Don't think I'd use epoxy on the red view port. A less aggressive contact cement might be better for later removal if it finally gives up the ghost.

 

I used #106 primary red gel filter available in 10 x 10 in. Sheets from Amazon to repair the one on my no. 2 folding cartridge premo. With modern film, you still need to put a piece of black electrical tape over the window when you're not winding the film.

If you're planning on using the camera, I hope you will have checked the bellows and basic lens and shutter functions before you worry with the viewfinder. Those viewfinders are almost the least useful part of those old cameras and adequate workarounds can be improvised.

 

That said, you might be able to find a similar parts camera or even the same one cheap online. The 1A looks like it uses the same VF. Since the VF is rivetted onto the mounting plate, replacement, though perhaps not trivial, should be possible by drilling out the rivets and remounting the replacement with small screws and nuts.

 

The manual for your camera is available on BUTKUS.ORG under orphan cameras. At least you should be able to get film, since the camera should be 120 format.

 

Also, the aperture settings in the old Kodak format (1, 2, 3, 4) translate roughly to f11, f16, f22, f32. As forgiving as BW negative film is, that's close enough.

 

Happy shooting

It's always fun to show an interested individual how film is loaded (if they ask)

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I also like to discuss why I still prefer film.

This is a good old discussion. Since I wasn't here when it started, I think I'll put my two cents in. I have always thought a classic manual camera had to be a survivor that could sit in a closet for a century and stil be revived with basic cleaning and mechanical maintence. It makes images on a medium independent of electronic technology. Nothing more modern than photochemical processing is required to generate viewable picture. So, all plate and film cameras that can perform their basic function without batteries or other electrical power would fit whether or not film is still commercially available. Age is irrelevant. Digitals pretty much fall out of this definition because their primary function of taking useable pictures is performed electronically. Any film camera that becomes no more than a doorstop without batteries also falls out. My FM3, though having electronic functions, can still take good pictures using manual settings and would fit the bill just as well as my Isolette II or my century old Kodak No 2 folder.

And here is a add-on pushing this post of mine from 2010.

Re-animation -- "all it takes is one little post at the end, and it call comes back to life again"

 

Still no progress on a way of including early digital cameras....

Great images continue to come. I apologize for the duplicate image, but Firefox was not cooperating and my efforts resulted in same image twice.

@ John- do you live near Olive Branch?

Mike, Yes I do live in Olive Branch.

I would love to go sailing on that ship.

You can look it up on the web. The group that maintains it sails it. Don't recall if they do excursions. It's a pretty special ship.

These are from a Kodak No. 2 Folding Cartridge Premo circa 1917. Both Ilford PanF 50 at 1/50 sec aperture setting #2 (approx f16).

 

This is the city park lake at Olive Branch, MS

 

City Hall Olive Branch, MS

Just some oldies from my Isolette II. Don't remember anything about the film or settings. Probably just eyeballed it like most vacation photos.

 

The main mast of the S/V Elissa on shakeout at Galveston, TX in preparation for the sailing season 2016.

 

Starboard side of S/V Elissa

 

 

The chapel in the park at Roundtop, TX.

Yes. Thought that might work. We'll see.

Anyone know the status of Jurgen Kreckels' Certo6 website? I've tried to make contact thru the posted email address and received error messages, address unknown. I bought a finely restored Isolette II from Jurgen last year.