Rusty shutters #19.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX100

January 2015.

Hands down, my favorite camera. I pretty much exclusively used this little guy up until its demise – the dreaded dusty sensor problem – earlier this year, and then replaced it with the same model, a NOS box directly from Panasonic.

Other than that, this shooter is just amazing.

I have the LX5. Skipped the LX7. When the LX100 came out I was immediately impressed by the fact that it had controls for manual operation on the outside of the camera, an aperture ring on the lens plus aspect ratio, shutter speeds and exposure compensation with the shutter release nestled neatly between them on top of the camera. The back of the camera is just as tidy.

The Leica ƒ/1.7 glass was an added bonus. Sharp. Plus it uses a 4/3 sensor. Huge.

I made some of my favorite pictures with this camera. Love the in-camera effects. Toy Pop, Dynamic Monochrome, and Rough Monochrome are super cool.

The LX100 is just a pleasure to use.

Resolution: 12.7 megapixels
Max image size – 4112 x 3088
Display: Fixed 3in LCD @ 460,000 pixels
ISO: Auto, 160, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800, 25600
Shutter Speeds: 60 sec – 1/4000 sec
Metering: Multi-segment, center-weighted, spot
Dimensions WHD: 4.53in x 2.6in x 2.17in
Weight: 13.9 oz
Power: Lithium-ion rechargeable battery
Memory card: SD/SDHC/SDXC

After the rain

Ottoman

Gary

Orange Ranunculus

Barbara’s room

Sculpture garden.

A stroll through Laguna Gloria.

I finally had a chance to visit Laguna Gloria in Austin last Saturday morning, participating in a photowalk put together by the good folks that run Round Rock Image Creators.

It was well attended, bunches of fun, and getting to see all that amazing art was right up my alley.

I walked around the sculpture garden with the group, then after everyone else left I wandered around the art school that shares the grounds, peeking into classes that were in session.

I used the Panny GX8 and a couple of different lenses, the Fuji Instax SQ6 instant film camera, and the Blackie App on my iPhone 8.

I shot some 35mm film, too. The Minolta XG-1, Olympus Stylus Epic, and the Sprocket Rocket. All C-41. I have a few more shots left before I can get those processed.

Pretty cool.

 

Anna

Driscoll Villa

Room number three

Raised Laguna Discussion Platform

Pottery

Leaf detail

Road Angel

Watching

Looking up

Road Angel

Queen Victoria Agave

To see if time was there

 

Rusty shutters #18.

Diana 151.

May 2006.

Lots of folks were using toy cameras around that time. There were a couple of Flickr contacts whose Diana 151 work convinced me to find one on eBay.

I seem to recall the price wasn’t too high, maybe US $40 at the time.

I haven’t run a whole lot of film through it, but this particular camera has a decent lens that’s true to the prescribed focus lengths, plus it came with a weathered manual, and a lens cap. I don’t know what happened to the original box.

To eliminate light leaks, I’ve made small removable flaps using gaffer’s to cover the red picture number window and the latch at the bottom of the camera back.

These cameras make the most magical images. Check out Nancy Rexroth’s work.

I’ll be getting out with this little gem again in the near future.

Film type: 120
Exposures: 16 @ 4×4
Shutter Speeds: ~1/50 – 1/100 sec
Aperture: ƒ/11, ƒ/13, ƒ/19
Focal Length: ~60mm
Viewfinder: Optical
Focusing: Manual/zone – 4-6 ft, 6-12 ft, 12 – infinity
Dimensions: 5.3in x 3.7in x 6.8in

Emily

Lamp

Around town

Airplane

’61 Chevy wagon

Ex Libris.

Learning is never ending.

A half-dozen photography related books I’ve added to my library over the past year.

Photographers on Photography: How the Masters See, Think & Shoot
Henry Carroll

Analog Photography: Reference Manual for Shooting Film
Andrew Bellamy

A Chronology of Photography: A Cultural Timeline From Camera Obscura to Instagram
Paul Lowe

Photography Changes Everything
Marvin Heiferman

Experimental Photography: A Handbook of Techniques
Marco Antonini, Sergio Minniti, Francisco Gómez, Gabriele Lungarella, Luca Bendandi

Zen Camera: Creative Awakening with a Daily Practice in Photography
David Ulrich

Rusty shutters #17.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX1.

July 2013.

The only reason this camera is in my collection is because I spotted it on Amazon – body only – for $199, and even though it’d been released a year earlier, that price was just too good to pass up. I added the DMW-LVF2.

I mostly use the Panasonic Lumix G 14mm f/2.5 ASPH Lens on this camera, but also use the 20mm and the Thingyfy Pinhole Pro S11.

Great little camera.

Resolution: 16 megapixels
Max image size – 4592 x 3448
Display: Fixed 3in LCD @ 460,000 pixels
ISO: Auto, 160, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400, 12800
Shutter Speeds: 60 sec – 1/4000 sec
Metering: Multi-segment, center-weighted, spot
Dimensions WHD: 4.58in x 2.67in x 1.55in
Weight: 11.2 oz
Power: Lithium-ion rechargeable battery
Memory card: SD/SDHC/SDXC

Tiny white rose

Sky

Headphones

Love Noir

Fruit bowl

Austin streets.

 

A Thursday morning photowalk.

I got out for a film-shooters photowalk in Austin this morning with Chris Ullrich and Amy Jasek.

The only digital camera I had with me was my iPhone 8.

I brought a bunch of film cameras, but mostly used my recently rediscovered Nikon One•Touch Zoom 90 loaded with a 24 exposure roll of 35mm Ilford XP2 Super and my little Olympus Stylus Epic loaded with a 36 exposure roll of Kodak Ektar 100.

Chris had his awesome Leica M6, and Amy had a really slick black Contax G2.

Chris and I walked from the new-ish Austin Library to Intelligentsia Coffee at 3rd and Nueces Street to meet Amy.

After conversation, coffee, and a light breakfast, the stroll began. Cameras in hand, we headed east on 3rd street to Congress Avenue, headed north where Amy broke out her new Ondu 4×5 pinhole camera.

Crossing over around 8th , we headed back down Congress Avenue to 2nd, then winding our way west, back to the library, where – before we went our separate ways – we talked at length about the current state of the Film Shooters Collective.

Great walk. Great conversation. Great people. Great fun. I hope I got some great pictures!

 

I see patterns.

LEGO bricks.

Annie and I got out for her morning stroll today.

As we crossed the road that serves as one of a few main entryways into our neighborhood, I noticed this pattern in the ADA walkway at the corner on the other side of the street.

The sun was still low in the sky so the small, short bumps cast a long shadow.

They reminded me of LEGOS.

iPhone 8 + Blackie app.

Rusty shutters #16.

Polaroid Colorpack II.

April 2008.

Funny story. I bought five of these cameras on eBay to cut up and make into pinhole (pinholaroid) cameras. Two pinholes got made. The other two Colorpacks were junk.

But one Colorpack II was in such good condition that I just couldn’t bring myself to altering it. So I kept it as is.

I still have it. Great little camera. I should use up some of the remaining Fuji peel-apart I have stashed. Maybe when the weather gets a little cooler, this Fall.

Film: Peel-apart 100-Series or Fujifilm FP-100C, FP100B, or FP3000B
Lens: 114mm, f/9.2
Shutter: Electronic, 10s-1/500s
ISO: 75 & 3000
Focus: 3 feet to infinity
Batteries: Two standard 1.5V AA batteries
Cold clip included

Flamin’ ’55

Diana

ARS

A slight breeze

Toy car

Messy.

But essential.

I replaced the seals on the Olympus 35RC Saturday afternoon. It was another hot Texas day, but I had the fan blowing on me while I sat at my work table in the garage.

Removing the old seals was pretty easy, but messy as hell.

I used any and every tool I could find in the studio to scrape off the old seals and adhesive. Q-Tips, tooth picks, and mineral spirits were helpful in coaxing off all that ages old gunk. As was a couple of different X-Acto knives, skewers, and craft sticks.

Getting the new seals on was a bit tricky – fortunately the kit came with two sets of seals. Very helpful!

The trick is brushing on a little Purell hand sanitizer (the kind without moisturizer) to the sticky-back of the new seals, leaving a bit sticky where the seal is first applied.

You’re given a little bit of time to position the new seal, let the purell evaporate, then press the seal into place.

About an hour and a half total. Not bad.

I loaded it up with a 24 exposure roll of Fujifilm Superia X-TRA 400.

If all goes according to plan, I’ll be getting out next week with two local area film shooters. A short trip down to Austin is planned, with preliminary sights on walking the streets around the newish Austin Library. Maybe even go inside. We’ll see.

At ay rate, I have one of my Domke F6 bags filled with a handful of film shooters for the event. The 35RC, an Olympus Stylus Epic, Nikon One•Touch Zoom 90, Sprocket Rocket, the Fujifilm SQ6, and my Minolta XG-1 + 24mm ƒ/2.8.

Should be fun.