Author: Nicolai Grossman

France Scully Osterman added to f295 Symposium roster

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Tom Persinger of f295 writes:

We’re excited to announce the addition of France Scully Osterman to the featured speakers/worskhop presenters at this years f295 Symposium in Pittsburgh, PA [US] May 29 – June 1, 2008!

France Scully Osterman is an artist, and a guest scholar at George Eastman House. She teaches private tutorials and workshops in the Scully & Osterman 19th century skylight studio, specializing in wet-plate collodion, salted paper and albumen printing.

France will be offering a 2 day collodion workshop called It’s All Positive! The Wet-Plate Collodion Process and delivering a artists’ talk at the Thursday night opening reception entitled Serendipity and Exquisite Manipulation which will discuss the artistic artifacts of the collodion process as well as the factors which influence and guide her work: process, lens, light, exposure and intent.

Workshop information is here
(this is a rare chance as neither she nor Mark teach very many intro collodion workshops!)

You can read more about France here

And more about her talk here

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SYMPOSIUM WORKSHOPS
Many of the workshops are filling fast/nearing capacity, the home page of the site has been updated to reflect the number of spots remaining in each. If you’re thinking about taking a workshop register soon so as to not miss your chance! Workshops are only available for those registered for the symposium.

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EXHIBITOR LIST GROWING!
We’re also excited to announce the addition of several more exhibitors to the growing group! B&H Photo, Fujifilm USA, Inkpress Paper, Lensbabies, Pinhole Blender and Without Lenses will all be on hand to discuss their products with you! More TBA soon!

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MIX AND MINGLE!
Not only will you be able to interact with other like minded practitioners and see a LOT of the exciting alt-photo work that is being done by this niche photographic group but you’ll be able to mixc and mingle with all of the 2008 featured speakers and many of the speakers from the 2007 symposium. What a group! You’ll be hard pressed to find this many alt-dignitaries, authors and practitioners in any other place!

Those speakers planning to be on hand for these events include:
* Martha Casanave
* Alan Greene
* Jo Babcock
* Laura Blacklow
* Jill Enfield
* Jesseca Ferguson
* Robert Hirsch
* France Scully Osterman
* Mike Robinson
* Terry King
* Jerry Spagnoli
* Keith Taylor
* Ilan Wolff

Stay tuned for more exciting announcements in the coming days. Registration has been brisk and we have limited space available for the event –register today!

Complete symposium information: www.f295.org/symposium2008

Go directly to the registration page!

See you in Pittsburgh!
Tom

Tim Connor opening TONIGHT, Brooklyn, NY, US

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Brooklyn Lightbox Magic show flyer

Tim Connor writes:

Come to a celebration of my photographs this Thursday, March 20th [2008], 6–8 pm at the Pacific Standard Bar in Brooklyn. It’s the Spring Equinox & light & color are happening again! Here’s the info:

The show is currently on display 24/7 in colorful 4 ft. by 6 ft. lightboxes at the Atlantic Ave/Pacific St.subway station. The station is located at the intersection of Flatbush & Atlantic Ave (see map). It is served by the 2, 3, 4, 5, B, D, M, N, Q & R subway lines & by the LIRR.

If you’re coming by train, see the show on your way to the schmooze. It’s convenient! To find the lightboxes go to the lower level at Atlantic Ave. and follow signs to the B, Q & LIRR

The schmooze: is at Pacific Standard Bar, 82 Fourth Ave. (2 blocks from station — see map) . Starts at 6.

See the official invite

See the pictures as a slideshow

See the lightboxes on site

The magic hands of a camera repair professional

Nicolai Grossman 2 Comments

I have a new-style Hasselblad A12 film back that’s been stuck on my 203FE body for over two weeks now. I could change the film by pulling the insert, but the shell just wouldn’t move, meaning that I couldn’t clean or change the viewfinder or attach a Polaroid back. I messed with it, posted to the Hasselblad group on Flickr about it, tried different darkslides (since the back is locked onto the body when the darkslide is removed), coaxed it, and almost sang and danced for it. Nothing worked.

Expecting a long and expensive service trip, I gritted my teeth this morning and called the local Hasselblad rep to ask about repair. Oddly, the number seemed to be out of service (fast busy signal), so I hit Google and found several recommendations for Advance Camera in San Francisco. I talked to him on the phone and he told me to bring it in, which I did. He tried the release catch and noted that it was indeed stuck. Then he fiddled with the darkslide. I thought about how I’d already done everything he’s doing, that it’s not going to work and better for him than it did for me, and that I’m going to be without my camera for a while and out a significant chunk of money. I can see the film back in a million pieces on his workbench in my head, growing more expensive by the minute.

And then, after a whole four seconds or so, the back came off and is now working perfectly. He said something about how sometimes your body stops hurting when you go to the doctor, and shrugged. Magic.

Agfa Multicontrast Classic fibre paper to be reissued by ADOX!

Nicolai Grossman 1 Comment

It’s coming back, maybe in August [2008]! ADOX says:

The Emulsions for this paper are being produced on the original Agfa machinery which ADOX purchased together with former Agfa engineers from the liquidator of AgfaPhoto in Leverkusen.

They are identical in all measurable parameters with the papers formerly sold by Agfa under the “Agfa Multicontrast Classic” name.

This paper is among the technologically most advanced papers in the world. With its four separately made emulsions which are coated together it yields a range of achievable contrasts from 0 to 5,5. Other variable contrast papers, especially those with only one emulsion layer, reach at the outermost grade 4…

Continue reading at ADOX’s product page

Via Tom Persinger

Adventures with a Polaroid Automatic 100

Nicolai Grossman 6 Comments

As I posted, I recently converted a friend’s Polaroid Automatic 100 land camera to use normal AAA batteries. I got the chance to take it out for a spin in Golden Gate Park.

Having separate windows for rangefinder focusing and framing is a little weird, and more shows up on film than the framelines tell you, but I really liked shooting with it. You can carry the camera with the bellows collapsed and still use the viewfinder, only extending them to actually take a picture. This makes it nice and compact for walking around, fitting easily in your hand or on a strap under your arm. (I’d leave the cover at home, since it’s a big useless thing you have to carry, kind of like a bigger Holga lens cap).

Overall, I give the Polaroid Automatic 100 a "hell yeah". You can find them for around US $10 on eBay in working order (except the battery conversion, but you can also just use more expensive batteries if you’re not up for that), and despite the demise of Polaroid, Fuji still makes a very nice pack film that’s cheaper (and IMO nicer) than Polaroid was anyway. Fuji’s compatible films are FP-100C (ISO100 color), FP-100B (ISO100 black and white), and FP-3000B (ISO3000 black and white).

Here are some shots from the park… as you can see, the magnolias were in full bloom!

 

Expired Polaroid 669

 

Double exposure on expired Polaroid 669

 

Expired Polaroid 669

 

Fuji FP-100C

Polaroid Automatic 100 battery conversion

Nicolai Grossman 1 Comment

I just modified a friend’s Polaroid Automatic 100 Land camera to take normal AAA batteries. I followed the battery conversion instructions from option-8’s excellent Converting Vintage Polaroids, and it went really smoothly.

I did end up having to shave a few mm off of the two plastic supports that held up the original battery holder to get the battery compartment door to close, but a Dremel made quick work of that.

It’s shooting dark, but apparently that’s pretty common with these.

Normal (exposure dial set to middle)

 

+1 stop (exposure dial at plus 1 full notch toward Lighter)

 

+2 stops (exposure dial all the way toward Lighter)

 

It’s still a bit dark at maximum brightness, but that’s kind of where I like it.

Note: despite the mind-bendingly tragic demise of Polaroid, Fuji makes a nice pack film. I like the FP-100C better than Polaroid’s 690 (yuck) and 669, anyway.