viewfinder – Photon Detector

I picked up an Olympus Pen FT 35mm SLR at the end of February [2007]. Because it’s half frame, the viewfinder is vertical rather than horizontal, and I was really curious to see if it would affect how I see through it. I’ve been using it as my primary normal-lensed camera for a few months now, and—big shock—it did.

The camera did remind me of how much I don’t like the normal 3:2 aspect ratio of a normal 35mm frame. For me it’s usually in an uninspiring wasteland, being too long for square or 4:5 (which I’ve grown to really like) and too short for a panorama.

Past that, it’s been an interesting experience. The corners of the viewfinder are rounded, which seems like a small thing, but it really affects my mindset when I’m shooting. It reminds me of the prints that were popular when I was a kid, and it gives me a feeling of temporal ambiguity by association.

I still find myself taking just about as many horizontal shots as I used to, but now it’s much more deliberate, and it feels like that’s spilled over into normal viewfinder shooting as well. Seems like one of those things that makes me see better, even if I don’t use it all the time. I highly recommend the vertical viewfinder experience!

Grant Hamilton built this rig to shoot the image on the viewfinder of his Kodak Duaflex. This is genius and pisses on all other efforts I’ve seen, my own included. He’s making some beautiful images with it, too!

He writes:

See the notes above [on the Flickr photo page] for a parts list. I used a Dremel tool to carve some slots in the side of the junction box to accept the film winding knob and neck strap anchors of the Duaflex. I also carved an opening in the front so the lens is unobstructed. The PVC pipe fits into the junction box with friction and the downspout sleeve is rubber and is fricition fit as well. I painted the whole thing with flat black paint and used varying thicknesses of adhesive furniture sliders inside the junction box so that the Duaflex is snug. There is a large gasket inside the tube, just above the junction box on the inside to prevent light leaks. The hardest bit to get is the PVC pipe because it is sold in 10 foot lengths. I scavenged mine from a construction site dumpster. See the gouges in the pipe? I wasn’t crazy enough to want to Bondo it to make it smooth. The other parts I bought for around $15.

More viewfinder photography in the Through The Viewfinder and Ground Glass groups on Flickr.

Tag: viewfinder

Seeing through vertical viewfinders

Frankenflex homebrew viewfinder photography rig