I have a beautiful collection of vintage cameras. I find retro, vintage and antique cameras at estate sales and auctions, and after purchasing them I will bring them home and give them some TLC. I clean each one, top to bottom, inside and out. I make sure all the parts are functioning as they should. A few of my cameras are broken beyond my ability to repair them, so I try to just make them as pretty as possible and leave them to sit with the others. Or, sometimes I let my kids play with them. They always ask, “where’s the picture?” expecting to see an LCD screen somewhere on the camera.
When possible, I will also run a roll of film through each camera, just to get a feel for how the camera works. Recently I did this with my Kodak Duaflex IV. This camera has a waist-level finder, which means that in order to focus on your subject, you hold the camera at waist-level and look down at it. The viewing screen is on the top of the camera, and therefore you aren’t looking in the same direction of your subject when you take the picture, you’re actually looking down toward your own feet. It’s hard to get used to it at first!
The roll of film I used was Kodak Portra 400, which I chose because it has a wonderful flexibility of exposure. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to get my settings exactly right, like I would with my usual camera, so having some latitude with the Portra would help. The Duaflex takes size 620 film, though, and 620 film is no longer made. However, 620 film is actually the same size as 120 film, just on a spool that’s slightly narrower and shorter. So I take my 120 rolls and gently file and scrape the plastic spool edges until it fits into the 620 film slot.
I decided to take pictures of Maura and Amy. Lately I’ve really been paying attention to their unique relationship. They love each other and they pester each other. They play together and they fight together. One minute I hear, “Let’s play baby dolls!” or “Let’s play Polly Pockets!” and then the next moment, it seems, I hear, “I’m not playing with you for the rest of the whole day!!!” *sigh* They truly ARE sisters. That’s what sisters do.
This blog post is part of a monthly blog circle through Light Inspired. We all post our images online, on the same day and encourage readers to follow through the links to everyone in the group. Please follow me over to Stacey’s blog for more wonderful images!