Old Cameras

[Shy]

[size=1]Over the past few weeks I've been spending a lot of time at thrift shops and flea markets looking for various gifts for my friends. While looking for a gift for my beau I stumbled across an old Polaroid camera:

[center][img]http://domestikatedlife.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/polaroid-camera-photo.jpg[/img][/center]

It occurs to me that some of the members here might be too young to remember why Polaroid cameras were cool before digital took over. You see, rather than taking your pictures and waiting for your photos to be developed the Polaroid camera had special film that would develop itself instantly. I got one of these for my 4th grade birthday and loved it, although at the time the film was simply too expensive for me to use the camera regularly.

Anyway, I bought it for five dollars and it's in perfect working order. There is even a company in Austria that manufactures new film!

Today at a swap meet I found these two beauties:

[center][img]http://mattdentonphoto.com/images/kodak_hawkeye.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.ozcamera.com/photo%2020/2070.JPG[/img][/center]

Both of them are classic Kodak 'Brownie' cameras. The former is a still image 'Hawkeye' from sometime between the 1940's and 1960's, while the latter is from the early 60's and takes video images on 8mm film. Fortunately I'm in LA now, so finding 8mm film won't be impossible... just really expensive. The Hawkeye doesn't work, but it looks great and my shelf so I don't mind.

I haven't played around much with photography, but these cameras I found are definitely inspiring me to rediscover photography as an art form. Does anyone else here use old/vintage film cameras as opposed to digital ones? Do you have any work you'd like to share with the boards?

-Shy[/size] :whoops:

[Boo]

[font=awesome]I wanted to get my hands on a Polaroid with film, but so far I've had to do with those old school throw-away camera's you used to take with you on holidays to find out your fingers look the same all over the world.

The pictures I took from the plane to Stockholm turned out pretty cool.

[URL=http://img687.imageshack.us/i/image0102pp.jpg/][IMG]http://img687.imageshack.us/img687/3128/image0102pp.th.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

I'm completely jealous of your Brownies. Though the flipside is of course that film is so reeking expensive that filming anything will probably feel like a sacrilege. Upload Pola's, honey.[/font]

[Nony]

Those are some neat cameras, man. My dad used to have an older camera, but I have no idea where it is... and then I have this dinky Polaroid that I never really used much. Now I have a digital camera that I love to death, even if it doesn't take as high quality photos as a DSLR. I'd still love to try using a non-digital camera though.

Also, Boo, I love pictures like that. I got a chance to take similar ones when I came back from Japan. Just too awesome~ x3

[URL=http://s582.photobucket.com/albums/ss270/Iuliathe3rd/?action=view¤t=DSCF5692.jpg][IMG]http://i582.photobucket.com/albums/ss270/Iuliathe3rd/th_DSCF5692.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

[Shy]

[size=1]Those disposable cameras are awesome. I bought one for a birthday party and passed it around as the night went on. It was fun to have to wait until the next day to see how all of the pictures came out.

Why does everyone take pictures from inside of the plane? I find myself doing that constantly.

-Shy[/size]

[Shy]

[quote name='Boo']SO. PICTURES YET?[/QUOTE][size=1]I'm still waiting on film. The Polaroid film for my specific brand of camera is sold out at the moment, but hopefully in the next month I can order some.

-Shy[/size]

[Sara]

[quote name='Shy'][size=1]I'm still waiting on film. The Polaroid film for my specific brand of camera is sold out at the moment, but hopefully in the next month I can order some.

-Shy[/size][/QUOTE][size=1]If that's actually the camera you have, it looks like it would take any old 600 packfilm that's still around. I still see it sometimes at Walmart/Walgreens/Target type places. It's about $15/pack here, but it might be more where you are (if there's any left). Worth taking a peek in some shady drugstores, though, if it'll let you take pictures before next month![/size]

[Shy]

[quote name='Sara'][size=1]If that's actually the camera you have, it looks like it would take any old 600 packfilm that's still around. I still see it sometimes at Walmart/Walgreens/Target type places. It's about $15/pack here, but it might be more where you are (if there's any left). Worth taking a peek in some shady drugstores, though, if it'll let you take pictures before next month![/size][/QUOTE][size=1]I've looked all over my little state and I haven't been able to find any. Most of the film would actually be expired by now, anyway, but if you want to pick up some 600 brand film for me and send it my way that would be awesome.

You know I'm good for it.

-Shy[/size]

[Sara]

[quote name='Shy'][size=1]I've looked all over my little state and I haven't been able to find any. Most of the film would actually be expired by now, anyway, but if you want to pick up some 600 brand film for me and send it my way that would be awesome.

You know I'm good for it.

-Shy[/size][/QUOTE][size=1]I'll have a look around. Sometimes expired film works. (Sometimes it doesn't, and that's sad, but still kind of charming.)

Also, I think I've seen 600 packfilm (maybe from The Impossible Project?) at Urban Outfitters. I wouldn't normally recommend shopping there, but again, maybe worth a shot?

I was totally bummed when they announced that they'd stop making polaroid film. It's just to much fun, you know? Polaroid combines the instant gratification of digital with the wonderful tangibility of analog, and it's a shame that it's so hard to find film now. I've started using 35mm film, which is fun in theory, but. . . I've shot probably a dozen rolls in the last two years, and only had two of them developed. They get left in cameras and forgotten about, or the film canisters get lost in backpacks or boxes.

I always poke around the camera sections of thift stores (the Savers by me has almost a whole shelf!), and the number of Polaroid cameras has skyrocketed in the last six months. I'd usually see one or two at a time, but I was there the other day and had to sift through almost a dozen of them, just to get to the other stuff.[/size]

[Shy]

[quote name='Sara'][size=1]I'll have a look around. Sometimes expired film works. (Sometimes it doesn't, and that's sad, but still kind of charming.)

Also, I think I've seen 600 packfilm (maybe from The Impossible Project?) at Urban Outfitters. I wouldn't normally recommend shopping there, but again, maybe worth a shot?

I was totally bummed when they announced that they'd stop making polaroid film. It's just to much fun, you know? Polaroid combines the instant gratification of digital with the wonderful tangibility of analog, and it's a shame that it's so hard to find film now. I've started using 35mm film, which is fun in theory, but. . . I've shot probably a dozen rolls in the last two years, and only had two of them developed. They get left in cameras and forgotten about, or the film canisters get lost in backpacks or boxes. [/size][/QUOTE][size=1]I'll check out Urban Outfitters. I bought my brother a camera with a fish eye lens from UO a few Christmases ago, and his major complaint was that film was really expensive and hard to find. You could get the cameras pretty easily, but once you used up the film that came with it you were in trouble.

I've started using the vintage cameras as decor around our apartment. The Brownie makes a pretty bitchin' bookend, if I do say so myself.

-Shy[/size]

[Sara]

[quote name='Shy'][size=1]I'll check out Urban Outfitters. I bought my brother a camera with a fish eye lens from UO a few Christmases ago, and his major complaint was that film was really expensive and hard to find. You could get the cameras pretty easily, but once you used up the film that came with it you were in trouble.age cameras as decor around our apartment. The Brownie makes a pretty bitchin' bookend, if I do say so myself.

-Shy[/size][/QUOTE][size=1]Hm, what kind of camera? I'm guessing it took 120 film?

You can jury-rig a lot of spool film cameras to use 35mm film. I've done it once or twice with my [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diana_camera]Diana[/url], but can't vouch for the results (as the film is still sitting somewhere, lost and undeveloped, in my apartment). There are [url=http://www.flickr.com/groups/sprocket_holes/]groups on Flickr (link) [/url]that can get you started, though.[/size]