first motion picture (movie)?

Posted on May 14, 2022 by Robert

was this the very first movie?

Toronto.  My good friend, George Dunbar, writes, “For those of us who have an interest in the history of motion pictures, there’s now a new book about the ‘first known motion picture’ — The Man Who Invented Motion Pictures, A True Tale of Obsession, Murder and the Movies by Paul Fischer (Simon & Schuster).

“Most Americans will identify Thomas Edison as the original inventor, while the French will applaud the Lumiére brothers, Auguste and Louis, whose early films were shown at the Toronto Industrial Fair (CNE) in 1896. The English of course, and many others who have seen the British biopic, The Magic Box (1951) will credit William Friese-Greene.

“The new book by Paul Fischer tells the tale of Louis Le Prince. These few frames [click on the above left icon] are from a two-second clip of his 1888 movie.”

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getcha daily colour here!

Posted on May 13, 2022 by Robert

a colourful B&W ad from 1941

Toronto. The Universal Camera Corporation in the Big Apple (NYC) made many still cameras such as the popular Mercury with the weird circular shutter. They also made movie cameras and projectors.

This ad appeared in the August, 1941 issue of Popular Mechanics, just months before America was finally dragged into WW2 and a few years after Kodachrome revolutionized colour film. Aspiring amateur movie cameraman were the target of this campaign.

My thanks to our favourite photo researcher, George Dunbar, for sharing this bit of photographic history with us. As a youth I bought many issues of this magazine which at the time was the premier ‘mechanics/science’ magazine for all aspiring do-it-yourselfers. It was also quite thick at the time.

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a reluctant subject …

Posted on May 12, 2022 by Robert

who says photography is risky?

Toronto. My odd subject complained about being photographed, but was never physically abusive. However, the subject in this photograph (kangaroo) was something else! Taken in the 1960s, the photo is number 20 of some 30 images shownon the demilked web site under the title “30 Historical Pics That Might Make You See Things From A Different Perspective, As Shared By This Facebook Group“.

My thanks to a long time friend, speaker, PHSC executive participant, PHSC member, and 3D expert extraordinaire, Stan White. Stan taught photography at Sheridan College and practiced the art earlier in the UK and here in the big smoke. Stan worked with our late editor, Ev Roseborough, in Ev’s studio for many years.

 

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give her a hand!

Posted on May 11, 2022 by Robert

huge enlargement from tiny negative shown in an August, 1941 magazine

Toronto. The August, 1941 issue of Popular Mechanics magazine has the article shown here. An image of a human hand was blown up about 52 diameters from the original on a 35mm negative.

Years ago in Montreal, our company enlarged a 35mm negative to about the same size to create a huge poster. The person who snapped the shot and arranged for the huge print was also amazed at the ability to do such a huge blowup.

However, to a trained eye the detail expected was simply not there. In microscopy terms we call this ’empty magnification’ meaning the extra magnification doesn’t show extra detail.

My thanks once again to my good friend, George Dunbar, for sharing this article with us. And of course the so called grain-free enlargement is an accomplishment in its own right whether there is empty magnification for not!

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will do anything to get a sale

Posted on May 10, 2022 by Robert

summer of 1941 ad for one kind of “Midget Marvel” camera

Toronto, The August, 1941 issue of Popular Mechanics ran an advertisement for a camera called the “Midget Marvel”. It was offered for less than $9 American including the leather case.

Some different cameras used the same name, so I am unsure which one is this camera.

However, given the price, specifications and included leather case, I suspect it is an imported remaindered camera. It looks a bit like a Wirgin camera – the post by the viewfinder may have supported an optional rangefinder … Never heard of a ‘Vario‘ shutter before but they were around for awhile.

My thanks to good friend, George Dunbar, for sharing this advertisement with us.

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Canadian female photographer from BC

Posted on May 9, 2022 by Robert

a 1908 photograph by Agnes Deans Cameron courtesy of the Canadian Museum of History

Toronto. Do you remember Ms Agnes Deans Cameron? No? Well, she was a prominent photographer out west, known for her work as a  “teacher, journalist, explorer, writer, lecturer & photographer”.

You can learn more about this wonderful lady at the ABC Book World web site, or the Dictionary of Canadian Biography.

Once again we must thank our good friend, George Dunbar, for sharing this story with us.

 

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twenty-six and counting

Posted on May 8, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. It was our twenty-sixth  executive meeting via ZOOM last Wednesday evening.

The APRIL  EVENT was a huge international success. Celio graciously added a streaming video of the event to our YouTube channel. You can reach it via our web site (right hand sidebar) or click here.

The MAY EVENT will be on the evening of May 18 when the Reverend, Dr Max Dionisio, head of the ROM library (Royal Ontario Museum Library) speaks on 19th century Japanese Photography and some recent acquisitions to the library. Once it’s posted to Eventbrite you can sign in (free).

The SPRING FAIR  this year will be indoors where we hold our auction (NEW FAIR VENUE). And it will be a bit later than usual on JUNE 11th.

Our TRUNK SALE is on JULY 9th this year and as usual, it will be outdoors at Trident Hall. Watch for details.

Finally, PHSC News will have a new editor for this month. Clint is making arrangements. Sonja has decided to call it a day after doing the newsletter for nearly six years (September 2016 to March 2022, plus a bit of April). This is issue 16-4 through 21-10.

our Executive at the ZOOM meeting for May 2022

 

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Canada, eh?

Posted on May 7, 2022 by Robert

Michel Lambeth, St. Nil, Gaspé, Quebec, County of Matane, 1965, printed 1978 by Michael Torosian gelatin silver print, 35.4 × 27.9 cm; image: 25.2 × 19 cm
Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography

Toronto. My good friend, George Dunbar, came across this captivating article by Martha Langford titled “A Short History of Photography, 1900–2000” at my old Alma Mater (well, I attended SGWU which combined a few years later with Loyola to create Concordia University).

Have a read and see the striking photographs Ms Langford included in her paper.

While we haven’t had the pleasure of hearing Michel Lambert, nor a person from the CMCP as yet, we did host a talk by Michael Torosianin April of 2009 .

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variations on a theme

Posted on May 6, 2022 by Robert

Article on a French camera that takes nine shot on one plate or piece of film

Toronto. In the early 1900s, Butcher in London, England sold a “Royal Mail Camera” that used multiple lenses to create as many as 15 postage stamp size images on one small  plate.

The July, 1934 issue of Popular Mechanics has an article about a French camera which is like Butcher’s but with a twist. Nine different photographs can be taken on one plate or film. The single lens is moved to each of nine spots and used. Unused spots are covered so the shutter exposes only through the lens.  Have read …

Once again, we must thank our intrepid researcher, George Dunbar, for sharing his delicious find with us.

 

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stills from movies

Posted on May 5, 2022 by Robert

A 1929 enlarger to print stills from movie frames

Toronto. A few years ago, at our PHSC monthly meetings (when we met in person – ie pre-COVID) my good friend Ed Warner took videos of each presentation and could easily snap stills without affecting the digital video he was creating.

This article, however, describes a time when special cameras recorded movies on film, After processing and reversing  them, a film projector showed the tiny transparencies enlarged a 100 fold or more to be seen in a darkened room full of people.

Years before the iconic Leica sparked the minicam revolution and enlarging switched from optional to mandatory, Bell and Howell offered a gadget that would enlarge and print any frame from a movie – running on a B&H projector of course.

This article in the April, 1929 edition of American Cinematographer describes the B&H gadget in some detail. Thanks are owing to my good friend and fellow PHSC member, George Dunbar, for sending me this article which he found as he pursued magazines for ads and articles about (now) historic photographica.

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