it’s a bird, it’s a plane … it’s a camera?

Posted on August 26, 2021 by Robert

novelty Pentax digital c2011 camera

Toronto. Some collectors specialize in novelty cameras such as this old Pentax RS1500 with the Superman skin (image posted by Andy Khouri April 14, 2011 and once seen on the ‘Comics Alliance‘ website.

Since digital photography has been around well over three decades, digital cameras are becoming collectibles. Pentax participated back in 2011 with their Optio RS 1500 camera and ten skins that could be easily applied to ‘customize’ this model.

The compact digital cameras have disappeared now, overtaken by the ubiquitous smart phones with their built-in cameras (getting better all the time). Sometimes you can see the RS1500  and other early digitals at our shows and auctions. The prices are reasonable so you can get in at the ‘ground floor’ on these cameras now delegated to  history and collectors.

Note: The post title is a riff on the now famous Superman mantra. It was brought to mind by the marvellous bass voice of Brad Roberts singing his “Superman’s Song” on the Crash Test Dummies’ CD called, “The Ghosts That Haunt Me”.

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way way back focus

Posted on August 25, 2021 by Robert

cover of Back Focus #76 from March 2010.

Toronto. When COVID-19 arrived in Toronto the spring of 2020, we closed down daily person to person venues as demanded by the city. Our editor at the time, the late Bob Lansdale, felt we needed to get something out to members so they had reason to renew even if the mailed copy of our journal was not sent, and in person Toronto meetings were suspended.

Bob elected to get approval from selected exchange members to post their material to members-only in pdf form, along with copies of our journal (Photographic Canadiana). Further, a decision was reached to distribute these pdf files via MailChimp, with new material send out to members at least monthly. Included were some specials like the Amalgamated Newsletters, the ‘All About’ series, etc. Our treasurer and PHSC Press volunteer, John Morden, did the scanning; our archivist, David Bridge, mailed out the pdf files via MailChimp; and I added and administered a ‘member’ tag in our MailChimp list.

Not to leave our ‘Luddite‘ members in the lurch. Bob asked that we determine who had membership but no email address. This came down to less than a dozen members. A decision was made to email/mail all members to request an email address, and ask if a hard copy was desired. A selection of articles published in volume 46 of the journal was readied as an annual and then printed and distributed to those members who had no email address or requested a hard copy for various reasons.

My thanks to PHSC member and good friend, George Dunbar, for suggesting this cover shot of an early issue of Back Focus from our exchange organization in Australia. The post title is a riff on the internet archive, the WayBack Machine whose logo can be seen down the right sidebar.

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easel come, easel go

Posted on August 24, 2021 by Robert

example easels from a fall 2013 Auction

Toronto. When film photography was a popular hobby last century, amateurs used a darkroom and enlarger to crop and adjust the final print size.

To focus the enlarger, and hold the photographic paper flat, the photographer would often use an easel.

While very few people consider these devices as collectibles, they often appear at our auctions, fairs and sales and are quickly snapped up by niche film enthusiasts. Of course the average digital photographer needs neither easels nor a  darkroom.

Note: The title here is a riff on the expression, “easy come, easy go”. Here it is as a song sung by George Strait.

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cheap is how I feel

Posted on August 23, 2021 by Robert

Ad for Fed-Flash camera in summer of 1948

Toronto. Post war, the camera industry exploded with pent-up demand. Federal in Brooklyn was mainly known in photographic circles for their enlargers (I had one). Their enlargers were cheaply made and cheaply sold.

Around 1948, the company decided to do cameras too. This model took advantage of the enthusiasm for flash. Made of Bakelite, it was just a box camera (uses 127 film) tarted up as a 35mm with flash capability. Enthusiasts could buy a cheap camera and pretend it was a real minicam!

The company has since disappear into the mists of time. Their camera venture lasted a bit less than a decade, but the company lasted longer.

We owe a big thank you to my good friend and fellow PHSC member, George Dunbar, for sharing with us this August, 1948 advertisement (page 41) from Popular Photography.

Note: The title of this post is from a song sung by Margo Timmins of the Cowboy Junkies called, “Cause Cheap Is How I Feel” from their 1990 album Caution Horses. I’ve been a fan of the Junkies since I heard them live with songs from their album, “The Trinity Session” on radio. The Junkies sang in the old Trinity Church tucked in beside the Bell Building at 483 Bay just above Queen Street here in the Big Smoke. Michael and Margo are from Montreal. Margo never sang professionally before she joined her brother’s group.

 

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darker dags

Posted on August 22, 2021 by Robert

Ambrotype portrait from an African American studio

Toronto. The NYT article is headlined, “Smithsonian Acquires Rare Photographs From the First African American Studios“. The example Ambrotype image shown here was augmented by a few dashes of colour painted in by hand before the glass plate was carefully placed in the union case, after being bound between a glass front and a dark backing material.

Here in North America, we often see Ambrotype and Daguerreotype portraits by Caucasians taken in studios from about 1839 to the 1870s or so. We rarely see such portraits (of African Americans or any other races) taken by African American photographers. This NYT article by Aruna  D’Souza on August 17th of this year (2021) covers the subset of the photograph collection by Larry West acquired by the Smithsonian.

Thanks to my good friend and fellow photography historian, George Dunbar, for sharing this find.

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get outta Dodge …

Posted on August 21, 2021 by Robert

poster for the 1939 movie ‘Dodge City’, Kansas

Toronto. … or burn! Photographers of a certain age will recognize these two words as darkroom techniques to compensate for faulty camera exposure, wrong paper grade, or to add some pizzazz to a print. There is a video here that covers basic darkroom technique for dodging and burning.

The idea behind burning is to locally increase contrast by adjusting the H&D curve. More light in a shadow area can darken the shadow and bring out details, if any exist.

Similarly, holding back light by dodging a highlight area can lighten the area and bring out detail. If there is no detail, the highlight area is just monotone and looks a bit phoney.

Modern digital images can be similarly adjusted using Photoshop, Affinity Photo, or similar image editing software to tweak the H&D curve. Specific tools and layers can also help.

Note: The title of this post is based on a c1939 movie called ‘Dodge City‘.

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Trunk Sale, this Sunday, August 22, 2021

Posted on August 20, 2021 by Robert

Toronto. Our Annual Outdoor Trunk Sale at Trident Hall is this Sunday, August 22, 2021 from 8am until Noon. Customers free admission. Vendors pay a small fee – call Clint (see post) to reserve a spot! Need more information? Email fair@phsc.caor info@phsc.ca! Use this old  map on the Big One Bookmark for TTC and parking (sorry, no snack bar).

This Sunday, August 22nd, 2021 – Trunk Sale

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keeping an eye out for colour

Posted on August 19, 2021 by Robert

ad for Curtis colour cameras fall of 1948

Toronto. The earliest photographic processes captured only a monochrome image – usually black and white – of the luminance values of the subject. Over the ensuing decades, many efforts were expended to create natural colour from the effects of light on the subject.

The best ideas imitated the action of the human eye. In 1802, Thomas Young had devised a theory of colour vision later revised by Helmholtz. Most successful ideas to capture colour from nature stem from the application of the Young-Helmholtz theory. Basically, it suggests that the eye has three different kinds of cones each sensitive to a narrow band of the visible spectrum, plus rods which are sensitive to the intensity of light across the visible spectrum.

One such scheme was to use a single lens/shutter and split the light in three, passing the beams through filters to a panchromatic media. This idea resulted in the Curtis cameras which are depicted in this advertisement from the October, 1948 issue of Popular Photography. The registration of three transparencies to create a colour photo was somewhat fussy. Defender offered another solution using its Chromatone process as described in the December 1938 Popular Photography and recorded on the above Curtis cameras link for the reader’s convenience.

A big thanks to my good friend George Dunbar for suggesting the October 1948 advertisement as part of photographic history.

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dear old golden rule days

Posted on August 18, 2021 by Robert

School portrait in early to mid 1940s. Sweater was green.

Toronto. As photography expanded, an increasing number of photographers specialized in various areas. Some went into school photography with group shots of the pupils and staff sometimes complemented with individual student portraits. Occasionally a panorama view took the entire student body and staff in one photograph –  I have one such panorama of my mother and her younger sister taken around 1928 when just the two of them were of school age.

Some photographers resorted to taking individual classrooms of students and teacher, perhaps accompanied by a portrait of each student. Purchases were always optional, and families chose the item and number of prints each.

Poorer families could ill-afford the modest fee. For other families, the photos were the only ones taken of their children. A family heirloom to add to a shoe-box for safety!

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for the record

Posted on August 17, 2021 by Robert

1940s automobile wreck

Toronto. In the beginning, photography recorded mostly portraits and landscapes. Workplace and workers came along later – perhaps the best known are the dead combatants in the American civil war photos taken by Matthew Brady. Newspapers and books benefitted from the art as photography slowly replaced the line drawings (first as references, then as half tones).

Photography became a record keeper for wars, government, retail firms, police (crime scenes, criminals), real estate sales (I have a Leica engraved on the base with the name and address of a local realtor firm), insurance claims, etc.

The picture taken here of a 1940s automobile was recorded by my father with a Kodak folder on the rather grainy film of the day in glorious black and white. The detail was enough to be an inventory of a wrecked vehicle or even proof for an insurance claim.

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