Photographic Canadiana 41-4

Posted on February 8, 2016 by Robert
Indian Chiefs at New Westminster c 1864 by Carlo Gentile

Indian Chiefs at New Westminster May 24, 1865 by Carlo Gentile

Toronto. Editor Robert Lansdale’s latest issue hit the mail Monday last week. Members should see their copy shortly if not already. Not a Member? Just click on the right side bar to  pay by PayPal. No account is needed as PayPal accepts a credit card! Canadian is $35 CDN per year. US and International is $45 CDN per year to help defray the cost.

In this issue, the first of two thesis award winners for 2015, Ms Elizabeth Larew, discusses the photographs of Berenice Abbott and preservation of Abbott’s glass plate negatives. Editor Lansdale and Robert Wilson review the Gundlach Korona IV Camera.

Another article covers the history of a necessary and common accessory of the professional photographer – print dryers. There is a book review for Fixed in Time available as an eBook or in print.

The review of the  Toronto meetings for November and December 2015 is covered as well as many other items. Continue reading →

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A Visit to Ryerson Image Centre and Library (Special Collections)

Posted on February 7, 2016 by Robert
Alison Skyrme of Ryerson by Robert Lansdale

Alison Skyrme of Ryerson by Robert Lansdale

NEXT TORONTO MEETING: Wed, Feb 17, 2016
Alison Skyrme: A Visit to Ryerson

** NEW LOCATION for THIS MONTH **

Alison Skyrme of Ryerson will host PHSC members for the February meeting. The group will meet at 7:30 pm on Wednesday February 17th at the Ryerson Image Centre (in the lobby) located at 33 Gould Street (between Victoria and Bond streets, next to the pond/skating rink). She will meet us there. A representative from the RIC will take us on a tour of the current RIC exhibition (Wendy Snyder MacNeil, Photographs and Films). We’ll have half an hour for the tour and viewing the exhibition (the RIC closes at 8 pm) at which point we will head over the library.

The public is welcome. See above for times and directions.

Continue reading →

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Camera Shows Scheduled for 2016

Posted on January 21, 2016 by Robert

Cameras-by-the-box-load-smToronto.  PHSC VP John Kantymir has taken the time to list all the 2016 camera shows he knows about in the following spreadsheets.

**IMPORTANT:  users should confirm information and dates as we are not responsible for errors or omissions.**

Click on the underlined words following to load John’s spreadsheet in various formats like Excel, Numbers (Mac) and PDF. Note that either the Excel or Numbers spread sheets are the best to download. The PDF format is multi-page.

All PHSC shows are in deep red bold fonts.

If you know of other shows not listed here please contact John at auction@phsc.ca.

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Zeiss and Photography book arrives in Toronto

Posted on January 18, 2016 by Robert

ZaP-cover-smToronto. The first four copies of the book Zeiss and Photography arrived here this afternoon. It is a colourfully illustrated hard cover book of some 890 letter size pages weighing about seven and a quarter pounds a copy. The book includes a CD disk covering topics too small for the main book.

A copy of an index to the book is divided into “Important Personalities and Firms”, “Important Cameras”, and “Important Lenses” and is included separately.

Zeiss/Zeiss Ikon was and is a major player in photographic cameras and lenses. For this reason alone the book belongs in the library of everyone who collects cameras or has an interest in the history of photography.

Continue reading →

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Newsletter 15-8

Posted on January 16, 2016 by Robert
Anne and Bill Harker of St James Cathedral with PHSC Treasurer John Morden

Anne and Bill Harker of St James Cathedral with PHSC Awards Chairman John Morden (centre)

Toronto. Editor David Bridge dishes up another yummy issue of our email newsletter. The lead article introduces our January speaker Ralph Beaumont who will discuss his book of the historic CPR photographs  taken by Joe Heckman.

Next is my report on the December Show and Tell meeting with our tradition of a Christmas gift exchange and a silent auction. The meeting started off with a uplifting talk by Anne Harker from the archives at St James on King Street. The cathedral  received a PHSC award to help offset restoration of two full plate daguerreotypes.  The December meeting report is followed by George Dunbar’s suggestion of member Before and After images (including two example images). Continue reading →

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Camerama Show – Sunday, January 24, 2016

Posted on January 16, 2016 by Robert

Camerarama2016Toronto. Gary Perry is holding his popular Camerama show this January 24th at the Delta Toronto East.

Click on the icon at left for a full size poster detailing the times, location, and admission. Links for directions and table rentals too.

Come out and enjoy the day. Bring some collectibles to trade. Buy some new collectibles for yourself!

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Photography on a Silver Plate

Posted on January 14, 2016 by Robert

DagPlate-smToronto. My friend George Dunbar sent me this interesting link to a narrative called Photography on a Silver Plate. The narrative includes a video using historic equipment to take and develop a daguerreotype, stereo photos, typical stills, and even a couple of stereo nude studies.

The narrative explains the importance of the process and its impact on the society of the day. The first years were spent in experimentation and rapid technical improvements to the process and equipment (i.e. much faster lenses) with the goal to make taking and processing daguerreotypes a commercially viable business.

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Another Vivian Maier Exhibit this year

Posted on January 13, 2016 by Robert
Stephen Bulger by Fred Lum of the Globe

Stephen Bulger by Fred Lum of the Globe

Toronto. Gallery owner Stephen Bulger plans to hold another exhibit of Vivian Maier photographs this coming Summer according to the Globe this morning. Bulger hopes to exhibit modern day prints from negatives he owns. There is some concern regarding copyright which may affect the price of any of the prints made from these negatives.

Vivian Maier is the Chicago nanny whose talents as a photographer were discovered after her death and the subsequent sale of her negatives and prints. A recent biography shed some light on this enigmatic soul. A second more deeply researched biography may uncover different potential heirs. Meantime Bulger hopes to print under the copyright law’s orphan works statues. Read this morning’s Globe and Mail or go online with the above link for more details.

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Guess which camera is currently most popular?

Posted on January 6, 2016 by Robert
Charger for Smartphone camera

Charger for any smartphone camera

Toronto. Which is the most popular camera today? We usually think of Nikons or Canons and perhaps even lesser brands like Olympus or Sony, but by far the most popular camera today  is… the camera in your iPhone!

Yes, in 2015 many sources show the iPhone in its various iterations is the most popular camera. This fact has many ramifications. Professional photographers are swamped today by amateurs. TV stations, Flickr, Facebook, Instagram, and the other social sites all host amateur photos. Continue reading →

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The Single Lens Reflex Camera

Posted on January 2, 2016 by Robert

Exakta VXIIa bought the summer of 1958 while I was in Labrador

Toronto. The SLR concept is at least a century old now. The Graflex comes to mind. It was an ideal design for interchangeable lens cameras since one could view through the lens rather than needing a separate viewfinder for each focal length. When I went to Labrador in 1957, I remembered the big ads for the Exakta camera. Although Leica marketed the M series cameras in 1954, I had seen only the IIIf cameras with their little 5cm f/3.5 normal lens and their squinty viewfinder with the rangefinder next to it.

When three of us in Labrador bought good quality 35mm cameras in 1958, we all chose Exaktas with their big bright waist level viewer and the eye level pentaprism viewer. The Exakta body and an f/2 normal lens cost over $400 even with a big discount while Leicas were $100 or so less. Exaktas were made by Ihagee (IHG) in Dresden, then in East Germany. The designer was left handed so the Exakta winder and shutter release were  swapped right to left. Continue reading →

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