In my evil effort to spread digital llike a cancer, I bought a Daylab 4x5 Pinhole Camera before I went to the APUG Conference. Well I took a pic before I left using a Polaroid 545i back and Polaroid Type 59. Here is a scan.
It's not the best pic and I could've cleaned it up in Photoshop, being the digital promoter that I am and all, but I didn't. LOL I think this is a neat camera and will take more pics with this for my PT prints using Type 55.
It's got two settings - one for B&W and the other for colour. I didn't know there was a difference? This took about 10s.
I have an idea for the next postcard exchange! Nige, sign me up!
Heres a tip for a 5x4 pinhole cam... take a sheet of thick card and cut it to fit on the back of the camera. Cut a hole in the middle to equate 5x4 and staple tracing paper, baking paper, etc over it.
Slot this into, or onto the camera and use a dark cloth (like you use with LF cameras, or a coat will do ) and you will be able to see your composition.
There seem to be quite a few commercially available cameras about for this kind of niche. I've noticed about 4 major makes available in the UK so far
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[FONT=Courier New]The more I learn, the less I know![/FONT]
It's my understanding that the "B&W" vs. "color" settings on this camera are about the same as they were on the Duaflex II my mother had when I was about 6 -- they're different apertures intended to give the same exposure for different film speeds. Silly, really, given B&W comes in speeds from 25 to 3200, and color from 50 to 1600, even discounting any pushing or pulling (and Polaroid comes in ISO 32 for Type 55 negatives to ISO 3000 for Type 57, or their equivalent pack film counterparts).
Photography has always fascinated me -- as a child, simply for the magic of capturing an image onto glossy paper with a little box, but as an adult because of the unique juxtaposition of science and art -- the physics of optics, the mechanics of the camera, the chemistry of film and developer, alongside the art in seeing, composing, exposing, processing and printing.
It's my understanding that the "B&W" vs. "color" settings on this camera are about the same as they were on the Duaflex II my mother had when I was about 6 -- they're different apertures intended to give the same exposure for different film speeds. Silly, really, given B&W comes in speeds from 25 to 3200, and color from 50 to 1600, even discounting any pushing or pulling (and Polaroid comes in ISO 32 for Type 55 negatives to ISO 3000 for Type 57, or their equivalent pack film counterparts).
I took a closer look at the jig they created for the pinhole. Looks like there's a red gel filter for the B&W and a clear one for the colour. Any thoughts on why this is so? I'm a bit perplexed.
Red gel would be to increase contrast (soft contrast is often a problem with unbaffled pinhole cameras, because the extremely wide coverage of the pinhole leads to light scattering from the inside of the camera and veiling the image). Clear gel is probably just to have a filler the same thickness so something will clamp evenly. But red gel would also imply a 2- or 3-stop filter factor -- presumably taken into account in the exposure recommendations they give -- and wouldn't be appropriate for all lighting or situations (or films, come to that -- if you mount a 4x5 back in place of the Polaroid, or have the 4x5 camera, and use Efke 25 with a red gel, you'll have, instead of 2 or 3 stops, more like 6 stops filter factor...).
Photography has always fascinated me -- as a child, simply for the magic of capturing an image onto glossy paper with a little box, but as an adult because of the unique juxtaposition of science and art -- the physics of optics, the mechanics of the camera, the chemistry of film and developer, alongside the art in seeing, composing, exposing, processing and printing.
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) and you will be able to see your composition. 
Originally Posted by Donald Qualls
