DIY half-frame cam

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DIY half-frame cam


Image by bricolage.108

After thinking about how i could create a homemade half -frame camera and seeing a much more simpler attempt to achive similar results, this is what i came up with.

First i modified the camera so i could do double or multiple exposures. Made this by dismanteling the camera and discovering where the cocking mechanism was. Then i tied a string to the that mechanism so it was possible to re-cock the shutter by pulling it from outside the camera.

After that i pierced three holes in the plastic to create an axis for the banner that will block off the selected half the frame. Unless you got a Dremmel or somekind of rotary tool this takes some pacience. I used a small precision screwdriver and keep pushing and turning China it until the hole was opened.

Then unfolded a big paper clip until it made a 90º angle and stick it through the holes. Prior to that i’ve cuted a piece of thin cardboard (from a cereal box) half the size of the camera’s inside 35mm plastic mask. This is really important because it will determine two things:

1. if the cardboard won’t fall inside the camera hole. Usually that hole is in a angle so you have some room for error, but not much.

2. the space between the resulting two frames. In my case i made it to wide so the resulting image has a big black strip in the middle of the images. See an example.

Then another tricky part. You have to pass the tape, already half taped to one of the sides of the cardboard through the space between the plastic and the clip, and then taped to the other side.

Ok the main work is done now all that is needed is to seal the holes to avoid major light leaks. I glued a piece of sock but i believe it’s possible to use other material with same effect.

To use it: simply select the top or the bottom frame to be masked using the paper clip, having that in mind, shot, then re-cock the shutter pulling the string, select the other frame and shot. Then advance the film.

Considerations:

It’s important to have in mind what’s the frame that’s being masked since there’s no indication in the viewfinder about that. Maybe next time

Another thing that i think it could work is to make, for example, double exposures in just one frame and not the other or in both.

Also yet to try, that might be interesting is to shot multiple shots with the mask not completly down or up.

You can check the resulting images using this cam.

This camera hack got blogged in the great nicolai g’s photondetector.

Three Jaw Chuck – Removing Jaw One


Image by tudedude

Part of the Cleaning chucks series

Further info at::

www.tudedude.co.uk/workshop/Lathe/3 Jaw Chuck.html

DIY half-frame cam