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A Lens of Yesteryear

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Fri, 02/18/2011 - 00:06 — Isa Farnik

If I had a nickel for every time the digital vs. analog photography debate has landed in my lap, I'd be rich. At those argumentative junctures, I reassure myself that it's not the medium, but the subject which is

 important. It also underscores the importance/rewards in possessing such a disregard. As the typewriter becomes the keyboard, the camera obscura, the DSLR and the root cellar, the refrigerator, it's important to keep in mind that while we are moving forward, we can always look back. It also means that encoded in each incarnation of a tool are remnants of it's predecessors, if you have the patience to look. There is also the opportunity to re-inject this essence back into tools or decode it where it already exists. This is the heart of labours of technological love like the entirety of the Steampunk sub-culture and more concisely, projects like on the right. 

What you're looking at is the shnoz from a Zeiss Ikon Ikonette altered to sit on a Jonas Kroyer's Nikon D300. Even modernized, it manages to maintain it's early 20th century mystique. Examples of photos taken with, blueprints and condensed build log of: http://www.jonaskroyer.com/photography/photoref/archives/1049 viahttp://hackaday.com/2011/02/11/bellows-camera-to-dslr/

P.S. Jake informed me that a post in on the way which in which he implements the practicum of the theorem read here. You guessed it, rails and bellows for a DSLR. Stay tuned!

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Comments

daeman - Wed, 02/23/2011 - 16:21.

Oh, that is quite lovely indeed!
I'd recommend getting a 4.5x6 medium format folder instead of the larger ones (6x6 or 9x6). Else the sensor will be reading a greatly magnified image compared to what the lens was designed for, hence the softness and narrow angle of view. There are quite a few 35mm folders, but the lens working distance on these would probably be too short to mount on a DSLR.
This website is a good source of inspiration: http://galactinus.net/vilva/retro/index.html#digital

Tess Elliott - Fri, 03/04/2011 - 10:43.

Have been a convert to digital photography from my first photo. That said, we do not have the quality of film yet, at least in an affordable camera. The sensors are still too small. My Canon Rebel was the best I could afford, but it is a workhorse for those of us who need good photography but can't afford the really expensive DSLR cameras. When we get the biggest sensors, then we approach the utility of film. For most people, it doesn't matter. But for artists and professionals, being able to work with an image that still has detail and not be pixilated when enlarged, is the goal. The best retouching can only be done on a large image with very fine detail. My parents were photographers when they were young, and I grew up with their amazing equipment. Those were the days when retouching was done with graphite on a large negative (it may be luddite, but it's fun to retouch the old way). But I still hope for better sensors in the digital SLR, because we aren't there yet. Would love to have a DSLR inside an old body for the studio. Those old bellows cameras are so beautiful. Thanks for sharing this.