1/4 lens !

After two attempt of two 1/2 double lens, it would go to even 1/4, naturally. (Anyway, it was only a matter of hacksaw and a glue work. And it was what an Otaku lives for. 😀 )

Photo left = Covering the lens with black tape and see the effect = even from a small part of the lens, good enough image would be created. Photo right = so, only 1/4 of the lens to produce the main image and 3/4 lens for the out of focus bokeh.

The plastic lens was mounted to the Sony A7R camera (yet the lens can be attached to the Nikon Z as well.)

So, this homemade lens will produce the image even worse than those W-lens A or B ! 😀 —– can you guess how happy I am. Ha Ha Ha 😀

So, they are the regular test shot. (This dry rose has been working for me the past 5 years !)

In case, if anyone wanted to see more natural image for a comparison, those are the images from the ordinary (?) 110 Pentax 24mm lens on the Nikon Z.

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Ensign and Old film

I found this Kodak 120 film inside of a junk Ensign camera. Camera itself may be 70 years old and the film might be as old as 60 ? years. —– the reason why I said not 70 years old was, when the film was developed, the image was very foggy = I guessed, it must be caused by the dirty lens (hence it was a junk) = Film was shot long after the camera lens became a foggy junk. (To clean the lens, I use Methylated Spirit. Never use Surgical alcohol which leaves skin cream, nor White Spirit which may melt some plastic and paint)

As I wrote before, this camera has almost no control, other than winding a film and click the shutter (of which the shutter duration was only known to be as Inst, or Time (B). = no Iris or any focus control. ——- Yet still, the developed old film showed rather consistent exposure (despite they were severely fogged) = may be the shots were made under the same hazy sun (very little shadow) on the well customised landscape.

No sharp detail though, the atmosphere of the time is certainly there.

To test the camera, I loaded the camera with a fresh Ilford FP-4 film, ISO 125 (I got it from the Photographer’s Gallery shop for £5 —– Jessop like shop doesn’t sell B/W film any more, not mention 120 films) and I exposed the film with the different lighting condition while making each record. (Such as the light level of what Sony A7R with its 40mm lens tells under F8 setting = I guessed the “Inst” of Ensign shutter was about 1/25 Sec’ and if A7R said 1/10 — give a click twice for the same image (while the camera was fixed on a tripod).

It seems, this lens has no defined focus in anywhere.

— (Was the theory. But as my mind was diverted to check the exposure reading in the A7R and to write the record down, I made double exposure mistake = the test was a mess. 😀 —– And I realised that I was neither a Zen Master. 😀 )

(Development of the films were done by D-76, 1+1, 20 degree C, 11 min’, 10 second agitation on every min’ )

Forget academic talk or Otaku taste kind. See what you can see on front. People like dirty old man likes pretty image, like “Miss— kind”. What’s wrong with it ? 😀

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Tripod for Ensign Camera

As I wrote in the previous post, Ensign Ful-Vue camera has no tripod screw, despite that its shutter has Time (B) setting. It’s not difficult to put a 1/4″ tripod screw = just fix a thick metal plate with 1/4″ screw hole to the camera bottom. —– ? – Then gave a thought. Virtually all of my cameras has been fitted with tripod quick plate. —— So, instead to put a 1/4″ screw plate, then attach a quick plate on it, why not to put a quick plate directly to the camera bottom.

And the quick plate doesn’t necessary to be a genuine heavy one = can be a simply bent aluminium plate. = why not. 😀

Photo left = 1.5 mm aluminium panel was cut and bent to the same size of Manfrotto quick plate = like photo middle. Then its aluminium quick plate was fixed to the Ensign camera.

With a homemade quick plate, the Ensign camera can be mounted to a tripod in such a convenience. (While costing almost nothing ! )

This is the beauty of DIY homemade. 😀

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Ensign Viewfinder Camera ?

This photo was taken through the viewfinder of the 1940s Ensign camera.

Ensign camera was produced by the English Houghtons Ltd. And this streamlined Ful-Vue was made around 1946, using 120 film for 6×6 format.

I got this camera from the London Camera Exchange’s odds and ends box however as it came together with other shopping, I don’t know how much the price of this one though —– as it was non working dirty junk, price could not be more than few pound. SO, I spent next few days to clean and repair. (now the camera was cleaned and in good working condition !)

Camera itself was designed in the streamlined style and having large “aerial image viewfinder” (so that, it was named “Ful-Vue”) —– While checking this aerial image, I realised that I can take picture through this viewfinder. = = = So, I fixed a thin Nikon Z mount adaptor on Ensign’s viewfinder.

Unlike aerial image itself, the image through viewfinder lens could give only 1 feet (30 cm) focus. —– still, for close-up photo, its soft image was pretty interesting.

Though the viewfinder lens doesn’t have any great quality. Its got quite a heavy chromatic aberration. (still, for a fuzzy photo fan, those red and blue fringes were the mere accompanying decoration)

A difficulty of shooting with this camera was, to shoot a front subject while looking down, while following the subject which moves opposite direction. (because, they are the mirror image —– yet, strangely, while viewfinder’s aerial image is not reversed, why the photograph through the same lens got to be reversed or upside down ? ? ? 😀

May be I should have proper shooting test of this camera through its main lens, which is about 95 mm focal length with 12 mm diameter (its mean, the lens is about F8) —– but, no F-aperture, or Focus control ! = even worse, I don’t know how fast is its “Instant” shutter speed. (Shutter has Instant and Time ( = B) setting though, there is no tripod screw — How to use this B setting ? ? ? = 1940s people must have very solid steady hand) 😀

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Fall or fallen

I’m still using Canon 5D-MkIII — for indoor copy work etc. So, this one by their 40 mm lens.

But, this one by 110 Pentax 24 mm with extension ring on Nikon Z7.

To annoy you, this photo was by W lens-B on Nikon Z7.

By W lens-B

By W lens-B with extension ring.

Also W lens-B with extension ring

By 110 Pentax 24 mm lens with extension ring

Also by 110 Pentax 24 mm lens with extension ring

They are rather lazy shooting. Sorry. 😀

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Healthy eating – Paradox

I don’t have any ism other than a habit in my character which is a kind of cleanness = loath to touch anything filthy or dubious = originated from Japanese Shinto. I wash my hair just with a water = use a shampoo may be less than once in a month. I hate to expose my skin to dubious chemical more than a dust in my room.

But I eat something a vegetable in the Brassicaceae family is a matter of my taste = not a kind of healthy concern or any ism. And eating frozen sprouts instead of flesh broccoli or daikon etc, was, I’m just lazy. (You may disappointed to see me not so keen = = = Here is a wise rule, this is the problem of the mind = “If you are too serious, you tend to fail / if your mind was stuck, you loose the ability” —–> Make eating it to almost a unconscious habit which origin was forgotten = = = It IS the same, “If you are too serious / wary too much of your health = you became ill. — This paradox is common with Zen Buddhism !)

I was eating boiled sprouts with salad cream with the same laziness. Once I bought a “light” type salad cream then noticed that such product was something unnaturally plasticky and realised that to make a similar textured, tasted product without using original ingredients, there must be a lots of dubious chemicals and the ingredients were used for a factory production.

Basically, the western food life is dreadful. Eating looks healthy whole grain bread but with animal originated fat (butter) — even worse with trance fatty acid “Margarine” etc etc. —– So, I don’t buy processed food. (Don’t ask me Miso, Suger etc were not processed food ?)

Instead to use salad cream I’m making Miso based Paste = Miso, Chinese Chilli bean Sauce, pinch of Sugar and a bit of Vinegar —–> mix together. (I hope those products were produced in traditional way without using dubious chemicals) (Am I asking too much or ignorant ?)

The paste I made here was also good for other cooking such as Oka-kurage, boiled Daikon etc. —– may be I should make a lot and keep it in a jar for a quick serve to each breakfast = may be safe to keep for a week or two.

Before we start to talk about Eco, Health issue etc, we better look around and think deep. = In order to make a 16 years old Swedish girl who said that she dosen’t want to pollute the air by jet flight, to appear the UN, while 4 times more jet journeys were needed for her staff and her father to travel !

While this girl accusing Japan etc for their coal burning power station, making an exception of China who is the scond largest poluter by their coal burning, saying that they ARE the developping country. (Are they = who said so ? ) We need to see the truth behind the hypocritical farce. And see who is behind her campaign.

That’s what we call deceptive performance, in another word, fraud. 😀

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Battery case

To use homemade device like LED ring light, we need a battery case. The battery case sold on the market is a kind, left on the photo above which is dreadfully cheaply made = unreliable and easy to break, yet cost a pound or so. — instead, I found a battery holder for Canon’s old Motor drive, in the odds and ends box in the camera shop, of which cost also a pound or so (still having Canon quality). 😀

Battery holder of the motor drive were made for 10 AA battery, so, we can cut it to 3 battery size or 4 battery size. Then I mount a flash shoe which came from a junk flash light which is cheaper than a flash shoe adaptor, and a DC adaptor socket, and a register to limit the current.

For white LED, the battery got to be more than 3, then the current got to be about 50 mA for each LED = If 20 LEDs were parallel-connected — 50 mA x 20 = 1000 mA — for 4 AA battery design need 4.8/1 = 4.8OHM — some what 4.7OHM were needed.

The work itself was a kind of cut and glue still, the end result wasn’t too bad —– though, these days, you can find a ring light set from China as cheap as £15 which got a ready made battery case, even a stand comes together = To do what, is your choice = Its your life. —– I’m enjoying those DIY games = puzzle to find the solution. And that is the beauty of Homemade = Do a thing on the own hand instead of a shopping on a cauch !

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W Lens-B

Thanks to the advancement of the technology and the use of the image recognition system etc, alongside the advancement of the optical design x optical plastic = we may find many usable aspherical lens in many devices.

So, I got a plastic lens and I made yet another W lens for my camera. —– using the same idea of 2 cutted half lenses put together.

The effect was more or less the same to W Lens-A but the bokeh is a bit more prominent.

Basically those lenses were designed for omnifocus, yet still a close-up extension ring works well. (omnifocus works only within a limit) 😀

Whether you like them or not I don’t care. I’m quite happy with them because, I feel that the image is much closer to what I’m living with. 😀

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LED Macro Light

Such as 110 Instamatic Macro, when the magnification became larger, the focusing become increasingly difficult = simply its became too dark. Flashlight wouldn’t help focusing. —– So, I made a LED Macro Light for Instamatic Macro lens.

In fact, I made many LED Ring Light before and this one is so far the smallest of all.

The first one I made was not satisfactry and I needed to make another. (You may think that the LED has no problem of heat, but the LED’s efficiency to convert the electricity to light is only 40%, its mean, rest of elecricity all goes to the heat = LED is a 60% heat generator. With over current and the over heat, LED detriorate very quick = heat management is the key point of the design to use LED)

Photo left a LED, the left hand side is Kathode (-) why it is big was to disperse the heat. And the photo middle was the LED macro light which I made this time = its (-) side all together soldered to a center brass ring to disperse the heat.

Light distribution seemed OK (photo right). Though, the image of ring light is all ways boring. (Still, we can improvise them = such as to cover the one side LED using black-tape, etc.)

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Further modification

As I mentioned on the previous post that the 110 instamatic macro lens needs the helicoid focusing —– I did the work.

Photo right showed the finished work together with 60 mm Extension ring = both Rear lens cap and a camera body cap were fixed to the left over can !

To put a focusing helicoid, the barrel (water can) was cut first (Photo left) The internal diameter of the can happen to be 64.5 mm which was about match to a 58 to 62 mm step-down ring = so, it was connected to a 25 to 55, 58 – 58 mount focusing helicoid from China. Then they were connected to the Nikon Z with 58 to NZ reverse adaptor. (Its mean, to use a 58 mm reverse ring, the lens can be connected to any other camera as well)

Here, everything was conveniently happened to match well. —– in this kind of the work, it is always the luck of “Happen to be” works. When you need, you may find coveniently matching component etc or got pretty good idea etc ( —– If it was not on your case, think about = you might be rued to the God in your life. ) 😀

Photo left = Helicoid was shortest 25 mm, Middle = Helicoid was 55 mm, Right = + 60 mm extension ring

With this modification, the size of the subject could vary from 6.5 mm to 9 mm (x5.5 ~ x4) (with extension ring 5 mm – x7) and the focusing became very easy. = I did Nice job.

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