Film Photography Podcast – Episode 79 – April 1, 2013
The internet radio show for people who love to shoot film! World’s Fastest 35mm SLR – The Minolta 9ti! Mat’s FPP Debonair Report! FPP Listener Letterpalooza! APS Film! Pinhole Cameras and much, much more!
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Show Notes
Film Photography Podcast – Episode 79 – April 1, 2013
Show Notes By Alex Luyckx
Join Michael, Leslie, Mat, Lauren, and special guest Strudel the dog for today’s show filled with listener letters, the world’s fastest SLR – the Minolta 9Ti, APS Film, The Plastic Filmtastic FPP Debonair and so much more!
LETTERS!
The mailbag is overflowing with letters and packages for the FPP! Christopher, an Indiana State University student and longtime digital shooter decided he wanted to upgrade to an SLR but the cost of a digital one was keeping him back. He managed to find a Canon Rebel 35mm SLR for cheap on Ebay and hasn’t looked back since. He’s planning on starting to develop his own film and investing in a scanner. What does the gang recommend, the Epson V700 of course! It will last him far down the road in the film journey all the way up to 8×10. Tim from Australia writes that listening to the show is like catching up with old friends every couple weeks. He recently found an article on how Harvard researchers were using Polaroid instant 35mm film for lithographic masks and sent it along to the group to read. The group is very happy that he is also going to send along a couple boxes of Tim-Tams, a much loved snack food at the FPP studio. Ross from Hawaii sends the group a modified Debonair – he modified it to be a pinhole camera – it came with a beautifully handcrafted card featuring a photo from the camera itself.
WATERPROOF 110!
A box from Leslie surfaces containing an underwater 110 camera, the Minolta Weatheatic A. This buoyant camera features a 26mm f/3.5 lens with zone focus, three selectable apertures and a fixed 1/200” shutter speed. Oversized controls allow it to be operated easily with gloves on. It’s also housed in bright day-glo yellow plastic so it can be spotted more easily especially under water or if floating on the surface.
ADVANCED PHOTO SYSTEM!
The group dives into a topic yet to be covered on the FPP, the Advanced Photo System or APS.
So what is APS? APS is a film format that was started in 1996 as a replacement for 110 film, something that could be easily loaded without too much fuss into simple cameras. The film was 24mm wide, and could be shot in three different exposure sizes. The first was C or “Classic” was 25.1mm by 16.7mm with a 3:2 aspect ratio, the second and most common was H or “HDTV” was 30.1mm by 16.7mm and had a 16:9 aspect ratio, the third was P or “Panoramic” and was 30.1mm by 9.5mm with a 3:1 aspect ratio. The cartridges were slightly smaller than 35mm but unlike them had no leader. You just dropped it into the camera and it did all the work. Picture information was even recorded to magnetic strips on the film so that the processing machines would know the size of prints needed for the images. Each cartridge had a number or symbol system to show what state the film was in. A 1 indicated that it was a new, never been shot roll. A 2 indicated that the film was partly shot (yes, you could switch mid roll and the camera would know where to continue from), 3 indicated that the film was shot but not processed, and 4 was the final stage the film was processed was ready to print.
The labs however hated APS because it was an all-new format; they needed these specialized machines for the new format. With consumer digital cameras starting to come into the market the format did not last that long. By 2012 the last two manufactures, Fuji and Kodak, were reporting they had no more stock left in their warehouses. You can still find the film online or buried in camera shops and drug stores.
The format was aimed primarily at the consumer market so cameras were mostly point and shoot but made by Nikon, Canon, Fuji, Konica-Minolta. Nikon and Canon produced full SLR cameras in the APS format. Are you still shooting APS or thinking about shooting APS? The FPP On-Line Store now offers APS Film! There are still some labs out there that process the film. FPP recommends our good friends at The Darkroom (they even scan).
SCOTT’S GIRLFRIEND LOVES POLAROID!
FPP listener Scott writes in. His girlfriend loves Polaroid, specifically her old 900 series camera which takes the old and no longer produced roll film and wants to know if there’s a camera and format out there that will give the same feel. He found the Impossible Project, but wants the FPP’s view on the matter. Everyone agrees – the automatic land camera is the way to go.
For sharp clean images, go for a glass lens model like the original 100 or if you’re looking for an upgrade the 250. If she likes soft and dreamy, a plastic lensed Model 104 or the 420. Film can also be obtained through the FPP (at fantastic prices) – the Fuji FP-100c or 3000b.
Another listener, Hessle writes in with a Land Camera question wanting to know if there were any type-100 cameras that were fully manual with a meter. The answer is yes and no. Polaroid produced three of their Automatic Land Cameras the Model 180, 190, and 195 that were fully manual but they did not have a meter. The Older models 110a and 110b had fantastic all manual lenses but you’d have to convert them to take the pack film. As for a meter, the Gossen Luna Pro F will not disappoint.
THE FPP DEBONAIR UPDATE!
The FPP Debonair is taking the world by storm! And if you’re still itching to get one, at only twenty bucks in the store now is the time as the supply is starting to run a little low. Mat’s been hearing nothing but good things about the camera even from highly critical photographers.
Leslie loves it because you can easily shoot 35mm through the camera and get those lovely sprockets exposed as well. So what makes it so great? Three things, Mat explains, the price, the look, and flash (hot shoe baby). These are great cameras to get into both toy and sprocket photography without breaking the bank. Get your FPP Debonair HERE
above: The FPP Debonair Video!
PHONE IT IN!
Have you ever wanted to hear yourself on the FPP? We have a studio hot line that connects to a voicemail box, the messages are packaged and sent to Michael Raso who will put them into an episode of the FPP! Leave a short, clean message at 973-850-6330 and then tune into to the podcast to hear yourself!
World’s Fastest 35mm SLR – Minolta 9t1 !!!!
The Konica-Minolta Dynax/Maxxum/Alpha 9 is considered one of the best professional 35mm SLR cameras out there, and was the last professional film camera produced by Konica-Minolta. Released in 1998 it is the fastest camera on the market and it isn’t built like a tank with a zinc aluminum frame and stainless steel body it’s built like an aircraft carrier. For added punch, in 1999 they released a model 9Ti, which used Titanium for the body and a beautiful silver finish. The camera features a top shutter speed of 1/12000” and a blistering 5.5 fps burst mode thanks to a carbon fiber reinforced shutter.
Complete weather sealing on all the parts of the camera allows the camera to be used in any environment or situation it gets thrown into. Sensors in the grip pick up when you’re holding the camera and starts up the electronic, then when you bring it up to your eye it autofocuses. The viewfinder features 100% coverage as well. The autofocus is quick and snappy, rewind options include fast, slow, even a manual rewind! All the controls are laid out with physical buttons rather than computer driven menus. The 9Ti is a rare sub-model of the 9, only 1000 were ever produced, but you can still find a regular 9 or 9xi if you keep your eye on ebay or KEH. Do you have a 9Ti? Email the FPP ( Podcast@FilmPhotographyProject.com ) or join Leslie’s group on flickr and share your story!
FPP WALKING WORKSHOP THIS MONTH!
Have you signed up for our Walking Workshop yet on April 12th through 14th? It’s only 11 more sleeps away and we’re all getting very excited. Head on over to the page to find out more information on the event and how to sign up! And we’ll be back online in two weeks! Two Weeks? You sound like a bird!