Category Archives: Pinhole

terraPin Kaiju 6×18 Pinhole Camera

Early this year, Kirk Lau and I were looking at reference designs online to print our own 3D camera.  Out of all the designs, I picked the terraPin Kaiju (http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:876457).  We sent this to a 3D printhouse and a couple of days later, I received a bag of parts and started to put the camera together.  This really reminded me of the time when I used to put car and ship models (Tamiya ones!) together when I was a kid.

This article discuss my adventure with this camera and all the pain I went through with it until it produced amazing images.

After assembling it, this is what it looked like.

terraPin Kaiju 6x18 medium format camera
terraPin Kaiju 6×18 medium format camera

Notice there are rubber bands in the photo, I usually just throw this in my backpack and it rolls around alot, so the rubber bands are just there to make sure it doesn’t pop open.

Selection of pinholes.  I looked around and decided to use pinhole plates that are made by James Guerin from Au Premier Plan (https://aupremierplan.fr/custom-cameras/laser-drilled-pinholes/).   Like a lens is the soul of every conventional camera, the pinhole itself is also the most important part for pinhole cameras.  The quality of these amazing pinholes will speak for itself in the photos.

I first tested the camera indoors (big mistake) with Fuji Acros film.  The exposure was 30 minutes to an hour and came back okay, but not great.  It was mainly to test for light leaks.

The first outdoor shoot was tested with a roll of Fuji Pro 160.  Here is the test image.

Fuji Pro 160 test shot on a bridge near Kowloon Station, Hong Kong
Fuji Pro 160 test shot on a bridge near Kowloon Station, Hong Kong

I see great images in that roll and moved on thinking everything is great.  I continued to shoot and mainly did shots at night.  Here are three shots done at Sake Bar Ginn in Hong Kong.

Sake Bar Ginn. 6x18 medium format pinhole camera 86mm f/215 + Fuji Acros
Sake Bar Ginn. 6×18 medium format pinhole camera 86mm f/215 + Fuji Acros
Sake Bar Ginn. 6x18 medium format pinhole camera 86mm f/215 + Fuji Acros
Sake Bar Ginn. 6×18 medium format pinhole camera 86mm f/215 + Fuji Acros
Sake Bar Ginn. 6x18 medium format pinhole camera 86mm f/215 + Fuji Acros
Sake Bar Ginn. 6×18 medium format pinhole camera 86mm f/215 + Fuji Acros

The photos were great but not as sharp as I wanted and also there is this glare that I couldn’t figure where it was coming from.  The next trip to Carmel/Big Sur, I shot about 3 rolls of Fuji Acros and this is when everything went downhill.  Every shot was over exposured by at least 4-5 clicks.

The lone cypress, 17 mile drive, 6x18 medium format camera + fuji acros
The lone cypress, 17 mile drive, 6×18 medium format camera + fuji acros

All this doesn’t make sense.  So far all the test shots were good and it made no sense that suddenly everything is over exposed.  Examining the photos, even the edges, are completely exposed.   This tells me light leaks! but where? I did shoot several rolls without issues.

I opened the camera and put a strong LED light touching the outside wall of the camera.  Voila! I see a faint red dot on the inside walls.  Apparently the material that was used for my 3D print was not completely light proof.  With a very strong light, there is a faint red light that comes through.  This makes total sense because most of the Fuji Acros rolls I did before were in dark conditions without direct sunlight.   The Fuji Pro 160 somehow wasn’t so susceptible to this wavelength of red.

Next I used black gaffer tape and patched up all potential leaky spots and did a test roll.

first test roll after light leak patch up
first test roll after light leak patch up

Finally, I am getting correct exposed photos in broad daylight.  Now notice the left side, it is slightly darker than the rest of the photos and it’s appearing on multiple shots.  I examined the front and notice the right edge of the camera hole had some plastic residue from the print.  I took an x-acto knife and removed that.  I also made sure the hole is totally clean and the tiny hole in the middle should see full clearance.

I was trying to get all of these problems solved before WPPD 2016.  I also had to work on an effective open and close strategy.  The images I taken before was always very slightly blurred.  I tried using tape over the hole, finger over the hole or just plain open and close of the pinhole doors, these methods were no good for me.  Erik Mathy told me that he use a dark slide for that and Kirk Lau also reminded me that light only travel in straight lines.  This made sense, a dark slide right in front of the pinhole, even though part of it is not covered, this didn’t matter, as long as I can cover over 120deg of the pinhole, the negative won’t be exposed (when I am covering it with a dark slide, I am covering almost 180deg).

Finally WPPD came.  One more detail from that shoot, there is a film clip that comes with 3d printing.  Ever since one roll of my film got jammed with it, i stopped using it.  The film jammed before because there is a top part of the clip that I needed to peel off before using.  That part is purely for printing and will jam your rolls if left behind. The film can be loose after it is done and the clip will hold it in a tight roll and avoid light leaks.  I made two mistakes.  One is not using the clip, second is changing this film in broad daylight.  What did I get? light leaks from the side, see below.

light leak from film changing
light leak from film changing

Finally, solving all the issues, here are some of the final results on WPPD 2016 (more with that http://lotophotos.com/wppd2016)

San Francisco Ferry Terminal and terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
San Francisco Ferry Terminal and terraPin Kaiju 6×19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
San Francisco Belle and terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
San Francisco Belle and terraPin Kaiju 6×19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
Pier 7 and terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
Pier 7 and terraPin Kaiju 6×19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
The Transamerica Pyramid and terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
The Transamerica Pyramid and terraPin Kaiju 6×19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros

The scans I am getting from these rolls, I am actually getting 6×19 rather than 6×18 which is a bonus.  The details are simply amazing and happy to finally get this in perfect working order.

WPPD 2016

World Pinhole Photography Day (WPPD) was held on April 25, 2016, more information here (http://pinholeday.org/).

Pinhole day used to be the only day that I shoot with these cameras, but this year, I actually prepared for it.  When I was in Shanghai earlier this year, with the help of Kirk Lau, I 3D printed a 6×18 (actually I find it more 6×19) camera called terraPin Kaiju.  I had a ton of issues with that camera and I will discuss this in a later blog.  After sorting all the issues out, it’s actually a really fun camera to use.

I started WPPD this year with a few plates of 8×10.  I used my Kodak 2D 8×10 camera with 0.5mm hole size and arranged it for 150mm and f/300.

Kodak 2D 8x10, 150mm f300

Kodak 2D 8×10, 150mm f/300

I shot the following with Kodak Ektascan B/RA x-ray film.  Here are a couple of developed plates, the details are just amazing and the exposure is also dead on.

Kodak 2D 8x10, 150mm, f300 with Kodak Ektascan B/RA film
Kodak 2D 8×10, 150mm, f300 with Kodak Ektascan B/RA film
Kodak 2D 8x10, 150mm, f300 with Kodak Ektascan B/RA film
Kodak 2D 8×10, 150mm, f300 with Kodak Ektascan B/RA film

To walk around town, I took the 6×18 panoramic pinhole, equipped with a 0.4mm pinhole, 86mm, f/215 with a view angle of roughly 116.5 deg.  The film that I used was my favorite, Fuji Acros.

terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera
terraPin Kaiju 6×18 camera

First I hit South Beach Harbor and it was a beautiful day.

terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera in South Beach Harbor
terraPin Kaiju 6×18 camera in South Beach Harbor

The shots from that roll had a light leak when I was changing film.  This is to remind myself to use the film clip and also change the film in darker places!

terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
South Bay Beach and terraPin Kaiju 6×18 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros

As I walked towards AT&T Park, the Giants were playing.

AT&T Park with the terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm
AT&T Park with the terraPin Kaiju 6×18 camera, 86mm

I was trying to get a silhouette photo which came out like this.  I would like it to be sharper but it was crazy windy that day.  It was tough to have the whole thing stable, even for a few seconds.

terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
AT&T Park and terraPin Kaiju 6×18 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros

Next are a couple of shots of the Bay Bridge from both portrait and landscape orientation.

Bay Bridge and terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
Bay Bridge and terraPin Kaiju 6×18 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
Bay Bridge and terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
Bay Bridge and terraPin Kaiju 6×18 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros

Behind the Ferry Building is the Golden Gate Ferry Terminal and a statue of Gandhi.  In the high resolution copy, you can actually faintly read off Gandhi’s name under the statue.  This is amazing detail, consider the lens is just air!  No fancy optics at play here.

San Francisco Ferry Terminal and terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
San Francisco Ferry Terminal and terraPin Kaiju 6×19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros

Next is Pier 7 and it was quite empty for a Sunday afternoon.

Pier 7 and terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
Pier 7 and terraPin Kaiju 6×19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros

The San Francisco Belle was docked and check out the sharpness!

San Francisco Belle and terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
San Francisco Belle and terraPin Kaiju 6×19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros

While walking on Broadway, there is an alley with a great view of the The Transamerica Pyramid.  I always love the vertical panoramic but it is often quite hard to frame.

The Transamerica Pyramid and terraPin Kaiju 6x19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros
The Transamerica Pyramid and terraPin Kaiju 6×19 camera, 86mm, f/215 with Fuji Acros

I have to say it was a lot of fun this year on WPPD.   This is the most I have shot compared to previous years.   The final stop was at Liquid Gold with four limited edition Ballast Point beers on tap!

Liquid Gold SF with four limited edition Ballast Point beers on tap!
Liquid Gold SF with four limited edition Ballast Point beers on tap!

 

WPPD 2015

From the busy schedule of moving, I managed to get in the spirit of World Pinhole Photography Day (WPPD http://pinholeday.org/) and went up to the roof of my building and snapped a few photos.

My equipment.  Did all the calculations and most importantly, my ruler!
My equipment. Did all the calculations and most importantly, my ruler!

Because of the move, all my chemicals are packed.  I just went with the good old Fuji FP-3000b.

Graflex Speed Graphic with homemade pinhole board.
Graflex Speed Graphic with homemade pinhole board.
Closeup.
Closeup.
Just setup quickly on the roof of my condo.
Just setup quickly on the roof of my condo.
Resulting photo.  Happy WPPD 2015!
Resulting photo. Happy WPPD 2015!

WPPD 2014

I haven’t done pinhole in the longest time and WPPD was a great excuse for me to start again.  I was in Shanghai and faced with less than ideal weather conditions, drizzling on and off all day, windy and cold.  Nevertheless, I managed to get a few shots in.  It was quite a challenge to do long exposure in Shanghai because everyone is wondering what you are doing and in times stood right in front of my camera, ruined many shots.

I tried to do this as scientifically as possible.  I will measure my film to hole distance and divide by 0.6 to get my f ratio (I usually stuck with f128) then I will use that in my meter.  I didn’t want to use my expensive Acros for the job and used my el cheapo Shanghai film instead.  The reciprocity is super crappy with that film.  A shot that is meter to be one minute will take eight minutes to complete!  The lighting was also bad as it was dark and gloomy most of the day and most conditions were metered to be 1 to even 30 minutes!  I ended up taking a lot more Polaroids as it was rated at 3000 iso.  The reciprocity is also quite bad with these Polaroids and a 30 second exposure will span into a 2.5 minutes shot.

With all the rain and chaos, I ended up at home and made a few shots of the beautiful tiger lillies in a more controlled environment.  The following is a photographic diary of today’s shoot.

Test shots at home before going out
Test shots at home before heading out
It was raining and found a covered spot for long exposure
It was raining and found a covered spot for long exposure
Resulting Polaroid.
Resulting Polaroid.
Waiting and raining
Waiting and raining
My ghetto pinhole setup
My ghetto pinhole setup
Busy road shooting
Busy road shooting
People stopping in front of the camera
People stopping in front of the camera
Nice door but unfortunately people are always going in and out!
Nice door but unfortunately people are always going in and out!
Home sweet home.
Home sweet home.