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Watch a craftsman build a large format camera from scratch

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And when we say from scratch, we are not kidding. This isn’t just ordering a bunch of components online and bolting them all together. Other than the lens and a few hinges, every piece on this camera is hand made. Right down to the perfectly hand ground glass.

The camera is the wonderful creation of very talented camera builder, Dieter Schneider. Whether you want to build your own camera or not, it’s a fascinating video to watch. The attention to detail, and ridiculously accurate workmanship is remarkable.

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See the world through the viewfinder of the panoramic Hasselblad XPan

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Jordan had the brilliant idea to mount his action camera on the back of the Hasselblad Xpan so we could show you what it’s like to shoot with this unique camera. It took us a while to figure out a proper way to make this work but we eventually found out a decent solution, which I hope will give you a taste of why I love this camera so much.

Nothing better than a video to show you the result of our little experiment!

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The very best camera in the world…

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I was about to begin by asking “Does anyone remember disposable cameras?” But then I did a search for “disposable” or “one-use” film cameras and saw, to my mild surprise, that such items were still available!

I say “mild” surprise in light of the fact that film is, after all, being discovered by a new generation, who came to photography well into the digital age.

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Discover the darkroom secrets of legendary photographer Edward Weston

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I’ve been fascinated with the darkroom ever since I started shooting film. For years it was this mysterious thing that I’d never be good enough to justify having my own. It took making the complete switch to digital, and the rediscovering film a decade later that got me hooked. Having now built my own darkroom, I love seeing videos like these, and seeing what new information I can learn.

Marc Silber has covered many wonderful analogue photographers over at the Advancing Your Photography YouTube channel. Most notably, his series on Ansel Adams. Now he’s taking a deeper look into the world of Edward Weston, one of the great masters and pioneers of photography.

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Black & white film reversal process – how to turn your negatives into film positives

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I think in photography the experiment set fire to the passion. There are endless ways to deepen the photographic knowledge, the surprise that can result on an experimental event, is electrifying!

In my experiment program I had on the list to deepen my rudimentary attempts to reverse every type and format of black and white film in and out of production for other uses such as graphic arts films.

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Rescuing Old Photography Equipment in the Digital Age

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Since the beginning of my photography career (perhaps life in general), I have been a huge proponent of seeing how much can be accomplished with minimal cash outlay. Sure, at times this has been because of major budget restrictions, but other times it was simply my way of staging a one-man rebellion against the swirling tide of consumerism…almost like gaming the system, as it were. Like I recently told Udi Tirosh, founder of DIYPhotography, “You inspired me early in my career, and now I have become an insatiable monster of your own creation.”

But, I have learned throughout life that: a) sometimes you get just what you pay for, and b) sometimes it’s really not worth reinventing the proverbial wheel. However, that’s more of a side note…

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These are the top 10 film stocks that photographers prefer

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When a new film photographer asks the community which films are the best, all voices tend to agree on Porta, Tri-X, and HP5 but are these the most favourite? In this article, we are going to look at the top 10 films photographers prefer.

If you’ve been following the blog for a while now, you’ve certainly tried at least once the Film Dating tool I’ve developed. It’s been a few month since I launched it and its popularity went way beyond my expectations.

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The noobies guide to choosing a medium format film camera

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I decided to write this, because the topic seems to be pretty popular these days. People ask “What camera?” and sadly, the answers are boiling down to “Get this one, because I use it and what’s good for me is definitely gonna be good for you”, which, I think we can agree, is bullshit.

Disclaimer: You don’t have to agree with anything I put down here.

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Adventures in Scotland with a Hasselblad XPan and Kodak Portra

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There’s something very special about Scotland’s wilderness. It has a landscape like few other places in the world. Dutch photographer Tom Kluyver decided to visit Scotland for himself recently, along with his friend designer, Matthijs van Leeuwen. The pair spent a week exploring some of what Scotland has to offer, and decided to document the trip with film.

Specifically, Tom chose a Hasselblad XPan 35mm panoramic camera loaded with Kodak Portra film. Tom admits they weren’t fully prepared for what lay ahead of them, but that’s what makes trips like these so great. You never really know where you’re going to end up, or what you’re going to see.

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This drone-mounted large format camera made the world’s first aerial tintype photograph

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Combining levels of technology from vastly different times is often very fascinating. Sometimes it’s amusing, and occasionally it fails miserable. This time, failure is definitely not the word that springs to mind. For this particular merging of devices, photographer Giles Clement mounted a large format camera to a drone.

Why? To create the world’s first aerial tintype photographs, of course. Not content with simply making a photograph from the air, though, Giles and the team also produced the world’s first drone tintype selfie. Well, if one really wants to bring tintypes into the modern age, then I suppose one has to, really. It does look pretty awesome, though.

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