DIY camera fun

I was given this camera kit a few months ago. It contains a bunch of plastic pieces and some incomprehensible instructions, translated from perhaps an alien language into English, with which you put together your own little twin lens reflex camera. Incidentally, if such a kit ever falls into your possession, you might want to toss the kit instructions and just use these, particularly for the shutter assembly.

Aside from some minor confusion prior to finding the right instructions (and by minor I mean I was so frustrated I almost cried), the camera was really fun to put together. It doesn't need batteries since the shutter is operated by a spring, and since you're putting it together yourself you get to see exactly how everything works inside the black box. Needless to say, this will delight you if, like me, you possess some degree of "huge nerd". I've shot 5 rolls of film with this camera so far, and I love how it sees the world.

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 and of course, Gerrard:

sightseeing in nova scotia: personal

Some of my favourite non-travel moments, just for fun.

Images are from Holga 120N, Hasselblad 500 C/M and Nikon FE

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fin.

After many loooong months (12, in fact), I am finally finished my 365 day photo project. As of July 31st I am no longer obligated to find something to take a photo of every. single. day. While that does alleviate some amount of pressure, I now actually enjoy carrying 10 lbs of cameras everywhere I go, so I don't feel that the end of my 365 will really change how often I use them.

This project has been long. Sooo long. So long that before this year, I never really had an appreciation for how long a year is (trust me, it's a LONG time - if you still need convincing, I challenge you to do 50 jumping jacks a day for 365 days, except you have to find a new location every day in which to do them, and wear a different outfit each time). It has also, fortunately, been a very rewarding experience. Here are some of the ways in which I have been pushed/shoved, pulled, poked and prodded over the last 365 days:

It's hard to think of something new and creative to do every day, so I ended up taking a considerable number of self portraits (I hate having my photo taken). No matter what the end result was, it was always an unpleasant process.

Pretending to read this book

Homage to American Psycho (my Halloween photo)

Most of the time, however, I did not feel like being in front of the camera. As such there were many days of struggling through a lack of ideas

A knob. Yes. A knob. Not my finest moment

Gerrard, bored with my silly ideas.

A benefit of struggling with knobs etc. is to be forced to look at things from a new perspective

Another benefit: what started as a desperate kind of gratitude for "attractive objects I normally have as a backup photo" developed into a deeper appreciation for the beauty of everyday surroundings.

Gerrard, always a stunner, and some daisies

I have learned a few new techniques over the past year. For instance, I can now fly:

Create hurricane force wind in my living room:

Janet

And infinite loops:

And use the force:

I also learned some things about using an off-camera flash

But I have a long way to go with that - it's still pretty hard for me:

Most importantly, this project has really deepened my appreciation of photography. I currently shoot mostly with film, every day, even surpassing the need to get one good picture for my project (on the...ahem...FOUR analogue cameras I've acquired since January - it's a little addictive), and this past winter, I learned how to develop and print my own negatives

It's been a demanding but invaluable experience! 
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The full set of images is here

hasselblad 500 c/m

My new love

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and of course, Gerrard:

Holga 120N

I recently treated myself to this relatively cheap plastic box, and I love it! It's fun to use, very different from my 35 mm cameras, where I have control over all of the settings. The Holga has one shutter speed, two apertures, four "optimal" focusing distances, and a very unique way of seeing the world. Here are some images from my first two rolls of film.

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