Getting into Instant Photography

So you’re interested in learning more about this whole instant photography thing?  I know the feeling.  I can go on and on about why I love it, but I’d rather take this time to tell about some of the options that are available.

– A variety of cameras that shoot instant film –

As you may or may not know, there are two companies manufacturing analog instant film that market their products world-wide;  FujiFilm in Japan and The Impossible Project in the Netherlands.

Fuji makes a couple of  types of instant: integral film for their Instax camera line (the Instax mini & Instax wide) and peel-apart film for Polaroid pack film cameras.  The Instax system is a great entry-level start into the world of instant.   If you’re looking to capture candid images at a club, a party, hanging out with friends, this is a ideal choice.  It fires a flash every time and takes good images.  Food for thought: If you really get into instant, you might find that that this camera system is restricted when compared against others in the field.  However, it’s all in how you use it.  I’ve seen some incredible work produced from professionals who shoot with Instax cameras.

Photo: Daniel Rodrigue – Fuji Instax Mini

Photo: Daniel Rodrigue – Fuji Instax 210

Photo: Mark Goode – Fuji Instax 210

Photo: Mark Goode – Fuji Instax 210

Fuji’s peel-apart film, FP-100C (color) & FP-3000B (B&W), is used in 100 series Polaroids, cameras which use a NPC Polaroid back or ones that have been converted to use pack film (Polaroid 110A & Polaroid 110B’s come to mind).  Pack-film Polaroid cameras are a lot of fun to use.  You can find them for $10-50 (on average) for the cameras with automatic exposure and for the models with manual exposure settings you’ll spend $300+ (Polaroid 180, 185, 190, 195, 600SE, Fuji FP-1). When looking for one, inspect to make sure there are no light leaks in the bellows. Use a flashlight to shine around in the camera when the back is open and look on the outside of the bellows for leaks.  Check to make sure the rollers move freely and are fairly clean (wipe them down with a damp paper towel to remove any gunk you might find). Also, the required battery needed to run the meter is a little hard to find.  Most people I’ve found covert the camera to use either AA or AAA batteries.  It’s really simple.  This a great tutorial on how to do it.  Just be mindful of whether you need to convert to 3V or 4.5V which is easily determined by looking at the underside of the battery compartment door.  But don’t let this technical mumbo-jumbo fool you.  Once you get your camera in operating condition, the fun you’ll have with it is endless.

Fuji’s peel-apart film has a very clean look to it.   The colors are pleasantly saturated, and the detail & clarity is very good.

Fuji FP-100C – Polaroid Automatic 100

Fuji FP-100C – Polaroid Automatic 100

Fuji FP-100C – Polaroid Automatic 100

Fuji FP-100C – Polaroid Automatic 100

Photo: Daniel Rodrigue – Polaroid 180 – Fuji FP-3000B

Each exposure, when peeled, has a positive print and a negative.   Further adding to the enjoyment of it, when shooting color film, the FP-100C negative can be salvaged to scan by bleaching the negative. 

As I mentioned earlier, you can use any camera that has a NPC Polaroid back with peel-apart as well.   I use a RB67 + a NPC Polaroid back and get great results.   Note the black unexposed portion of the frame when shooting with a RB67.

Mamiya RB67 + NPC Polaroid Back – Fuji FP-100C

Mamiya RB67 + NPC Polaroid Back – Fuji FP-100B

You might be thinking .. What about all of those other Polaroids cameras?  Do they still make film for those??  Luckily, since The Impossible Project stepped into the game, they do! They’ve re-invented integral film for literally hundreds of thousands of Polaroids that are still out there.  Any of the Polaroid 600 series, Spectra/Image or SX-70 cameras can still be used.  Beyond that, they’ve brought 8×10 instant film back into the marketplace.

A good Polaroid to start off with that shoots integral film would be any of the Polaroid One Steps/600 series cameras.  You know the ones; boxy, most flipped open and have a flash.  Nearly every office in the 80’s & 90’s had one for employee photos.   They are fairly easy to use and shoot color (PX-680) or B&W (PX-600) film.  There are a large variety of 600 series cameras available.  If you’re purchasing on Ebay or Craiglist, you’ll find One Steps from $10-$100+ on average depending on the model and if it’s a collectible.  The camera has two focusing distances (2-4ft and 4ft – infinity) and takes good images.

Photo: Patrick Clarke – Polaroid One 600 – Impossible Project PX-600

Photo: Laidric Stevenson – Polaroid Sun 660 – Impossible Project PX-680 CP

Photo: Annie Donovan – Polaroid One 600 – Impossible Project PX-70 NIGO

Photo: John Morrison – Polaroid One Step – Impossible Project PX-680 COOL

Polaroid Spectra cameras are another great option and are pretty durable cameras too.  If you’re going to be roughing it while out and about, this particular camera is perfect for the job.  I’ve been using these for a while and they produce really nice results.  Most of the Spectra cameras I’ve picked up have been $10-20.  They use color (PZ680) or B&W (PZ600) Impossible Project film, use inaudible sound waves to aid in auto-focusing and are pretty user friendly.  I took one to a Texas Rangers game at the Ballpark in Arlington this past summer.  If you’re interested in reading a little more about the camera & how it works, you can find that here.

Photo: Synthia Goode – Polaroid Spectra – Impossible Project PZ-600

Polaroid Spectra AF – Impossible Project PZ-680

Polaroid Spectra AF – Impossible Project PZ-680

This brings me to Polaroid SX-70’s.  These are some of my favorite Polaroid cameras to use.   They are really fun to operate.  Unlike all of the other cameras as fore mentioned, because this particular camera is a SLR, what you see in the viewfinder is what you get.  The Sonar SX-70, like the Spectra, also uses inaudible sound waves to measure the subject’s distance from the camera. If you get lucky, you can find these for around $20.  But most of the various SX-70 models go anywhere from $40-100 depending on its condition and whether it’s been serviced/refurbished etc.  Using SX-70’s with Impossible film can be a little challenging, however once you get over the learning curve and get a handle on how to best utilize their films with this camera, it produces some awesome results.  

Polaroid SX-70 Sonar – Impossible Project PZ-600 + ND4 Filter

Polaroid SX-70 Sonar – Impossible Project PX-70 COOL

Polaroid SX-70 Sonar – Impossible Project PX-70 NIGO Edition

Polaroid SX-70 Sonar – Impossible Project PX-70 CP

Polaroid SX-70 Sonar – Impossible Project PX-70 CP

Polaroid SX-70 Sonar – Impossible Project PX-70 COOL

Last, but certainly not least, is the Polaroid SLR680/SLR690.  These are top of the line Polaroids that shoot 600 speed film (PX-680 or PX-600).   I’ve seen these online anywhere from $75-$200+, again, depending on the typical used-camera variables.  They are modeled after the SX-70. Their rollers spread the film a little more even, it has more focusing zones than the Sonar SX-70 and they come equipped with a flash that can be toggled on/off.

When looking for a used camera, of course look for signs of damage, but even more so, check the lens to make sure it’s clean.  Inspect the rollers; they should move somewhat freely.  If you bring an empty film pack with you, you can check to make sure the camera’s ejection mechanism is working (this is not needed on Polaroids which use peel-apart film).  Simply slide a darkslide into the empty pack, put it into the camera and if everything functioning properly, when you close the film door, the darkslide should eject out.  Some cameras might sound slow or sluggish if they haven’t been used in a while.  Actuate the shutter a handful of times. It will help move the gears and get the juices flowing.  If you’re in the D/FW area, I have a few empty packs laying around.  I’ll mail you one if you’re in need.

A big thanks to Daniel Rodrigue, Mark Goode, Patrick Clarke, Annie Donovan, Laidric Stevenson, John Morrison & Synthia Goode for letting me use their images to fill out this blog post.  It is appreciated!

If you’d like to know more, send a message my way.  I’d be happy to help you in any way that I can.  Email me at info@instantfilmsociety.com

-Justin

www.goodephotography.biz

www.instantfilmsociety.com

Fuji FP-100C Emulsion/Image Transfer

Fuji FP-100C – Polaroid Land Camera 100 – Polaroid Emulsion/Image Transfer Kit

The wonderful Sandy Hibbard, of Lyric Marketing & Design, hired me again this past week to take photos for a client of hers, Stephanie McAndrew.   Stephanie is a writer/activist who promotes the empowerment of women & children in the states & abroad.  When Sandy first approached me, she mentioned that along with the some of the more traditional headshot images, she also wanted something out of the box for Stephanie’s portrait.  I racked my brain for a ideas and came up with a couple decent ones but never had “it” figured out.

About a week later, I went to The Film Depot in Richardson to pick up some film sleeves for the 120 & FP-100C I’d been shooting.   Now, I’ve been to this place a kajillion times and I always browse through almost everything when I’m there.   For some reason or another, I had never seen the brand-new-in-box Polaroid Emulsion/Image Transfer Kit that was sitting waaaay up high on the shelf.   I asked the owner if I could pull it down to look at it .. she nodded her head.  I grabbed the box and white flakes came floating down all over me.  I took a deep breath, blew the top of the box and a cloud of dust flew through the store.  The owner laughed, smiled and told me that she’d be willing to make a deal with me.   The box said $25 but she’d take $15.  I opened it up, saw that the deal was good and paid the kind lady.  Score!

The week of the Stephanie’s shoot came up and I had been toying around with emulsion lifts/transfers.   It didn’t quite dawn on me until a day or so before the shoot, but I knew that a collage of emulsion transfers would be a really cool fit for Stephanie’s portrait (out of the box? √ ).  We discussed possible locations the day before and decided on using The Heard Wildlife Sanctuary in McKinney.

The shoot was a blast! Stephanie & Sandy were in great spirits the whole time as I took them on a wild goose chase of a photoshoot.   I had been to the Heard before with Synthia and remembered where some of the nicer ‘available light’ locations were.  The only issue was we had to walk about 2-3 miles total to get to all of them (sorry again ladies ..).    About 1/2 way through the shoot, we came to the spot I had planned on using for the collage of emulsion transfers.  I had Stephanie sit on a bench and started snapping away with a Polaroid 100 Land Camera.    I took 6 images in the style of David Hockney and tucked them away in my homemade box to dry.

A day later, once the prints had fully dried, I pulled the materials out of the Polaroid Emulsion/Image Transfer Kit and gathered anything else I needed ..

2 trays (8×10 or larger) to hold water

Thermometer

Timer

Rubber Tongs

Contact Paper

Rubber Brayer (a roller)

Wax Paper & Scissors (not included in kit)

Along with the kit I purchased, I received a step-by-step guide to emulsion transfers.  If you’d like to view a PDF of it CLICK HERE.

The process was pretty simple ..

I trimmed off the edges of the photos …

Then figured out how much contact paper was needed to cover the back

Cut my contact paper so it was about the same size as the print ….

Peeled it apart …

And pressed it firmly it onto the back of the print to shield it from the water …

Once all of the images were trimmed and set up with contact paper, I started heating up some water on the stove.   When the water was 160 degrees I poured it into the one of the trays and filled the other tray of water with tap water.

Set a timer for four minutes …

Placed the print into HOT water …

Used tongs to keep the print submerged under water for 4 minutes …

After four minutes, I moved the print into the COLD water …

Pushed the edges of the emulsion towards the center with my thumbs and it eventually slid off ….

I repeated the process …

Moved the prints to the COLD water …

Slid the emulsions off the prints …

At this point, I cut an 8×10 piece of watercolor paper that I had lying around and submerged it in water for a few seconds.  I pulled it out and layed it on an 8×10 piece of glass.  I used the rubber roller to “mount it” to the glass.   Almost time for the transfer …

Put wax paper underneath the emulsion (reverse side should be up)

Pressed it against the watercolor paper ..

Then used a rubber brayer on top of the wax paper to firmly press the emulsion down …

Gently pealed away the wax paper …

Repeated the process …

*

I set it out to dry …

When the piece dried, the watercolor paper wrinkled a bit and little portions of the transferred emulsions were rising up from the paper.  I placed the piece in an 8×10 frame to flatten it but was bothered by the negative space that was surrounding the transferred images.    I’m a stickler.   I went back to the Heard a few days later and took 9 more photos at approximately the same time of day as the first shoot.  The images dried and I transferred them to finish out the piece.

Fuji FP-100 Emulsion / Image Transfer

NOTE:  If you’re experienced in transfers and have any suggestions/comments to share, I would love to hear from you!

Also, if you like this technique and would like to have a unique image created for you , email or call me!  I’d be happy to create something original for you!

For those interested, I’ve attached a few of my favorite images from this session as well …

Stephanie McAndrew – Writer/Activist

Stephanie McAndrew – Writer/Activist

Stephanie McAndrew – Writer/Activist

Thank you for your time!

-Justin

www.goodephotography.biz

BUY Fuji FP-100C HERE! 

A Small Texas Wedding + a Pho-Tak Traveler 120 + Impossible Project & More

A couple months ago, a friend of ours booked my wife and I to photograph her wedding in Terrell, Texas.  She mentioned that it was going to be a small ceremony on May 26th, at a friend of a friend’s house, who happened to also own a few classic cars.    I’ve known Amy for a while and I was happy to hear that she wanted to use us for the wedding.   When I met up with her to talk things over, she mentioned that she loved our photography and was looking to have a classic, vintage look for her wedding photos.  She also told me that she had been holding onto her great-grandmother’s camera and was trying to find the right home for it.  It seemed fate was potentially going to have a hand in the outcome of these images …

Within a week or so, she contacted me and I swung up the road to pick up the camera.  I had no idea what to expect, but was intrigued when she handed me a Pho-Tak Traveler 120 box camera.    When I got back into the car, I examined the camera and knew that the  “120” was probably an indication of what film it used.  I opened it up and found a metal Kodak spool which was indeed for that size film.   120 is still made … how cool would it be to shoot some of her wedding photographs on her great-grandmothers’s camera?  VERY COOL.   I called her up and she was thrilled with the idea.

Pho-Tak Traveler 120 Box Camera

I took it over to my friend’s camera shop to clean it up and to determine what the shutter speed & aperture might be.   This is a point-and-shoot camera in the most literal sense.   It has one shutter speed & aperture, using a singlet lens, that produces a 6x9cm negative.  We thought that it was probably sitting at about a 20th-30th of a second and possibly f/5.6.   I tried a roll of Ilford 3200 indoors and it was extremely underexposed (3-4 stops).   It’s not f/5.6.   I talked it over with another friend and he mentioned, that since this camera was made in the 1950’s, it was probably meant to use ASA 100 speed film or slower.   I had a ‘duh moment’.  Having a shutter speed of only about 1/30th, using the sunny-16 rule, I figured it was probably sitting at about f/32.   I tested out a roll of Fuji Acros 100 developed in Rodinal and had decent results.  From the test roll I noticed a couple of things;  it focuses about 5-10 feet away & you really have to make sure the camera is stable when exposing.  The best way to trip this shutter is to slowly put consistent pressure on the shutter release until it clicks.  The rollers in the camera did scratch the crap out of the negative but what are you gonna do?  It’s an old box camera.   The aged look it produced was perfect!

Test shot – Pho-Tak Time Traveler 120 – Fuji Acros 100 – Rodinal

I packed a variety of film cameras to use on the day of the wedding; a Leica M2 (15mm + 50mm), a Polaroid SX-70, a Polaroid 100 Land Camera & the Pho-Tak Traveler 120.   I figured with Amy’s request for vintage, classic images & the automobiles, bringing cameras relevant to the era would be a good idea.   For film, I packed some Tri-X, Ektar 100, Impossible Project PX-70 COOL & some Fuji FP-100C.  My wife was armed with our trusty Nikon D700, F100 and a Nikon FE.  Our bases were covered …

I like having a plethora of cameras to choose from at our photo shoots.     The beauty of having a variety of film cameras at your disposal, is that each camera is different and produces unique results.   Forget trying to edit a digital image to match the results you get with film.  1) It can’t be replicated  2 ) it’s boooooooring and SO overdone.  If you’re trying to emulate film it’s just a whole lot easier to shoot film.   It takes less time in the long run to get really cool, unique, vintage images.

Anyhow, off the bat, the place looked to be really cool.  The owner had pulled out a few of his classic cars and they were parked on the lot by the garage.   We scouted out some locations around the area that would be good to shoot at during the wedding.  I met up with the groom, Adam, and I pulled him aside to snap a pic of him on some of the Impossible Project PX-70 COOL I brought with me.

Adam aka The Groom – SX-70 – Impossible Project PX-70 COOL

After a little bit I went over to where Amy was getting ready.   I brought Hannah, the flower girl, outside for a snapshot on the front porch with the SX-70 and then one with the Pho-Tak box camera.

Hannah Rae aka the Flower Girl – SX-70 – Impossible Project PX-70 COOL

Hannah Rae – Pho-Tak Traveler 120 – Kodak Tri-X 400@200 – Ilfotec DD-X **side note** I had tested the Pho-Tak box camera in the middle of the day with 100 speed film.    I decided to load it up with Kodak Tri-X 400 and would pull the development to 200ASA.       I wanted the option of either developing at 200 or 400 if needed.

At this point, Amy was almost ready and we grabbed a few photos before the ceremony …

The Bride – SX-70 – Impossible Project PX-70 COOL

The Kicks – SX-70 – Impossible Project PX-70 COOL

The ceremony was short & sweet! I did have enough time to knock out some pics on the M2, the FE, the Pho-Tak, the SX-70 and a few on the Polaroid 100.

Texas Wedding – Pho-Tak Traveler 120 – Kodak Tri-X 400@200 – Ilfotec DD-X –

– Texas Wedding – SX-70 – Impossible Project PX-70 COOL –

Texas Wedding – Leica M2 – 15mm Voigtlander – Ektar 100

FP-100C – Polaroid 100 Land Camera

Texas Wedding – Polaroid 100 Land Camera – Fuji FP-100C

Bleached Fuji FP-100C – Polaroid 100 Land Camera

Bleached Fuji FP-100C – Polaroid 100 Land Camera

The Bride & Groom – Pho-Tak Traveler 120 – Kodak Tri-X 400@200 – Ilfotec DD-X

– The Married Couple – SX-70 – Impossible Project PX-70 COOL –

All in all, I’m pleased with the images from the Pho-Tak Traveler box camera.   Granted it uses a singlet lens and it’s not uber-sharp but who cares?  It has that insta-vintage look without all the editing fuss.  Also, it goes without saying, BUT the Impossible PX-70 COOL yielded some really neat analog results as well.  I’ll definitely keep this stuff stocked for my future gigs and personal shoots.   Their film deserves to be shot .. a lot.

-Justin

Interested in booking us for your wedding?  Contact us at info@goodephotography.biz 

www.goodephotography.biz

Drying Fuji FP-100C prints

Many of you know that I really enjoy shooting instant film.    I first got hooked on Fuji’s FP-100C a few years ago when I picked up a Polaroid back for the Mamiya RB67.   I was in heaven!   I had never shot the stuff before and I was really enthralled with the beauty of the images.    Since then, I’ve really gotten into Impossible Project‘s films which are another beast in itself (great film).

The cool thing about Fuji’s instant film is that it is peel-apart film and it works on all 100 series Polaroid cameras & film backs.      The not-so-cool thing about this type of film in general, is that when you peel it apart, you remove the print from the negative & the developing solution.  That in turn leaves you with a somewhat vulnerable print that has to dry first before it can be touched & stored.  It’s not really a problem if you’re only shooting a few and can hand hold the print a few minutes until it’s dry.   It does turn into a bit of an issue however when you’re shooting a pack or more of prints fairly quickly and need to store them to dry.  I run into this issue …

A while back, I started to brainstorm on how I could keep the exposed prints & negatives in a safe place when I was out and about shooting.    One day, I was walking around an arts & crafts store and I stumbled upon a paper mache box that looked to be about the size of FP-100C’s prints.   Voila!  It was perfect!

– CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE THIS BOX –

FP-100C drying/storage box

Cut slits into the box, pull the end of the spring through and tie the end

Prints held in place by springs without touching the actual image

Once it was complete I finally had a safe place to dry and store the prints/negatives.   I just put it in the camera bag when I’m out and about.

Thanks for reading!

-Justin

Bleaching FP-100C

Salvage a negative from FP-100C shot on your Polaroid

For those of you unaware, FujiFilm’s FP-100C is peel apart film used in Polaroid cameras and other cameras equipped with a Polaroid back.    I’ve been shooting the stuff for a few years on a Mamiya RB-67 and Polaroid pack film cameras (seen above).  Other than Impossible Project films, Fuji’s peel-apart films are the only other dominate option for instant analogue photography.

I just recently found out how to salvage the negatives from FP-100C.   For years I’ve just peeled off the exposed prints and disposed of the “other part”.  I have been missing out!  Not any more however 😉

My wife and I took a trip to our friend’s ranch a few weeks ago and she shot a lot of FP-100C while we were there.  We saved all of her negatives and stored them in a box once they had all dried.  Side note: I’ve found if you stash the negative away in a dark dry place, you can still salvage it.    If it’s left out in the open sun to dry, exposure will run its course and the negative will be overexposed/washed out.   Anyhow, she took an image of me plinking away with a bb gun on their back porch.   It’s a little dark on the print but I’ll be able to pull out some shadow detail once the negative has been scanned (that’s one of the cool things about this).

FP-100C Print

To salvage the negative it’s quite simple actually.    You’ll need:

– 8×10-ish piece of glass

– small paint brush

– container to hold bleach

– rubber gloves

– clips to dry the negative

All you have to do is …

Peel paper off around edges of negative

Prop the glass up in the sink and run some cold water over it

Turn water off and immediately place the negative face down (black side up). Press down on it so it seals itself to the glass.

Pour a little bit of bleach onto the back of the negative

Without getting bleach underneath the negative, brush off the black backing of the negative. Frequently dip the brush back into the container of bleach.

Run cold water over the negative to wash away backing. Be careful not to get water underneath the negative at this time.

Pull the negative off of the glass using rubber gloves.

Wash the developer goop off of the negative. Be careful to not apply a lot of pressure otherwise you might rub off part of the emulsion.

Clip the negative up to dry and you’re all set!

Scanned negative from FP-100C – white blotches are from where the black backing was not bleached off.

Here are a few other examples:

Bleached Fuji FP-100C Negative Scan

Bleached Fuji FP-100C Negative Scan

Bleached Fuji FP-100C Negative Scan – Green discoloration is from bleach leaking onto the front during the wash.  The left corner area is an undeveloped patch.

Bleached Fuji FP-100C Negative Scan – Yellow discoloration is from bleach leaking onto the front during the wash

Thanks for taking the time!

-Justin

Got an old pack film camera sitting around?   You can buy FP-100C here.  Aaaaand just because I love these peeps I gotta mention them again … Impossible Project is selling some of the last sepia toned polaroid peel apart film available.   Buy it here.