I got the Holga TIM a few weeks ago, and rattled off some shots so I could quickly get to the camera store and process my first roll of film. It’s usually hit or miss with me and shooting film – this time it felt more like a miss. When I got the pics back I only liked a single shot off the whole roll. Much of the shots were just taken just trying the play around with the controls on the camera body, or showing it off to friends.

Some coordination is needed when shooting in half-frame mTode. I lost my place in the sequence and would forget which ‘eye-ball’ I shot with last, or if I just shot in stereoscopic (using both eye’s at the same time). The result would be unintended double exposures or blank frames as I would advance the roll too soon.

Despite my lack of coordination – its a fun little camera. I think I like my Golden Half better at this point, but I’m only one roll into the Holga TIM.

Surfer at Linda Mar

This shot was taken from the pump house at Linda Mar in Pacifica, CA. You can notice the slight shift (parallax) in the two frames. Both shots were taken simultaneously. Supposedly, you could actually get an stereoscopic viewer on a print on the image and see it in 3D.

Holga 135TIM

I’ve been on a tear lately with toy camera’s.  I first got the Golden Half, then the Blackbird Fly, and now I found myself over the weekend at PhotoWorks in San Francisco staring at this odd camera on the shelf that seemed to be staring right back at me. It was the Holga 135TIM, an ugly little camera that reminds me more of a Sponge Bob Squarepants toy from McDonalds than an actual 35mm camera.

Other than the comic personality of the camera body – what also caught my attention was the way the camera supported half-frame shots. Where the Golden Half takes consecutive shots – each one on half of a 35mm frame – the Holga TIM gives you some more control on how to take such shots. Each “eye-ball” on Sponge Bob can be opened or closed to expose each half frame.  You can choose the left or right eye-ball – open it up , frame your shot , and click.  This actually gives you three options to compose your shots.

  • Left half frame first
  • Right half frame first
  • Both left and right at the same time for a stereoscopic full frame!

The one issue I have with the Golden Half is not knowing which two shots are actually composed on the same frame. This isn’t an issue with the Holga TIM – as you get to even choose which half frame to compose first. The cool effect of option 3 is the dual lens is slightly displaced from the subject of your shot which produces a 3D image.  You need one of those old-timey 3D viewers ( which by the way Holga actually sells as an accessory – though I cant find it online) and a print of the final image to enjoy the 3D effect.

There is actually a fourth option for your composition.

  • Double Exposure

In order to support half frame shots, the Holga TIM has an exposure switch – which allows you to re-shoot on the same frame after toggling the left or right eye-ball before taking the second shot. This exposure switch can actually be used when taking a full frame shot with both eye-balls open at the same time.  Simply take your first shot, flick the exposure switch, and take another shot.  The effect is you can do a double exposure on a full frame.

Below is the unpacking ceremony for the Holga 135TIM. Once I get some shots developed – I’ll post online.

These days digital cameras/phones have become so ubiquitous with how we shoot quick snaps of our daily lives we are accustomed to the high quality these devices provide. The latest products tout high megapixel ranges, bigger zoom-levels, and so many advanced features that we come to expect more out the pictures we create.

As technology seems to advance the quality of digital photography almost on a monthly basis, you will find an increasing trend towards a more basic , low-tech approach to photography. Almost as a revolt to the ever increasing presence of digital cameras , a class of cameras are taking their stand and attracting a cult following along the way.


www.flickr.com


The value of Toy Cameras is in direct contrast to their hi-tech counterparts.  To the enthusiast, the attraction is their characteristic flaws…

  • The cheaper the camera the better.  Most popular toy cameras are under $100.
    • plastic body, plastic lens
    • almost no controls on the body ( like a view finder or focus control)
  • Image “characteristics” are more important that image  “quality”
    • Lens effects like vignetting
    • Light leaks
  • Easily modded, hacked, and tuned
    • cheap enough to take apart and put back together again.
    • a strong mod community has tons of ways to trick out your toy camera, and get some great custom effects.

Some of the most popular Toy Cameras out there today have communities online and popular Flickr groups dedicated to them.. Below are some great sites for the overall toy camera enthusiasts.

Listed here are 4 of the most popular cameras today under 200 bucks and some resources for each. Know of anymore? Feel free to leave a comment on your favorite toy camera!

1. Diana Camera – $50

For around $50 you get a plastic lens, two shutter settings, and three aperture settings.

2. Holga – $50

For around $50 you get soft focusing, full double-exposure capability, intense vignetting, and unpredictable light leaks.

3. Blackbird Fly – $125

More on the high-price range ( for a toy camera that is), at $125 this 35mm twin reflex camera is a flagship for the Toy Camera community. You get two shooting options f7 at 1/125th and f/11 at 1/125th. – essentially “sunny” and “cloudy”.

4. Golden Half – $50 to $60

With a half-frame camera, one can fit twice as many pictures onto a standard roll of film. For example, 72 exposures on a 36-exposure roll, 48 on a 24-exposure one, and so on. The exposures have a vertical (portrait) orientation as opposed to the horizontal (landscape) orientation of a 35mm SLR or rangefinder.

gh1

© 2010 ThirstyPhoto™ All photos on this site retain copyrights from our members. Do not distribute photos without the written permission of the owner. Suffusion WordPress theme by Sayontan Sinha