The "C21 Pentagram" Photo Filter

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My photos of the Space Needle just came back and the Kodak Vest Pocket has once again opened a portal back in time.  The Space Needle was built for the 1962 "Century 21" world's fair, by the "Pentagram Corporation."  When the digital crowd asks what filter I used to get the effect, I'm going to tell them it's called "C21 Pentagram."

Kodak Vest Pocket with Kodak Portra 160

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Here's another roll on the Kodak Vest Pocket camera -- this time with Kodak Portra 160 print film in it.  I think we might have a winner.  Despite all the shots being totally light-leaked upon, this film really seems to suit the li'l guy.  The true winners are the indoor shots, where I had to make multi-second exposures.  The color is just fantastic, and the leaked light only adds character.

This roll was a single-variable experiment.  I'd taped over the window that shows the frame I'm on.  It looks more like the light is leaking in along the panel that opens to let you load and unload film rolls.  I'm gonna keep the frame window taped up, and I'll also tape around the panel for the next roll.  I just ordered more Kodak Portra 160 .. so it'll take a couple weeks to get the next batch of experiment data back.

Two Rolls on the Kodak Vest Pocket

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I got back the two rolls we shot on the Kodak Vest Pocket Autographic camera.  One's Efke R 100 black and white.  The other is Rollei Crossbird 200 color slide film.  I think I like the character of the color roll, which is a new brand to me.  I'll need to try some in another camera to see how much is the film and how much is the camera.  It looks like it's the film.

As you may have noticed, there's a bit of a light issue going on.  The baffles on the thing seem to be in one piece.  The shutter also looks pretty good.  The design of the Autographic model includes a nice wide door on the back .. so I might be taping over that for the next roll.  And the window for looking at the frame number is generous.  Plus, it was a very bright couple of days.  It's also really hard to get the film in the camera in the first place.  (Now I'm just making excuses.)

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With the handful of variables, this is gonna be a really interesting experiment.  Testing one of the easier theories first, I'll use a changing bag for the load and unload of the film.

Kodak Vest Pocket Autographic

Check out the new arrival, a Kodak "Vest Pocket" camera.  This is the "Autographic" style, which means there's a small door on the back, that you can flip open and write directly on the film backing (possibly score, instead, not sure yet).  It takes 127 film, and I've loaded a roll of the Efke R 100, black and white.

It's totally adorable .. the whole thing collapses down flat, so it can fit in your vest pocket.  For a time, it was sold as the "soldier's camera," because it was so portable.  Also, one of these seems to've gone to the top of Mt. Everest.

They were probably manufactured between 1915 and 1926.  Mine has all sorts of lists of the patents that it's covered under, and one of them is from Nov 8, 1921.  So I'm squarely between world wars.  (i.e. not much market for soldiers.)

Exposure is going to be interesting.  The pre-set shutter speeds are a twenty-fifth or fiftieth of a second.  There's a B setting.  The aperture isn't listed in f-stops tho .. a dial sets it between "portrait" and "clouds" sizes.  I'm shooting this first roll using the smallest aperture (clouds) and the fiftieth of a second shutter .. in bright sunlight.  I'll try some B shots, as well.  I love science (physics?) experiments!