Koraks tinkers

Unearthed – Running film through an old Kiev rangefinder camera

I’m not a camera collector. At the same time, if a camera literally ends up in my lap, I generally can’t resist giving it a go. This happened to a Kiev rangefinder camera that I found in my dad’s attic. So…does it work?

On a Color Mission – Comparing two RA4 color papers

With FUJIFILM being the only remaining manufacturer of RA4 color printing paper in the West, one of the questions remains how their products compare. Let’s have a look at an entry-level product in their portfolio pitched against a one of their top-level products and see what real-world differences there are.

Exxperiment – Getting to know Eastman Double-X

I just had to try it out, one day. So I did the ‘smart’ thing and got myself a 400ft roll of Eastman Double-X (a.k.a. 5222) to play with. Here’s a brief report of my first attempt with this film.

Wrapping up – Attempted refurbishment of RCP20 rollers

The Durst RCP20 (and its larger brethren) continues to be a popular roller transport processor, despite the machines having been manufactured in the 1970s-1980s. Many of these by now are affected by problems with damaged rollers. In this blog, I’ll report a first hack-attempt at reconditioning them. Not tested yet, but I think I’m on to something.

Hold tight – Operating an old Imacon SCSI Flextight Precision II scanner on Windows 10-x64

The Imacon Flextight scanners are a well-regarded series of scanners. They are being used even today, despite the geriatric age of some of the models. The Flextight II sitting here apparently retailed for around $17k back when in was introduced in the previous century. But a lot has changed in the world of computers since 1999. How feasible is it to run one of these scanners on a somewhat modern PC?

Flipping the movie – Color negative inversion process video

Old hat, you might say. Almost exactly a year ago, I published a blog about how I scan and color balance color negative film. I now follow up on this with a video that demonstrates my approach. I start by inverting a couple of color negatives of my own (coincidentally shot on Kodak Vision3 250D ECN2 film). I then move on to some color negative scans YouTuber Analogue Andy provided me with. It’s a wordy kind of video, but for those who prefer to watch instead of (or in addition to) read, it may be useful. Enjoy!

Wavy gravy – UV wavelengths for carbon DAS revisited

About this whole highlight business with DAS carbon transfer – it just never ends, does it? The last installment on this story had a loose end that I need to stitch up here. It’s about the nature of the light. Let’s have a look at how UV wavelength affects the curve, and highlight performance in particular.

Carbonized – Notes on carbon transfer highlights and tissue thickness

The fickle issue of highlights in carbon transfer…what Calvin Grier calls the ‘tonal threshold’. The tendency of very thin layers of gelatin not surviving the transfer process, creating a jagged transition from visible tone to paper white. I’ve spent quite some time optimizing it, and now revisit the topic with two factors worth looking into: the wavelength of the UV light used for the exposure and the thickness of the tissue.

Seeing the woods for the trees – some medium format shots

I love being in the woods. But for the live of me, most of the time I can’t shoot anything worth a damn in there. Too chaotic, I suppose. And medium format is something I also don’t do much of. So yesterday, I decided to combine both and shoot some Portra 160 in my Bronica SQAi in the woods.

Scales – Walkabout with Minolta

A few years ago, a friend gifted me a Minolta XG-M. He didn’t do much with 35mm and when he does, he’s a Nikon guy, so this little camera was sitting idle. I used it once or twice back then, fixed a problem it had (I forgot what it was, really) and then it went back into storage. Until I brushed off the dust a few weeks ago and gave it another spin. What a nice little camera!