My pinhole cameras

popped on to Flickr this afternoon and there was a "new" comment... curious to what it was from... whadda ya know - a very flattering post from Pinhole World
specifically:
unique-cameras

well - i had to document at least one of these unique cameras i am using.


both MkIII and MkIV use the same Kodak electron microscope film SO-281 film can, essentially a metal bulk 35mm film can.

MkIII as you can see puts the hole in the center and the film gets cut into a circle using the template and stuck to the lid back with double sided tape. And MkIV puts the hole in the side of the can (not pictured) so a thin strip of film or paper can be exposed getting the big panorams like:


Back to the MkIII The arrow in frame 'a' points out the pinhole... i made it with patience using a very small drill bit twisting by hand to thin down the metal... followed by a razor blade until there was barely a discernable hole. Then i polished down the surfaces on both sides as best as i could and... i'm very happy with the results.

The camera is quite small, only uses a bit of electrical tape for a shutter, but it still is very effective in forcing me to slow down and really examine what i am taking an image of... my more impatient plates resulted in rather... unsatisfactory imgaes.

I went from using paper to using a Kodak Commercial film, 4127 that supposedly expired in 11/2000. even the stock that wasn't kept in the freezer is working quite satisfactory for this purpose and with an Epson 4990 perfection scanner i can get more pixel detail than film detail ... almost.

Thanks Mark for providing the incentive to finally document at least one of my pinhole cameras!

still chuggin along

while the days rush past i sit and wonder, when will the transition happen and how long will it take to get comfortable again?

all this effort, all this work, will it pay off? will we make it?

i need some good R&R somehow... somewhere...

a weekend of doing nothing - heck a WEEK would be fantastic...

something - anything - i'm burned out
can you tell?


but then there is my energizer... my motivation...

house work

Put a roof on the garage,

Put a new kitchen counter and backsplash on,

finishing the last panel on the tv cabinet,

stuck a coat of Dry-loc on the rooom under the front porch,

painted the entry doors,

put new door hardware on every interior door on the main floor of the house,

hung a new storm door on the side of the house,

lots of cleaning up to do,

and a few more projects left,

boy i hope it'll be worth it,

i hope the house sells quickly,

My Country Right or Wrong

a friend wrote:

I remember 9/11 vividly as do most. My emotional side was aghast at the waste, and furious at the carnage.

The scientific side of my looked at it from a purely tactical point of view: This attack was not the work of a 'slobbering in the corner' madman. This was a work of genius.

Bernie is not saying that we deserved 9/11. He is asking us to look at our foriegn policy and ask why they did it. Is it remotely possible that they may have had a reason? Or are all "those god dammed towelheads" just insane murderers who kill for the amusment value?

Solve this complex problem and all these arguments and this war will dissapear.

and i replied:

i firmly believe we brought this who 'war' upon ourselves...

i firmly believe there were actions that could have been done to avoid this mess...

no political party is at fault, Clinton did his share of inactions, GHB did enough actions, although more justified than GWB's, to fuel the problems, but the biased approach to Israel, and the whole Middle East view that the USA has has fueled what has started long long long ago.

Lybia? Sound familiar? It goes back to the Cold War and goes back beyond...USSR and USA in a school yard brawl taking turns picking 'teams' and feeding hate and propaganda... USSR didn't get the same backlash when they 'dropped' countrys from the team as they were more globally justified in doing so... we dropped players for image reasons...

Its a very very complex issue, that needs a wealth of history to comprehend and a mind far more supple and perceptive than most human's possess to grapple with a solution... Minds jaded or tainted with corporate greed or policy won't be able to solve the problem. This isn't a 'marketplace' where you can just run people out of buisness... disenfranchising a whole religious group won't lose you customers, it'll lose you lives...

is there a good answer? no... is war the wrong answer? yes...

I'm still torn by what 'our' soldiers are doing, on one hand they are helping to turn a country around, on the other, we've just created another Iran... a broken corrupt secular dictator was more stable and in essence more friendly to the US than what we have now...

I do believe violence is the resort of the weak and ignorant, a resort fueled by religious fervor... esp from the Christian point of view.

I do believe that peace is the answer, and that there is a way to solve every problem in a peaceful way. But that solution is very complex and takes a long time and makes for TERRIBLE photo ops...not good for CNN or Fox.

I'm frustrated as a labor sided fiscal conservative in a country run by fiscal radicals and management sided individuals...

I like to avoid talking politics... I find it inconceivable that you can oppose abortion but be in favor of the death penalty, i find it irreconcilable that you can oppose abortion but be in favor of war and agressive violent measures to solve conflicts...

but as to paying tribute to our countries men and women who are being killed every day... that is something that should never enter into the political realm.... but the CIC should be required to be present for every funeral at Arlington or if he isn't avial, then the VP, and down the line of succesion to the leadership of the country. The people making these choices should be emotionally involved in the end result and the affect on the country and our young men and women who have volunteered their live to serve the needs and whims of those in office.