dressed-up leica m2

leica m2 donning a borrowed summicron DR 50, a borrowed leica 1.25x diopter lens, a nikon (you read that right) soft touch, lutz konermann's $15 sling, a leica grip and an artist & artisan-inspired neck strap from marikina (a patient's gift). overdressed, i know, but the zorki 1 was getting most of my attention lately so i thought of making amends. and, it has become as heavy as an SLR with a long lens.

the made-over zorki 1 (courtesy of jay javier)

the take up spool above had to be filed.
the retaining screw had to be replaced to keep the 1 m focus.
spick and span.
and to cap it all ... jay's DIY lens cap.

and this was how it looked before jay's overhaul: http://eddie-concepcion.blogspot.com/2007/08/another-glitch-on-zorki-1.html

the zorki 1 is a great camera (even in "hybreed" form)!!! it is a masterpiece.

med students visit my clinic

these are third year medical students from PGH who opted to take a rotation in traditional chinese medicine. phil, their mentor and my colleague, gives an orientation. this is one of several batches who have visited the clinic over the years. and they look younger each year. (because i am growing older).

A SHORT SLIDESHOW OF FAMILY LIFE

anton builds his first camera

a patient comes home from a vacation in new york and gifts me a camera!




anton builds his first camera as i supervise from my sickbed. it is a pinhole camera. the photo below was taken with the rd1s using the pinhole plate of the diy camera.

this photo conjured a need

ocean beach, san francisco

that bird looks like mikey but chicken joe is my favorite in "surf's up". he knows how to enjoy life. he is the real surfer in the movie -- the great beach bum who practices zen. but with the daily routine of hearing out the aches and woes of patients, i forget my cherished philosophy. and this morning, i find this photo which i took eons ago. that was one vacation that was long enough, relatively stress-free and far and away. two weeks in a great town ... with just the wife!!! it was bliss!!!
well, i sounded off to the wife and she promised a vacation soon: vietnam. 8 days of hanoi will be excellent! it is far enough from work and close enough to the europe dream trip. anyway, flight has been booked. i will keep chicken joe in mind -- life is a beach ... albeit with occasional tsunamis! and, i better get out of this sickbed soon.

day 5 of photo-a-day

very cloudy but no rain today. i am glad i am pushing 1600. so off i go for my photo of the day only to see the subject above unprepared. the papers are late.
and it is a sunday! i should still be in bed! this is becoming a test of perseverance -- food of my obsessiveness. of course, i went back for the film shot only to be greeted by news that have gone bad to worse.
our boys are dying needlessly in mindanao! such a high price to pay for trying to wipe out a monster of their own creation!

one photo a day

it is day 2 of one-photo-a-day project. gerry, a member of rfilipinas, suggested it for the next fun project. one roll of film, one camera for one photo a day for a whole month on any theme or none at all. and though cloudy i was able to shoot what i originally wanted for my first day. so to peg day 1 i just took a photo of my godson-nephew who celebrated his 7th birthday last night. it was a choice between the birthday cake or the lovely bathroom the resto had. well, i took the latter. the photos below are digital photos of the choices. i have decided to use my reliable bessa r with the nokton 50 and the ilford hp5+ at 1600 iso.

Another glitch on the zorki 1

A
B
C
it seems that the camera won't see action for the one-photo-a-day project. this time it is a shutter problem. the curtains are not shut tight (A) as i advance the shutter. they don't appose completely towards the end (B). hence, light leak on top photo.
the screws (C) adjust the tension. i remember seeing jay do it. he would press the shutter in front of the bright TV screen to see how the shutter closes and go back to his work table to adjust. he would repeat this several times until he got the tension right. yes! it is best to leave it to the expert.
i don't know if this is a new problem. but the test shots (6 exposures - leftover from the long roll) were done in the bedroom at night so no light leak. afterall, the camera is 57 years old so problems of this sort are expected. but this is just a minor problem in the hands of an expert. so, jay, advanced thanks. it is also obvious that the camera requires some cosmetic treatment. but i can address that later. no light leak noted but this was a night time shot inside the house.

ZORKI 1 resurrected

it took courage. and i drew it partly from the fact that i could run to jay javier for help. hehehe. and i called him a hundred times for a million questions. anyway, the only problem left is the scratch the baseplate leaves on the negative. hardly noticeable but present on the b&w photo of my favorite subject.



f3.5, 1/20s, hp5plus, processed with D76, 1:1 for 9 mins at 20 degrees centigrade.
zorki 1 with 50 mm fed collapsible. eyes focused at 1 meter.











the two small arching plates are lens mount retainers. and that helped in recalling where they were supposed to be placed. i still had to call jay though to ask how they should be oriented.


joy with the zorki 1 fresh from the work table.

zorki 1 disappointments

when it arrived, i wanted to write nikolai (aka siberian-shop on ebay) a negative feedback immediately. the aperture adjustment was stuck. the viewfinder focus was off. the take up spool was not compatible. it had to be yanked out forcibly with a pair of pliers. but i had jay to save the day. i called him up and he thinks the problems are correctable. upon his suggestion, a few drops of lighter fluid released the stuck up aperture adjustment. the gunk oozed out of the seams. but for the others, he suggested i let him see the camera. well, i visited an hour ago. he worked on the zorki 1. and like a magician's work, it is now usable. i just need to adjust for infinity and close focusing in the morning. it is late and i need lots of light for that. but, friends, beware that shifty ebayer.
his post of the item on ebay: http://www.ebay.ph/viItem?ItemId=200125536153

out of inspiration

is that lack of or because of it? more of exaspiration, actually.





epson rd1s set at B with a timer, jupiter 12 lens, f8, iso 200. photoshop used just to adjust contrast and cropping. it was taken with a single exposure. and it took me three tries to get it right.


i take photography seriously. but one can have fun with it, if you care to learn. this was inspired by a sister-in-law's comment.

first try at ilford hp5 plus

a bit tacky but i wanted to see how far i can push hp5 and my luck with people's sensibilities.


my sweet sister gave me a long roll of hp5 plus. my last roll of agfa apx went to my son and so i try out the new roll. developed in D76 for 9 mins at 24 degrees centigrade.

Photos of the week

RFilipinas: Philippine Rangefinder Camera Users

the group continues to grow. the most recent event was a slideshow presentation of photos that had never been posted or printed by different members. this is a brainchild of drea zulueta, one of rfilipinas' founding members and award-winning hairstyle artist.
http://eddiecon.multiply.com/video/item/10