Jay Versluis 
Note to myself:
Every three months I forget how on earth I get Word and Excel to talk to each other. It then takes several hours of internet research, trial and error and LOTS of stress to figure this out. Enough is enough!
Sit back, make yoruself a cup of tea and relax. We’ll get through this again. Here’s how I need to do this:
Impossible have recently released their very first batch of Colour Material called PX 70 Color Shade.
This First Flush stock is currently available as a starter pack of 3x 8 shots for £34. At £1.40 per shot, that’s 70p cheaper than the £2.10 we’re currently paying for one PX 600 black and white picture. That’s great news!
However, as is always the case with colour over black and white, there’s a LOT more happening chemically. Where the PX 100 and 600 materials already had to deal with 4 internal layers, the PX 70 new colour material has at least 15, maybe even more.
Let’s see what the Impossible Team have cooked up for us. For this test, I’ve tried PX 70 in my new Golden SX-70.
I bought yet another Polaroid camera on eBay: the Polaroid 1200si as part of the HealthCam Kit. It includes the camera, a Light Lock close-up attachment and a funky Polaroid carrying bag.
Camera and accessories are BRAND NEW so naturally I couldn’t resist. It’s just arrived and I’m very excited about it 😉
The main difference between this camera and my other two Polaroids is the film format: the 1200si uses the wider Image/Spectra format instead of the square 600 pictures.
I vaguely remember when the Spectra format came out, because I was thinking what a huge waste of time I thought it was. Polaroids are square – period. Several decades later I’m thinking differently. As a Newcomer Polaroid addict, still can’t explain my fascination with the medium, but I can certainly savour the moment.
When the first batch of Impossible PX films were available I couldn’t wait to get my hands on them. That was about 4 months ago. I’m more than happy to support a project that will bring back instant photography and give those Polaroid cameras a new lease on life.
We were made aware that
and much more. What we as users (and Impossible) didn’t know was that those early pictures would DESTROY themselves after only a few months.
All of my pictures suffer some something called The Killer Crystal.
Ever since Impossible Film came out, and especially after playing with Paul’s camera, I kept thinking that an SX70 would be a very nice addition to my collection.
The trouble is that since Impossible Film came out, those cameras have gone through the roof on eBay – gone are the days when you could pick them up for a tenner.
Every once in a while I do a quick sweep on eBay and see what’s on offer, usually disappointed about having to spend £100 or more, so I look over to my trusty Polaroid 600 I got for £2.50, the one that started my Polaroid Adventures Addiction. Much better I kept thinking.
A little while ago I came across an auction for a GOLD PLATED Polaroid SX-70. Only 500 were ever made to celebrate the tremendous success of the Edwin Land’s integral film and the easiest instant picture ever: The iconic square Polaroid.
Here’s a rare collector’s item that only comes up once in a blue moon. The more I thought about it, the more I became convinced that this auction was put there for me, and that I was meant to get this camera.
The DigitaLiza a scanning mask that lets you scan your negatives and slides including perforations on any common flatbed scanner.
It works really well with those annoying curly negatives and it’s much sturdier than those flimsy masks that came with your scanner. I first heard of it when the Spinner 360 came out.
Until now, when I wanted to scan film with sprockets, I had to sello-tape the edges to a a wet mount that came with my scanner (it’s a piece of glass really). This often leads to newton rings where the film touches the glass.
Not so with the DigitaLiza. For only £25 I thought I’d check it out.
And I have to tell you: it’s one of those things that you didn’t know you always needed 😉
When I first heard about the Lomography Spinner 360, I knew I had to have one. I’ve been racking my brains on how they’ve made this marvel of 360 degree photography a reality without this being a “pro camera”.
With a rather sharp retail price of £110, this isn’t just a throwaway toy camera. Medium format alternatives are 50 times that price – so we’re still getting kind of a good deal here.
I’ve had this camera for over three months now and I finally found the time to write up all my findings about this new gadget.
Let’s have a closer look at it in this article.
Several months ago I spoke to Paul Weston about the new Impossible PX films and what a cool idea the Polaroid Rennaisance was.
He happened to mention that he bought a vintage SX70 Land Camera from some bloke who used to shoot furniture with it – and the next thing I know is that he rbought it in for me to have a play. How exciting is that!
Let’s have a look under hood of this goodie, which happens to be only 5 years younger than I am.
Many of you will have noticed that this site has been down for the last few days weeks. Not good I know!
A nasty hacker attack was responsible and I was just too busy getting everybody else’s projects back up and running that this site lacked behind somewhat.
Anyway, a spontaneous day off is the perfect time to have my head filled with code and rebuilds – the result is here before you. We’re back up and running, better than ever at that! And boy have I got some stories to tell you.
Ever since I’ve seen Sam Taylor-Wood’s 360 degree medium format panorama series (title) I know that sooner or later I had to get my hands on one of those cameras.
At 1 picture per single roll of film, scanning would have been a nightmare – not to mention processing costs. Elton John’s CD cover for “Songs from the West Coast” is a good example of her work with this camera.
Pictures look other worldly, as if they are a never ending panoramic shot. They contain weird distortions that do not come from a fisheye lens. It’s like watching a Cinerama movie like How the West was won: I’m thinking of the end sequence of “modern times”.
It’s a shame that these cameras are so rare and exotic that it’s unlikely mere humans like myself would pick one up to play with. Ever.
Cut to July 2010. Enter Lomopgraphy and their new 35mm version of this beast: The Spinner! At £110 it’s not a toy – it’s a dream come true.
… that i
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WHOA! I know – it’s shocking to hear.
A new report by the Royal Academy of Engineering found that by 2030, we need 50% more food and and energy to feed the world due to a global population of 8bn people, along with an extra 30% of water.
Good luck finding that!
We’ve been to an amazing Basic Bike Maintenance course yesterday at the new Evans Store in Crouch End. They run every other week at many of their stores now and are completely free!
It’s well worth popping down to pick up some tips on how to keep your new bike up and running with a little TLC every once in a while. The tools you need are inexpensive and of course they’re available there and then.
Speaking of which, since Evans Crouch End is a brand new store, they’re running a 10% off campaign until the end of July – that’s for accessories and even FULL BIKES as well! Get the voucher here.
Can’t get to Crouch End but still want a discount? Register for SkyRide and get 15% off accessories at Evans nationwide.
Enough plugging… here’s what we’ve learnt in the Basic Bike Maintenance course:
I’m having quite an exciting week when it comes to cycling: First I get ripped off with a rattling gearbox, then my brand new bike gets stolen, and yesterday my front tyre blew out on me unexpectedly!
I was on my way home from MTV, riding up to Finsbury Park, when I heard a loud “pop” noise followed by a fairly loud and distinct “Pffffffff….” – the tyre was empty in about 10 seconds flat (see what I did there…?). What surprises me is that this came out of nowhere: no curbs, no potholes and I’ve even checked my tyres for debris and glass before I left.
Time for some serous investigating!
Since I’ve just had a bike stolen earlier this week, I didn’t want to take a chance and leave it at Finsbury Park overnight. Good timing too, because this was the one day I did not take my rucksack with goodies such as a pump and patches with me. Excellent! As Nicola said, the bike gods are not looking favourable upon me it seems.
Yesterday on the corner of Umfreville Road and Green Lanes, some Fucker stole my bike! It was three weeks old and I loved it. I bought it from Evans for £549 – not to mention accessories worth over £100.
I had lunch at Harran, one of my favourite kebab shops on Green Lanes and had locked it securely against a lamp post on the street corner using a Kryptonite Evolution lock and an additional Kryptoflex band. When I came back after an hour, all that was left on the floor was a piece of Velcro from the Kryptoflex.
Apologies for some bad language in this post, but I feel it best describes my reaction to this incident.
