Extremely Large Aperture - Wowzer

[bmattock]

After reading a number of interesting web pages about very VERY large aperture lenses, I bought no-name 90mm f1.0 copy machine (I think) lens on eBoy. No focus mechanism, no aperture adjustment, just a lens. Stuck it to the front of my Canon SLR with gaffer's tape and loaded up with Kodak Portra Ultra 400 that I had left over from a previous project. I think I like this...

Your thoughts?

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[rover]

You are a creative little bugger.

I actually like it.

 

[Todd.Hanz]

My my, that is one really large apeture you have there Bill 😉!

I'd like to see some more images, I think I see some vingetting in the corners 😀 , cool idea, post more examples!

Todd

 

[back alley]

the shot is kinda pretty and somewhat how i see in the morning with no glasses on and before coffee.

it certainly is something i would never have thought of doing.
this is what happens when you quit a/ travelling for a living and b/ smoking!!

joe

 

[bmattock]

Thanks for the kind words, all. I'm not all that creative, I'm imitating someting I saw on this web page recently:

Need for Speed - Very Large Aperture Lenses

So I decided to imitate it. Still figuring it all out, ya know...

The lens is a "FJW Industries, Inc" 90mm f1.0 - the fellow who sold me mine has another on eBoy now, I think. Front element is roughly 4 inches across, rear is just under 2 inches. I found that it fits into the hole of a Canon FD-mount body like a cork in a bottle, and that's good, because this particular lens seems to have a back-focal distance much shorter than your usual 35mm lens. It wants to be a few mm closer to the film, even, but then it would get in the way of my SLR mirror and that would be bad. So I have not had to fabricate a mount for that one yet. However, I also obtained Kowa 75mm f1.13 that I believe will need some sort of tube fabricated to get it a few inches out in front of the camera in order to focus properly. I am looking at 'zoom slide copy' lenses on eBoy to be sacraficial lambs - I could use that focusing helicoid and if I could get someone with the mad maching skills to fab me a lens-to-T-mount thing, then I'd be in like Flynn.

Anyway, I have 'projects' going on now - yep, comes of being at home more often and giving up the evil cigarettes. One project I actually thought up myself - I have a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye camera - you know the kind. Takes 620 film, only I found out I can force it to take 120. I found the original flash-bulb using flash for it - you know the kind, they mount to the side and look kinda like a hammerhead flash on a modern camera. Well, I took the thing apart, figured out how it works, and bought a throw-away one-use camera at Walgreens today. Took it apart and dug the flash unit out of it. Trying to figure out how to stuff the guts into the bakelite handle of the old Kodak Brownie flash handle - with the xenon flash tube coming out inside the silver reflector bowl where the flash bulbs used to go. What the heck, it's still winter...just barely.

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[bmattock]

bmattock,

This give you any ideas? http://rick_oleson.tripod.com/index-118.html

Oh, man, that's totally cool! And the weird thing? I have that issue of Photo Kinks! Put out by Popular Mechanics, of all things. Been collecting old camera magazines - geek fun. Didn't see that one!

Thanks!

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[Gordon Coale]

This isn't a rangefinder application but I took an enlarging lens and made a loupe out of with with plastic plumbing parts. I call it the Frankenloupe. It's kind of RFF related, though. I found the Burke and James view camera here on the RFF thanks to Nick R.

 

[bmattock]

bmattock,

I built my own macro flash from two P&S junkers. There is a way to convert the Hawkeye to regular flash. Here is a link to the info.

http://www.cwclemens.com/ConvertingBrownie/BrownieFlash.html

Actually, it was this fella who got me thinking - but I want to take his work one step farther - I want my flash to kind of look original - like it still had the old flash, but deep inside the relector dish, there is a tiny xenon flash tube. What are your thoughts?

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[bmattock]

I'd love to find a craftsman who could do such work for me and pay them to do it - any thoughts? LOL!

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[back alley]

i'm thinking you 2 in a room together might be a scary proposition.

joe

 

[denishr]

Bill, you might try mounting various lenses on the Speed Graphic - it is much easier, and the focusing is also possible. Just check out the lens coverage.
Examples of such DIY jobs can be seen on my pages: http://www.hrtranslations.com/photo/SG_lens.html.

Denis

 

[rover]

Hey Bill, if you tape that thing to a small length of flexible tubing will you get a home made lensbaby?

 

[bmattock]

Hey Bill, if you tape that thing to a small length of flexible tubing will you get a home made lensbaby?

Well, not this particular lens - it has such a short back-focus that it needs to be snug up against my SLR mirror or it will not focus at all. However, I have a Kowa 1.3 75mm that has more room to move, that would work fine.

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[bmattock]

Bill, you might try mounting various lenses on the Speed Graphic - it is much easier, and the focusing is also possible. Just check out the lens coverage.
Examples of such DIY jobs can be seen on my pages: http://www.hrtranslations.com/photo/SG_lens.html.

Denis

Man, that is just totally cool! I *do* intend to play such games with my 4x5 Speed, but right now, it is in a mllion pieces while I 'restore' it.

I also have a pair of Bronica C bodies - the ideal medium format lens-hacker's camera - because it has a removable lens mount that has the Bronica bayonet mount, plus a 57mm threaded mount that can be mated with all kinds of things. I am going to need to get my hands on a mini-lathe and teach myself how to use it, because I can see myself fabricating all kinds of lens mounts in the near future.

I'm also going to keep an eye open for that Repromaster lens. Any trouble focusing it on ground-glass?

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[denishr]

Man, that is just totally cool! I *do* intend to play such games with my 4x5 Speed, but right now, it is in a mllion pieces while I 'restore' it.

I also have a pair of Bronica C bodies - the ideal medium format lens-hacker's camera
....
I'm also going to keep an eye open for that Repromaster lens. Any trouble focusing it on ground-glass?

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

Bill, the Bronica should lend itself quite nicely to lens hacks, AFAIK. Don't have one, so can't comment. The lathe idea is interesting - it occured to me on more than one occasion 🙂
But I'd need to find also a good craftsman to teach me how to work on it. Maybe I could serve as an apprentice for a while for a local shop, if I can find one... 😀

As for focusing the Repromaster on GG, no problems there. I shot it in broad daylight, though 🙂

Since it has max. aperture of f9, you can imagine it's not very bright 😀

Denis

 

[bmattock]

Well, bmattock's idea is starting to come together. Believe it or not, everything is going to fit. I've run tests on the unit as I go along. OK so far.
And I also found that the double capacitors I installed, have more than enough kick. 😀 Yes, I found out the hard way.
The picture shows the trimmed pc board installed with all the attendent wires. I'll have other pics for Bill to put together a report.
I'll build them, someone else can write them up. 😉

I'm so happy! I mean, not happy about the electrical shock, of course! But happy otherwise. And really looking forward to this. Thanks, greyhoundman!

Best,

Bill Mattocks

 

[bmattock]

Is this awesome or what? I could not possibly be more pleased. Thank you thank you thank you!!!

Bill

 

[sf]

I've got a lens like that around here somewhere as well. It's about 5 inches long with an aperture that looks to be probably 2 or 3 inches. Closer to 3. Would make a very interesting macro lens for B&W portrait photography.

 

[pesphoto]

Its amazing what people can come up with.