Filmwasters
Which Board? => Main Forum => : Miles August 24, 2011, 10:04:36 PM
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So,after listening to Ed and Leon I hack the back of the CCII, taking out the top and bottom as well as the sides making it 5x5 plus.
I'm shocked at how sharp the picture are, these are scans straight from Genie today, expired Kodak E6. I have two more rolls to sort, a GP3 and Acros, need to get my finger out ...
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Pretty amazing results Miles... !
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Thanks, the CC is a crazy little camera, so light and plastic, simple and yet so sharp !
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Very surprising results...
I sometimes am amazed at how good some plastic lenses can be!
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Very surprising results...
I sometimes am amazed at how good some plastic lenses can be!
Kodak Cresta is another very sharp one...
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Those are very nice!
And those colors are the kind that really turn my head!
Can you show us what exactly you trimmed out of the camera?
I have one that may need some "adjusting".
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Love the format, vignetting, clarity and color. I am really going to have to consider one of these cameras. Are they expensive?
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I paid £8 GBP for mine in a flea market. So no ... ;D
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From the Front and Back Inside of the CC2. I cut the side masks out with a hacksaw blade and the the top and bottom too. Now need to tidy them up a bit as you can see how rought it is. ;D
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Oh, and Sapata Man ... I've just "won" a Cresta 3 on evilbay because of your comment last night ... Dammit !
There must be a support group for people like us, or is this it perversly ? ;D
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beautiful results! that vignetting :-*
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There must be a support group for people like us, or is this it perversly ? ;D
HA!
Always thought about that as well... :D Now..., I AM looking for a Coronet!! :o
You won't be disapointed with the Cresta... ;)
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Miles: Fantastic results indeed. These are absolutely top notch; wonderful colour and some nice composition given the viewfinder's restrictions (more about that below). You seem to have landed a really sharp lens on your Commander too. Nice. I'm not sure mine is so sharp, but I guess that even though Coronet's manufacturing standards will have been higher than on a Diana/Clone for instance, there will still be variations between batches. I like the way you opened up the whole back to make it square. I mainly opened the sides and left the top so I arrived at an aspect ratio which is wider than it is high. I quite like it the way it is, but I may open up one of my other Commanders to the full square at some point because your images are hard to argue with. Hat tipped in your direction ;)
Erin/Mauricio: The history behind me buying the Commander originally is that I stumbled across one of Coronet's other 1960's plastic cameras, the beautiful 4x4 Mark II, in Mr Cad years ago. It looked gorgeous (well, it IS gorgeous) so I snapped it up on the spot. It's a 127 format camera though and while I love using it, there are limitations - mainly down to the cost of 127 film these days - which mean I don't do so as much as I'd like. I was curious about this English company and liked the idea of using a 'Made in England' plastic camera, so I looked into the wider Coronet range and was delighted to see that they had made another low-budget plastic cam at around the same time, but this time in 120 format. Truth be told I was looking for a change for the Diana/Holga axis-of-plastic as a way to get excited about toycams again....and because no-one else that I knew was using one. I got one on evilBay for £5 and was surprised to find that it had a quirky aspect ratio, which they called 'portrait' (see below for an example...it's one of the frames from the film that was in my first Commander when I bought it):
(http://farm1.static.flickr.com/47/180527848_fced2dfd08_z.jpg?zz=1) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/edwenn/180527848/)
Found Photo #1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/edwenn/180527848/#) by Ed Wenn (http://www.flickr.com/people/edwenn/), on Flickr
Like Miles, I shot a roll with the standard mask in place and then realised that I might get some decent vignetting and (hopefully) some edge distortion if I cut the mask away and exposed more film than just the 'portrait' aspect ratio allowed for.
This is easy to do and gives great results. The only challenge after that is that the camera's viewfinder is obviously roughly based on the original aspect ratio and as this has now changed, the viewfinder is really only useful for pointing at the centre of what you think you're going to be taking a picture of. After a couple of rolls you get the hang of it though, so it's not a show-stopper.
While I'm on the subject, here's another from the roll that I found in the camera when I bought it:
(http://my-expressions.com/up_media/457/pblog/416/1116051210_garden%20blog.jpg)
And here's one from the 1st or second roll I stuck through it after I altered the mask. Until I saw Miles' photos I'd forgotten I'd even used colour film in my Commander. This is nothing special, just a test shot, but you can see that my lens isn't as sharp as Miles'....although it's not half bad:
(http://my-expressions.com/up_media/457/pblog/416/1115768237_sun%20rings.jpg)
Actually, looking at this final one, I maybe need to re-evaluate as it definitely looks pretty sharp in the centre. Hmmm, I may have to break the Commander out again and start using it in a different way. Some nice, bright, colour shots may be in order....now all I have to do to emulate Miles' excellent shots is fly over to Cuba :D ;D
(http://farm1.static.flickr.com/227/444855193_ed6c3835a6_z.jpg?zz=1) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/edwenn/444855193/)
Kruja Castle Wall (http://www.flickr.com/photos/edwenn/444855193/#) by Ed Wenn (http://www.flickr.com/people/edwenn/), on Flickr
p.s.
Sorry for the long, self-indulgent post, but I do love my Coronets and I'm excited that someone else is getting such fantastic results with his.
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Lucky me. I couldn't find any on eBay :)
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They are quite rare. On spotting mine in Brighton this year I immediately sent a txt to Ed.
Thanks for the comments all.
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gorgeous shots with the cam, miles! the second shot with the tower is really something else (just look at the clouds! -so crisp~) I'm suprised it doesn't scratch the film after the surgery :o
ed: it was an interesting read! maybe something (miles stuff included ofcourse) for the articles section of the forum? ;)
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I was worried about that too (the scratching) so I sanded the "film facing edge" with glass paper till very smooth. I was also worried about light leaks too as the Cuban sun is unrelenting so I use Std. black insulation tape on the "joins" just in case. Though all it did was peel off some of the outside finish.
On the full size scans the image is still sharp too, amazing from that lens, first time I've used Genie for E6 too, normally use the Fuji Photoshoponline.
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Ed, beautiful shots!! And thank you for all the info. So am I looking for a Coronet Commander II?
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well, I'm such a doofus, I have the Coronet 4 x 4, so guess there's no alternations to be done.
I also looked for a Commander and found nothing, even in a worldwide search...
Gives me something to hunt for....and I love a good camera hunt!
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Nice shots Miles... Ed, you do the UK shores proud... ;)
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Ed, great shots with the Coronet...I really like the colours on your "found film"!
I also have a gorgeous made in England art-deco Coronet Twelve 20 which I really like it, the results are more like a toy camera effect.
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Like that top one lots !
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Havana through the Commander 2 on Acros in R09 and taped to my lightbox.
Got to tidy up the back/mask ;D
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Just like that, it does give a Fred Flintstone look to the images ;)
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Stoneage meets 50's TV set ?
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Yaba daba doo!
(http://cdn101.iofferphoto.com/img/item/166/334/793/HaBD.jpg)
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;D ;D ;D ;D
You're all mental!
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I know this proves something... I don't know what but I'm happy that it does ;D ;D ;D
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Mr. Sapata - Could you post a few Cresta pics ?
My Cresta 3 should be with me this week, not sure if that's the best model but I preferred the "look" of the 3 over the others. Quitea few on the Bay at the mo, dirt cheap to.
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Mr. Sapata - Could you post a few Cresta pics ?
My Cresta 3 should be with me this week, not sure if that's the best model but I preferred the "look" of the 3 over the others. Quitea few on the Bay at the mo, dirt cheap to.
I think you've bought an impreved version that I have... mine is the Bakelite made Cresta II like the one below...
(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2223/2138906005_1e0b62e5fe.jpg)
photo by phillisca / camerapedia
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Yup, mine's the grey topped "3".
I meant picture taken with the camera though ;D
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Yup, mine's the grey topped "3".
I meant picture taken with the camera though ;D
HA! :P
Here's the link...
http://www.picturenoise.com/Cresta/index.html (http://www.picturenoise.com/Cresta/index.html)
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Crickey that is sharp, and from "Dakon" lens too (errrr ... That'll be plastic then Mr. Kodak ?)
Going for a walk with family and dogs later, thinking what camera to take ...
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for a walk with family and dogs later, thinking what camera to take ...
you have new dogs?
show us a pic ??? ;D
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Yes, a rescue Pup, and my sister in law has his sister. 2 months old and took them swimming in a book in Bekesbourne today. Bumped into Phil (location, location ... etc...) Spencer while there. Only film pics are in the Chinon CE-4 now :-[ Have others but digi ...
Dogs home said the mother was a Beagle (they were told) but really isn't. He's a skinny Lurcher / Whippet type thing with Spanial ears and very lovely ;D ;D ;D
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He's a skinny Lurcher / Whippet type thing
the only type of dog worth having, I'd say.
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I feel it's time to fire up this old thread again ;D
http://www.filmwasters.com/forum/index.php?topic=4189.0 (http://www.filmwasters.com/forum/index.php?topic=4189.0)
I recently scanned an old shot of my sweetie that I'll put up there later~
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Look what the postman brought!
I was so impressed my Miles's fantastic shots from Cuba, and the fact that it was made in the UK, I've been on the lookout for a Commander ever since. ::)
The Commander 1 has the apertures marked as Colour (big) and B&W (small), but I'm guessing they're probably f8 and f16 as on the Commander 2 - don't worry I'm not planning to break out the light meter I was just interested.
As I mentioned before I have a real psychological barrier to overcome when it comes to hacking cameras, so although I love the look I'm not sure I'm going to be able to bring myself to go for the square thing! For now I'm going to shoot a roll as it is and see how we get on together. I'll report back, although don't expect any Cuban sun! :)
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I'm surprised the film can stay at all flat once you've hacked away that much of the film plane. :O
Perhaps that accounts for the "soft" shots.
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Great news Nigel, dogmas you got it. I picked up a Mk1 recently so might keep it intact, the only diff is the labels I'm sure. Good luck a look forward to the 24 results :-)
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Nigel that one looks just too darn perfect to hack, what with the box an everything! there must be another (scruffier one) out there somewhere? (No, you can't have mine :D)
Flippy as long as you leave a little bit of the frame at the top and bottom retaining the original curve the film should follow this OK. The same problem has ruined my plans to run 35mm through some old 127 "landscape format" cameras though.
Another camera to look out for which takes the same "portrait" format of 24 shots on 120 film is the Bencini Koroll 24s. It's all metal, a little bit more sophisticated than the Commander, but not much! Plenty of these seem to be available. These are actually a much better prospect for frame mask mods, the frame mask is held in by screws and can be removed/replaced with alternatives. The film plane is also flat, not curved.
I bought a second koroll a couple of years back for the purpose of modding but it's yet another project that so far I haven't got round to. Here's a shot from the unmodified camera:
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That's pretty awesome Nigel... the box seems also in great condition!
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Bang on fella, the Korall is ready for this, it's shiny too :-)
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AHH Ha... I new this day would come. You were the person, that out bid me on the camera!!! Not that I tried that hard.
Please keep us posted on how the hack comes out.
I.m off to hunt for a another...
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;D ;D ;D ;D
You're all mental!
Just about sums up (us) filmwasters ;D
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AHH Ha... I new this day would come. You were the person, that out bid me on the camera!!! Not that I tried that hard.
Please keep us posted on how the hack comes out.
I.m off to hunt for a another...
Sorry Chris, Miles and I nearly did the same on a previous Commander auction. PM next time you're bidding and I'll step back. - maybe we need a Commander register of interests!
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[/quote]
Sorry Chris, Miles and I nearly did the same on a previous Commander auction. PM next time you're bidding and I'll step back. - maybe we need a Commander register of interests!
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No worries. I'm sure this is not the first time that someone has been scooped by a fellow Filmwaster. Register of interest... good idea.
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I know old thread, but I have been looking for one of these since I lost that last camera to Nigel. No luck.
SO! anyone looking to sell one at a resonable price???
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Chris, have you seen this?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VINTAGE-CORONET-COMMANDER-2-HALF-FRAME-CAMERA-SIMPLE-LOMO-TYPE-CAMERA-/251079860529?pt=UK_Photography_VintageCameras_SM&hash=item3a7586a131 (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VINTAGE-CORONET-COMMANDER-2-HALF-FRAME-CAMERA-SIMPLE-LOMO-TYPE-CAMERA-/251079860529?pt=UK_Photography_VintageCameras_SM&hash=item3a7586a131)
Let me know if you have problems bidding on a UK item from Canadia and I'll gladly bid on it for you and ship it over. I owe you big time for the bread recipe and those cool CDRs you sent a year or two back.
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I love how I totally missed that. Thanks Ed.
Lets call this a Register of Interest on the camera...... bid placed!
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Lets call this a Register of Interest on the camera...... bid placed!
Good luck, sir!! :)
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Commander Mk 1 on the Bay now.
http://item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/viewitem?itemId=280906015097 (http://item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/viewitem?itemId=280906015097)
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okay i didn't win the last one.... so lets try this again. bid placed!
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Thanks Miles
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Chris, this has become a quest. On our honour as Filmwasters, we WILL get you one.
:D
BTW, how much did the last one go for in the end? Wait, I can probably check myself....OK, £10.50. Decent price, although double what they used to go for. Considering I just sold an actual Diana on eBay for a paltry £14 it's good to see the Commander getting some recognition (of sorts).
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Cased too ... I'd just BIN and be done with the stress ;D
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Agreed not a bad price. I need to factor in the fact that shipping to Canada is another 10BP. That and I may be being a little cheap. I am also on the hunt for a nice 4x5 system.....
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Ah gotcha. I paid £15 (at an antiques fair) for my last one, way over the £4 I paid the first time around but hey. Let us know how you get on. I doubt you'll find many of Birmingham's finest in Canada.
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I still have to try my "share the love" model out :)
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Did you get it Chris ?
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I did!!!!!! and only 18.60 British pounds including shipping. Can not wait! It was shipped this morning, so not sure how long it will take.
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Hoo-bl**dy-rah!! Great news, Chris. Does it come in a box? The boxes are almost as cool as the camera itself. Here's a snap of my other family, The Wenn Coronets:
(http://farm1.staticflickr.com/105/310430584_ff37782f56_z.jpg) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/edwenn/310430584/)
Commanders by Coronet (http://www.flickr.com/photos/edwenn/310430584/#) by Ed Wenn (http://www.flickr.com/people/edwenn/), on Flickr
....I don't have them all now (in case you're wondering!); some of them have grown up and left home, but you can see the boxes in the top row.
Anyway, happy snapping, Chris. The Coronet Commander is a useful addition to any collection.
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Whoa Ed, no wonder there is a shortage world wide. ;)
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Ha, sorry no box.
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If we're flashing them then ...
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Just so I know in case I feel the need to purchase another. Is the Rapier the same as the Commander?
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The Rapier II is, but it's 5x5 ish, 16 squares on a roll of 120 like a Diana. So not funny half frame. Apart from that it's the same. As such I've not hacked it.
With the Commader's you've got to hack 'em really, to get the cool feel :D
http://www.flickr.com/search/?w=42222152@N06&q=coronet%20rapier (http://www.flickr.com/search/?w=42222152@N06&q=coronet%20rapier)
Here are a few shots from a Rapier II.
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Hah. It looks like my (admittedly self-imposed) reign as "World's Expert: Coronet Commanders" has come to a sticky end. From hero to zero and all that. The Rapier!?
Miles: I didn't even know the Rapier existed. Gutted that you beat me to it, but happy to pass the crown onto to a fellow Red. It looks like it might have been launched at the same time as the Commander 1 though because it has the same design; actually very similar styling to the 127 format Mark II 4x4. The Commander 2 has a more 'brutalist' finish to it. Agricutlural....utilitarian. Hmmm. Let's opt for "less namby-pamby". Either way, it's good to see we have a whole family now:
Coronet Commander 1 - Dad, natch
Coronet Commander 2 - Dad, second marriage
Coronet Rapier - Mum
Coronet Mark II - Offspring
Of course, for purely 'fnar fnar' reasons, my favourite Coronet will always be The Captain (as in "let's whip out The Captain"), but sadly the camera itself doesn't live up to the monumental name. It's decent enough, but it's a box camera and not remotely similar to the others mentioned here. I bought one just to keep on the shelf in the sitting room though. Well, I couldn't resist having The Captain on display when visitors popped round.
Matron!!!
(http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2687/4018180682_6096476680_z.jpg?zz=1) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/inspiredphotosdotcom/4018180682/)
Coronet Captain Box Camera (http://www.flickr.com/photos/inspiredphotosdotcom/4018180682/#) by Inspiredphotos (http://www.flickr.com/people/inspiredphotosdotcom/), on Flickr
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Nice one Captain... ! ;)
I saw four or five of those still in box at the photographica last year but as I've already got few brownies box decided not to get it. Looking at this picture makes me regret a little bit now...
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W00t !
The Captain's a right saucy number, and no mistake.
The Rapier II really is the Brum Diana, the Rapier I being like the earlier 6x6 and you're right Ed, very similar to the MkII 4x4. My Rapier II came with the Brown case that fits all the Commander's too, though the red window cut out is in the wrong place.
Seeing as I totally carved out the back completely on my first Commander II I thing I'll just take out less on my other Commander II leaving the Commander I and Rapier II in tact.
I still love the no nonsense graphics of the Commander II, Tony Benn might have had a hand in it's look as Industry sScretary as we took over the world in the white heat of technology ... On the other hand ...
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I got to tell you this story. I just got in the house about 3 minutes ago with a bit or a rarity I found at an antiques shop.
I usually don't put money on 127 format cameras but I just couldn't pass this one up!
A Coronet 3-D...
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Well done !
I don't know how much you paid for that Francois but I remember seeing them before for a reasonable amount of money!
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I shelled out 23$ for it, which I feel is an insane amount of money for a 127 film box. But when I saw it, I just couldn't leave it there!
First, it's Made in the UK. Second, it's stereo! How could I resist that?
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Wonderful...
I have a Kodak Stereo and it's a great fun to use! Not to mention people's face on the street when they see you using one...
I found a software on the web (I'm not in my computer and I can't remember the name...) that convert the 2 stereo pictures in anaglyph format so you can use the red and cyan glasses! 8)
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A Coronet is cool whichever way you look at it...it's made in Damion's home town too, so there you go :)
Francois: $23 well spent in my view. Pat yourself on the back ;D Also, is there any chance you could convert it to take 35mm film like with Al Cooper's mod for the Coronet Mark II 4x4?
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I don't know about the clicker mod on this one, the film compartment is pretty cramped. But I'll have to figure something out.
I just checked and a 35mm canister won't fit in...
I might end up having to rig some sort of clicker, count the number of sprockets on the very wide film chamber, re-spool 35mm on a 127 spool hoping the metal thongs on the full spool side won't scratch and give it a go...
Or just end up getting a few rolls of 127 so I can use the backing paper and reload these instead...
One of the funny things about the camera is how the back closes: it's held in place by two push buttons like you find on some shirts :)
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I just did one of those tape jobs just to see how it goes, so film flatness is nowhere close to being there... nor was alignment.
So, here's an ugly quick and dirty test and the resulting anaglyph. I just hope I didn't mix-up my left and right :)
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Francois...wow, that was a quick turnaround. Good stuff.
However, I'm not sure I can make out what the image is. I tried it w/ my red/blue 3D glasses, but it wasn't super clear what was going on. Some bushes in a garden maybe?
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Yeah, that's pretty much what it is/was/intended. The camera is definitely made for 127. I couldn't tighten the film, it was all running crooked in the camera. The small garden shed was seriously distorted.
If I'm going to do this seriously, I definitely need to get my act together!
But if you look at the white daisy on the left, it is in 3D ::)
I just re-did one flipping left and right... it might be better
(bummer, the attachment feature has gone bunkers)
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Look what the postman dropped off.... The pad didn't mention the car, so I was happy to see that with it. There is a half a roll of film in the camera and after that is done I think it will be hack time. Yay!
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Cool!
A Comander with case and half film exposed! So this is how heaven might look like...