ajramirez
Hall of Famer
- Location
- Caguas, Puerto Rico
- Name
- Antonio
Argus A2F Photographs
Finding myself with a bit of free time on a very beautiful Saturday, I decided I would try taking some pictures with a 70 year old camera.
I know we have forum members who probably do this regularly, but this is a new experience for me. The camera in question, in all likelihood, had not had film run through it since the 1950s.
The camera is a 1940 Argus A2F, which belonged to my grandfather and has been in my possession for the last 20 years or so. The rubber bits that held the film pressure plate had rotted away, so I had to take care of that before it could be loaded. I also gave the lens as good a cleaning as I could.
The Argus A2F is a rather simple and spartan camera. The body is made from Bakelite (plastic), and it has a collapsible F4.5 lens of unknown (at least to me) focal length. Since it has no rangefinder, focusing is strictly by scale. Of course, it has no exposure meter.
The shutter is self cocking, with four shutter speeds (25, 50, 100, 200), T and B. The aperture scale starts at 4.5 and continues in the old fashioned method of half stops (6.3, 9, 12.7, 18). There is no double exposure protection; you have to remember to advance the film immediately after each shot.
In use, it is a very different experience from shooting with a modern camera. Guessing both distance to subject and exposure gives you a feeling of flying blind which is actually fun. The camera is very light and compact, and the shutter is whisper quiet.
The results are nothing to write home about, but to me it was a thrill to shoot with a camera which was actually used by my grandfather to take baby and childhood pictures of my father.
Here are some shots. Not great (or even good) by any means, but a fun way to spend a Saturday afternoon.
Shot on Kodak BW 400 Chromogenic film. Only B&W film I can get locally developed.
This is the camera:
Cheers,
Antonio
Finding myself with a bit of free time on a very beautiful Saturday, I decided I would try taking some pictures with a 70 year old camera.
I know we have forum members who probably do this regularly, but this is a new experience for me. The camera in question, in all likelihood, had not had film run through it since the 1950s.
The camera is a 1940 Argus A2F, which belonged to my grandfather and has been in my possession for the last 20 years or so. The rubber bits that held the film pressure plate had rotted away, so I had to take care of that before it could be loaded. I also gave the lens as good a cleaning as I could.
The Argus A2F is a rather simple and spartan camera. The body is made from Bakelite (plastic), and it has a collapsible F4.5 lens of unknown (at least to me) focal length. Since it has no rangefinder, focusing is strictly by scale. Of course, it has no exposure meter.
The shutter is self cocking, with four shutter speeds (25, 50, 100, 200), T and B. The aperture scale starts at 4.5 and continues in the old fashioned method of half stops (6.3, 9, 12.7, 18). There is no double exposure protection; you have to remember to advance the film immediately after each shot.
In use, it is a very different experience from shooting with a modern camera. Guessing both distance to subject and exposure gives you a feeling of flying blind which is actually fun. The camera is very light and compact, and the shutter is whisper quiet.
The results are nothing to write home about, but to me it was a thrill to shoot with a camera which was actually used by my grandfather to take baby and childhood pictures of my father.
Here are some shots. Not great (or even good) by any means, but a fun way to spend a Saturday afternoon.
Join to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Join to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Join to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Join to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Join to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Join to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Join to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Shot on Kodak BW 400 Chromogenic film. Only B&W film I can get locally developed.
This is the camera:
Join to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Cheers,
Antonio