Shooting 16mm Film

Here are a couple of articles on how to make film for a 16mm still camera and how to make a reel to develop it.  There are a variety of 16mm film cameras, ranging from the well known Minox to the Mamiya 16 and Minolta 16 to the Yashica 16, the Kiev cameras and more.  A list of the many subminiature cameras can be found at subclub.org - a repository of everything subminiature.

The first up, Kosmo Foto offers a simple, but effective method to make a cutter to slice a roll of 35mm film into a 16mm roll.  Using just a couple of blades and a matchbox, an effective tool can be made to cut perhaps 3 rolls of subminiature film from a single roll of 35mm. 

Your Blogger recommends a low speed, T-grain film, such as Kodak T-Max 100 or Ilford Delta 100 for finest grain.  Most any modern film will work fine, but given the small frame of 16mm film, a low grain film would be recommended.

The second step is how to process the film.  Paying to develop 16mm film may be difficult and expensive. the film is an unusual size and quite short.  Labs that handle 16mm movie film probably do not want to handle it and still film labs might not be able to process it either.  Developing B&W is fairly straightforward if you have the tank and reel for it.  Buying that might be expensive as well.

The folks at 35one20.com have a solution for 110 film, which happens to be the same size as 16mm.  Simply cut down a plastic, 35mm reel to fit.  The collar on one side of the reel leaves just enough space for a roll of 16mm to fit.

So, that wraps it up, a way to make 16mm film, a list of 16mm film cameras, and a way to make a 16mm film processing reel.  It is that easy to step into the world of subminiature photography!

World Wide Pinhole Photography Day 2020

The last Sunday of April every year, which would be this Sunday, the 26th this year, is World Wide Pinhole Day.  Emulsive.org has an article on this event, COVID-19 style.  Due to the lockdown covering much of the world and thus affecting the ability to process film, the deadline for submitting pinhole photographs shot on April 26th will be June 30th.

The event only requires that the submitted photographs be shot on Apil 26th through a pinhole.  Medium does not matter, whether it is paper, film or digital.  Ultra-long exposures such as Solarcan photos need only have the shutter open on this Sunday to qualify.

Visit pinholeday.org for full details, and check the Emulsive.org article.

Kosmo Foto: The End of Plastic Film Canisters?

Our friends at Kosmo Foto have this quick article on Street Candy film being packed in recyclable canisters.

Read The End of Plastic Canisters? at Kosmo Foto.

Article: Analog.Cafe

The Analog Cafe is another resource for analog photographers run by a gentleman with a BSc in Science.  He has collated a collection of resources for photographers during thie period of COVID-19.

Check out theAnalog Cafe Covid-19 Prevention Advice and Resources page.  You may wish to bookmark it as it is frequently updated.

Stay safe during Easter!

Labs Still Open While We Stay at Home

Our friend at Kosmo Foto has a list of labs that are still open for film sent by mail, should you have a pressing need to have your film processed.  Most places around the world are closed to the public, but the post office is still open.

Your Blogger is waiting for the familiar and reliable local lab to re-open, but feel free to send to one of the labs listed if you need to.

Blog Note: COVID-19 Scale

There is lots of news in the film industry going on, at a break-neck pace.  Your Blogger is working from home, which seems to take up more time that working at the office.

Polaroid Originals changed name to Polaroid, coming around full circle.

PhotoKlassik International changed name to SilverGrain Classsics, to differentiate itself from the German PhotoKlassik magazine, a different publication.

Ilford shut down its plant and factory store in England.

As fast as the pandemic spreads, there are closings and openings.  Many services and products that are available in stores, now closed, are still available online. 

Your Blogger misses the film processing lab already.  Some labs may still be open, check yours, before mailing film in.

Stay safe.   It is going to get worse before it gets better.