# Holga Winter Shots



## vandecarr (Jan 8, 2008)




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## BlackDog's (Jan 10, 2008)

Hi Mike.  I like the winter pictures.
Looks like you've modified your Holga to work with the 35mm film.  Nice job.


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## Coldow91 (Jan 10, 2008)

Looks great! Holga's are sick and the 35mm mod is so cool with the sprocket holes, GREAT JOB


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## vandecarr (Jan 10, 2008)

Thanks, this weekend I'm doing a group portrait of a bunch of kids at church for their website, that is going to be interesting, too!

I'll post the results next week sometime.


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## nealjpage (Jan 11, 2008)

Nice work, Mike.  I should see if I can modify my Rollei to use 35mm..or maybe one of the old Kodaks I have.

Where abouts were these taken?


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## shorty6049 (Jan 11, 2008)

they look good , but i'd sort of like to see a crop because i feel like a lot of what makes people say "oh cool!" is just that the sprocket holes are still on there....
the first one looks good, second one seems like if it were a "regular" photo, it'd just be a snapshot and is sort of leaning on the holes to make it look neat... if that makes sense


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## vandecarr (Jan 11, 2008)

No Crops for me..that would be following the rules.


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## BlackDog's (Jan 11, 2008)

Mike's right.  It's a Lomo thing but you get what you get with a Holga.  Cropping or any major editing would defeat the purpose.

Besides it's true, part of the fascination with this is the way the picture covers the whole piece of film including the sprocket holes and not just a standard little box.  It&#8217;s an alternative away from the norm.


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## vandecarr (Jan 11, 2008)

Thanks for making it more clear Blackdog.

Shorty, my photos are okay to edit and if you would like to do a crop to see what it would look like, I don't have a problem with that.

Post it here so we can check it out, It may be very cool.


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## terri (Jan 11, 2008)

nealjpage said:


> Nice work, Mike. I should see if I can modify my Rollei to use 35mm..or maybe one of the old Kodaks I have.
> 
> Where abouts were these taken?


Neal, my husband has one of the 35mm kits for his Rollei...amazing engineering, works like a charm! Bought it off eBay, I believe. Fun way to be able to use 2 formats. 

Mike: nice shots! Love that full frame, especially on the first one.


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## shorty6049 (Jan 14, 2008)

well... heres what i got when i played with it a bit... i dont want to go all Maxbloom ;-) on you or anything, but  i just always feel like a lot of people use the holga as an excuse to take crappy photos. BUT from what i've saw on this thread, its all in the eye of the beholder. These shots dont do much for me. i find myself lookign more at the sprocket holes and the fact that the scans are a little crooked, than at the actual subject . Like i said, i like the first one, the second one was what made me wonder if you were framing these or just snapping away and not really caring how they turned out. An example of what i'm tryign to explain, would be like if you took an old worn out tv, and decorated the case with all sorts of diamonds and whatnot, but theres nothing but static on the tv. And sure, you could probably put it in an art museum and label it as "modern" and people would love it. 

that probably didnt make sense, i have a tendancy to ramble on about these things. Thesis- i feel that many people use holgas as an excuse to stop trying to make good or creative images and just shoot whatevers around just because they think the poorly made body will be creative for them...
(mind you, i also feel the same about pinhole photography in a lot of cases)

anyway-


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## Aquarium Dreams (Jan 14, 2008)

shorty6049 said:


> i feel that many people use holgas as an excuse to stop trying to make good or creative images and just shoot whatevers around just because they think the poorly made body will be creative for them...
> (mind you, i also feel the same about pinhole photography in a lot of cases)



I see what you're saying, and I can see why it would seem that way.  And yes, I'm sure there are some people who do exactly what you're describing, just like I'm sure there are people who think that dropping a few thousand on a camera and lenses is going to make them a professional photographer.  I can't speak for the gearheads, but as far as shooting toy and pinhole cameras, part of the appeal is never knowing exactly what you're going to get.  

Most of these cameras don't have accurate viewfinders on them, so you have to be experienced enough with the camera to visualize what will be in the frame, including the angle and the dof.  It takes a certain amount of experimentation to achieve that mental viewfinder, so it's understandable that there are a lot of pictures out there that might seem "off."  Also, a lot of what seems "off" is just due to the way that particular camera captures the world.  In short, I don't think it's about relying on the camera to be creative for the photographer so much as it is the photographer working within (and discovering) the limitations and special properties of the camera, and experimenting to see how those will mesh with his/her particular vision.  It's about loving the tools, man.

And sprocket holes are to film photography as impasto is to painting.  The medium is evident in the finished product.


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## Aquarium Dreams (Jan 14, 2008)

Obviously just my opinion, but it's something I've been thinking about a lot lately, so I couldn't help but chime in.

Now that my rant is over: Vandecarr, these are awesome.  I love the tree beside the lonely road.  It looks very soft and just a little bleak.


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## shorty6049 (Jan 14, 2008)

Aquarium Dreams said:


> I'm sure there are people who think that dropping a few thousand on a camera and lenses is going to make them a professional photographer.


 

i hope you're not talking about me, or we WILL fight.


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## Aquarium Dreams (Jan 15, 2008)

PM sent.


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## shorty6049 (Jan 16, 2008)

well you see, i have a habit of biting them off ... so i guess i trim them... lol what are you holding in your avatar?


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## boo9radley (Jan 21, 2008)

I love these, dude. They remind of that movie _Pi_.


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## windrivermaiden (Jan 22, 2008)

I like the framing on the first...I love it's tranquility and loneliness. The second just doesnt say "Misery of winter" to me...just says..."snowy day" (with holes)

Why I want the photos to say "misery" is beyond me...but I wants what I wants.:heart:

_For what its worth...I've never used a Holga..oh take that back I did a roll and I never developed it. Let me talk to Dear half and see what happened to it...may still be in the camera. I think it was airshow photos.....:er:_


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## MissMia (Jan 22, 2008)

These are very cool! With or without the holes


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## vandecarr (Jan 22, 2008)

Thanks to all of you. I really appreciate all the comments even the ones that don't really like them. I appreciate it.


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## rob91 (Jan 23, 2008)

Just a question...new to Holga's...why are the holes there? I'm guessing it's because you're using 35mm film (with the necessary kit)? With 35mm are the holes unavoidable?


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## shorty6049 (Jan 24, 2008)

only unavoidable if you dont want to crop the image. if you develop it just like a regular 35mm image and do a regular print like most 35mm images, it'll look just like a regular 35mm image. The entire piece of film is exposed though instead of just a square, so people often just print the entire piece of film instead of the standard 35mm frame.



35mm images (one last one for good measure ;-) )


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## doobs (Jan 24, 2008)

shorty6049 said:


> Thesis- i feel that many people use holgas as an excuse to stop trying to make good or creative images and just shoot whatevers around just because they think the poorly made body will be creative for them...
> (mind you, i also feel the same about pinhole photography in a lot of cases)



Your point of view is valid, but here's something alternative to think about: I begun shooting a Holga, most notible for lack of being able to drive anywhere or find any new material to shoot. This was also weeks after I began taking photography seriously. The camera was like a breath of fresh air and made me think more about the path my photography was taking. Now, I love shooting the Holga in a beautiful, scenic landscape or in a wonderfully composed portrait, as it really tends to shift away from your standard pictures. While I do not only shoot Holga (I shoot many other vintage and toy cameras) I do still often shoot my "standard/normal" cameras, but shooting a "toy" camera really adds some spice into any photographers repertoire or portfolio. It really creates a distinct image and very neat style. However, I do not like what is the "Lomo" style of photography. In this respect, you are right. I feel that most "shot from the hip" and images of that nature are less than desirable. Though, to each his own, and I'll keep shooting what pleases me.

PS -- Nothing's more fun than building your own pinhole camera!

--Dylan


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