Square photos (are cool)

Rouxenator

Rouxenator

Dank meme lord
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From my observations so far in the Photography section it seems I am the only one that likes square pictures. Everyone posts in either 4:3, used in p&s and bridge cameras, or 3:2, used by SLR and some p&s/bridge cameras.

This makes me wonder if anyone here ever shot with 126 film? It was 28x28mm film that came in cartridges of up to 24 exposures. My first camera was a hand me down Kodak Instamatic that my mom got when she was in high school. It used these cartridges and this is where my love for simplistic and easy to use cameras was born.

Anyone else ever dealt with 126 film cartridges or other non 35mm formats? Perhaps you also had some funky first camera? Would love to hear about it.

This is what my first camera looked like :
Instamatic133.jpg
 
Thanks werner, I'd like to see them.

I think I still have a few of my instamatic photos at home - if I can find them I will scan them and post them. Sadly is seems no one is making 126 film anymore : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/126_film
Although 126 was once very popular, as of 2008[update] it is no longer manufactured, and few photofinishers will process it.
Click to expand...
 
I've still got a Kodak disk camera somewhere - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disc_film - I stopped using it when it jammed during a school visit by the Queen.

Seem to recall the images were also pretty poor.
 
I still have my grandfathers camera that looks almost like that and it still takes the greatest photos, and they are square.
 
Kim_Webchick said:
I still have my grandfathers camera that looks almost like that and it still takes the greatest photos, and they are square.
Click to expand...

Sweet! Then it is most likely an Instamatic :D Welcome to the club ;)

I sometimes wonder how many first time camera users opened their camera when the spool was full only to realise they did not rewind the damn spool and just lost all their precious pictures :eek: Cartridge film was a very clever answer to that :cool:

Having had digital flirtations with the likes of HP (very bad) and Canon (very good) I must admit I like the Kodak approach and they are sticking with it since they started. It has always been about bringing photography to the masses and making it as easy as possible. This is pretty obvious with a camera range in which each models name starts with EasyShare :rolleyes:
 
bwana said:
I've still got a Kodak disk camera somewhere - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disc_film - I stopped using it when it jammed during a school visit by the Queen.

Seem to recall the images were also pretty poor.
Click to expand...

Disc was 11x8 mm and not square 28x28mm like the Instamatic. For film that is way to small if you want acceptable prints from it. That's why Instamatic outlasted Disc and it was commercially a much greater success. Everyone gets it wrong once in a while, Disc was a wrong for Kodak :)
 
Rouxenator said:
From my observations so far in the Photography section it seems I am the only one that likes square pictures. Everyone posts in either 4:3, used in p&s and bridge cameras, or 3:2, used by SLR and some p&s/bridge cameras.
Click to expand...

Well, I compose to the frame I'm shooting in.

Rouxenator said:
This makes me wonder if anyone here ever shot with 126 film?
Click to expand...

We still have one floating around in the family. Not the same as yours but similar - also Kodak, a bit more recent maybe. It's in like-new condition, still have the box and manual! Sadly, I can't find any film for it.

My first cam was some obscure brand 110mm - those really thin ones.
 
koffiejunkie said:
Well, I compose to the frame I'm shooting in.
Click to expand...
I find myself composing for other aspect ratios even though I'm shooting with a dslr. I still do a lot of 8x10 prints.
 
koffiejunkie said:
Adorama has loads of 120 film. And not just cheap consumer fim, but $20 per roll stuff! :eek:
Click to expand...

Yikes ! That is a lot to be paying for dead technology :p

I think my instamatic has a broken shutter so it is useless anyway. But it is nice having it around just for the nostalgic value of it. Your one seems to be a bit newer but I am not sure if it can take flashcubes or magicube? Mine can take flashcubes that require the instamatic to have a battery installed. Magicubes did not require any electrical power.
 
If I remember correctly ours took the kind of flash you could use only once. Same as my 110mm. No idea what it was called. The camera is at my sister's place, so I can't look it up. Maybe I'll surprise her with a roll :)
 
Neither Flashcube nor Magicube was reusable. Flashcube instamatics have a battery compartment and the flash fitting has two metal contacts for power the flash while Magicube does not use any battery at all.
 
Rouxenator said:
From my observations so far in the Photography section it seems I am the only one that likes square pictures. Everyone posts in either 4:3, used in p&s and bridge cameras, or 3:2, used by SLR and some p&s/bridge cameras.

This makes me wonder if anyone here ever shot with 126 film? It was 28x28mm film that came in cartridges of up to 24 exposures. My first camera was a hand me down Kodak Instamatic that my mom got when she was in high school. It used these cartridges and this is where my love for simplistic and easy to use cameras was born.

Anyone else ever dealt with 126 film cartridges or other non 35mm formats? Perhaps you also had some funky first camera? Would love to hear about it.

This is what my first camera looked like :
Instamatic133.jpg
Click to expand...
It goes with your square eyes I suppose.:p

Human vision is more rectangular than square, which explains cinemascope, widescreen TV etc..
 
Found them :D !!
Unfortunately my scanner is a 9 year old HP ScanJet 3300C and it only goes up to 600dpi, so I am not sure if that harms the quality of the photos.
Anyway, two photos I took with my Instamatic when I was in Std 4 back in 1993.

Resized from 600dpi​
1:1 crop at 600dpi​
sim3.jpg
sim3c.jpg
Resized from 600dpi​
1:1 crop at 600dpi​
sim4.jpg
sim4c.jpg
 
Just for the fun, two more from the Instamatic (shot in 1992 and 1993) :
sim1.jpg

sim2.jpg


And one from a 35mm P&S Vivitar that I got for free when I had four 126 cartridges developed and printed, taken in the winter of 1996 in the Nam :
s35m.jpg

Have to admit, the quality is noticeably better on the 35mm :cool:
The P&S Vivitar died 10 years later : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIzx-jt2TyY
 
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