Author Topic: My Instax 105/4,5  (Read 11384 times)

snpshts

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My Instax 105/4,5
« on: May 10, 2014, 12:01:49 PM »
Hi,

I very much like the Instax Wide Film and kind of hate the Instax Cameras for their slow lenses and the absence of manual controls (except the lighten/darken knob). So I thought about the possibilitiy of giving it a different lens. For price reasons I tried with the 105/4.5 "Bonotar" with "Tempor" shutter which I ripped out of an old Belfoca II 6x9 folder (made in GDR).

This is what the camera looks like now:



First there were some light leaks, which resulted in this:


And after fixing it:




For transportability reasons I've chosen to preserve the motor driven barrel. Otherwise it might have been possible to reduce the vignetting a bit with a rigid construction. I had to shorten the barrel for allowing for infinity focusing by filing it down some millimeters. As a "lens board" I used the front cover of the original lens. To take a picture you first have to press the power button on the back of the camera and then the "focusing" button. Shutter speed/aperture (1s - 1/250s + B and f/4,5 - f/22) and distance (1,5m - ∞) have to be estimated - sometimes I use a little external rangefinder (russian "BLIK") and a light meter. If you like flash photography you could use one via the PC connector (never tried it so far). --> CLICK!
The picture comes out when you press the actuator button on the handgrip.

Greetings!

Francois

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Re: My Instax 105/4,5
« Reply #1 on: May 10, 2014, 02:14:13 PM »
Welcome to the lens hacking club :)
Pretty nice mod you got there. I have the same exact camera (except mine is all original) and I just love the thing to bits :)
Francois

Film is the vinyl record of photography.

snpshts

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Re: My Instax 105/4,5
« Reply #2 on: May 10, 2014, 02:46:59 PM »
Naturally I also got a second unmodified one, too... :)
Actually I use it way more often than the modified one, as it is a pretty perfect point and shoot for partys/walks and stuff. Thats why I sayd I "kind of" hate it... :)

Ezzie

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Re: My Instax 105/4,5
« Reply #3 on: May 13, 2014, 01:18:07 PM »
Well done. Instax wide deserves a better lens.

I am tempted to get a Lomo Belair instant back (in stock again since today) and hack that on to the back of something, or adapt to Polaroid 600SE mount and use on my converted Pathfinder
Eirik

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phh

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Re: My Instax 105/4,5
« Reply #4 on: September 24, 2014, 03:32:06 AM »
Instax Wide 100 + Kodak Anastigmat 80/3.5 (from Kodak Reflex TLR)

Still it got image circle around though the weak indoor lighting eases a bit.

Lens hack with Instax Wide is more fun than with Mini since the image size is doubled. Then it's more difficult finding proper lens due to the damn inner barrel/body structure. The regular 6x9 folder camera lens is still not small enough to it. Wider and shorter lens work but are expensive and do no good to portrait. It's almost helpless. If you have a nice camera with lens covers 6x9, the Belair instant back would be a better choice.

Francois

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Re: My Instax 105/4,5
« Reply #5 on: September 24, 2014, 03:31:16 PM »
The vignetting is probably due to all the stuff that's inside the lens barrel. The only way around this would probably be to make some type of permanent lens cone...
Francois

Film is the vinyl record of photography.

phh

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Re: My Instax 105/4,5
« Reply #6 on: September 25, 2014, 10:10:21 AM »
Already made the Kodak Anastigmat lens permanent. So in this case it just couldn't cover enough. Then longer lens focus would suffer by the limitation of lens barrel.  :-\
The vignetting is probably due to all the stuff that's inside the lens barrel. The only way around this would probably be to make some type of permanent lens cone...

blueeyedpop

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clagom

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Re: My Instax 105/4,5
« Reply #8 on: September 20, 2016, 10:05:20 AM »
Very nice results! Indeed the Instax wide deserves much better lens (and manual controls :/ )
Hopefully we'll have something in this direction with the square?

rotarysmp

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Re: My Instax 105/4,5
« Reply #9 on: September 24, 2016, 01:56:54 PM »
Nice hack Blueeyeedpop. Could you give us a bit more information? I am guessing that Relay you glued to the back activates the rollers using the original shutter button.
Mark
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