Author Topic: One subject, one roll: Vanderbilt Mansion  (Read 1757 times)

02Pilot

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One subject, one roll: Vanderbilt Mansion
« on: February 15, 2015, 09:43:45 PM »
This wasn't really done by design. After struggling to repair some mechanical issues on my tempermental-but-much-loved Voigtländer Vito, I finally got it to the point where I was sufficiently satisfied to pop in a roll (Kodak Gold 200) and take it out for a spin. I headed to the Vanderbilt Mansion historical site, which is one of my regular testing grounds. It offers a diverse array of subjects, from the mansion, outbuildings, and formal gardens featured here to woods, open fields, and views of the river. As you can see, the day was clear and bright.

I should mention a bit more about the camera. The original Vito design is pre-war, and according to what I've been able to determine, was designed for 828 film. When the war came and the supply of 828 from Kodak dried up rather abruptly, the Vito was quickly converted to 135, but in their haste, they retained the feeler spindle system of frame spacing measurement rather than going to a more appropriate sprocket wheel. What this means in practical terms is that the mechanism is very picky about being as friction-free as possible. Adding to the difficulty is the disengagement lever arrangement, which is fiddly and fragile; it was the source of my most recent problem, which in the end required a little fabrication.

Why, you are probably asking, do I put up with all the problems that this camera is prone to? Well, it's light and fun to use, but the real answer is simple: the lens. Being a pre-war camera, the lens is an uncoated Skopar 50/3.5. I love uncoated lenses, and this one is right up there with the 75/3.8 Tessar on my Rolleiflex for color rendering. It does nicely with B&W as well, but with color it's just spectacular.

These photos were just cleaned up after scanning. No color adjustments whatsoever. I will let the results speak for themselves.














Any man who can see what he wants to get on film will usually find some way to get it;
and a man who thinks his equipment is going to see for him is not going to get much of anything.


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sgt.brimer

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Re: One subject, one roll: Vanderbilt Mansion
« Reply #1 on: February 15, 2015, 10:24:59 PM »
Nice shots! I am particularly drawn to the photo of the bricks and green shutter.

02Pilot

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Re: One subject, one roll: Vanderbilt Mansion
« Reply #2 on: February 16, 2015, 02:21:29 PM »
Nice shots! I am particularly drawn to the photo of the bricks and green shutter.

Thanks. I really liked the shadow it threw on the wall; I guess low-angle winter sun is good for something - it certainly isn't providing any warmth....
Any man who can see what he wants to get on film will usually find some way to get it;
and a man who thinks his equipment is going to see for him is not going to get much of anything.


-Hunter S. Thompson
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http://filmosaur.wordpress.com/

Indofunk

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Re: One subject, one roll: Vanderbilt Mansion
« Reply #3 on: February 16, 2015, 04:46:18 PM »
You weren't kidding about the colors!

jharr

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Re: One subject, one roll: Vanderbilt Mansion
« Reply #4 on: February 16, 2015, 05:34:20 PM »
#2&4 are just fabulous shots among the others which are all good. I love the lens on my Bessa 6x9 in all of its uncoated glory. Maybe this spring we should have "Throw Off Your Coat Week" and we can all go out in our shirt sleeves and shoot CN film with our uncoated lenses.
"The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera"   -- Dorothea Lange
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02Pilot

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Re: One subject, one roll: Vanderbilt Mansion
« Reply #5 on: February 16, 2015, 06:20:33 PM »
Thanks, guys. I'm all for a celebration of uncoated lenses when the weather improves; it was -1F here this morning, so I figure I should be able to get down to shirtsleeves by July or so.
Any man who can see what he wants to get on film will usually find some way to get it;
and a man who thinks his equipment is going to see for him is not going to get much of anything.


-Hunter S. Thompson
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http://filmosaur.wordpress.com/

Bryan

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Re: One subject, one roll: Vanderbilt Mansion
« Reply #6 on: February 16, 2015, 06:40:30 PM »
I love the colors, all great shots!  I have a few un-coated lenses that have produced great colors.