Odds and Ends... for the weekend

Handmade cameras. Say it to yourself slowly. Doesn't it sound exquisite? I love handmade things, and it happened I stumbled across this little treasure trove of links... enjoy

Odds and Ends...Please inquire

You may still have time if you live in Maine...

"Handmade Cameras, Handmade Images"
LandEscapes
College of the Atlantic
Mount Desert Island, Maine, United States
DATES: Monday, July 24, 2006 - Tuesday, July 25, 2006

If you want to really drool, check out these gorgeous cameras...

Zero Image camera, the new handmade pinhole camera, with its antique design, is an objet d'art ideal for private collections, and makes a perfect gift to celebrate the new millennium. With its revolutionary design, our camera helps you take pictures with special effects, and connects you to the boundless creative and artistic world of photography.
Our cameras range from 135 format to 4x5 format, in order to satisfy the different requirements of our customers.

You can spend the afternoon at this page. This Squidoo page has a ton of links to images made from obscure and handmade cameras.

Iversen, Gitte

Fine art photography with hand colored black & white pictures and pinhole color pictures.

Kapoor, Jan - LightWorks

Combines pinhole and alternative photo processes. Contains sample images.

Moroux, Philippe - La Porte d'Aval

A site dedicated to pinhole photography, kallitype prints, Etretat and to everyone who believes that photography may be a kind of philosophy.

Here is an interesting and unique handmade camera from Kurt Mottweiler.

The sensual beauty of wood and its relative ease of use made it the obvious material of choice for early camera makers. In this age of high tech materials its use for camera making is an anomaly but one which speaks to the human need for simplicity.
This wooden camera was built in 1979. It is modelled after early Daguerreotype cameras and uses classic dovetailed construction throughout. Adapting the design ideas for pinhole use, the camera has a three pinhole changer built into the "lens" panel. The rear sliding box - long missing - is not shown. The cameras was the start of a long passion for handmade cameras that continues to the present.

And finally, if you are now chomping at the bit to do some unique stuff with your very own camera you built from scratch... here's a book that will walk you through the process. Good luck, and think about how amazing they would look at 24x30 and 36 x 48.... mmmm, the mind reels.

Primitive Photography considers the hand-made photographic process in its entirety, showing the reader how to make box-cameras, lenses, paper negatives and salt prints, using inexpensive tools and materials found in most hardware and art-supply stores. Step-by-step procedures are presented alongside theoretical explanations and historical background. Streamlined calotype procedures are demonstrated, featuring different paper negative processes and overlooked, developing-out printing methods.