Toy Story

[connealy]

I took my whole collection of Vivitar plastic cameras to the El Paso Zoo today.





The most impressive performance came from the cv35 loaded with Fuji Superia X-tra 400.  A Google search shows this camera being marketed by Target and Walmart in 1999.  The camera came in a bubble pack along with an AA battery for the built-in electronic flash, and a roll of Kodak Max 400 -- all for $12.95!  The camera also features a two-element lens, and a simple and effective quick-load system.  

The shot of the sea lions was made with my PN2011 and 800-speed Fuji.  It doesn't really flatter the capabilities of that camera, but I thought it was kind of a neat image, and the sea lions are such great fun.

[jake]

Cool! Nice smearly edge quality there.

Are those real Inca terns in that last photo or are they sculptures?

J Ake :twisted:

[connealy]

The terns are real, but the fence is just a sculpture.

[nelsonfoto]

The sealion shot is art.

[JohnR]

What's "smearly edge quality"?

[Gene M]

The sea lion photo is surreal. It's relaxing in a zen sort of way. I think it's the closed eye of the swimmer that does it.

Good stuff.

[jake]

Look at the corners of the elephant photo. I forget the old large format lens that does that - Tessar?? - but the corners and edges of the photo look swirled or smeared. As if the center was photographed sharply and then the outer edge of the image was twirled, slightly blurring the detail. A nice effect.

I made up the word smearly though.

J Ake :twisted:

[connealy]

I think you're right about the edges.  The lens on this one seems very sharp in the center, but much less so as you approach the borders.  The simpler lens on the PN2011 seems to me to be more uniform in sharpness throughout.  I also noticed some outer edge softness in the images that Mark showed recently from the IC400; kind of holga-like.  I'm looking forward to trying some comparisons between the cameras using the same film in all.  These things are kind of like pinholes to me; sharpness isn't really a primary concern, but I like to know what to expect.

[JohnR]

Hm.

I think I see the blurring on the edges, but, it's not so obvious to me that I'm not sure I'm not just talking myself into it. Still on the learning curve...!

[Janet_P]

I love these shots. The colours are so vivid. The seal shot is the best of the lot - that blue is stunning.
It's interesting how the lens blur is more obvious on the Zebra and Elephant shots and the top left hand corner seems to be more pronounced too.

Janet

[connealy]

All the photos are cropped a bit.  The difference between center and edge is more obvious in the full frame.  When I first looked at the pictures from the cv35 and the IC400 I thought they had problems with focusing beyound a few yards, but it was just the edge effect.

[Gene M]

Years from now the word "smearly" will be commonplace. No one will be able to trace its origin.

[NancyB]

Great shots, especially the sea lions.  I must say that the carousel zebra looks a little evil!

[connealy]

Great shots, especially the sea lions.  I must say that the carousel zebra looks a little evil!

Carousel figures nearly always have a bit of an edge to them, I think.  The design esthetic seems to come from something related to Grimm's Fairytales.  Maybe some of the attraction for kids is the suggestion of danger without the real risks that live horses present.  I don't really know, but I do recall the enjoyment I got from the merry-go-rounds as a kid.  Later on, when I was really too old to permit myself to be seen on one, I still got a thrill from sneaking under the tarp at a big carousel near my home at night to take secret, solitary rides.

Here is a full-frame which better shows the contrast between the sharp center and the smearly edges.

[Mike R]

I have been meaning to reply for a day or so now but haven't gotten the chance.  Everyone beat me to it, but those are nice shots.  I really like the sealions too.  It just goes to show that it is not the camera, but the photographer.  I know it has been said already, but it bears repeating here.  The awesome thing is that you didn't even have to spend $20 to get the soft edges of the Holga cameras.