I recently re-designed my blogs. It follows some of the same principles that my main website has, which is simplicity, something I can be proud of, something cool. The whole theme framework is built to be responsive. It works well on modern browsers. I still need to clean up some of the code and I'm planning on progressively making updates to it.
I've been interested in shooting with a pinhole camera for a while. So I decided to create one... I was inspired by other people who've used cigar boxes as a base for their pinhole cameras. I've mulled around with how cool it would be to create my own, even possibly having a detachable back for 4x5 exposures or even having interchangeable lenses. I came to a point in dreaming about this to actually making it.
A few weeks ago, I started looking for a box. I walked into a cigar shop hoping to find a box that would fit my loose specifications, should look pretty light proof and sturdy. I found this San Luis Rey Cigar Box which happens to be abbreviated into SLR on the lid. The lid itself is a sliding lid which gave me the impression that its pretty light proof.
When one of my friends had heard of my project, he surprised me with a drillbit and drill... He knew me well enough to make this happen...
After I bought the box, I shared the idea with my friends. I was already excited for this project because all the rest of the work that needed to be done was just putting in a hole, light proofing the box, and getting some light sensitive paper. It was a simple idea, but that idea somewhat evolved. I thought to myself, while I make a pinhole camera, I could also use the same pinhole for another one of my cameras. Then I thought, well, why don't I mount it to the box?
So, here it is... The ingredients:
The tools:
First things first, safety first; if you're a child, please seek some assistance from an adult. When sanding and sawing, wear some goggles and a face mask to prevent inhaling dust. Be careful with the Exacto Knife as its very sharp.
Okay, first thing I did was measure the box and mark the center. The following picture shows the box marked diagonally to find the center.
Once its marked, punch the center with a nail enough to create an indent in the box. This helps the drill to remain in the center of the box.
Sand off the area that was drilled.
Now the following procedures aren't pictured... because I really got into the project...
Just realized, this post too long... don't read.
Use a piece of black tape to cover the hole and use it as a shutter, when mounting an SLR lens to it, use the lens cover as a shutter. You might want to measure the focal length required for your lens before using it. I created a removable back for my lens.
Now the next part of this project is to get some photo sensitive paper 4in by 5in, or make some cyanotypes using this cigar box camera.
After weeks and weeks of planning and hesitation, I finally did it. Today I processed film. I mixed my own chemicals; I used Kodak's D-76 solution for the developer, getting the temerature just right was a pain. I felt like a chemist. Once I got everything together, I couldn't wait to try it out.
These are the tools...
Developer, fixer, and thermometer
A two jugs (one for the developer and fixer), some Kodak Photo-Flo solution, and lastly, the developer tank. I mixed everything up, in hopefully the right amounts... and I poured them into the containers.
I'll post the results on the photo blog soon. (P.S.: Last photo taken by Jason Slavin.)
This is what I've been working on for the past month or so...
It was a fun and arduous task to design and build something simple. Every time I redesign and rebuild my site, I always want to make something I can be proud of. I wanted to make something that said something about me and my views on design. I wanted a clean break; behind all this is wanting to start all over again, wanting something simpler than what I had before.
I stared with how I identify with my site, my “brand,” and thought about how it feels to be me and to do the many different things that I do. The site is divided into four parts: first the landing page, and three blogs (photo blog, projects blog, and personal blog). I designed for the two real aspects of the site.Trying my best to unify and simplify them.
When it comes to the brand identity, its not fully formed. I don't really have any idea where this kind of creativity would lead me, but its part of my job. Doing things like this, doing things for myself help me create better for the company I work for. I design user interfaces there that are unlike this. They tend to have more complexity, that I'm trying my best to simplify with great UI experiences.
With work like that, there's just... A lot. A lot of thinking, drawing, designing, rendering, and designing; measure once, research use, measure twice, research again, think think think, study, coffee, bathroom, and repeat.
When I come home, I'm constantly thinking of other things to work on, projects or things to make, portraits to draw, portraits to take, my website to design. This redesign is a product of that longing to create.
None of this would not be possible without Google. The landing page is built on the Google App Engine and the blogs are built on top of Blogger with a template built from scratch. The concept is about freedom. Google empowered me to create. So, thanks Google.
This is it for now. I'm thinking of releasing the framework for this blog theme as something that other people can use. That would be really cool. Right?