Instamatic

While visiting my mother this weekend we did some significant antique shopping, which was wonderful as an activity to do together and an opportunity to look at a lot of really cool stuff.

Imagine my excitement, then, when I came across a cabinet full of weird old cameras! Thinking this was just the type of cabinet where I might find the medium-format camera I've been waiting for, I examined every single one. I came across some vintage 8mm video cameras, bulky polaroids, and plenty of toy cameras. I didn't find a medium format, but I did find another treasure: a Kodak Instamatic X-35, the first camera I ever carried.

I'm so happy to own this camera again because I feel like it's an important piece of my past. My next project will be finding film for it—a challenge considering the days of buying Kodak 126 cartridge film at the K-Mart are long behind us. I've heard cartridges can be reloaded with unperforated 35mm film, though, so this may be a project to take to the darkroom. We'll see! For now, a picture of my find (the square format is a tribute to the pictures it takes).

Inspiration #4: Home & Pictures

A while back I stumbled on a photo blog called A Walk Through Durham Township, PA.  Durham Township is right in the area where I grew up -- I guess what you'd call the next town over -- so the photos are all "pictures of home."  I hesitate on whether the photographs themselves inspire me because in a way they're just beautiful pictures.  They're technically gorgeous but don't necessarily push any artistic/conceptual boundaries.  However, I do find myself looking at them to remember what it feels like to be in a place, and I think that's important too, not just how avant-garde or postmodern something is.  I'd guess this blog won "Best American Photoblog" because it captures the spirit of some quintessentially American landscapes, and it's special to me to think I come from just that place.

The blog author seems to value copyright pretty highly so I'm not going to reproduce her images here, but I suggest you check it out at http://www.durhamtownship.com/