[Leica] Unusual Photo Story: A Recovered Picture

[Adam Bridge]

Speaking as a pocket-protector, slide-rule holster guy back in those days I most heartily approve!

Adam

> On 2018 Jul 6, at 6:26 AM, Don Dory via LUG <lug at leica-users.org> wrote:
> 
> You have to love the pocket protector in place even in a casual family
> image.  Plus, who took the family photo; possibly the owner of the camera?
> 
> On Fri, Jul 6, 2018 at 8:39 AM Jim Shulman <jshulman at judgecrater.com> wrote:
> 
>> A few days ago a friend showed me his latest acquisition: a Vest Pocket
>> Kodak Autographic camera, which looked to be from the 1920s or so.  There
>> was a partially used roll of film inside, which he finished with some
>> snapshots in the back yard.   Visions of long-gone flappers filled the
>> imagination, saved on the film therein.
>> 
>> I told him I'd process the film, but as with any photographic film that old
>> getting any discernable images was a crapshoot.  I'd heard that the rule of
>> thumb for developing old film is lose one f-stop per each decade.  When I'd
>> loaded the film onto the reel (not so easy with film that had been coiled
>> for decades!) and sealed the tank, I took a look at the backing paper.  It
>> was decidedly more 50s-60s looking, and at the top include an exposure
>> chart
>> with a note that Verichrome Pan is ASA 125.  That would probably peg it
>> late
>> 1950s and later, and the look of the backing paper reminded me of 50s/60s
>> Kodak product.
>> 
>> With that in mind I figured that the usual VP developing time in D-76 1:1
>> was about eight minutes, with each pushed stop adding about four minutes.
>> Given five decades, that would be an additional 20 minutes, the total
>> rounded to a half-hour.
>> 
>> That seemed to do the trick.  When I removed the film from the tank two
>> exposures taken decades ago were perfectly clear, but the recently taken
>> shots a vague, blurry mess.  Perhaps the camera had deteriorated in the
>> interim.
>> 
>> The picture shows a family with clothes and hairstyles of about 1965.  Why
>> they were using a 40 year old folding camera is an answer lost to the ages.
>> I have no idea who they were, or the occasion of the picture.
>> 
>> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/focusit/vest+pocket+family+1+sm.jpg.html
>> 
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>> 
> -- 
> Don
> don.dory at gmail.com
> 
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