Amateur Photographer & Cinematographer (1937)

March 17th, 1937 The AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHER t» 6 CINEMATOGRAPHER a INI AT U RE” NOTES Short articles, illustrations, hints and tips, formulae, reviews, queries and replies dealing with Miniature Camera work will appear under this heading every week. Is the PART GREATER than the WHOLE ? By HAROLD BURDEKIN. THE part is very often much more interesting than the whole. Es¬ pecially is this true in close-up photography with the miniature camera. Why ? Because part of a close-up will depict without any frills what one wishes to show. The message of the photo¬ graph is clear and to the point. All unnecessary detail is eliminated and the essentials stand out boldly. In close-up photography we are chiefly concerned with textures, skin, metal, wood, cloth, paper, etc. Therefore good technique is essential as regards exposure and devel¬ opment of the film. A study of design is helpful, as in close-up photography design or pattern and technique build up the picture to a large extent. Whether the present fashion for close-ups will last is a matter open to debate. The present mood seems to a great extent to be concerned with close-up photographs and a very severe trimming of prints. After all, close-up photography is really rather a true repre¬ sentation of our modern world. It wants to see things quickly ; stark naked in realism, and is not content to consider that the obvious is often very uninteresting as it leaves little to the imagination. Anyhow, Fig. 1. The Poetry Book. close-up photography is a good gymnastic exercise, and its adherents, myself included, can be seen crawl¬ ing upon the ground like wild savages stalking their prey, or gazing steadfastly to heaven with a little camera pointing upwards. This new game of new-angle photography seems to con¬ sist of nearly killing yourself every time a picture is Fig. 2. To-morrow's News. taken. Thus it appeals strongly to the adventure of youth. On account of the great depth of focus, the miniature camera is ideal for the close-up. Quite a short shutter speed can be used, even for moving objects at close distances. For ex¬ ample, when the camera is focussed on to an object at 4 ft. distance there is a depth of focus of 3 ft. 9 in. to 4 ft. 3 in., working at an aperture of f/4, while at an aperture of f/n the depth of focus is 3 ft. 4 in. to 4 ft. 10 in. This applies to a lens of 5-cm. focal length Fig. 3. Milk Cooling. on a miniature camera using 35-mm. stock. With my Contax it is possible to photograph objects at 8 in. distance by using an accessory known as a Contameter. This device is clever, for parallax is corrected, and the picture is seen in the right proportions through the spe¬ cial view-finder and range¬ finder combined attached to the device. Fig. 1 was taken with the Contameter. The lens was stopped down to f/8 and the exposure was i/25th sec. When using this near focussing device it is advisable to stop down the lens to f/8 or f/n. Even at these aper¬ tures it will be appreciated that tbe depth of focus is small when the objects are only a few inches from the lens. The next picture. Fig. 2, “ To-morrow’s News,” was taken just off Fleet Street on a very dull day in winter. The ends of the rolls of paper fascinated me so much that I lowered my camera till it was only a few feet off the ground, and then pointed it upwards to gain force and kill all the background. Probably a better result would have been achieved on a sunny day with a pattern of light and shade, but the texture of the paper, both on the surface and the ends of the rolls, is vivid enough to make up for lack of shadow. The last picture. Fig. 3, “Milk Cool¬ ing,” was taken in a very dark shed with the aid of a Photoflood lamp. The milk was running over the cooler, and 1 gave an exposure of i/25th sec. at f/4-5 270 15