Home Movies and Home Talkies (Jun 1933-May 1934)

HOME MOVIES & HOME TALKIES 169 OUR MONTHLY PRIZE COMPETITION SEPTEMBER WHINNERS about 20 sees., develop up to a rich black, also glaze the print. You now have a negative title ready to retake on positive stock. Use a No. 10 Woolworth's lens in front of the camera and place your title 8 in. away. Do not forget to allow for the slow speed of positive stock 150 H. & D.— F. S. Pickle, 6.5 Hoppers Road, London, N.21. THE nutnlier of entries for this month's Competition is the highest yet, and we were very glad to find that enti-ants have carefully noted that the ideas required should be of a simple nature. We have mentioned on previous occasions that quite a number of excellent .schemes are sent in which, however, are of so elaborate a nature as to make them impossible of application by the average man. There has been so much difficulty in deciding which entries should be given pride of place that we have decided this month to increase the number of prizes from three to four and the winning entries are j:) resented below. A Useful Hint Mr. K. W. HalFs "Charger Hint " is specially commendable in view of the fact that the trouble he so successfully cures is much more likely to occur now that 9|^-mm. users frequently change from one kind cf film to another to suit special subjects. The ingenious scheme which Mi-. Catlin sends in, showing how to develop lengths of 9|-mm. film uji to about 6 ft., will be welcomed by many who are in the process of changing over to rimning titles from the notched titles, now that highpowered Oi-mm. projectors, such as the Pathescope 200-B, are coming into general use. The making of running titles, too, has led to the intriguing idea submitted by Mr. Pickle — an excellent little entry in which a maximum of practical data is given. Mr. D'Alquen, who like many 9i-mm. users has been worried by lengths of film whicli are too dense for good projection, sends an excellent scheme for reducing such film ; and a specimen of the work carried out in this way which he enclosed with his entry is proof enough of the quality of the results obtainable. Conditions Winning competitors will receive their awards within a fortnight of publication of this issue. Meanwhile we are repeating our offer to readers, and next month three half-guineas will again be awarded for the best hints and tips (preferably of a constructional nature) sent in. The descriptions need onlj^ be brief, provided they are clear, and the practical usefulness of the hints and tips will largely influence our decision. If there is something you wish to illustrate with a diagram, a simple pencil drawing will do, as our owai artists will j)repare the finished drawing for reproduction. Remember, a brief description, even without illustrations, of a really useful gadget, trick or method, is more likely to win a prize than a long-drawTi-out description of something which is difficult to make. Entries for the November Comjietition should reach us not later than October 12. The Editor's decision will be final. A Charger Hint Now that Pathe have given us two emulsions-S.P.S.F. and R.O.F.— it is only natural that at some time we should, in the middle of a spool of one, want to change to the other. When, however, we take the charger out the natural spring of the film unwinds the expo.sed portion in the take-up chamber ; so that when the charger is replaced the film jams at the bottom of the gate as it is not being taken up. To obviate this difficulty, cut a discontinuity slot in the film, about in the centre of the piece showing. When the charger is replaced the intermittent mechanism will move the film down to the slot, which will not move in the gate until the exposed film is woimd tight enough on the bobbin to pull the slot past the claws. AVhen you have seen a few frames move in the normal manner the camera can be closed and the change will have been accomplished with the loss of only about twenty frames. — K. W. H.A.LL, "Lugano," Raunds, Wellingborough . For Developing Short Lengths of 9.5-mm. Film For developing titles up to about 6 ft. in length I have used a 3 in. ribbed ebonite coil former which is notched to take the film and developed in a 2-lb. stone jam-jar. One end of the former is blocked up to save solution, about 10 ozs. of solution being required. Notches to take film can easily be filed out, care being taken to see that they rim in a spiral. — C. W. Catlin, 124 )Shakespeare Road, (iillingham, Kent. Making Running Titles When converting notched films to unnotched project your title you wish to make continuous on a screen 4| in. by 3| in. (^ -plate .size) and focus up sharply. Now place a piece of gaslight printing paper in place of the screen and give an exjiosiu-e of More Light Through a Dark vSubject An excellent method of lightening those vmder-exposed lengths of film which everybody accumulates from time to time is by a bleach a.nd redevelo23 process. Tt is simple and safe and is accompanied bj^ no loss of high light detail. The film, which must be free from hypo, is first immersed in a bleaching mixture made up of equal ciuantities of 5 per cent, solutions of potassium bromide and potassium ferricyanide. This operation must be carried on until the film is bleached right through to the back. Tt is then washed for 5 minutes and redeveloped in any dilute non-staining developer, viz., one diluted with about four times the usual cpantity of water. MQ answers very well. Progress of development is fairly slow and can be easily watched, but excessive exposure to white light should be avoided or otherwise the film will be of too warm a colour. AVTien the film is sufficiently darkened it should be rinsed, fixed in 10 per cent, hypo, solution, and well washed. A short piece of film should be experimented upon first, as the success of the pirocess depends upon loiowing when to stop the redevelopment of the image, the film appearing much lighter after fixation when the remaining bleached silver is removed. All dishes and apparatus should be perfectly clean and sjlutions preferably filtered. — N. E. D'Alqukn, 64 Rockbourne Road, Forest Hill, .S.E.23. Finchley Society's Public Performance FINCHLEY Amateiu Cine Society are staging their public show at " Arcadia," Church End, Finchley, N.3, on Friday and Saturday, November 3 and 4. There will be two shows nightly at 7 and 9 p.m. with a matinee on Saturday at 3.15 i).m. Part of the proceeds will he devoted to local charities. A good selection of amateur films have been booked, but undoubtedly the greatest attraction will be " Finchley's Charter Celebrations," which is being filmed by members in co-operation with the Finchley Council. Admission is 7d. and Is. 2d. (including tax), the latter being bookable in advance from E. E. Thompson, " South View," Hale Lane, Edgware.