Well I
finally got a Holga (Happy Birthday to me!). I confess it is an intriguing
little camera and I got a kick out of reading the manual that came with it.
Interestingly enough the manual dedicated equal space to praising the “virtues”
of the artistic license involved in the light leak phenomenon and explaining all the ways one could
eliminate the light leaks (if one so desired).
Apparently
one major light leak source is the little red colored window on the back of the
camera which allows you to see the frame numbers on the film. The manual
recommends taping over it with black gaffer’s tape to solve the problem and
presumably just removing the tape when winding the film.
The
manual also recommends painting the inside of the camera with flat black paint
to reduce the reflections and glare of leaking light bouncing around inside the
camera due to its shiny black interior. It then goes on to suggest that the
back seams and the side latches all be taped up to prevent leaks.
I guess
I am just too dense to understand whether light leaks are a good thing or
something to be avoided but after talking with my wife (a frequent source of
wisdom) I have decided to leave the camera as it is at least for the first roll
of film and just see what happens.
I will
let you know how it turns out.
Here’s
a picture of my new Holga with not a single piece of tape on it – yet!
....and yes, its in the microwave (artistic license) but I have no plans to "Nuke it," not yet anyway.
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