I enjoyed your Diana shots. Brings back memories. When I attended college in the mid 70's as a photo student we had to shoot with the Diana for the first 6 or so weeks of university. We all showed up with our fancy SLRs and had to shoot with a taped up $3 plastic camera. I still have one in the box, I should break it out and shoot a roll of expired film with it.
bjhurley wrote:
As if a Holga wasn't lo-fi enough, I got a Diana 151 from the 1960s, with its original box and instruction pamphlet. To say this camera doesn't inspire confidence would be an understatement; my Holga feels like a Leica in comparison. The film stopped advancing halfway through my first roll and the film advance knob fell off. I eventually got it to advance again and was able to finish the roll; I made a few repairs afterward and we'll see how the next roll goes.
It takes 16 photos per roll, in 4x4 format. Like the Holga it has a plastic meniscus lens. The art photographer Nancy Rexroth made this camera famous in the 1970s with her self-published book "Iowa," which became a sensation and was republished a few years ago by Texas University Press. I have a copy and it's lovely.
Lomography made an updated version of this camera but true aficionados go for the original Diana for its blurrier, more imperfect look.
treacle wrote:
I enjoyed your Diana shots. Brings back memories. When I attended college in the mid 70's as a photo student we had to shoot with the Diana for the first 6 or so weeks of university. We all showed up with our fancy SLRs and had to shoot with a taped up $3 plastic camera. I still have one in the box, I should break it out and shoot a roll of expired film with it.
Thanks -- that's exactly how Nancy Rexroth got started with her Diana camera. She was also at university studying photography and the instructor made everyone shoot with Diana cameras to level the playing field. I wonder if this was a thing back then, or maybe you and she went to the same school! (She went to Ohio University.)
One of the rolls I developed recently came with a camera I purchased. It was an unopened box of Portra 160 NC that expired in 2003. The conversions were problematic even with NLP. Pentax 645N, and the smc Pentax-FA 35mm f3.5 AL (IF). I shot wide open, and I think this lens is going to need about f8 to reach acceptable focus.
bjhurley wrote:
Thanks -- that's exactly how Nancy Rexroth got started with her Diana camera. She was also at university studying photography and the instructor made everyone shoot with Diana cameras to level the playing field. I wonder if this was a thing back then, or maybe you and she went to the same school! (She went to Ohio University.)
Yes, same school! I was there from Sept 76-June 78. She would have been there 10 years before, I was aware of her book Iowa which was published in 1977. I worked at the campus photo store from March 77-June 78. B&W film was $1.25, a 100 sheet box of fiber 8 x 10 Paper Agfa, Ilford or Kodak was $16.00 and Diana's were $3.50. I should have stayed but I decided to move to NYC.
treacle wrote:
Yes, same school! I was there from Sept 76-June 78. She would have been there 10 years before, I was aware of her book Iowa which was published in 1977. I worked at the campus photo store from March 77-June 78. B&W film was $1.25, a 100 sheet box of fiber 8 x 10 Paper Agfa, Ilford or Kodak was $16.00 and Diana's were $3.50. I should have stayed but I decided to move to NYC.
The campus had a photo store? How cool!
I considered getting a Diana but not sure if there is any purpose given that I use Holgas.
Desmolicious wrote:
I considered getting a Diana but not sure if there is any purpose given that I use Holgas.
I think the Diana is like the Holga, only more so. Smaller image, so you get less resolution and more grain; flimsier construction so more opportunities for light leaks; and an even more impressionistic lens.
Here are a couple more from my first roll (Fomapan 400).
Signs of Spring Japan 2026
Hiroshima
Leica M4 35mm Summicron Fujicolor 100 (maybe that Ilford film color plus, I dropped off 4 rolls, I got the scans but I haven't picked up my negatives yet to see which roll this was from)
James Markus wrote:
My little aluminum cans came with Reflx 800T. I'm amazed at the look of this film, and it looks like _jim_ using Cinestill's 800T got great results. I assume it is all Kodak's film. I used a 85B daylight correction filter + 2/3rds of a stop over exposure outside, and just full 800 iso inside.
Nice plant, and those colors are truly a feast for the eyes 🥰
DSC05258-positive
