blog.expiredfilm.com » Rollei Retro http://blog.expiredfilm.com The Photography of Bill Hansen Fri, 04 Nov 2011 14:27:32 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v= How to flip a Brownie Hawkeye Flash lens http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2010/03/10/how-to-flip-a-brownie-hawkeye-flash-lens/ http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2010/03/10/how-to-flip-a-brownie-hawkeye-flash-lens/#comments Wed, 10 Mar 2010 08:06:14 +0000 Bill http://blog.expiredfilm.com/?p=164 Brownie Hawkeye Flash[/caption]

I've noticed a lot of search traffic hitting my site specifically looking for information on how to flip the lens of a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye Flash (BHF). While there are probably multitudes of other resources on the interwebs, I figure I'll just throw my two-cents out there.

For those who don't know, the BHF is a black bakelite beauty with a top-down viewfinder, single element meniscus lens, shutter speed somewhere around 1/30 to 1/60 & a bulb setting, while it lacks a tripod mount, it has a nifty handle. In it's heyday, the BHF was a very popular camera. Your grandparents most likely had one. Nowadays, you can find them cheaply at thrift stores, flea markets, garage sales, and eBay, or for a higher premium decorating shelves in antique stores & hipster boutiques. I, personally, got mine for free on Craigslist thanks to a kind-hearted Samaritan who was donating several cameras to anyone who could justify receiving one. I simply wrote “I'll use it.” It arrived in the mail a couple days later and I've been enthralled with it ever since. Anywho, an unmodified BHF takes a relatively normal photograph, but something magical happens when you flip the lens. It's like the soft focus of a vintage Diana multiplied to the Nth degree. The lens' focal point shifts from infinity to about 3 feet in the center, while the edges just melt away into blurry goodness. The effect can be quite surreal. Flipping the lens of a BHF is actually a simple procedure with a very low-risk of permanently #@$%-ing anything up and is easily reversible. That said, I assume no responsibility with these directions if you somehow manage to accidentally bork your favorite family heirloom. Ready? Let's get flipping. Related posts:
  1. -BHF – Bridge to the Adirondacks
  2. -BHF – Ausable River
  3. -BHF – Waikiki Sunset
]]> http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2010/03/10/how-to-flip-a-brownie-hawkeye-flash-lens/feed/ 6 BHF – Bridge to the Adirondacks http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/07/29/bhf-bridge-to-the-adirondacks/ http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/07/29/bhf-bridge-to-the-adirondacks/#comments Wed, 30 Jul 2008 04:46:11 +0000 Bill http://www.expiredfilm.com/?p=40
  • -BHF – Ausable River
  • -BHF – More from the Adirondacks
  • -BHF – Strawberry Picking
    • ]]>     http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/07/29/bhf-bridge-to-the-adirondacks/feed/ 0     BHF – More from the Adirondacks http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/07/29/bhf-more-from-the-adirondacks/ http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/07/29/bhf-more-from-the-adirondacks/#comments Tue, 29 Jul 2008 07:23:36 +0000 Bill http://www.expiredfilm.com/?p=36
  • -BHF – Ausable River
  • -BHF – Bridge to the Adirondacks
  • -BHF – Strawberry Picking
    • ]]>     http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/07/29/bhf-more-from-the-adirondacks/feed/ 0     BHF – Ausable River http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/07/22/bhf-ausable-river/ http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/07/22/bhf-ausable-river/#comments Tue, 22 Jul 2008 05:13:05 +0000 Bill http://www.expiredfilm.com/?p=34
  • -BHF – More from the Adirondacks
  • -BHF – Bridge to the Adirondacks
  • -BHF – Strawberry Picking
    • ]]>     http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/07/22/bhf-ausable-river/feed/ 0     Kodak Jiffy II http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/04/25/kodak-jiffy-ii/ http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/04/25/kodak-jiffy-ii/#comments Fri, 25 Apr 2008 14:40:38 +0000 Bill http://www.expiredfilm.com/?p=17
  • -Ithaca Falls Holga
  • -My Favorite Photographer
  • -Expired Film – Dragonfly
    • ]]>     http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/04/25/kodak-jiffy-ii/feed/ 0     Chittenango Falls & The Parking lot of Green Lake State Park http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/04/17/chittenango-falls-the-parking-lot-of-green-lake-state-park/ http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/04/17/chittenango-falls-the-parking-lot-of-green-lake-state-park/#comments Thu, 17 Apr 2008 21:13:50 +0000 Bill http://www.expiredfilm.com/?p=11
  • -Onondaga Lake Park
  • -Ithaca Falls Holga
  • -Holga Hike – Beaver Lake Nature Center
    • ]]>     http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/04/17/chittenango-falls-the-parking-lot-of-green-lake-state-park/feed/ 0     Ithaca Falls Holga http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/04/15/ithaca-falls-holga/ http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/04/15/ithaca-falls-holga/#comments Tue, 15 Apr 2008 18:50:36 +0000 Bill http://www.expiredfilm.com/?p=10
  • -Holga Hike – Beaver Lake Nature Center
  • -Holga Hike – Another Beaver Lake Shot
  • -Chittenango Falls & The Parking lot of Green Lake State Park
    • ]]>     http://blog.expiredfilm.com/2008/04/15/ithaca-falls-holga/feed/ 0