FunctionallyUnfunctional

I decided to spend some more time with my newly acquired but severely broken Canon 35 1.4. (See previous post - a very broken lens) I thought it might be fun to concentrate on shooting some old things I have around the house. Since it's preset to its closest focus point of about 11 inches I can only do close up photography with it. But boy is it sharp at that spot. What a sweet lens. I'm having fun! Can you identify the subject matter of all three images?

Recently my friend Andria was on a job when her lens fell apart. She was a bit shaken obviously. She sent me a message showing the broken lens and asked if it could be repaired. I suggested she bring it to the store for an estimate. For enough money just about anything can be repaired right? Sadly, the repair cost of the lens simple didn't justify having it repaired. There was just too much damage. So Andria purchased a new lens and donated her broken lens to my project. I was actually quite excited because, despite its condition, this is one of Canon's best lenses. I was confident that I could manage to capture images with it and suspected they'd be quite sharp.  I noticed the focus ring would still drive the elements of the lens. I felt this was good news but since proper alignment of the housing could no longer be achieved I really had no way to know exactly where the lens would be focused. With two exceptions. I could turn it to its stops at either end a...

2019 was very good to me, at least from an equipment standpoint. Thanks to an attractive employee purchase program, I was able to bring home two new cameras in 2019. In fact, one is so new it only has 29 actuations on it and I honestly haven't even downloaded them yet. I also own some new lenses, lights, triggers, and even that new Leatherman multi-tool photographed above. I have had a small shooting area in my basement for some time, but over the holidays I took time to expand it into some additional space and actually create a small studio space. Actually its a really nice, large area.  I'm quite blessed to have not only such a space, but also the awesome gear to use in it. I'll leave that for a different blog. Having finished the studio, it was only fitting that I shoot something, right? Well, in typical fashion, every bit of that fancy, new gear remained packed away today.  Instead, just about everything used to shoot this image was free - devalued gear that, i...

Shot with my broken Canon 7D and a Micro Nikkor 105 I've gotten busy and my functionally unfunctional project hasn't gotten much attention lately. I'm hoping to get busy with it again. I've accumulated a fair amount of stuff lately and so all I need is the time to play. Perhaps this little mantid that came to visit with me tonight will be the inspiration I needed.

The Nikon 105 2.5 is a legendary lens. It was a highly regarded by photographers for decades, especially for portraits. I wasn't fortunate enough to own one when I was actively shooting my film Nikons so when this "broken" version became available, I snatched it!  And, of course, mounted it to my "broken" 7D. I needed a few new images for a speedlight class I'm teaching so using the 105 seemed like the perfect opportunity to test the lens. I grabbed an old camera from my collection as a subject. The reason this lens became available is because the focus ring and mechanism are quite loose. I was a little concerned it might not produce acceptable images. Of course, that uncertainty is part the fun of this whole project. While I admit the couple images I shot aren't actually extensive testing, that fear has been temporarily laid to rest. This lens, even in its less than perfect condition, completely lived up to its reputation. I am indeed pleased with t...

We had a minor ice event but it gave me an excellent opportunity for more experimentation with some of my "broken" gear. After reverse mounting my Minolta 35 to capture some macro (previous post) I decided to play with a   normal focal length lens. These images were shot with an old Sears brand 135 Nikon mount lens. Ricoh made these lenses apparently. The aperture wasn't working properly so it was discarded. However, the removal of a few screws holding the rear mounting ring on led me to the problem and now it's working just fine. Mounted to my broken 7D I created these images. So, once again, I've proven to myself, and hopefully the reader, you don't necessarily need the shiniest, newest equipment to create good photographs.

I picked up a Minolta 35mm 2.8 lens recently. Yes, a non-Nikon mount lens has been added to the arsenal. The 35 allows for extreme close up but at a bit less magnification than the 28mm Sigma I previously mounted. And I've heard these Minolta lenses were good reverse macro lenses so I needed to give it a try. We had some freezing rain this morning so it gave me a great opportunity to take the 7D and Minolta lens out for some abstracts. My favorite was this ice-scape image...  But I had fun finding other interesting contrasts and patterns as well... I like the contrast of the ice against this piece of broken tree. The edge of a broken layer of ice. Droplet Textures and Colors Life encapsulated. As I continue to create with my discarded, broken gear my "functional" gear is collecting more and more dust. I'm actually really enjoying finding what I can piece together and make work. It continues to be a rewardin...