WPPD 2017 in Ann Arbor

The Ondu pinhole cameras - Kat's 6x6, and my 6x9

Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day was held on April 30, and this year a bunch of us got together in Ann Arbor instead of some other location.  Given the weather, we made a good choice.  Last year we met in Fostoria, OH, which turned out great. This year, it was a gloomy, cold, and then rainy day. Despite that, I felt we made the best of it, as we met on the University of Michigan campus. There is no lack of possibilities using pinhole cameras there.   I used my ONDU 6x9 pinhole camera for the first time, and realized that partway through the first roll, I had loaded the film on the wrong side, as the film spool should be loaded on the right side, not the traditional left side.  Therefore, the frame numbers will be proper for 8 6x9 images. Duh.  I should have realized that by looking at the arrows on the top of the camera.  With that out of the way, everything worked fine and I feel I got some good images.  Tim and Kat were also there, and always have been stalwart pinhole day attendees.

Since it was graduation weekend, we saw quite a few UM grads there, especially around the Carl Milles fountain.  From there, we went over to Nickels arcade, and then over to Regents Plaza.  I have always wanted to photograph the cube while it was rotating, and the pinhole camera surprised me with the result.

From there, we went over to the UM Law Quadrangle and got some shots in, at least until it started to sprinkle.
After that, we headed home!

The rotating cube.

and.. now for the pinhole result.

Inside Nickels Arcade 

Carl Milles fountain. About a 20 second exposure.

one last video...

Pinholery in the Irish Hills

On Sunday, April 26, the entire world celebrated World Pinhole Photography Day (WPPD). Well, at least the small world of photographers using pinhole cameras did. Our world is sometimes a bit fuzzy, but everything is in focus, and we expect events to happen at a slow pace.

Mike Myers and I went down to the Irish Hills along US-12, in search of some suitable WPPD subjects, and found some decrepit places to shoot, such as the Irish Hills Fun Center as shown above. Formerly a place where one could race go-karts, play mini golf, and take a dip in a pool, it now looks abandoned. The one place I really wanted to see has all sorts of life-size dinosaurs and prehistoric mammals on the grounds, but it is ringed with "no trespassing" signs. Better to stay out and avoid a visit from the local police.

We finally ended up at McCourtie Park in Somerset. This place was built by a former concrete baron, who, in the 1930s, had artisans from Mexico construct a series of small concrete bridges across a meandering stream. You might think it wouldn't be interesting, but each bridge is different, and they fool your eye -- looking like rustic wood brdges, a rope bridge, and so on. What looks like bark with beetle holes is just concrete. You expect the rope bridge to sway, but of course, it's not really rope, it's concrete. Fun to visit, and quite photogenic.