Hey Y'all! Hope your week is going well. This week I want to review yet another film camera that I have picked up. It's a half frame camera that shoots twice the shots that a normal 35mm camera shoots. It's the Canon Demi EE17. This camera came out in 1966 as a response to all of the success that Olympus had with their half frame cameras the Penn line from the 1950's into the 60's. Canon had some other Demi models prior to this one but this was the last one I believe.  This is a sleek modern looking camera for the 1960's not as boxy as some camera's in this era. It shoots 35mm film but shoots photo's at half the size of a
normal 35mm negative giving you more exposures over 35mm cameras. If you follow me you know I wrote a blog on the buying process of this camera and in this blog I want to go over the specs of the camera . Half frame cameras have become more popular the last couple of years due to the price of film and processing. So much so the camera's that have been made in the last couple of years have been half frame from cheap plastic cameras to a new real camera from Pentax. Pentax's camera is the first real camera to be manufactured in decades proof that film is not dead.

Film: This camera uses 35mm film. Normal negatives are 36mm X 24mm this camera shoots 18mm X 24mm giving you twice the shots. So a 36 exposure roll now shoots 72 shots. Resolution can be a problem with grainer shots. But from what I've read that for social media and prints up to 8 X 10 come out just fine. I'll let you know.

Viewfinder: The viewfinder is Portrait oriented. Much like most of us use our cell phones to take a shot. To take a landscape oriented shot you must rotate the camera just the opposite of most cameras. Inside the viewfinder is the meter readings and focusing distance.

Focusing: To me this will be the biggest challenge while using the camera. This is not a SLR or a Rangefinder it uses zone focusing. You have to guesstimate the distance you are shooting and then put the lens to that distance focusing. I have an olympus camera that does this and surprisingly you get pretty sharp photo's most of the time but trying to shoot wide open at a close subject will be a challenge.

Lens: The lens is a Canon F/1.7 lens. I have been very impressed with Canon's film lenses and maybe that is why I'm buying a lot of Canon film cameras. This camera makes my 4th Canon film camera.

Exposure: This camera does have a built in meter which will allow you to shoot in Shutter priority. In the mid 1960's mercury batteries were the norm. The meter uses a 1.3 volt mercury battery that you can't get anymore. In my Canonet I have the same situation but I use a 1.5 alkaline battery. Which works but is not as accurate as with the mercury battery.
If I have problems with this there are ways around this . First I could use an external meter which will work fine. There is also a regulator that you can get that drops the voltage from 1.5 to 1.3 volts if necessary. 

Self Timer: This camera does have a self timer but with all vintage cameras self timers seem to be the weak link and you are advised not to use them because if they break usually your camera becomes inoperative.

One thing I like about this little camera is that you don't need a battery to shoot it! You can shoot it manually and use a meter or the sunny 16 rule. So where will this fall in my film camera arsenal ? This camera will become my go with me anywhere film camera. Even if I go on a digital shoot like a wildlife shoot I can take this little camera with me and still get some film shots. If I go on film shoots with my Canon AE-1 35mm or my Bronica ETR SI medium format this will be a great backup and fun camera to use.  Is this the best film camera in my collection?  No but it might become the funnest one to shoot not worrying about how many shots I take. I think it will become a good travel companion. If I want super sharp clinical photographs I can always shoot digital but for feel and mood I shoot film. So until next week get out and shoot!

Update: I have put a couple of rolls of film through this little camera and I'm really liking the camera. The lens and the zone focusing has been going great and I might only have maybe 1 or 2 out of focus in a roll. The meter is working great and pretty accurate. I haven't had any out of exposure shots yet. I am shooting Shutter priority which makes this camera very fun to shoot. Its small but solid feel is great. It is fast becoming my favorite film camera. I included a couple of diptychs in the blog that I took and scanned. I like trying to tell a story with the diptychs. Cheers!

Hey Everyone! Hope you're having a great week! Me ? Pretty good . Thanks for asking! LOL Today I want to look into the question in the title of this blog. Am I a closet Canon Shooter? Over the years I have shot many cameras and my main cameras have been my trusty Pentax MX during the film days I also had a Pentax K1000 as my first camera that I bought. So during the film era I was a Pentax shooter. Then during the early stages of my digital era I shot Nikon.  Started with a fancy point and shoot and then onto a Nikon D90 and on to a Nikon D800 full frame with the holy trinity of lenses to go with it . So I was defiantly a Nikon Shooter. When I turned 50 I went mirrorless and got a Sony A6000 crop sensor camera for hiking and camping and slowly over the years converted slowly to Sony shooting an Sony A6300, Sony A6500 all crop sensors then I decided to change back to full frame and got a Sony A7III and a A7C which I still use as my main cameras. I have a very good collection of lenses to go with the two full frame bodies. As I stated before I have always shot film off and on since the mid 70's and started developing my own negatives in the 80's. A few years ago I bought some vintage cameras and started shooting with them. I wanted a rangefinder type of camera. Couldn't afford a Leica. So I bought a 1962 Bell & Howell/ Canon Canonet 19. (If you purchased them outside of the US they were just Canon Canonet but in the US at the time they had to be attached to an American company Bell & Howell) . Anyway I got this one off of eBay and it was fun to shoot.  I also got a point and shoot digital Canon Camera a G7X MII to carry with me while I commuted back and forth to work. A small camera that could be my EDC (every day Carry) camera. Later I traded a guy in my camera club for a Canon EOS M camera that had been converted to Infra Red and use that for special IR stuff. Wow so that's 3 Canon Cameras. Then I found a nice Canon Canonet QL17 GIII on eBay and couldn't resist. This one is a 1972 model. That makes 4 Canons. So then a few weeks ago I got gifted a Canon AE-1 Program camera. This one was introduced in 1981. That makes 5 Canon's. The older Canon film cameras are one from the 60's one from the 70's and one from the 80's. None of this was planned . I was never a big Canon guy. I don't have anything against them but was never a fan either but there you have it I now have 5 Canon camera's. Now I don't use the 1962 model very much anymore it has a 45mm F/1.9 lens that is very sharp but kind of tight for the way I shoot. So it doesn't get put in the bag and  doesn't get much use. The IR camera has a 590nm conversion and I take it out every now and then . I'll be taking it with me on a workshop this weekend but it stays stored away mostly.  Now my Canon Canonet QL17 is a great small rangefinder and has a 40mm F/1.7 on it . Another sharp lens but the length for doing street sometimes seems long for the way I shoot.  I do use it as my everyday carry film camera. But I also have an Olympus Super trip that my mother had that I carry when the size of the camera is more important than sharpness. It's a little fixed 35mm F/4 lens with Zone Focusing. Just a step above a box disposable camera. But is it's fun for casual snapshots and has a built in flash for indoor stuff. My newest Canon the AE-1 Program is going to replace my trusty Pentax MX as my main 35mm camera for street and Travel/Photowalk Projects.  So even though I always tell people that I'm a Sony shooter when they ask I guess I'm really a Closet Canon Shooter. For specialty stuff. Film , Infrared, and EDC point and shoot I shoot Canon and for everything else I shoot Sony.  Unless I'm shooting Medium Format Film then it's the Bronica. LOL This is truly a 1st world thing. I have lots of cameras and love them all. I am after all a man and a gear head with GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome)  I can't get enough of these small photographic machines . And of course all of the gismo's that go with them. So the answer is yes I'm a Canon shooter but I'm also a Pentax, Bronica, Sony, Olympus and iPhone shooter as well. LOL So until next time . Get out and Shoot!

PS: An update since I've written this blog. Now it's 6 Canons! I just purchased a Canon Demi EE17 a 1966 half frame camera. More info in a future blog. Good Grief Charlie Brown! LOL

Hey Ya'll! How's your week doing? Mine? Fantastic ! This week I want to talk about 24 hours of photography that I had this weekend with my Photo Wingman Robert. My camera club has workshops every month and sometimes we have add-on workshops in-between . This weekend was going to be an add-on workshop. It was supposed  to be a perfect weekend to photograph the milky way . We wanted to go to Cape Hatteras with the unique lighthouse in the foreground and the milky way behind. But the lighthouse is having maintenance done on it and has scaffolding all around it. So we decided on Bodie Island Lighthouse. We have done this shot in the past that's why we wanted the Cape Hatteras shot somthing different. Maybe next year.  A week before the workshop the weather forecast was not good and was forecast to be 100% cloudy and not to have clear skies which is best for the milky way shot and the club cancelled the trip. Robert and myself had reserved a place to stay for the trip in Manteo North Carolina and we decided to go anyway. If it rained we'd get some rainy day shots. Maybe we could get some cool shots.

We started our trip on Saturday morning at 10:30 and headed toward Manteo. But instead of going the quickest route to get there we took a long way there purposely going through small towns that we haven't been to or really looked at before.  Our first planned stop was in Williamston North Carolina we stopped at a park that runs along the Roanoke River that was named Moratoc Park. It was a small park with water access for fishing boats and kayaks. There was a building there that looked like it was used for events and weddings. We then headed out again to  our next stop which was Bertie Beach on the Chowan River on the Bertie County side of the bridge. This brought back memories for me as I grew up near hear and did a lot of swimming in the Chowan River with cypress trees all around. We then headed toward our next stop in Elizabeth City North Carolina. This is a town that I want to explore more. We drove around town and stopped for a photo or two.  Our next stop was Kitty Hawk and the Wright Memorial National Park. I have been here  many times I really like the National Parks and being retired military I get a lifetime free pass to enter into the parks. Robert picked up his America the Beautiful Pass as he is retired military also. We stayed here and took quite a few shots. Our next stop was to check into our place we were staying and get something to eat. We like to eat local and not chain food like McDonalds. We saw a local restaurant that wasn't for tourist but looked liked locals ate there and so we ate there . Big win! If you are in Manteo eat at Darrells it's awesome and good prices too.  We then went to Kitty Hawk State Park which is comprised of Sand dunes. We had found a sunset shot we wanted to get. It was very windy and sand was blowing everywhere and hiking in the soft sand after a big meal was not the best for me! Thanks Robert! LOL we did find the spot and set up for sunset photos. But the clouds did not cooperate with us and we got some shots but nothing great. We made it back to the car and went and got some cold drinks and headed to the Bodie Island light house. If we thought 
that the wind was blowing bad at Kitty Hawk it was twice as bad at Bodie Island lighthouse. Had to hold down my tripod to keep camera as still as possible. At one point the wind blew Roberts tripod over but he caught it in time. I'm guessing that the wind was steady at 25mph with gust up to 35mph. But we got some shots and I was very pleased. The wind was blowing so hard that the clouds kept moving and we actually got shots with the Milky Way and clouds in it . Pretty cool. I was very satisfied with the results. We headed back to our room for a few hours sleep before we would go out again to shoot.

The next morning there were puddles in the parking lot telling us it had rained overnight but it wasn't raining so we went to our next stop a small lighthouse in Manteo. Marshes lighthouse to shoot a sunrise. It was so early that we could park very close to the waterfront and we set up and started shooting. We shot for an hour or so and we got some color in some of our shots and it was cloudy and we could hear thunder rumbling in the distance. After the sun was well risen we headed for breakfast. We stopped at TL's Family Restaurant and had a great breakfast. I highly recommend !
 We then headed back home the more direct route than the one we came on. We stopped in Columbia at the visitors center and took some photo's at boardwalk there. We left there and headed home. On the way back we had a black bear cross the highway in front of us before we got to Plymouth. It was a very healthy large bear. We slowed down but our camera's were packed away so we didn't get any shots but it was still awesome to see this bear. We made it home about 10:30 in the morning. 24 hours of fun and shooting! And we got some keepers also. 

Gear I took for those that want to know. Main camera body was a Sony A7C a 24mp camera. My lenses were 20mm f/1.8 for the milky way shot. My new to me Sony 20-70mm f/4 G and Sony 100-400 GM. This is pretty much my landscaping kit except I would swap out the 20mm for a Sony 16-35mm f/4. This is the kit that I take to trips where versatility is a must. I have the assortment of filters and all of the accessories that go along with the kit. All carried in a Shimoda 30 liter Action X backpack. The original. I also took my newest companion film camera the Canon Demi EE17 a half frame that uses less film and is really fun to shoot. I think this little camera will accompany me on lots of adventures to come. My tripod was a Sirui AM 284 carbon fiber with a Inndrel N44 ball head. I picked this up this year since I went back full frame it's a little larger than the Pro-Master one I have used for years. If I go anywhere where street or travel photography will be I also take a Platypod Extreme camera support plate instead of a tripod.

I don't really have a moral of the story here. I think the club made the correct decision on not going on the workshop but I also think we made the right decision also on going. I had already cancelled one trip to Manteo earlier in the year so I was going to go either way. Didn't want to cancel again. We both had fun and it wasn't too expensive splitting cost of gas and lodging. So find you a Photo buddy or wingman to go on photography trips with. You'll have a ball and come back with some good photo's to boot! Until Next week! Get out and Shoot!