Episode 51 • Photo Walk, Photo Sit, Photo Play Dead

It’s back to the coalface for Episode № 51 of I Dream of Cameras, featuring notable cameras of 1973 (uh, the early ’70s), amnesty for the prodigious mailbag, a recap of Gabe’s recent portrait shoot and a photowalk at the Getty Center, and the strange and terrible saga of Jeff’s XPan. Topics discussed include:

* A recap of our banner 50th episode and the chaotic events of past three months
* Gabe presents… the cameras of 1972, which bear a striking resemblance to the cameras of 1973: the Olympus OM-1, the Polaroid SX-70, the Nikon F2 and the Rollei A26
* Despite the rapturous response to the 50th — all credit to Chris Chu — a lot was left on the cutting-room floor, including the prodigious mailbag, so… amnesty!
* Gabe did a portrait shoot at iHeartRadio for a couple of friends — how do you learn about lighting setups?
* Do you guys apply firmware updates to your digital cameras?
* Gabe loves his Canon EOS 3 and Hasselblad 501cm; Jeff’s EOS 5 experience soured him on autofocus cameras forever (and maybe Canon, too)
* Victoria of Tiny Camera Store fame turned Gabe on to the Chinon Auto 3001 Multifocus and the Voigtländer Bessa II with the Heliar lens
* The new Los Angeles Photography Club had a photo walk at the Getty Center — what makes a good photo walk? would you prefer a “photo sit”? — also, Jeff loathes both the Getty’s architecture and its architect
* However, we saw a great photography exhibit by Carrie Mae Weems and Dawoud Bey
* And now… a SAGA! Jeff’s beloved Hasselblad XPan froze up mere days before a trip to Paris, and even though it unfroze, his confidence is shattered. His deranged solution? Order the incrementally improved XPan II as a backup!
* A rundown of the differences between the XPan and XPan II (pro tip: they didn’t fix the bad paint)
* A discussion of the concept of the “backup camera”
* Other panoramic cameras are nice, but don’t kid yourselves, the XPan reigns supreme. Fight me on this!
* Any photographic advice for a first-time visitor to Paris? Email us, you know where!
* Gabe has begun processing his own film, and can’t load the reels in the changing bags without closing his eyes to make it “extra dark”
* The eBay “startTime” hack doesn’t work anymore, so what to do? Sort by Time: newly listed, and it’ll show the date the auction was posted
* Gabe vows to shoot with the Graflex Super D — send him your tips!