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infryqYesterday we went to the Strip and got cheese (Brenta). We played a little
Scopa at La Prima, and made the day of a nice young couple visiting from
Italy.
I mixed up stock solutions for cyanotypes, and painted the inside of a
couple of oatmeal canisters black to use as small pinhole cameras. For a
larger one, I've co-opted the shipping box for the big air conditioning
unit on the third floor. It's about three feet tall and maybe 18x20 inches
across, with one open end. I cut the bottom off an empty metal-bottomed
cardboard canister (of potato starch) and put a hole in it with a needle
and a hammer, then sanded down the burr with 80 and 120 grit sandpaper to
use for the lens. I haven't taken a loupe to it yet but it should be
alright. I then cut apart two Cheerios boxes and made a tight-fitting lid
for the open end of the AC box, with a hole for the lens. I've painted the
inside of the lid black, and plan to line the rest of the box with black
paper to save paint.
One trick is that there are no rooms in our house that have no windows --
it was built in 1895. The closest thing I have to "subdued lighting" is a
room in the basement with glass block on the noth side of the house. I
mixed the stock solutions there in a dim corner away from the light, and am
hoping it will be enough. That's what prototyping is for, anyhow. I'm not
sure however how I'm going to coat and dry papers there, though -- it's
pretty humid and stagnant in the basement (in spite of the dehumidifier) to
begin with and I kinda think if I cover up the drying area to reduce light
they'll just moulder. I may try a batch in the basement and a batch
somewhere else with the windows covered.
We found the light box and it works, but the timer plug has gone missing so
I wasn't able to try it out this morning. It's... really bright, anyway.
Scopa at La Prima, and made the day of a nice young couple visiting from
Italy.
I mixed up stock solutions for cyanotypes, and painted the inside of a
couple of oatmeal canisters black to use as small pinhole cameras. For a
larger one, I've co-opted the shipping box for the big air conditioning
unit on the third floor. It's about three feet tall and maybe 18x20 inches
across, with one open end. I cut the bottom off an empty metal-bottomed
cardboard canister (of potato starch) and put a hole in it with a needle
and a hammer, then sanded down the burr with 80 and 120 grit sandpaper to
use for the lens. I haven't taken a loupe to it yet but it should be
alright. I then cut apart two Cheerios boxes and made a tight-fitting lid
for the open end of the AC box, with a hole for the lens. I've painted the
inside of the lid black, and plan to line the rest of the box with black
paper to save paint.
One trick is that there are no rooms in our house that have no windows --
it was built in 1895. The closest thing I have to "subdued lighting" is a
room in the basement with glass block on the noth side of the house. I
mixed the stock solutions there in a dim corner away from the light, and am
hoping it will be enough. That's what prototyping is for, anyhow. I'm not
sure however how I'm going to coat and dry papers there, though -- it's
pretty humid and stagnant in the basement (in spite of the dehumidifier) to
begin with and I kinda think if I cover up the drying area to reduce light
they'll just moulder. I may try a batch in the basement and a batch
somewhere else with the windows covered.
We found the light box and it works, but the timer plug has gone missing so
I wasn't able to try it out this morning. It's... really bright, anyway.
