How dumb could I be.

MP Guy · 04-24-2006

I have been snapping pictures left and right for the past month of the family having fun and capturing that Kodak moment on Velvia. Today I decided to swap out what was left and put in some Tmax. Well, rewind felt a bit odd. No film in the camera!! This is only the second time I have done this. The lasttime was about 17 years ago while shooting underwhater with a Nikonos II. Was diving in Key Laro for a good 45 minutes snapping pictures. Only to realize no film!

wlewisiii · 04-24-2006

Not too long ago I was using a Canon IVSb. I'd just gotten it back from DAG so I went for a walkabout with some color film loaded. Shot my 24 shots marvelling at how smooth it was now... Stopped at the neighborhood Walgreens and dropped it off.

1 hour later I've got a totally blank developed roll that popped off the end of the takeup spool

William

Kin Lau · 04-24-2006

"Kodak moment" on Velvia... not wonder it didn't work

Happened to me in Venice, Italy. Thankfully I realized it 1/2 way thru the canal bus ride. Made sure the film took up properly and finished the roll going back.

jan normandale · 04-24-2006

Jorge, hate to admit it but this just happened to me two weeks ago.

I was at a site that was cordoned off and not accessible. I managed to get in and shot what I thought was a preloaded roll of 36 Fuji 400 ISO, when I got to 36 I noted that the rewind sprocket was not moving ... cr@p! By then like you the moment was totally gone. Now I'm becoming obsessive. Look at the rewind each time I crank a frame forward.

04-24-2006

This past February during my last visit to Tucson, I did the same thing.

As someone said - at least I "saved" a whole roll of film!

[Will not say if my thoughts momentarily turned to digital!

]

BrianShaw · 04-24-2006

Don't kick yourself too hard... we've all done it!

Many years ago I forgot to load film in a camera on a job -- not even mis-loaded... NO FILM AT ALL. It was a one-shot deal, and I missed it. There was ZERO chance of a re-shoot. I remember every frame I (didn't) shoot -- any one of them would have been a Pulitzer Prize winner... in my memory, at least.

Ergo · 04-24-2006

I hate to brag so i won't...

SRMC · 04-24-2006

That's better than my taking pictures of the inside of my lens cap in the middle of a roll.

SRMC

bmattock · 04-24-2006

I cranked too hard on a classic Zeiss Ikon Contina - it has some serious ratchet power. Pulled the end right off the film when I got the end of the film.

Could have saved - maybe - but needed to reload to finish my shoot, which precluded going to any kind of dark place to try to play games. Said some choice curse words and opened the back. Took the mess off the take up spool and reloaded. I still grit my teeth when I think of it.

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

wierdcollector · 04-24-2006

Did the same thing four days ago. Good part was I noticed on shot #4, had 3 extra rolls of film with me and six other cameras loaded and ready for trying so no big loss, just a bit of dignity. Thank goodness for no witnesses.

sf · 04-24-2006

Wow, Jorge, your film advance must be so smooth! My RF645 lets me know when film is and is not in the chamber.

Closest I ever got to doing this was yesterday at the tulip fields in Skagit, WA. I took some Maco IR 820c, and upon the second hand advice of a pnet user, treated it as Rollei IR 400. THe maco is, from what i gather now, a 25 ISO film, and when I got home, developed it, and looked at the negs, nothing there at all. Totally white.

RML · 04-24-2006

Did that probably a couple of times, too, over the past ten years. Tried the same thing not long ago with the R-D1. No card in the camera. Post-view screen off. No way I realised that the dial was indicating 0 images left. Found out after about a couple of shots when I tried to chimp a shot.

See, digital does have benefits!

c.poulton · 04-24-2006

Not exactly a film related incident, but...

I am a film man, not used to using digital, however for a project at work I had to visit a potential site for a new building - difficult to get to and arrange access. Took the office digital P&S so I could download the images onto our PC's for incorporation in a report we had to get out the door that evening.

Everything went fine on site - I took a fair number of pictures and went back to the office feeling fine. When I get back and look what's on the card - Nada zilch zero nothing! I had forgotton that there is quite a delay in between pressing the shutter and the camera actually taking the shot - maybe a second or two! There I was pressing the shutter button expecting the camera to WORK, just as my GT does, but no with a digital P&S you have to wait for the camera. I did not, I just moved onto the next shot as I am used to. I KNEW I SHOULD HAVE TAKEN MY OWN CAMERA and got a 1 hour photo deal.....

Anyway, as luck would have it I managed to dig out some earlier shots taken a year before and used them instead. Just kept very quiet about my own problem.

Maybe I am just getting old?

pvdhaar · 04-24-2006

Jorge, your post made me contemplating starting my photography in an entirely different way.

What I get on film is almost always disappointing compared to the mental image I have of what I snapped.

I've now a clear vision of going about with a camera that has no film in.. I can snap like a madman, have the best imaginable pictures, and still not spend a single penny.

Just kidding of course, but still...

Kin Lau · 04-25-2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by pvdhaar

Jorge, your post made me contemplating starting my photography in an entirely different way.

What I get on film is almost always disappointing compared to the mental image I have of what I snapped.

I've now a clear vision of going about with a camera that has no film in.. I can snap like a madman, have the best imaginable pictures, and still not spend a single penny.

Just kidding of course, but still...

Would you believe that Robert Feinman posted exactly just that last August?

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/foru...ad.php?t=10238

http://robertdfeinman.com/conceptual_photography.html

pvdhaar · 04-25-2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kin Lau

Would you believe that Robert Feinman posted exactly just that last August?

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/foru...ad.php?t=10238

http://robertdfeinman.com/conceptual_photography.html

Eyeopener for me, but reading & clicking around his site I saw that it was meant as a parody. What's more, his interest seems still to be to show something to someone else.. even if it is a white canvas only.

I may have made my suggestion half jokingly, but to me it would make more sense without that last step.

The process could be very liberating, not taking pictures but merely imagining that you've frozen a moment in time in your memory. Carrying a camera would be crucial. The click of the shutter is when you freeze that mental image. The pictures would always be great, perfectly composed, full of life, and far from a white rectangular void..

sbug · 04-25-2006

I've nearly done that a few times. I watch the rewind crank religiously now. More often though I do forget what film is in the camera; B&W, color, speed, # of exposures. That is frustrating too. I know some members use only one type of film (Vincent Benoit) and others put a bit of tape on the bottom of the camera with film info (JoeFriday). I am not that smart yet.

robert blu · 04-25-2006

Hey Jorge, did it happened to you last time 17 years ago? May be it means you are getting younger !!! ehh ehh ehhh
ciao, rob

Kin Lau · 04-25-2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by pvdhaar

Eyeopener for me, but reading & clicking around his site I saw that it was meant as a parody. What's more, his interest seems still to be to show something to someone else.. even if it is a white canvas only.

I may have made my suggestion half jokingly, but to me it would make more sense without that last step.

The process could be very liberating, not taking pictures but merely imagining that you've frozen a moment in time in your memory. Carrying a camera would be crucial. The click of the shutter is when you freeze that mental image. The pictures would always be great, perfectly composed, full of life, and far from a white rectangular void..

I think most of us are better "virtual photographers" and "virtual cinematographers". Being able to capture and express what we see is the big challenge. Our minds also happen to be the ultimate in image manipulation, able to blend multiple exposures, ignore stuff, make people and places seem a lot more beautiful than in reality.