Reporting today on #33: Get the mystery roll of film developed (from Grandpa’s old camera) from my 101 in 1001 days challenge.
Both of my grandfathers gifted me a number of their now-vintage cameras, before they passed away. More recently, my mom’s brother found a few more of grandpa’s cameras in an old plastic bag, and entrusted me with them.
To our surprise, treasured within the confines of the rusted metal torso of the twins-reflex Rolleicord was a partially-exposed roll of medium format 120 film. I promptly shut myself into a dark closet, blocked the light from under the door with a towel, and removed the film in the pitch black as to not expose anything further. I sealed the paper around it tightly with a rubber band, and set it aside to get developed. That was over two years ago and the 120 film remained in our foyer consul, waiting to be developed.
There are not many film labs around here anymore, so I sent it away mail order with instructions to develop the film and make high resolution scans of the negatives.
Here is what was delivered in the mail a few short days later…
No one/nothing is recognizable except for what’s in the last frame – my grandfather taking a picture of himself! My best guess is that he picked this camera up used in a garage sale and was testing it out for the first time here. He loved photography and was very frugal and thrifty. The last time I saw him before he passed away in 2002 was in their home in Florida. I was on my way to photograph a graduation in Sarasota and stopped on my way their to see him and my grandmother. It was during this very same visit that he loaded me up with a bunch of books he had on photography, including a whole series book set by Kodak. This film does prove that this camera is in working order though! I think I’ll order myself some 120 film and start where grandpa left off…
Comments:
