Strait Montage
Yet another example of an accidental montage from the Olympus Pen which was not advancing the film properly. I took these shots while testing a series of filters (red, yellow, orange, blue x2, skylight, ND) on the same scene. The camera was handheld but I was trying to get the same framing with each shot so I could compare them easily. It ended up making a nice row of trees along the edge of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and an archipelago of Trial Islands. I like how it came out, and would have liked it even more with more subdued vertical banding. And while the results are not at all useful as a filter test, had they worked out I would not have had something to show here.
The first photo in this earlier post is technically comparable to this one in that it is like a panoramic montage with only one exposure (in that case) of a different scene, though the feel is very different. I wish I could control this effect, it would be fun to play with.
Click on the image for a larger version if you want to look more closely.
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Olympus Pen, Half Frame, 28mm/3.5 lens, Ilford Pan-F Plus 50, ISO50, Epson V700 Scanner
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burnt embers 
This gives the illusion of having been shot (once, not a series of times) through some filmy curtains.
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Thanks Melinda – that is an interesting thought, and it does seem like that now you mention it.
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These older cameras may be less expensive to repair than newer ones and these problems you have with the Oly are typical mechanical ones that may be easily repaired, unless it needs parts that are unavailable. I guess it depends on your commitment to it, too.
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I am committed to the camera – I like the half frame explorations I have been making and I think it has been a real boost to my creativity to have to work within the limits of the camera. It does not feel like I am done with it either.
To replace it typically would cost about the same as fixing it (I am not going to find another for $3), and the replacement might need fixing. I will probably have another try with the seal as that is a simple job – there are seal kits available for a reasonable price for this camera that likely are better than the black felt one that I made.
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It’s interesting that the horizontal line that is the horizon seems perfectly straight. That,combined with the vertical lines makes this a very nice composition, however unintended. My old Yashika had a film advance problem and I couldn’t afford to fix it so instead decided to study it. I sacrificed a few rolls of film and ran them through with the back open, marking where the film advanced to each time. I got a better understanding of what the camera was doing but after many, many advances,it began to advance properly. Still works fine today but its been a while since I used that camera.
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Thanks Ken – I was pretty careful lining up all the different shots by placing the same objects tight in the lower corners each time. These accidental montages reveal when I get it right, and not. I have studied this problem and mostly figured it out. It is advancing again almost properly, but not as well as it did before this problem started – before the bands between images were very regular, now they are variable, and once a roll or so almost non-existent. It has developed a worse like leak since I replaced the bottom seal, so I think I did not get that right, though I don’t understand the physics well enough to be sure whether it is the top of the camera that the light is leaking or the bottom. I need to think very carefully about that with the film in one hand and the camera in the other, and have not done it yet. I really should just take it in for servicing to get all the shutter speeds working again as well.
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