Print: Hard Times

Last weekend some friends and I went to Belmont Ave, a fairly hip part of downtown Chicago. Between checking out cool shops such as People Play Games, and Chicago Comics, I found an abandoned storefront with this mannequin inside. She's sitting, facing away from the window; I think she's depressed. I used my Leica M4 with my 50mm Summicron, and Ilford HP5+ film. The physical print is 10 x 7 inches.

Roll: Yard-Sailing in Niles

The "Perverted Old Man"

Last week my friend David and I went to a bunch of yard and house sales around the Niles area. One of the online ads for yard sales listed a "perverted old man" as being for sale. We couldn't resist; we found the sale, and the perverted old man (pictured above). The nice older gentleman didn't seem too perverted, and talked to us about how he grew up in Missouri by Six Flags Great America. He even let me take his picture, as long as I sent him "a check in the mail."

Ad for the Perverted Old Man

Barry with his Van

That same day, we ran into one of my friends and former boss, Barry, at an estate sale. He was buying a creepy Betty Boop mask. I used to photo assist (and still do, occasionally) for him on architectural shoots.

Here are some other shots I took that day, as well as the rest of the roll I finished later last week. I used my Leica M3 with a 50mm Summicron and Ilford FP4+ 125 Film.

Spotlight: Olympus OM-1n

While scouring various estate sales last week for cool finds, I came across a black Olympus OM-1n. It was marked $125 with a busted lens and no hot-shoe. I managed to talk the owner down to $50 for just the body. What a sweet deal! Luckily the hot-shoe from my OM-2n fit just fine.

The OM-1n came out in 1979, and is a slightly updated version of the OM-1, which launched in 1972. The OM-1 revolutionized the camera market when it originally came out, due to its incredibly small size for an SLR.

The OM-1n is small (even smaller than a Leica M!), but the build quality is fantastic. It feels extremely solid in my hands. All the controls are at just the right place. I love how both the shutter speed and aperture dials are located around the lens. This means I can adjust both settings without having to move my right index finder off of the shutter. Other features that I like are the mirror lock-up setting (not really necessary for 35mm, but a nice option), removable hot-shoe, and film rewind switch (just like a Leica). The only thing I don't like about the OM-1n is the fact that it takes crappy PX 625 batteries, and not the more reliable 357 batteries.

Here are some photos I took a few days ago on the OM-1n. I used Ilford FP4+ 125 film.

Thanks for looking!