…the camera. He has two lenses, one in the front and one in the back–one of which can be tucked away, you know, when he just wants to look like a box.

So I’ve already taken my camera out for a few spins. The results thus far have been amazing. When I took my first two shots, I had no idea what to expect. I was worried about light leaks or focusing problems between the surface of the ground glass and the film. To my delight (and surprise), the first two shots came out close to perfect.

And now I really have to say…I’m addicted.

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After spending nearly seven months on this project, I decided that August would be it. I needed to finish the camera before my photo class’ landscape shoot. So in one big effort to do that, over the span of one week I oiled the cherry, polished the brass, and plopped together some bellows (still looking for the right material, but blackout curtain, painted black, was what I used).

Keep in mind I was also working full time every day, so this was *not* an easy task.

I took a lot of shots throughout the night, mostly in an effort to create a time lapse video in the future. Here are a couple highlights:

All of the wood pieces are laid out. I spent an entire evening sanding each piece, first with 80 grit, then 100 grit, then 150 grit, then 220 grit sandpaper.

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Here are some photos from the final phases of construction of the camera.

The font standard–a little buggy but it works.

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After pulling an all nighter on *Friday* night, folding the bellows the morning of my first shoot, and attaching the bellows on location, I’m pretty exhausted. I just finished developing the film last night–my first two shots!–and it looks fantastic! No light leaks, and it’s just beautiful.

Anyway, here’s a few quick photos from my first shoot. I’m trying to compile more detailed posts of the last part of the construction process as well as the assembly of the camera. I’m just extremely busy right now…but hopefully I can get *some* work done on the train to DC this weekend.

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