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Birthday-ish Week, 2021

Since my birthday is this weekend, I thought I’d use that as an excuse to post photos I took in the week between my birthday and my sister’s in 2021, since I just got them developed a few months ago!

We had my birthday lunch downtown at Pyro’s Pizza Pies – most memorable was how we were all DYING because my mom was being really chatty with the college students who were sitting next to us. The students seemed to love her though, of couse!

A short walk downtown

My birthday Bourbon Mocha at Vice & Virtue

I knocked a cup of vodka sauce at Aldo’s on to the table, my arm, and my pants. That’s the orange part on them.

Little strawberry cakelettes I made to wrap up my own birthday shenanigans that week. They looked so fancy! 

My sister’s birthday – we had lunch at R.P. Tracks – I sat across from my niece 🙂 Memorable moment from this lunch: we’re pretty sure that’s where my sister and brother-in-law contracted Covid, which they tested positive for a few days later. 

We then went to the Dixon Gallery and Gardens after lunch. As it happened, there were exhibits on that featured dessert-themed art. Perfect for ME!

And finally, the birthday dessert I made for my sister: lemon cheesecake topped with lemon curd, by her request

Nikon N80 Nikon 50mm f/1.8 D Kodak Ultra Max 400 

 

Chinon Bellami {Two Rolls In}

Cutest camera in my collection!

I’d wanted a Chinon Bellami for years, but by the time I started looking for one, they were WAY out of budget. But I kept an eye out and found a great deal on one. I was so stoked!

This camera is TINY. But really the thing I was drawn to was barn door style lens cover. I’m a sucker for a cool lens cover on a camera (see also: the Ricoh FF-1’s drawbridge lens cover.)

You open and close the “barn doors” with the film advance lever. This also turns the camera on.

A few specs on the Bellami:

  • 35mm lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.8
  • Shutter speed of 1/8s – 1/1000s
  • Zone focusing system (you estimate the focus distance and set it on the focus ring)
  • It runs on two 1.5v button batteries

Barn door lens cover – so unique 

On to some shots taken with the Bellami! These were taken over the course of 2021.


We always say we wish we could get a snow like this again. We had so much fun!

My sweet Mom – I miss her so!

My mom…there was an employee from the coffee shop taking their break by the bar, and mom went up and asked if they could turn on the Hustle sign so she could take pictures. I thought it was funny and so HER at the time, but now that’s she’s no longer with us, I’m very glad I took these pictures to document it!

We went to the Dixon gallery for my sister’s birthday. I was thrilled because they had exhibits on featuring desserts!

I was taking this photo and thought I was about to be told off because I was approached by a museum employee. But she really just waned to tell me more about the painting!

My niece using my camera in the gardens at the Dixon (it’s hers if she decides she wants to start taking more photos!)

Film used: Fuji Superia 400

I was really happy with the results of these first two rolls taken with the Chinon Bellami. I thought they were almost as cute as the camera itself!

{Go Ask Alice} Memphis Botanic Garden

I was really excited when I got these film scans back!

These photos were taken in May of 2022. We were supposed to be going to the Memphis Botanic Garden’s “Alice’s Adventures at the Garden” exhibit as a birthday outing for our friend Mallory, but she got sick and couldn’t attend. She was really adamant that the four of us still go, so we honored her wishes and went to the exhibit without her (We did go see her afterwards though!)

Stained glass leaves suspended from the ceiling of the Botanic Gardens’ lobby

The exhibit consisted sculptures made from real, living plants! There was a part of me thought that they would be faux flowers/plants, so I was AMAZED by what I saw when we got to the gardens.

My sister and niece walking to the gardens

Mom <3 She loved looking at the exhibit so miuch!

I thought this stained glass bench was amazing!

I liked getting to see people trimming and maintaining the exhibit. Because that’s showing that the exhibit was a living, breathing thing.

All in all, it was a very cool experience, and I was glad I had the opportunity to visit and photograph the Alice’s Adventures in the Garden exhibit!

Nikon N80 • Agfa Vista 200
(Sigma Super Wide II 28mm f/2.8 and Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D lenses used)

 

 

{Paper Shoot} Some Assembly Required

Meet my latest toy:

Some assembly required. The camera arrives flat, and you just insert the batteries and SD card into the included camera board, lay the camera board into the case, fold it closed, and place two screws to keep the case closed. Sounds more complicated than it is. 

The Paper Shoot Camera. They’re all over social media, and I have wanted one for awhile. It’s billed as a replacement for disposable film cameras. There isn’t a screen on the back of camera, so you don’t see the results of your efforts until you transfer the photos to a computer or phone.

What prompted me to finally buy myself one was the passing of my mother. As strange as it might sound, I knew that having a fun little photography tool would help me through my days. I wasn’t sure how I would feel about taking photos after the loss of my mother, and this little camera has been something I could play around with and not take too seriously.

I normally go into a camera’s specs when I post about it for the first time, but the Paper Shoot doesn’t have a lot of specs!

  • My version is 18MP, though there are some 16MP Paper Shoot cameras available.
  • There are four color filters that you can set via a switch on the back: normal color, black and white, sepia, and cool tone.
  • The case is interchangeable, and they have many designs you can purchase on the Paper Shoot site.
  • You can also get accessory lens sets, such as macro and prism lenses.
  • It runs on two rechargeable AAA batteries.
  • It comes with a USB-C cable that you can use for transferring your photos to a computer or charge the batteries. For what it’s worth, I use an SD card reader to be able to transfer the photos directly to my phone without needing a camera.
  • These cameras can actually take short videos – ten seconds. There is a time lapse setting where you let the camera take photos for thirty minutes and get a ten second video of them. I have not used this function very much because, unless you get a particular accessory function card for the camera, it needs to be hooked up to a power source while shooting video.
  • The Paper Shoot has a VERY wide angle lens. I am not 100% sure, but I read somewhere that it’s the equivalent of 22mm in 35mm terms. It actually reminds me of my Lomography La Sardina.

 

I did my best to demonstrate the differences between each filter

And now for an assortment of photos I have taken with the Paper Shoot since I received it in February. As you will be able to tell from the photos below, I found the camera to be a master of mirror selfies.

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Conclusion?

If I could change one thing, it would be to make the“viewfinder” more accurate regarding what you see through it vs. the actual image captured. Because the lens on the camera is so wide and the viewfinder doesn’t reflect that, you need to keep that in mind when taking photos. If I use the viewfinder to frame my photo, I always take several steps forward toward my subject to try to make up for the “what you see vs. what the camera sees” factor.

What I saw through the viewfinder

What the camera captured

All in all, the Paper Shoot camera is pretty much the fun little thing that I had hoped it to be. It’s not supposed to be the most fully-featured camera, so I don’t expect it to work like an SLR. But the camera is advertised as an eco friendly alternative to a film disposable camera, so I just think of it in those terms. And the Paper Shoot absolutely beats what you can do with its film counterpart!

Since I mentioned that I got this camera to help me some with the loss of my mother, I want to say that I’m bummed she’s not here to see photos I’ve taken with the Paper Shoot. She would have thought it was SO cool.