Subminiature Photography
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Subminiature photography is photographic technologies and techniques working with film material smaller in size than 35mm film, such as 16mm, 9.5mm, 17mm, or 17.5mm films. It is distinct from
photomicrography A micrograph is an image, captured photographically or digitally, taken through a microscope or similar device to show a magnified image of an object. This is opposed to a macrograph or photomacrograph, an image which is also taken on a mic ...
, photographing microscopic subjects with a camera which is not particularly small.


Definition

Subminiature — "very much reduced in size",
Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the principal historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP), a University of Oxford publishing house. The dictionary, which published its first editio ...
. A subminiature camera is a class of camera that is very much smaller than a "miniature camera". The term "miniature camera" was originally used to describe cameras using the 35 mm cine film as negative material for still photography; so cameras that used film smaller than 35mm were referred to as "sub-miniature".T.L.GREEN Ultra miniature Camera Technique, Scope and Limitations, The Focal Press London 1965 The smallest of these are often referred to as "ultra-miniature".
Lipstick camera A hidden camera or spy camera is a camera used to photograph or record subjects, often people, without their knowledge. The camera may be considered "hidden" because it is not visible to the subject being filmed, or is disguised as another obje ...
s and other small
digital camera A digital camera, also called a digicam, is a camera that captures photographs in Digital data storage, digital memory. Most cameras produced today are digital, largely replacing those that capture images on photographic film or film stock. Dig ...
s are not included, because they don't use film. The smaller subminiature cameras, called ultraminiature cameras, particularly Minox, are associated with
spy Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ''e ...
ing. In short, some people define "subminiature camera" as one that uses film smaller than 35mm (even though some of these cameras are larger than full-framed 35mm cameras), but others define it any camera that has a film format smaller than the standard 35mm format of 24x36mm (even though some of these cameras are larger than full-framed 35mm cameras).


Types

There are many subminiature camera types.
Minox Minox (pronounced ) is a manufacturer of cameras, known especially for its subminiature camera. The first product to carry the Minox name was a subminiature camera, conceived in 1922, and finally produced in 1936, by Baltic German Walter Zapp ...
, followed by Tessina, GaMi,
Rollei Rollei () is a German manufacturer of optical instruments founded in 1920 by and in Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, and maker of the Rolleiflex and Rolleicord series of cameras. Later products included specialty and nostalgic type films for the ...
,
Yashica was a Japanese manufacturer of cameras, lenses, and film editing equipment active from 1949 until 2005 when its then-owner, Kyocera, ceased production. It acquired the lens manufacturer Tomioka (Tomioka Optical Co., Ltd). In 2008, the Yashica ...
,
Mamiya is a Japanese company that manufactures high-end cameras and other related photographic and optical equipment. With headquarters in Tokyo, it has two manufacturing plants and a workforce of over 200 people. The company was founded in May 1940 b ...
, Gemflex, Stylophot and
Minolta was a Japanese manufacturer of cameras, lenses, camera accessories, photocopiers, fax machines, and laser printers. Minolta Co., Ltd., which is also known simply as Minolta, was founded in Osaka, Japan, in 1928 as . It made the first integrated ...
are the best-known manufacturers. All made small, precision cameras and a few were still in production in 2006 but by 2011, only the Minox TLX model was still in production. Production stopped by 2012. Getting film and processing for most smaller cameras is a challenge as they are no longer manufactured or supported. Most require cutting your own film and home-processing. But recently due to the rise of film again, a decent portion of film places now develop it along with many other types of film except Kodachrome in correlation to 110 film. The best known subminiature formats are—in increasing size—Minox (8×11 mm), Kodak disc (8×10 mm), 16 mm (10×14 mm), Super 16 mm (12×17 mm),
110 film 110 is a cartridge-based film format used in photography, still photography. It was introduced by Kodak in 1972. 110 is essentially a miniaturized version of Kodak's earlier 126 film format. Each frame is , with one Registration pin, registrati ...
(13×17 mm), 17.5mm for HIT camera( for example TONE camera), and the
Advanced Photo System Advanced Photo System (APS) is a film format for consumer still photography first marketed in 1996 and discontinued in 2011. It was sold by various manufacturers under several brand names, including Eastman Kodak (Advantix), FujiFilm (Nexia), Agf ...
(APS) with different
aspect ratio The aspect ratio of a geometry, geometric shape is the ratio of its sizes in different dimensions. For example, the aspect ratio of a rectangle is the ratio of its longer side to its shorter side—the ratio of width to height, when the rectangl ...
s on 24 mm film. While many subminiature cameras were inexpensive and poorly manufactured (thus giving the format a bad name), Minox, Gami, Edixa, Rollei,
Pentax was a Japanese camera and optical equipment manufacturer. Currently, it exists as the Pentax Life Care Business Division of Hoya's medical endoscope business, as well as the digital camera brand of Ricoh Imaging, a subsidiary of Ricoh. Penta ...
and Minolta made quality cameras capable of producing fine results—even when enlarged. Some of these formats, or non-standard cartridges loaded with an otherwise standard ciné format, are best described as specialised (e.g., Minox or Sharan); half-frame 35 mm uses standard 35 mm film; cameras such as 110 and disc were aimed at the mass market. The first subminiature single lens reflex is the Russian Narciss camera produced in 1961-65. First making an appearance in the late 1930s, often as concealed cameras, sub-miniature cameras became popular soon after
WWII World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
when many consumer markets required small, inexpensive cameras such as the Petie in Germany. Friedrich Kaftansky's Mini-flex was designed in 1931, on the market in 1933.
Walter Zapp Walter Zapp (; – 17 July 2003) was a Baltic Germans, Baltic German inventor. His best-known creation was the Minox subminiature photography, subminiature camera. Over the course of his life, he was granted over 60 patents. Biography ...
's Riga Minox appeared in 1938. Kodak's introduction of the 110 camera in the 1970s and the Kodak disc camera in the 1980s brought the sub-miniature camera to the forefront of the photographic market. It was very attractive to users wanting a smaller, flat, package. In 1988, Kodak announced that they were halting film camera production, having made over 25m cameras. It was thought that Chinese manufacturers made over that number alone. In 1998, Kodak announced that Kodak disc film production was stopping.Rochester Business Journal Jan 24 1997 The 8x11mm Minox film format has retained special interest far beyond its original design life, because any film can be trimmed to work into its re-useable cassettes. No sprockets are needed in the film to make the camera film transport function. Minox also offered a developing tank that can be loaded with cassettes in daylight, which has continued in popularity, and copied by Minolta, and Yashica for its own models. Various formats of sub-miniature camera have come and gone over the years as newer formats have replaced older ones. Many larger format cameras, especially 35 mm, became smaller in size and weight—partly due to the consumer demand for smaller cameras—and were able to replace some subminiature formats. For example, full-frame 35 mm cameras, such as the Minox 35 and the
Olympus XA The Olympus XA was a series of 135 film, 35 mm cameras manufactured and marketed by Olympus (company), Olympus of Japan from 1979 to 1985. The original XA was a rangefinder camera with a fast 35 mm f/2.8 lens, and aperture priority me ...
, were made as small as possible. Most other subminiature cameras are still usable if film can be obtained, particularly if the photographer is prepared to do the processing.


Subminiature camera film

* 16mm perforated or unperforated bulk roll film by Agfa, Kodak, Fujifilm in 100 ft to 1000 ft. * Using
film slitter A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, since ...
to slit 35mm roll film or 120 film into Minox format film or 16mm film. * 110 film is still manufactured by Lomography * Disc and APS film is available but expired, the former from 1998 and latter from 2012


Subminiature photography technique

;Focusing The process of focusing a subminiature camera is the same as any other camera: * Unit focusing: the entire lens is moved back and forth relative to the film plane. Examples: Minox B, C, LX, TLX; Edixa 16, Tessina. Minox 110, Monolta 16 * Front element focusing: Rollei 16, Rollei 110. * Fixed focus, feasible with the great depth of field of short focal length lenses: Minox EC, Minox ECX. * Internal focusing is not used. The small size of the camera and film require the use of a lens with short focal length, and hence great
depth of field The depth of field (DOF) is the distance between the nearest and the farthest objects that are in acceptably sharp focus (optics), focus in an image captured with a camera. See also the closely related depth of focus. Factors affecting depth ...
. This simplifies focusing to some extent. The simplest system is to use a lens with fixed focus set at the
hyperfocal distance In optics and photography, hyperfocal distance is a distance from a lens beyond which all objects can be brought into an "acceptable" focus. As the hyperfocal distance is the focus distance giving the maximum depth of field, it is the most desi ...
. This will produce images that are acceptably sharp from infinity to some near plane (usually five to eight feet away). This system is used in most cheaper cameras. More complex systems allow variable focus, through a dial or slider. Many cameras with this system have distance markings on the control; it is up to the user to set the focus according to the distance to the subject. Most Minox cameras use this system. Some subminiature cameras include a
rangefinder A rangefinder (also rangefinding telemeter, depending on the context) is a device used to Length measurement, measure distances to remote objects. Originally optical devices used in surveying, they soon found applications in other fields, suc ...
, for example the Minox 110. These increase the size. Autofocus or through-the-lens focusing systems are not used on subminiature cameras to reduce the size requirements. ;Macro photography Subminiature cameras are less suited to
macro photography Macro photography (or photomacrography or macrography, and sometimes macrophotography) is extreme close-up photography, usually of very small subjects and living organisms like insects, in which the size of the subject in the photograph is g ...
than larger cameras, although the relatively large depth of field at close distances is an advantage. Where concealment is required, subminiature cameras are required; they (particularly the various Minox models) are well known as spy cameras, where they were used to photograph documents close up. Minox cameras for these purposes come with a 24-inch measuring chain attached, with markings corresponding to certain distances, to assist in focusing at these short ranges. ;Telephoto Few subminiature cameras have interchangeable lenses, which reduce the advantages of a small size system.
Telephoto A telephoto lens, also known as telelens, is a specific type of a long-focus lens used in photography and cinematography, in which the physical length of the lens is shorter than the focal length. This is achieved by incorporating a special lens ...
lenses for such small formats essentially do not exist, except for Steky and Gami. There have been attachments to allow cameras (generally Minox) to attach to telescopes or binoculars, but these give results of lower quality than the camera's optics can achieve. ;Developing and enlarging *Nikor or Jobo 16mm development reel *Nikor 9.2mm or Jobo 8x11 development reel *Minox daylight development tank *10x14mm, 12x17mm, 14x21mm and 8x11mm negative carrier used with 35mm enlarger. *Minox enlarger with 15mm Micro-Minox enlarging lens


See also

* Pigeon photography


Gallery

Image:Minox IIIs with film.jpg, Minox IIIs camera with a Minox 8x11 mm cartridge of film Image:Tele Minox.JPG, Minox BL with an 8x35 binocular for telephotography File:White Narciss camera.JPG, Russian KMZ Narciss 16mm SLR File:Gemflex.jpg, Gemflex twin lens reflex camera File:Minolta_110_Mk_II.jpg, Minolta 110 Zoom SLR Mk II, manufactured 1979—1982, with a Petra fisheye viewfinder File:Arsenal Kiev-30.JPG, Kiev 30 16mm subminiature camera with cassette File:MEC-16 SB.jpg, MEC-16 SB File:Meopta Mikroma.jpg,
Meopta Mikroma Meopta Mikroma is an all metal 16mm subminiature camera made by Meopta in Czechoslovakia, after World War II.William White Ph.D Subminiature Photography Focal Press 1990 p101-103 Features *Dimension: 74mm x 35mm x 28mm *Weight: 225g *Lens: Me ...
II 16mm camera


References

*Joseph D. Cooper Ultra-miniature photography *Joseph D. Cooper The Minox Manual *William White: Subminiature Photography {{DEFAULTSORT:Subminiature Photography Photography by genre