January 28, 2003

Just a quickie update before I leave for my trip to the Barranca del Cobre:

Woca/Holga users with the flash-feature - listen up! Yesterday, one of the batteries used to power the flash became loose inside my camera. As there is no separate access to those batteries and they are also right up against the emulsion-side of the film, I had no choice but to forward the film to the end (so in essence forfeiting the rest of the shots on the roll) and removing it in order to fix the battery situation.

The main reason for the toil is of course (as fellow flash version users probably already know) the insane arrangement of the battery contact points. The left battery side works ok, with the plus and minus points connecting properly to the coiled spring on the bottom and metal duhdahd on the top. But on the right side, you have to flip the battery upside down to get the flash to work - in essence akwardly connecting the smaller plus side with the coiled spring. I should have known that this was a recipe for trouble.

The solution I found is actually pretty darn simple (yet also too obvious as to have entered my brain in the "forethought" rather than the "afterthought" department): Simply affix the loose battery (or in my case, both batteries for good measure) lengthwise with a two-inch piece of gaffer's tape - and check to make sure that the battery is in its proper place and tied down right by vigorously shaking the camera (of course all within reason, folks) and flipping the flash-power-up button before you load another roll of film. If you hear the tell-tale whine of the "1960s sci-fi movie sound effect", you're in business.

OR: kick out the batteries altogether, and forget about the flash feature - which is what my instinct tells me I might end up doing anyway.

Also - a quick nod of appreciation in the general direction of Chicago and Toronto for the kind words of Jackie Huba and Kerry Liles regarding my photographs. I couldn't have asked for a more encouraging nudge before my trip to photograph the Copper Canyon. Thanks, guys.