I also remember the big bristle brushes and white cans of "THIS CLEANSER".

Take a look at CameraSim.com . I used it to good effect teaching a group of youngsters who weren’t going to afford adjustable cameras anytime soon.

I recognized that thought right away. However I didn't see it as harmful or degrading. Sometimes folks can be a little too sensitive.

Welcome to the group. I also teach photography to kids. A problem I faced was not everyone had (or could afford) an adjustable camera. Something that helped was CameraSim.com. Just passing along a teaching tip.

Look at https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92042960 for a demo of the percussion cap flash pan.
I fired one a few times when I was MUCH younger. A local photographer had me learn to use flash powder and glass plates. He said it was good for me to understand how the old processes worked.

I do an impression of a Civil War era photographer. Real flash powder was frequently ignited with a percussion cap like ones used on muskets. Think of an old pistol-like mechanism where the hammer flies up (instead of down) and hits the cap mounted on a nipple.
Take a look at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flash_powder for info on the composition of the powder.

Your idea for talcum powder is quite valid. In the bottom of the V tray place a small tube with holes every inch or so. BUT, point the holes down towards the bottom of the V. That way the air flow is forced to turn upwards carrying the talc or corn starch up and out. For the air source try a can of compressed air like you use to dust your keyboard. A quick burst of canned air can push a couple of teaspoons of talc up from a foot long V tray.

If you elect to try the "real deal" flash powder expect the safety person/committee to look askance at the rig. In events where musketry is used all participants have to attend a safety inspection where charges of a specific weight/type of gunpowder are examined and only those are allowed in the reenactment. Using black powder instead of flash powder won't look right as black powder burns orange instead of white.

The real Matthew Brady


My "impression" of Mr. Brady

Inside each old person there is a young person wondering, "What the hell happened"!

Many of us fall into the "Senior" category, both by age and equipment. I personally believe it is inherent upon all of us with "experience" to pass along all of the knowledge we have gained to the newer generations of photographers. In my case it seems to involve telling the kids stories that start with, "When I was your age ... ". Usually by the 20th time they seem to get it?

this is how many of the new photographers seem to me!

Wonderful, Spot On! This was a great way to start off my morning with a smile and a couple of chuckles.

I see those from time to time. My microscope has a ring of LED's around the objective lens for illumination. If there's a reflective surface, like some water in the target area, it picks up the reflection of the stage illumination. It looks very much like the example you posted.

You can often see the same thing in the eyes of a portrait subject shot with a ring light.

That may be what is going on in this instance.

Look at the Olympus Touch series. I have an older Touch TG-3 that goes with me everywhere. As an environmentalist volunteer I go into a lot of wet, muddy, sandy, or other camera hostile locations and it has lasted nearly five years. The built in microscope mode is a big plus for me.

Digging through this

(Download)

Looking for these

I have done this in the past with both film and digital cameras. It works pretty well in still and clear water. The trick was finding a suitable tank that is large enough to hold the camera but doesn't displace a huge amount of water.

Of course you don't want to try this in waves or at the beach with rolling surf. The whole outfit (tank, camera, etc.) will be somewhat bulky to carry around and maneuver. Hopefully you have an LCD viewfinder so you can see what you're getting in the image.

In counter-argument, for the price of a reasonable sized fish tank there are numerous P&S camera available that can be submerged. I recently saw a plastic encased disposable camera for less then $10 US. I believe it was intended for use in casual "one time" situations that you could try out at the pool or beach.

Once you do this, however, you are in danger of getting hooked on the concept. That might result in a case of GAS that can be moderate to severe. I've got a drawer full of older model underwater cameras that have been set aside for newer, fancier versions. My current one is a second hand Olympus Touch 3 that was about $100. I carry it nearly everywhere and it works fine for shooting in the rain, surf, pool, or mud. it has a robust WiFi remote that connects to my iPad or cellphone. As a wildlife photographer it has allowed me to get close ups of critters you normally don't want to approach (Snakes and gators mostly). I mount it on an inexpensive tabletop tripod that can be pushed down into mud or sand to keep it in place.

Whatever you try, post a couple of images and let us see what you come up with.

Split above/below


Shot from in the pond.

I was one of those REMF's and I have to admit, "Guilty as Charged". Like many of the guys there I was young, dumb, and underfoot. But, I made you guys famous with all the BS I made up about your stopping an NVA suicide charge armed only with a slingshot and your combat knife. =;)

Now that we're older and less dumb we can all tell stories with the best of them. Remember, the difference between a fairy tale and a war story is: one starts with "Once upon a time ..." while the other begins, "This is no BS ...".

We each did our part and have the memories to savor or live with.

I was in country about a month (first tour) when this was shot.

Pete Romfh, 45th Engineers & 5th SFG, '66 - '69

I don’t own an iPhone but this looks terrific for those who do.

I guess I misunderstood the intent of your question. It probably took me about two years to grow from "Point the Box Brownie" to being fairly comfortable using a fully adjustable TLR camera. Learning to use flashbulbs and Guide numbers was an additional six months.

Well, there was this strange thing called an "Instruction manual" on real paper that helped some and the paperback books from Kodak helped a lot. The camera store guy tolerated my reading them without buying any and would occasionally answer questions or review my pictures when they came back from the lab to point out things I could improve on.