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Gel medium transfers layered on panels with imagery from 50's and 60's Life magazine and Road &Track magazines;leraset and acrylic paint washes.
This building, near the dragline in the previous photo, was burned to the ground two weeks ago (around June 1, 2008) to make way for some kind of business and is unique, in that, it was featured in LIFE MAGAZINE in the 1940's due to its being covered with tin cans that had been straightened out and nailed to the exterior. In the previous photo, some of the cans are missing.
new hoodie :)
some of these came out blurry because i had my camera haphazardly hanging from my curtain rod. i definitely need to invest in a gorillapod!
According to Legend, in Tokyo in June 1950, a young Japanese photographer, Jun Miki, a part-timer for ‘Life’ magazine showed two American photojournalists, David Duncan and Horace Bristol, some prints he had taken with a barely known ‘Nikkor’ lens on a Leica 35mm camera. They were both sufficiently impressed to arrange for a trip for the three of them to the nearby Nippon Kogaku factory where they were given a demonstration and a comparison between the Nikkors and the lenses made by Leitz and Zeiss.
Duncan was so convinced by the superiority of the Nikkors over the German lenses of that time that he purchased a set. When the Korean War broke out a few days later he used them on his Leica bodies throughout his coverage of the war.
His negatives were sent back to Life’s New York office for printing and publication. The technicians asked if he was using a plate camera and considered that the sharpness of the photographs was better than anything they had previously seen from 35mm negatives.
Other Life photojournalists started using Nikkors and some purchased Nippon Kogaku’s rangefinder Nikon Cameras which they found to be more reliable in the severe Korean winter.
Experts examined both the camera and lenses and in December the New York Times ran an article in praise of the equipment.
A myth developed that Life magazine was so impressed with the results that they ordered a special batch of black painted Nikon S bodies for their staff. The black finish made them less conspicuous on the battlefield and some had larger wind-on and rewind knobs for easier handling with gloves.
The story remained a myth for decades until diligent research by Nikon Rangefinder Guru, Robert Rotoloni, published photographs in his seminal book and journal in 2007. A very small number of contenders have emerged, some with the mythical large knobs, others without but with adequate provenance.
It is thought that about 15 black Nikon S were produced from chrome bodies but only 3-4 were made with black paint on the original brass body shell.
Repainted fakes abound, provenance is all. Whilst wealthy aficionados are able and willing to pay enormous amounts for the real thing, mere mortals have to settle for less.
Left: Nikon S 6112580. One of an estimated number of around 15 black paint bodies specially produced c1953 by Nippon Kogaku (Nikon) for “Life” magazine staff.
Owned by Nikon Sales Manager Mr. Sanetoshi Kuratsuji, it was last sold at auction, June 2024, for €45,000.
Right: Nikon S 6114605. Of similar vintage, a fully working, restored and repainted chrome camera body. Sold on Ebay, April 2024 for under $800.
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