Acheiving vignetting

[Meysha]

Just got a new camera sent to me, Lomo LC-A. Yes I know some of you are against this camera because it's crap but I like it and I think it's fun.

So I ran a roll of 100ASA film through it and I was expecting some vignetting because that's what they're famous for... but I got nothing! My photos are actually really really clear and not warped... although the focusing distances on the camera don't really match what they are in real life.

So how do you get vignetting on a camera and how can I maximise this?

I thought it was because the camera itself is getting in the way of the photo. So should I set the camera to the largest aperture? Then could I make up for the extra light by increasing the ASA setting to 200 or 400 eventhough it does have a timed shutter, I'm not too sure about how accurate it is.
The only things I can change on this camera are aperture, focus and ASA. Got any ideas?

 

[ksmattfish]

I knew that Holgas were famous for vignetting, but I thought that the Lomos were famous for the top secret, ex cold war, light amplification technology in Prof Radionov's incredible "Minitar 1" lens?

The vignetting probably comes from using all of a lens that doesn't quite have the coverage for the format. If you open up the aperture as wide as it will go (small f/#) you might get what you are looking for.

I know some of you are against this camera because it's crap but I like it and I think it's fun

It is a fun camera, and to me that is all the justification you need to use one. My problem is not with the camera, but with the marketing hype. Prof Radionov's big secret is an old fashioned lens design with lots of aberations, and an auto-shutter that will drop to very low speeds; when used with a flash it's like slow sync. There are numerous cameras, vintage and modern, that have similar features and are available for a lot less ($80 and under) than the $200 to $300 price of a Lomo. Here is an excerpt of Lomo history...

General Igor Petrowitsch Kornitzky, right-hand man to the USSR Minister of Defense and Industry, slammed a little Japanese mini-camera onto the ornate desk of his comrade Michail Panfilowitsch Panfiloff. Mr Panfiloff, Director of the powerful LOMO Russian Arms and Optical factory, examined the camera closely, noting its sharp glass lens, extremely high light sensitivity and robust casing. The two gentlemen, realizing the superior nature and extreme potential of this strange little item, gave immediate orders to copy and improve the design - with the ultimate goal of producing the largest quantity possible for the pleasure and glory of the Soviet population. It was decided - every respectable Communist should have a LOMO KOMPAKT AUTOMAT of their own.

It's a camera for the people! It should have a price for the people! Even with the poster and the T-shirt it's not worth $200; and I like the simulated alligator skin on the special edition, but $300?!?!. IMHO behind the scenes at Lomography Inc. it's really all about the money, and very, very little about the photography, and that's what makes it no fun for me.

Okay, I'm off the soapbox. Some of my best photog buddies are Lomographers, and they tell me that I just don't understand, "The T-shirt and the poster are really cool!!!" Happy shooting, and be sure to post your pics (I really do like the camera).