young inventor consolidates film and digital photography with help of 3D printing

young inventor consolidates film and digital photography with help of 3D printing
all images courtesy of oliver baker

after being award the arkwright scholarship fund, oliver baker took to work and began digitizing his 1973 konica ‘auto s3 rangefinder’ using components from a sony ‘nex-5’ to create the ’frankencamera 2’. he decided with the sony because it was the smallest digital camera he could find with a reasonably sized sensor and components. matched with the konica’s stellar fixed 38mm f1.8 lens with an unobtrusive internal leaf shutter, the mechanisms inside allow the camera to be small with an easily adjustable focal plane. oliver kept key components like the circuit board. sensor, SD card slot and battery connector.

the back side of the digitalized camera 

with 3D rendering software, he decided to replace the original back of the camera with a completely 3D printed part, which formed and hinged to the old film camera. designed in two parts, the bottom part holding key interior electronic pieces, and the top supporting the screen, buttons, and main circuit board. to overcome the mechanical trigger to take photographs, oliver baker replaced it with a miniature electronic switch which would be pressed to activate the digital sensor and the shutter causing it to be exposed similarly to film would be. the body panel was printed in flexible nylon, and painted black to match the rest of the konica, and after the wiring, assembly, and lens calibrated, oliver baker accomplished a fully working digital camera with all the great attributes of a film. 

his 3D renderings 

the finished bottom and top print together

bottom print holding the circuit board and and sensor 

3D print hinged to the body of the konica

the working LCD from the sony ‘NEX-5’

sample photography using the camera

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