Embedded Files
Continuing Zero Week, I decided to instead dedicate a CTA on what I argue is the star of the series, the Camera Obscura. So called in the second installment, this camera has a long legacy: the ability to see the past, spirits, and the ability to seal away spirits or exorcise them. A new one introduced in every new installment, this device has been the lynchpin of most of the series.
The camera is one of many devices by Kunihiko Asou, whom also used his specialties in engineering to craft a special film projector, as well as the Spirit Stone Radio (and presumably the Spirit Stone Flashlight). The aim was to further Mystical Science, an occult specialized branch of science meant to prove the existence of the Other World using new emerging technologies of the time. Many prototypes have been made, by himself as well as others, while his "final" finished product ended up being the same camera handed down from Yae to Miku in the first game. Every other has been a prototype, or testing model, and upon the doctor's death, his creations were scattered throughout Japan, falling into the hands of collectors or enthusiasts, even perhaps languishing in second hand shops until someone took them home.
This CTA is meant to give suggestions on models with which to start with, including pictures of cameras I myself also have purchased with the same singular aim. Note that some of these cameras will be hard to replicate exactly, but suggestions on functional and non-functional will be given.
零~Zero~ (Fatal Frame)
At the top of the list is Miku's family camera. The creators took a lot of time looking at different camera models and settled on the traditional folding camera, citing the Linhoff as a springboard (joking that the camera is german in origin). This camera is known as the final model by Dr. Asou, that not only could see spirits, but actually seal them away. The mechanic of it being a weapon against spirits comes from old folkloric beliefs that a camera seals one's soul (on the basis it can reproduce the human form exactly; its no wonder that people who saw it the first time would think such a thing).
Miku's camera is also considered the final product since it's powers are best in the hands of those with the ability to see spirits (mediums), and because of what's under its casing. Some argue that his final camera was the most unstable since it contributed to many mediums losing their mind (the Hinasaki women), and the fact that it breaks during a crucial part of the game. I argue that this doesn't make it any less effective than subsequent cameras in subsequent games; it breaking [highlight for spoiler] at the end of the game is because 1) the plot needed the final piece of the Holy Mirror to be revealed and 2) as such must have reacted to the other pieces and itself being in close proximity to the place of its true use, the Hell Mouth. I assumed that the mirror caused the camera to break so its true purpose could be fulfilled, not because Kirie was too strong, or the camera unstable. The overexposure theory that drove many to madness using it I think was a one time plot detail that was eventually discarded when it was no longer needed.
To start with, this camera should have its basis in an actual large format camera. These cameras take film in sizes 4x5 inches or larger (thus the term large format). Ansel Adams worked in large format (which explains the resolution detail in his amazing pictures). Most large format cameras are a seriously expensive camera, and thus if you're looking for a base for your camera obscura, this one may very will put a dent in your wallet (excluding building onto a camera, in which case Ruak's will probably be the most expensive).
But if you're a crazy like me, price is of no object if you save your pennies. To this end, large format cameras can be bought to use as a prop from antique shops, ebay, or easy. Know that they can cost upwards of $100 or more and under that base price, you're looking at a total fixer-upper. Functional, or at the very least ones with intact bellows will be expensive. I personally own one with red bellows. Its not exact as you can see from the picture, but red bellows evoke Miku's senses perfectly (since her name means "deep red"). Its your choice.
Note the handle of this camera has a metal handle. Most antiques will have a leather/leatherette strap or handle, if they still have one. I should also note that this camera from its render actually is pretty clean for something that sat in a mansion for an unknown amount of time, then was passed down (I don't imagine this camera was restored much, but I do know it was used since Miyuki used it when Masato went on digs); and being in a country that can get humid or have frosty winters, those metal bases should be more weathered.
There is a gold colored design on the leather sides, and a tutorial on painting on leatherette can be found here. Painting on real leather can be found here. The lens board contains the same pattern in the corners. Presumably the shutter button is the red on at top, but traditional large format cameras used cable releases or the shutter mechanism is on the lens itself. Since large format photography is extremely expensive, this is negligible for posing in photos.
Note there is no viewfinder. Most cameras of this family won't have one, but will have either a watson viewfinder, a brilliant viewfinder, or a seller viewfinder. If you have a rather intact one, you can open the back window to view through the camera on the glass plate in back (like mine has), but again, if you're not taking actual photos with it (and doing so would expose your film anyway), its not a huge deal breaker. The viewfinder often is mounted near the front of the camera, by the lens board, and focusing is done with extending or retracting the bellows.
The meat of all Camera Obscuras are the sanskrit characters on the lens ring. Its hard to find accurate and large hi-res images of this, but these are what make your camera really have that mystical science look. The picture at right shows not only the characters, but the small metal arms. Those are the shutter mechanisms. The small metal colored squares are the dials for adjusting aperture and the such. There was a lot of care put into replicating real cameras in this game. You'll find this detail eventually gives way to original designs of models that may not have real life counterparts.
Miku's camera isn't the only large format camera (in fact all the cameras appear to be so, despite looks, since they all take pack film, which isn't an easy thing to find anymore,discounting instant pack film). Start with square shaped large format cameras like a Seneca or Sears and Roebuck, or Kodaks from the 1920s, and look for ones with leather/leatherette on the outside. For accuracy, Speed Graphics are more modern in shape and are more appropriate for Misaki's (as we'll see later).
零~Zero~Akai Chou (Fatal Frame: Crimson Butterfly) and 零~Zero~Shinku no Chou (Fatal Frame Deep Crimson Butterfly)
Mio's camera is the first camera known as the Camera Obscura, and was lent to Seijiro Makabe when he went to investigate Minakami Village. This is how the cameras came to be there when the twins find it. You'll find this camera to be a "traditional" shape, but still with a folding mechanism and bellows.
This camera has an obvious viewfinder on the top, but unlike most SLR cameras, its meant to be a framing viewfinder rather than exactly what you will get when you take pictures. This one appears to have a rusty brown color with an embossed curly cue design. The lens ring has a different set of characters, which correspond with camera obscura charge rings in-game occasionally.
The dials at the top are the film advance wheels and rewind wheels (presumably). Most cameras that have this body type usually only have 1 winder. Its shutter button is on the top of one of the winding wheels. This one shows the wear of time, with rusty colored metal and dulled gold accents. Below is a render from Deep Crimson Butterfly.
My recommendation for camera base is the Agfa Isolette. Agfas are nearly identical to this model, and are usually readily available (coincidentally, its a belgian company). These take medium format film, which comes on a roll that must be fed into the camera by hand. 120 is still being made, and if your agfa has intact bellows, then it'll take beautiful shots (developing the film can be a bit trickier, expensive, but with larger negatives, you'll find them to be superior to 35mm). Aim for a functional camera, and you won't be sorry. Focusing is done by a ring on the front, usually in meters, and in order to activate the shutter, you have to cock the shutter first.
Embossing can be done as simply as using a puff paint over the parts you want to, then primering over this with a base color. Then paint over this in the colors you want, and I recommend a more aged color to your gold colored paint. Mio's camera is one of my favorites since its easy to find a camera base that matches it rather easy.
Here's a camera I haven't been able to figure out though: the FPS camera from the X-Box remake. Story-wise, its identical to the first one. It has what appears to be a short bellows, an embedded viewfinder, and a folding door that essentially is a case rather than a simple door that covers the lens. Its has intricate designs, appears to have aged and weathered metal, gold or bronze in color, and has a bizarre circular filagree piece behind the lens board. The sanskrit is smaller and at the base of the lens, which protrudes and has a more modern shape.
I'll be honest. I don't know where to even START with a base for this, though its embedded viewfinder brings to find a Fuji instax camera or a more modern Polaroid, which can both be bought for about $80. Building a door onto it, as well as finding a way to make the door fit over the lens (which on the aforementioned cameras isn't as bad since these lenses actually don't stick out nearly that much), is your challenge.
零~Zero~Shisei no Koe (Fatal Frame: The Tormented)
This camera is also rather easy to start with, depending on how close you truly want to get to this. This folding camera has, unusually, a viewfinder "embedded" into a sort of extra side on the top/side; this orientation depends on how you prefer to hold the camera. In the game, the camera is shown here, in a horizontal orientation, either on the desk or inventory. However, when looking in-game, the camera is held vertically, much like most cameras of this type would be.
Therefore, your camera model will depend on which way you want to hold it, and how close you want it to be; try to find a model that, when held on its side, will look like it opens from the left side. Medium format roll film cameras are best, but there are some huge, large format roll film cameras that can work too (again, these things were meant to be HEFTY and therefor I'd recommend trying for a 120 film size for ease of carrying.
Cameras like these often have a small leg on the door that allows for you to display it in the vertical orientation. It should be noted some will have their winding/reweind knob on what would be considered the "bottom" and thus your camera will not sit pretty as it does in-game.
My recommendation for this model are Kodak folding cameras, like the Vigilant. There are a lot you can find that can be held either way, and being kodak, they are easily found and often not as expensive. My own is a rare kuribayashi semi from japan (pre-war), and is remarkably close; if the bellows were in much better condition, it would be usable. On the film note, some are 120, but some are also 620, which is negative-size wise, the same, but the reels were smaller, and thus using 120 film in a 620 camera can result in jamming.
Look for an old, aged camera, and while I always recommend functionals versus non-functional, in this game, the camera only works in your dreams and thus you don't need a functional one. The characters on the dial can be used from either the first or second game. The body looks like it might have had designs on the body, but looking old can be good enough. Note some renders and wallpapers for this game have Rei use a camera that looks like Mio's. You can use either, but a purist may want one more like the one Yuu had in his office.
零~Zero~Tsukihami no Kamen (Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse)
Hoooooboy. This is where render images get a little scarce, but let's do out best. For the camera Ruka and Madoka used, this appears to be a large format camera with a wooden body that has the Rougetsu cloudy pattern. Some of these appears carved, and painted in an antiqued gold.
The viewfinder looks like its that lil round ground-glass piece on the lens board on the top, but you'll find Madoka and Ruka looking through the back of the camera. Remember when I said style took over real-life counterparts as the series went on? Here's a good example. This camera can have a base that starts with a square base, though there are some camera models that are more rectangular in its shape, and those can be used too. A Kodak No.3 is HUGE, and more rectangular than it should, but its not a bad base to start from.
I'd argue this will be your most expensive camera since you're going to have to build on top of a base camera with wood-work. There's also going to be carving, painting or even gold-leaf if you want that shine; there's also an amount of guesswork, since you never see it closed, and must figure out how the door looks when closed. The characters can be adapted from earlier games' cameras.
Misaki's camera is a little easier on you. Its also a large format but you won't need to really build anything on top. Start with a Speed Graphic's body, like the Graflex, since it has a compact, very square, sharp-edged look. The lens board is very square, and all you'll need to do is get that peeling gold look to the the board and the outside body. The lens' characters appear to be inside the lens. Remember those old movies with those gigantic press cameras? think that when you start looking for Misaki's.
零~Zero~Nuregarasu no Miko (Fatal Frame: Raven-Haired Shrine Maiden)
Fuuuuu. Ok, this camera's got a lot of style going on here. With a gorgeous and well-maintained body, it appears to be red in its body, with gold designs in a filigree pattern. The viewfinder is at top, that tiny circle, and the winding knobs appear at top. It has a short bellows, and the lens board and lens have 2 concentric designs: the characters and a more stylized design near the center.
Its the double doors that will give you the trouble. I've never seen a camera with french doors, and as beautiful as it is, you're going to have the same trouble you did with Ruka's. Building over an existing camera will be your best bet. The hinges appear to be gold in color, and there even appears to be some design on the front, as part of the top of the camera.
My best advice for a base would be a Kodak Bantam, which has a bellows extension that comes from the middle without doors. These cameras don't take film being made anymore so a functional one made from a bantam may not be feasible My other recommendation is the Lomography Belair, which has the same body and bellows type. And while they look much larger than Yuuri's, they're actually made very light. But the upside is the fact that they take 120 film, but can also take 35mm as well as instant, depending on the backing you fit onto it (I wouldn't recommend the instant back as it's a HUGE attachment, and its ejection method has a crank advance, which can take away from your prop.
Note that the characters aren't right side up as they move around the ring, but follow the contour of the lens around. This is also true of cameras in the 4th game. This is something you might want to keep in mind. The characters in this camera do not seem to be the same as ones used in previous cameras.
Ren's camera is also a challenge. The closest camera is a traditional box camera style, like a Kodak Brownie. The difference is that Ren's "front" is the long edge, rather than the short edge, which is common for box cameras. The viewfinder is the most involved of all camera obscuras with a crosshair. There appear to be multiple lenses. This also might have to be a camera you build onto an existing, and if you want functional over exact, use a Brownie and add onto the existing lenses. If you only want a prop, it might be something you build from the ground up, without a functional camera within.
零~Zero~Murasaki no Nikki (Spirit Camera: Cursed Memoir)
The most modern of all camera bodies, this one lacks a bellows, but includes 2 lenses, but unlike Ren's, is meant to be a stereoscopic camera. Yes, these are cameras that take 2 pictures side by side, offset just a little like our eyes, and when you print both pictures side by side, a special viewer was required to combine them into a single, 3D image. Stereo cameras were popular in the 1950s, and though popularity has waned considerably, they're still fun cameras.
This camera is flat, like a digital camera, and its lenses are actually diagonally offset. It has corner caps made of a gold like material, with knobs for winding in the top. The gold design appears embossed slightly (not to the extent of Mio's though). There's a sort of gear-like motif to the outside of the lens, and there doesn't appear to be characters around the lens. A functional stereo camera can be found second hand, or through Holga, which produces them on 120. To process and view them will need more expense, with a special viewer needed and a lab that knows how to process and print/scan such images.
But a cute substitute can be found in lomography's ActionSampler, which, instead of simultaneous stereo images, produces 4 images consecutively like a stop motion camera. You can adapt its 4 lens face to either be more like this camera, or even Ren's, making it a cheap, versatile camera base that's also functional (it takes 35mm). You'll see different lenses here, which can be made just as props instead of functional add-on lenses.
零~Zero~Theatrical Version (Fatal Frame the Movie)
The hardcore of hardcore cameras is going to be this one. A TLR or Twin-Lens Reflex camera has 2 lenses, one for viewing, the other for exposing the film, and they are both controlled by focusing one or the other, and the turning of one lens will turn the other. The viewfinder, instead of looking forward through the body, is a waist-level finder, in which you look down through it. This makes street photography easy since most people won't think twice of someone looking down to take pictures rather than raising the camera to your face.
That said, because all cameras use mirrors, the view through a TLR is reversed like a mirror. That makes it a little tricky in using, but once you get used to it, you'll find most TLR cameras make the best pictures. This would explain why the camera in the novel and film are not used to exorcise spirits, but to view them.
The movie camera has a raised design on the front, and on the top of the viewfinder door, which also showcases a sort of a mandala that incorporates the characters from the lens rings from previous cameras. The front piece looks like a separate plate, and unlike some TLRs, is a knob advance (some Mamiyas and the Hasselblads are all crank advance).
TLRs can run the gamut from expensive to inexpensive, and in fact the cheapest can be a DIY model like the Recesky which goes for around $20 in some places (a plastic camera, its wonderful). Yes, that means you need to construct it from the ground up, but the bonus is being able to add onto and build the face plate and the viewfinder top door. Make sure to leave room on the face plate for the shutter arm, since it needs the room to move up and down. A prebuilt, professional camera can be more expensive, but you'll never regret it if you enjoy medium formal photography, with superior glass lenses and solid building, and to that end, I recommend cameras like the Lubitel. Stick to 120 rather than 620 models for full functionality.
零 Kage Miko (Zero: Shadow Priestess)
Sara's camera is quite possibly the easiest to buy, since right off the bat, you won't need to change or paint. Sara's camera lacks the lens ring of characters, designs of any sort, or even an exotic camera body. This si due to the fact that this camera isn't an invention of Dr. Asou, and as such lacks the usual design motifs.
Sara's camera is held in a horizontal orientation, the opposite of Rei's, and has a hand strap for stability. It also has the little kickstand, though you don't see it displayed with it (so far).
The camera base is the most common style, and can be anywhere from a Kodak, to a Voightlander, to Zeiss Ikon. It has a framing viewfinder, and a watson/brilliant/seller viewfinder on the end where the lens is. This camera can double for one for Rei, but Sara's is the most "stock" you'll find. These take roll film, and can run the gamut from 620, 120, and even bigger. Make sure the one you decide on opens on the left side, like Rei's would. Note her winding knob appears on the "bottom", and this must be displayed in the vertical orientation with the little kickstand. She also carries hers in a leather bag made for it, and some cameras, if you look hard enough, come with this case. Be aware that some of them can be in wildly varying qualities, based on how they were stored.
Bonus: Spirit Stone Flashlight
For you Kirishima cosplayers, a Spirit Stone Flashlight would be essential. This light is HUGE, so think about a base with a large size (think security guard size). The handle appears brown and has stripes or layers with a hard to see pattern. The main metal portions are gold in color, and the middle of the head has a black portion with a mother-of-pearl like inlay. There's a design in the metal portions as well, and though its not a camera, there appears to be a ring of sanskrit actually in the glass of the light.
Start with a Maglight, and paint in the gold portions. The design can be produced with a puff paint, like with Mio's camera, over which you can primer and paint. The mother-of-pearl inlay can be faked with an iridescent paint, though if you have access to the real thing, I say go for it. Think the same stylized patterns you would use on Ruka's camera, the Rougetsu island cloudy motif.
Now, for some tips.
After You Buy Your Base
~These cameras I think were on display when the movie premiered, and while they are all different, you can glean the cohesive design to modify your own cameras. Note the last one in the lower right looks like it too has double doors….
~Primer! Painting a primer over the metal and plastic portions can make your camera more receptive in taking paint. This is a great tip from tabletop gamers, and their artistry on the tiny scale is second to none.
~Chose hobby paints for things like miniatures. They come in small batches and while they have their challenges, its recommended for a prop that needs to not only be functional (if it is), but beautiful and hardy enough to survive a cosplay day or 2.
~Some enthusiasts recommend patching tiny (and I stress, these must be pinprick tiny) holes in leatherette bellows with latex paint. It blocks light if you want to make your cameras functional. But note this only works on small holes, not large ones. Also note it doesn't work in leather bellows. Electricians tape works, but know that they add in extra materials, can shouldn't be used to patch more than say 5 layers of bellows, or else you won't be able to close your camera. The tackiness of the tape also doesn't last as long.
~In the case of leather bellows, care for them by using a leather care set to keep them supple.
~Do not paint Bakelite cameras. More than being a labor intensive venture, and expensive to boot, bakelite is something of a commodity in the antique's game. You're going to pay an arms and a leg to purchase it (if your seller actually knows what they got), and restoring or painting it is 1) going to damage resale/antique value, and 2) be more work than most casual cosplayers can handle. This is not to dissuade you from it, but with bakelite the antique commodity it is, I highly recommend keeping as is, because they're like diamonds. And you wouldn't paint a diamond.
Well, hopefully that'll help you on your way to make your dream cameras. A Zero cosplay is always enhanced by a camera, and even mores if they end up being functional. Just remember, as I did the hard way: buying antique cameras is like eating good potato chips--you can never stop at just one!
--Dio (10/18/14)
Images from the Zero wiki, and the official news tumblr for the Zero movie.
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