Hello Internet, It’s been awhile, hasn’t it? I know, I know, I’m a bad friend leaving you hanging like that. Not a word or a peep or even just a […]
Vintage Cameras
BHF – A couple more from Hawaii
As I twittered (tweeted, twooted, twinkled, twunctated or twhat-have-you) yesterday, I’ve finally finished scanning all the 120 rolls from my December trip to O’ahu; now I face the Herculean task […]
Diamond Head
Diamond Head, the iconic Hawaiian volcano, is probably one of the most photographed mountains in the world and, as a good tourist on O’ahu, I tried my best to do […]
BHF – Aging Gracefully
Ah… this has to be one of my favorite shots from our last Hawaiian adventure. My wife and I waxed poetic about this older couple walking Waikiki beach hand-in-hand in […]
How to flip a Brownie Hawkeye Flash lens

I’ve noticed a lot of search traffic hitting my site specifically looking for information on how to flip the lens of a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye Flash (BHF). While there are probably multitudes of other resources on the interwebs, I figure I’ll just throw my two-cents out there.
For those who don’t know, the BHF is a black bakelite beauty with a top-down viewfinder, single element meniscus lens, shutter speed somewhere around 1/30 to 1/60 & a bulb setting, while it lacks a tripod mount, it has a nifty handle. In it’s heyday, the BHF was a very popular camera. Your grandparents most likely had one. Nowadays, you can find them cheaply at thrift stores, flea markets, garage sales, and eBay, or for a higher premium decorating shelves in antique stores & hipster boutiques.
I, personally, got mine for free on Craigslist thanks to a kind-hearted Samaritan who was donating several cameras to anyone who could justify receiving one. I simply wrote “I’ll use it.” It arrived in the mail a couple days later and I’ve been enthralled with it ever since.
Anywho, an unmodified BHF takes a relatively normal photograph, but something magical happens when you flip the lens. It’s like the soft focus of a vintage Diana multiplied to the Nth degree. The lens’ focal point shifts from infinity to about 3 feet in the center, while the edges just melt away into blurry goodness. The effect can be quite surreal.
Flipping the lens of a BHF is actually a simple procedure with a very low-risk of permanently #@$%-ing anything up and is easily reversible. That said, I assume no responsibility with these directions if you somehow manage to accidentally bork your favorite family heirloom.
Ready? Let’s get flipping.
BHF – Bridge to the Adirondacks
Yet another flipped lens Brownie Hawkeye Flash, Rollei Retro 400 developed in Diafine. Tinted in PS.
BHF – More from the Adirondacks
NY 86, near Lake Placid, NY. Ausable River. High Falls Gorge. All taken with a flipped lens Brownie Hawkeye Flash, Rollei Retro 400 developed in Diafine.
BHF – Ausable River
The western branch of the Ausable River, near Lake Placid, NY. Flipped lens Brownie Hawkeye Flash, Rollei Retro 400 developed in Diafine.
Expired Film – Dragonfly
Taken with a Kodak Brownie Fiesta on expired (Nov 1962) Montgomery Ward Panchromatic 127 film, developed in Diafine.
BHF – Strawberry Picking
Bucket of strawberries @ Hafner’s Farm, Baldwinsville, NY. Kodak Brownie Haweye Flash with a flipped lens; Ilford HP5 Plus developed in Diafine.
Diana F – Tree bark
Tree root on the shore of Onondaga Lake. Shot with a vintage Diana F on Fuji Neopan 400 developed in Diafine.
Kodak Jiffy II
The Kodak Jiffy II, a nifty $5 find at a recent garage sale. A folding 6×9 ‘six-20’ camera with two viewfinders (horizontal & vertical), the original Jiffy had a really cool Art-Deco motif; […]