Funnell, Martin Collection

John Martin Funnell took these striking photographs whilst serving in the army as a National Serviceman in Hong Kong in the 1950s. Corporal Funnell, as he then was, made a panoramic camera out of stiff cardboard, glued with Seccotine (tube fish glue), balsa cement, brown sticky paper, a motor from an alarm clock and a recycled medium format camera lens.  The camera was mounted on a tripod, and took seven seconds to traverse a 90 degree angle. The camera used 120 film, taking four shots a roll. Funnell usually used Ilford FP4, but once used Agfacolor (colour reversal or transparency/slide) film. The photographs look a bit odd laid out flat – and would benefit from being displayed curved. Scans of the original film by Martin Funnell. HPC ref: MF-d.