Welcome to the littlest slideshow on Earth

Lay-dees and gent-tell-men, please direct your attention towards the 10x eye loupe, through which, you will cast your eyes on the most amazing sights ever beheld. You will be astonished to witness a world unlike any other. Encased within the crystal clear confines of an exquisitely jeweled microscope slide is a diminutive diorama depicting a scene that is so lifelike you can almost imagine yourself becoming a resident within this Lilliputian realm. Shrinking yourself to enter a brave new world exposed on the silver halide of a 13x17mm frame.

And so begins our journey into the littlest slideshow on Earth.

This isn’t a typical slideshow, however. Unlike the gorgeous Kodak Kodachrome transparencies of Paul Simon’s days borne from conventional 35mm film cameras, this is the domain of a modern Lomography negative film that isn’t even supposed to be a slide. Through a magical process called reversal film development, ordinary Lomography black and white Orca 110 format film is metamorphosed into dazzling microscopic-sized slides (see below).

Well, OK, this process isn’t that magical. In fact, it is thoroughly spelled out in an Ilford technical document from Harman Technology Limited bearing the mundane title: “Reversal Processing: Using Ilford Black & White Films to Make Monochrome Transparencies.” Ho-hum. You can read about this process here. You can also get a PDF version here.

One of the first things that you’ll notice with this Ilford technical document is that you will need to purchase some chemicals for reversing the black and white film. While you can obtain these chemicals from Photographer’s Formulary (see: stores.photoformulary.com/), you might want a more kit-like experience. And Freestyle has you covered with this option.

Freestyle Photo & Imaging Supplies sells three kits for making your own monochrome transparencies, or, you can get them on local specialty stores like B&H.

• Foma Black and White Reversal Processing Kit for Fomapan R100 for $89.99. (B&H, freestylephoto)
• ADOX Scala Reversal Kit for B&W Slide Processing – makes two liters for $43.99
• Bellini B&W Reversal Film Processing Kit one liter for $46.79

Don’t want to get your hands dirty and stain your fingernails? Just let Dave do it; better known as David Wood, he is the owner/creator of dr5 film lab. David and his film lab are legendary in the black and white film reversal business. Using a very unpredictable processing schedule (e.g., the next dr5 black& white reversal production run – “yet to be announced”), dr5 will expertly convert ANY black & white film into high-quality slides (just remember; garbage in-garbage out–Dave isn’t a miracle-worker. If your photographic technique is poor, then your resulting slides will be poor, also).

His price and prompt processing can’t be beat, however. Just follow this page for pricing and production updates: dr5.us/services.html. He also has a Facebook page that contains timely information.

For example, during his last black and white film reversal production run, one roll of Lomography Orca 110 format film cost $20 per roll for processing with an additional $8.50 shipping and handling fee. Savvy slide shooters will save film rolls destined for reversal processing and ship them to Dave in bulk when a new production run is announced.

If you’re intrigued by the prospect of making your own thumbnail-sized photographic transparencies, don’t forget to grab a high-quality 110 format film camera. A recent arrival from Lomography is a great option for scratching that pint-sized 110 itch. The lowest cost variant of these new models is the Lomography Lomomatic 110 Camera Golden Gate priced at $99 (see: shop.lomography.com/us/lomomatic-110-glass-lens-camera-color-edition).

When you finally have your slides in hand, it’s time to convert them into timeless treasures. At one time, special 110-sized slide holders could be purchased for sandwiching the teensy frames inside a standard cardboard 35mm-transparency carrier. Naturally, you’d need a slide projector for viewing these transparencies. Ah, another fond 1970s memory bid adieu.

This tiny slideshow dances to the beat of a different drummer, however. Don’t even think about trolling your local thrift store for an antique 35mm slide projector. Instead, mount each 110 slide on a microscope slide. Just grab a box of pre-cleaned microscope slides and cover glass slips from Amazon (search for: Opto-Edu E35.3501 Blank Microscope Slides & 100-Pieces Square Cover Glass priced at $6.81), cut each 110-frame loose from the reversal-processed film roll, and mount the slide on the, err, slide. But, you’ll have to experiment with your mounting medium.

Try dropping a tiny bit of super glue (i.e., cyanoacrylate glue) on the slide (see Figure 2), gently slide the film sliver into the goop, and then carefully drop a cover glass on top (please note: this glue can form ugly stains). Or, give some crystal clear nail polish a try (please note: this polish can encase bubbles in your slide as shown in Figure 3).

As a more technical alternative, Canada Balsam (On the Big “A,” search for: Benz Microscope Permanent Microscope Slide Making Kit #AC0020K cost is $29.95; please note-this kit includes both slides and cover glass slips, also) is the preferred mounting medium for scientific microscope slide making (please note: this technique is untested–so be a pioneer and experiment).

If experimentation, bubbles, and stains bother you, there is one final slide mounting technique that you can try. Wrap the entire slide + cover glass + microscope slide sandwich with clear tape. Just watch for stray dust particles marring your final effort.

Now complete your little slideshow with a 10x eye loupe. Bundle your slides up with the eye loupe in a suitable gift box and you’ll dazzle your recipient with a mind-bending journey to an exotic destination. 

Enjoy.