Long exposures with the Holga can be a little tricky. With just one shutter speed (1/125 or so) and one aperture (f13) doing anything with the standard mode is pretty much out of the question. Some models have a bulb mode, but since there is no meter it’s a guessing game when it comes to proper exposure length.

So I figured I would cheat and use the 20D to meter the scene. I set the 20D to f13, set the ISO to match the film speed, and framed the shot to match the Holga the best I could. Using the 20D’s meter, I set the proper shutter speed and fired off a test shot. If it looked good it was the one I wanted to use for the Holga.

Without a cable release for the Holga, I have to press and hold the shutter manually. I don’t have a watch either, so counting down the seconds is an inexact science. Essentially I just press the shutter and then count out the seconds in my head - one-one thousand, two-one thousand, etc - until time is up and I release the shutter. Not much to it.

I’ve only tried this once, but it works pretty well. The biggest issue is the camera shake due to the lack of a proper cable release.

Here is one of the better exposed shots from my first attempt. The exposure time was about four seconds.

Holga Long Exposure