Photographer Trying to Take The World’s Largest Self-Portrait Camera on the Road

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The IMAGO1:1 is the largest life-size self-portrait camera in the world. Exposing beautiful black and white self-portraits on 2ft x 6.5ft silver gelatin photo paper, it’s a photographic marvel that is currently housed and used in an art gallery in Berlin.

Susanna Kraus, daughter of IMAGO1:1 co-inventor Werner Kraus, now runs the camera, taking photos for clients and exhibitions alike. But her dream is to respond to the many requests she gets from all over the world by taking the IMAGO1:1 on the road — for that, she needs your help.

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Taking the world’s largest self-portrait camera on the road is no easy feat, and the fact that it was built in 1970 doesn’t make it any easier. The camera is heavy, damaged, and a priceless antique to boot. So, instead of trying to modify the original until it’s travel-worthy, Kraus and her two sons have worked with both original inventors to design a traveling IMAGO1:1.

They will use materials such as canvas, fiberglass and aluminum to make it much lighter than the original, and are designing it in such a way that they will be able to put it up and tear it down in only one day. But there are a lot of expensive steps between design and completion, and that’s where Kickstarter and you come in.

Here’s their Kickstarter video:

In order to build a mobile IMAGO1:1, Kraus and her sons need to raise £95,000 (approximately $150,000). With 40 days remaining, the project is well short of its goal, but if you want to see the IMAGO1:1 come to a city near you, you can pledge as little as £1 to help them on their way.

Here are a few portraits taken using the original IMAGO in Berlin:

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For more info, or if you want to help bring the mobile IMAGO1:1 all the way from design to reality, head over to Kickstarter and make your pledge. £10 will get you a mention on the website, but getting a voucher for your very own full-sized, 2ft x 6.5ft self-portrait will run you £250 (about $395).

IMAGOphotour: World’s biggest mobile Self-Portrait Camera [Kickstarter via Imaging Resource]

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