Camera back fell off

So the back fell off your Holga... Don't panic! It's bound to happen to you sooner or later. You see, the metal clasps really aren't that great at keeping the back attached on their own. So what can you do to help out the clasps?

Prevention

The best way to prevent the back falling off is to properly secure the back of the camera. This usually involves placing a piece of tape over the left and right metal clasps. A more permanent solution would be to use strips of re-usable velcro. This is advantageous because you don't need to carry tape round with you all the time.

If the back falls off in your bag, and you notice quick enough, you may be lucky enough that your roll isn't affected. Usually though you lose one or two images due to severe light leaking. 120 film is pretty well insulated from light, so the back falling off is not the end of the world. Just make sure you attach the back firmly as soon as possible.

If you are using 35mm, or 220 film, then the back falling off could well be catastrophic. These films do not offer any protection from light exposure. So when using these films it is especially important that you hold the back in place securely.

Velcro mod

Velcro is pretty amazing stuff isn't it? It's cheap, strong and reusable. These are 3 great reasons for using it to secure the back on your Holga. You will need a short length of velcro - about 12-15cm. Cut 4 strips of 'hook' velcro, about 1.5cm in length. Stick these to the front left/right, and rear left/right, as shown in step 1 and 2 below.

Now cut your 'loop' (fuzzy) velcro in half. Now load your film as normal, and once the metal clips are in place, put your fuzzy velcro strips over the metal clips (step 3) and your back should not fall off again. This won't prevent against light leaks, but it's a nice simple way of holding the back on your Holga. Eventually, these velcro strips may need replacing, but velcro is super-cheap!

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