Dan Racusin

My friend David just bought a brand new complete skate setup online for about $60 and some change. After he received it in the mail he brought it by to show me. I thought it would be fun to put together a short tutorial for the blog on how to put it all together and he agreed. Granted we are not professionals, this tutorial is a true testament to how easy it really is for almost anybody to do this for themselves. So if you've ever wondered how to put your own custom skateboard together follow along with this instructional tutorial. For all of those visual learners out there we've provided a video so please enjoy! Here's what you'll need. You can buy a setup online or at your local skate shop that includes these items. 1 set of trucks, 1 pair of spacers (shock plates), 1 set of barrings, and the hardware(nuts, bold, washers). For the detailing on the board you'll need grip tape any stickers you want to add. You will also need these tools; a screw driv...

Here is the final 35mm lens adapter. After hour of searching the web for an encasing  I found this 5.9"x5.9"x2.25" plastic box . The box is slightly larger than what I had in mind but it was the best I could find for under $10. As soon as I recieved the box I began working. First I drilled the holes for the lens mount, second for the motor plate inside the box and last a small hole in the back for the battery cable. Next I attached the adapter parts to the front and back plates. After all of the hardware was assembled and tested it was time to paint it black. I took everything apart, used masking tape to cover anything I didn't want painted, laid the front and back plates out and use a matte spray paint to cover the box. This is by far the best adapter box I've yet to build. As soon as I find the right parts I plan on adding a remote controlled focus puller as an addition to the box. But that's for another time and another blog.

Our Monday/Thursday life drawing group has been in serious need of drawing benches for a few months now. The one main reason that has been holding us back for getting the seats is our lack of space. Since we don't have the space to store the chairs I decided to build special collapsible benches that could fold up flat and be stored under our couch. For this job I knew I would need the very best help I could get so I called my dad. We got together and started thinking about the design. Actually due to our genetic impulsivity we started building right away without a clear idea in mind and ended up failing quite miserably. Nevertheless this did not discourage us from trying again. After all this was the first time either of us had built a functional chair before. There was much to consider in designing the benches and the fact that I wanted them collapsible proved to be an even greater challenge. After our first design had failed my dad came up with an ingenious plan. His design u...

This is my second attempt at making a 35mm lens adapter box. This time I used beaver board to build the case. I ask one of the guys at my local hardware store to pre-cut the pieces for me. I used three 5''x 5'' pieces and four 5''x 3''. First I clamped the three 5''x5'' plates together and drilled my holes. Four holes for the main bolts and one large hole for the lens. Next I attached the motor and lens attachments. This is the motor I used for the spinning ground glass. I gutted a CD player and mounted the motor to the beaver board. This is the CD I used for the ground glass. These are the front and back plates. The front plate(right) has a Nikon lens mount ring attached and the back plate(left) has an extension tube. Here's a video I shot to test out different lenses with the adapter. Unfortunately, when I took it out in the sun light for the first time there were a lot of light leaks. My next step will be to seal the...

After having a conversation with a friend about planning weekend shoots and filming short stories I came up with an idea. I wanted to start using the things I build to make a series of short "MAKER" videos. Most of what will be used in the making of the videos will be hand made. Which brings me to the latest tutorial on how to build a 35mm lens adapter for your digital camera. Here's a short list of things you'll most likely need if you are to attempt this yourself. SQUARE BOX 5''X5''X4'' 35mm BACK LENS CAP / 35mm SLR CAMERA 35mm CAMERA LENS CD PLAYER / DC MOTOR BATTERY & SWITCH In short, the adapter works similarly to a pin hole camera. Light comes in through the 35mm lens and is projected insides the box onto the GG(Ground Glass). Your digital camera is place in back and is focused on the GG. This is what the projected image looks like. Notice how the image is upside down on the GG . For the GG(Ground Glass) I used a clear CD and s ...