San Francisco-based photographer Kevin Twomey’s series ‘Low Tech’ is a fascinating look at the intricate workings of old mechanical calculators.
Featuring photographs of calculators stripped bare to reveal their inner workings, his project showcases their mind-boggling complexity, highlighting every key, spring and motor.
Twomey initially envisioned his series as a comparison of early calculating tools with modern-day calculators, but found the latter “visually quite boring”, and turned his attention to older tools.
He came across a collection of mid-20th century calculators through a collector named Mark Glusker, and was immediately attracted to their design and size. Capturing them without their shells wasn’t the original plan, but he changed his mind when Glusker removed the covers to show him the complex mechanics underneath.
Wanting to avoid an overly stylized look, Twomey photographed the machines at a 90-degree angle, similar to how they would be presented in a technical manual. He shot the machines from multiple angles and used focus stacking to bring out their details.
The resulting images are incredibly sharp and crisp, and are a marvel to look at. They are also available as limited edition prints at his website.
Check out some of Twomey’s photographs below and view more of his work with calculators here.
[via PetaPixel, images via Kevin Twomey]