Category: Analog Film

The Hands

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This image is of Emily, a woman who spent four years in Japan teaching English, and learning to play the koto (pictured in the image). During the shoot, Emily told me of the etiquette and rules about learning to play the koto (e.g. showing proper respect to one’s teacher, NEVER stepping over the instrument, which is played on the floor, etc.). I got the sense from Emily that to play the koto is as much about understanding the Japanese culture, as it is about learning how to play the notes. Emily has a lovely expression in this image, but my favourite part of the image is her hands, and how they are positioned holding the instrument: her right hand in particular shows the grace of a dancer. From the way she is holding the instrument,I get the sense that for Emily the koto is more than an instrument; it is a friend, and a conduit into the mysterious beauty that is Japan.

Emily and Koto #2

All About the Eye

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This is a concept I’ve wanted to shoot for some time. I have this old shutter from a Polaroid camera. I bought it to use on my 4×5 with old lenses that do not have any shutters, but thought that coupled with a cable release it would look great as a monocle. The idea is that the most important photographic gear is one’s eye, brain and heart; everything else is an intermediary.

Shutter Eye029

(Mamiya M645, 80mm f2.8 lens, single strobe through umbrella. Shot using Fomapan 100, developed in Blazinol (Rodinal) 1:50 for 8 minutes)

From Russia With Luck

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In a recent post I mentioned I had picked up a well-used, but still working 1939 vintage Leica IIIb 35mm rangefinder body; it did not come with a lens, and not wanting to shell out or trade for a genuine (read:expensive) Leica lens, I decided to roll the dice and get a Soviet Russian made Jupiter 8 50mm/f2 lens.

The phrase “Soviet craftsmanship” is not heard often, and I knew that buying this lens would be chancy; these lenses are know for having good glass, but shoddy workmanship. I’m happy to report that mine seems to work fine; a sample image from my test roll is below. I have a 50mm f2 Summarit on its way (I had to trade away “the Beast” Pentaax 6×7 to get it), but for now I will enjoy my Russian surprise 🙂

From test roll of Leica IIIb

(Leica IIIb 35mm rangefinder, 50mm f2 Jupiter 8 lens, Ilford HP5+ film, developed in HC-110 dilution H)

Concealment

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Today’s image is from a shoot with Pash, a local actress/model of Iranian descent. She has long, exuberant hair, and in this image it was arranged to conceal much of her face; I was trying to create a sense of exotic mystery. After the fact, I started thinking about the tradition in Iran of women wearing head coverings (and in other Muslim countries where the requirements for female concealment is even more extreme). To me, I cannot help but see these mandatory coverings as symbols of subjugation; in this picture, I hope I am creating a feeling of power emanating from the emodel, with a different kind of concealment.

Pash

Mamiya M645, 80mm f2.8 lens, Ultrafine Xtreme 400 film, developed in HC-110 Dilution B

Ghosts

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I finally got around to developing a roll left from our trip to Italy in November of last year. It was a rainy day in Pompeii, but the rain did a great job of detailing the stones and textures on this ancient street. When I looked at the streets, I could not help but imagine how it would have looked, crowded with citizens and slaves, so many centuries ago.

Pompeii on a rainy November day, 2011

Mamiya M645, 55mm f2.8 lens, Ilford Delta 100, developed in HC-110, Dilution B

A Fun Trip

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Something different this time around; I finally got around to developing my first roll from my Olympus Trip 35. The Trip 35 has well deserved cult status among film shooters; a simple camera, with zone-focusing, only two shutter speeds and a Selenium meter. but with a lens (a Zuiko 40mm f/2.8) that is very sharp. The Selenium meter also makes it an auto-exposure camera that does not require batteries.

I’ll have to make a point of using this fun little camera more often 🙂

Crosswalk Lights

Revisiting

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Back in the early 1980’s I shot this picture of an antique piano stool belonging to my parents. Fast forward about 30 years: I inherited the piano stool, and now it is a favourite prop/support for portraits — I love it!

Christina Mallais029

Mamiya M645, 80mm f2.8 lens with 25A red filter, one strobe through umbrella. Ilford SFX 200 film, developed in HC-110 dilution B for 9 minutes

Yet Another Happy Accident

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Old cameras are many things, but often “idiot proof” is not one of them. Today’s image is from a roll of Delta 400 shot about a week ago. While unloading the film I noticed I had set the aperture incorrectly for the flash, and I overexposed the film by around two stops. I decided to underdevelop, or “pull” the film, so instead of developing for a full 15 minutes in HC-110 (Dilution H) I just did it for 12 minutes. The negatives are still overexposed (I probably should have tried 10 minutes or so). but what a great vintage look! When I scanned the negatives, a slight colour cast was left; more often than not I remove it (or replace it!) as it is not attractive, but this time it was perfect! I’m going to experiment with this workflow so more, that’s for sure! 🙂

Vintage glow

Broken and Unbroken

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Here is another image from the Broken series I have been doing. The idea was that even if the camera eye is broken, the human eye endures. The model Shreeti was perfect for this shot; even with an impassive expression,her gaze is very powerful.

Shreeti Broken017

Mamiyma M645, 80mm f2.8 lens, strobe through umbrella. Film: Fomapan 100, developed in Xtol 1:1 for 9 minutes

Dancing With the Light

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This image is from one of the more complicated lighting set-ups (at least complicated by my standards) I’ve done so far. Two strobes were used, one from the left with a “snoot” in place to restrict the light spread, and a strobe off to the right, shooting through this lovely piece of wood. The holes in it allowed it to function as a “gobo“, allowing a dappling of the light, and placing light patterns on the wall. The concept we were going for was a jazz performer in a club, and the lighting really helped get the mood I was going for.

The Jazz Musician #1

Taken with Mamiya M645J, 80mm f2.8 lens, 2 250ws strobes @ f8. Shot on Fomapan 100, developed in Xtol 1:1 for 9 minutes, post processed using Nik plugins.