From a recent walk in the ravine near Yonge/St. Clair. For a black and white shooter, this kind of texture is priceless.
Rolleiflex E3 75mm/3.5 Xenotar lens
Tri-X @ EI 800 developed in Diafine
Category: Medium Format
Low Light
Shooting was a challenge in terms of light this past Saturday. Indoors at the Allen Gardens on a dreary day it was not very bright. I had one roll left of Delta 3200, and developing it in DD-X (at the time listed for EI 6400, not 3200) gave a look I quite like, wit ha smooth tonal range.
Rolleiflex E3, 75mm/3.5 Xenotar lens
Ilford Delta 3200 film @ EI 3200
Developed in DD-X 1+4, 12.5 minutes @ 20 C
Portrait of the Artist: Natasha
It was lovely to work with Natasha again. Since we last worked together she has discovered she has a great talent for drawing, so a portrait of her makes a nice addition to my long term “Portrait of the Artist” project. In her expression I see the same thing I have been privileged to see in a number of artists: the joy of imagination, and the ability to tap into it. Shot in late afternoon in a fall day with the light rapidly fading, the Tri-X/Diafine combination made this film image possible.
Rolleiflex E3, 75mm/3.5 Xenotar lens
Tri-X @ EI 800 developed in Diafine
Something New
Today’s image of the fall colours in Toronto’ St. James Cemetery is from the first roll of colour slide film I developed at home using the Argentix E6 development kit. Slide development is a fussy thing, and I don’t think I got it quite right, but it was definitely in the ballpark! It is not easy to get slide film developed in Toronto any more, so I was very happy to find a Canadian distributor for the development chemistry, as U.S. sellers aren’t allowed to ship these kind of chemicals across borders. I might not shoot E6 slide film all that much anymore, but I can at least say I’ve developed my own!
Rolleiflex E3, 75mm/3.5 Xenotar lens
Fuji Velvia Slide film, home developed using Argentix E6 kit
Contrast
Yesterday at St. James Cemetery: the dazzling sunshine and shade from the leaves still left on the tree made for very contrasty lighting, but the film/developer combination did a decent job in holding a lot of the shadow detail.
Rolleiflex E3, 75mm/3.5 Xenotar lens.
Rollei PRX400 film at EI 320 developed in Pyrocat HD, 18 minutes @ 20 C
Another Pyrocat HD Image
Here is another image from the roll of HP5+ film I developed in Pyrocat HD developer yesterday. This developer has really “unlocked” this film for me. Taken in Niagara-On-The-Lake on a very dull day this past summer, the tonality is much better than I would have expected.
Baby Speed Graphic with 120 6×7 film back,
101mm/4.5 Ektar lens.
Ilford HP5+ film developed in
Pyrocat HD 1+1+100 for 19 minutes @ 20 C
From the Beginning
Today I tried Pyrocat HD film developer for the first time on a roll of HP5+ that I never got around to developing after shooting it this summer. “Pyro” based developers date from the early 1850’s, and it is always fun to try classic tools and techniques, and as for HP5+, from now on this will be my go-to developer for this film!
“Baby” Speed Graphic with 101mm/4.5 Ektar lens
HP5+ film developed in Pyrocat HD
Taylor Creek
I really liked the look of the bridge through the Weeping Willow tree at this location in Taylor Creek Park, Toronto.
Rolleiflex E3, 75mm/3.5 lens
Kodak Tmax 100 film at EI 50,
developed in Rodinal 1+50 for 1o minutes @ 20 C
Around the Corner
I like pictures of paths and stairs. They are like stories, inviting you to follow them and find out what is waiting for you, just around the corner. This image is from Taylor Creek in Toronto, last weekend.
Rolleiflex E3, 75mm/3.5 Xenotar lens
Kodak Tmax 100 film at EI 50, developed in Rodinal
1+50 for 10 minutes @ 20 c
Dance of the Seasons
On a cold and blustery Saturday, a very brave Rowena was an amazing model for an outdoor dance-themed shoot.
Rolleiflex E3, 75mm/3.5 Xenotar lens
Kodak Ektar 100 film, negative scanned
and edited with Lightroom and Nik Efex
My Third Eye 