Today it’s back to Kensington Market, for another image created by taking the negative from a Fuji FP100C print and bleaching off the black back coating and then scanning it. I’m really hooked on the vivid colours (especially reds and blues) that result from this process!
Today’s image is from another bleached/reclaimed Fuij FC-100C instant print, taken at the Broadview subway station in Toronto. I posted it on flickr as I was going out the door this morning, and didn’t have time to add any description. It quickly got a couple of nice comments, but I think one person made the assumption the look was all done in post. Given the plethora of apps and plug-ins available today to make digital images look like grungy lo-fi analog images, it was not an unreasonable assumption; most viewers would have done the same. I just can’t help but notice the irony of the situation.
I was out with my Polaroid camera today, and on three different occasions I was stopped by a smiling passerby, asking questions about the camera: how old it was, where do I get film, etc. It was like being out walking one’s dog, as a means for initiating conversations with strangers (and as an introvert, I often find this very difficult to do!). I have also gotten the same reaction when out with a Rolleicord Twins Lens Reflex.
If a goal of photography is connecting with people, then these vintage cameras help me fulfill that goal!
(Street busker shot in Kensington Market 22 July, 2012, Polaroid 100 Land camera, Fuji FP-100C instant colour film)
Today’s image in Kensington Market was taken with my Yashica Mat LM 120 format Twin Lens Reflex camera. On one hand it was quite inexpensive, and has an amazing lens. On the other hand, the shutter/film advance mechanism is balky, so that the film advance often sticks until I jiggle the camera or mutter incantations. This is the one camera I have where keeping a headless chicken in the camera bag (to wave in front of the stuck film advance; when all else fails there is always voodoo).
I swear that in a past life this camera was a cat (Will I work? Yes. No. Yes. No. ….)
Kensington Market in Toronto is one of my favourite places in Toronto: colourful, eclectic, but a bit gritty and rough around the edges. It is certainly not a pretentious or snooty part of town! This past Saturday I went down with three cameras, including a Nikon SLR with a 17mm super wide-angle lens, loaded with slide film (Fuji Velvia 100). The slide film was cross processed (developed as a color negative), resulting in interesting colour shifts and high contrast. I was quite happy with how the set turned out.
My day job is located in North Etobicoke in Toronto, and frankly it is not the most picturesque part of town. However, in the morning light there are things of interest I pass by every day, as I walk from the bus station to the office.
One more image of Keira from our Kensington Market shoot. We both saw this background at the same time, and immediately gravitated to it. The iconic Metropolis robot heads, and the frame, slightly askew which frames Keira’s head were an interesting combination — there is a lot going on!
As a follow up to the last post, here is one of the colour images from the shoot with Keira at Kensington Market. Although black and white is my “mother tongue” when it comes to photography, there are times when the language of colour is the only thing that will do, and I believe this is one of those times. I love the pink and blue neon sign with Keira’s auburn hair, both glowing, and capped off with a touching expression.
(Nikon FE, 105mm/f2.5 Nikkor lens, Kodak ISO 200 Colour Negative film, processed using JOBO C-41 kit, post work done with NIK Color Efex Pro 3)
More expressions, this time from Natasha Henderson, a Toronto comedian and actress, whose strong personality and presence made for a lively and fun photo session combining a retro film noir look with poking fun at old attitudes regarding the role of women. Natasha’s enthusiasm was great, and as a result she created a memorable character!
See Natasha in action on Youtube. She is the host of Comedy Thursdays at the Starving Artist in Toronto.
Today’s image of a new young model is from my Vintage 35mm project — using old rangefinder cameras for portraits with a vintage feel. For this photograph I used my 1939 vintage Leica IIIb body, with a 50mm Summitar f2 lens. As I was using a very slow film (E.I. 20 Adox CMS 20 film) even though it was a bright sunny day I was shooting wide open at f2, for a nice swirly effect in the background.
My Third Eye 