This image was created last night, on the subway on my way home. I noticed this person as I got on the train, but she was always looking down. Then a baby started getting fussy, and I knew that it would only be a matter of time before she looked up.
Vintage Appreciation
I had a great photo shoot yesterday with Dawn Bailey, a performer of mainly Early Music (think medieval, renaissance, etc.). As a performer who values early music, Dawn had an appreciation for photographic techniques that might seem obsolete to some, and when one of the old cameras I was using started getting cranky, she likened it to playing an original instrument — often challenging and in some ways more difficult than playing a modern instrument, but uniquely rewarding. This image was shot on Fuji FP3000B film, and I am posting the scanned negative version here. Dawn’s lovely hair and amazingly textured and detailed jacket were perfect for the concept, and there will be more to come from this shoot, including a hand tint once I get the conventional film developed!
This image was shot with a new (to me) camera: a Mamiya Universal Press camera with a Polaroid back, and a 127mm f4.7 lens. It will be a challenge getting my head around this camera, but it will be worth it!!
Neutral Expression?
Another image of Sarah today; she shows how a “neutral expression” can be anything but deadpan.
(Mamiya 645 Pro TL, 80mm f2.8 .lens, lit with late 1950’s vintage Quartz Halogen movie light, Ilford Delta 400 film shot at E.I. 800, developed in HC-110 Dilution B for 10 minutes)
A Different Light
This image is from a shoot with a new model named Sarah, this past weekend. It was an indoor shoot, so I set up my usual lighting set-up, including my cactus remote flash triggers; a few shots in, they decided to stop working :-(. Plan B meant switching from strobe (flash) lighting to continuous lighting. I used a late 1950’s vintage quartz halogen movie light (which gave off a lot of heat!), bounced into an umbrella. When combined with the soft light from an overcast light coming through the skylights, I think it really worked. It’s time to try more of this kind of lighting!
Reality
In a lot of ways this image is not realistic: it is not in colour, it is not especially sharp, it is dark and grainy. But for early morning on the bus in November, it is extremely realistic.
Dominance of Colour
Today’s image of the amazingly talented Jennifer is another hand-tinted print, so by definition it started out as a monochrome image. What I did with the hand-tinting though is try to create another mainly monochrome image, with just hints of purple and flesh tone here and there. I was going for intensity.
Connection
I took this image on the subway on a trip downtown this afternoon. I was struck by the fact that they were sharing music via one headphone jack, but apart from that they were both in their own worlds: no words, glances etc. were exchanged until it was time to get off the train. Mysterious and intriguing!
Walkway
Today’s image is an iPhone 4S/Hipstamatic shot of a walkway at Kipling subway station, early in the morning dark. To me it always looks so cold and industrial.
Fatigue
Five days a week I am on the TTC, early. The image today was taken this morning on the Kipling bus, at about 6:50 a.m. You haven’t seen fatigue until you see transit riders at this time of day, and today was no exception.
Expression part 2
Another image of Iryna, this time shot on film, I asked Iryna to show some sadness, and I described a story for her to place herself into. It was amazing how fast she became the character in the sad story; she was feeling the emotion. There is no faking for this kind of expression.
(Mamiya 645 Pro TL, 80mm f2.8 lens, Tri-x @ E.I. 800 developed in Diafine 3+3, negative scanned and post processed using NIK software)
My Third Eye 