Today’s image is from what was likely the last Kensington Market project involving models and the use of bleached/reclaimed negatives from Fuji FP100C instant film. I love the large swath of purple in the image, and model Caroline’s expression, hair, and choice of wardrobe were great for the setting.
Today, a video of various portraits taken recently in Kensington Market, Toronto, with Fuji FP100C instant film, using the negatives after bleaching/reclaiming. I love the colours I get from this process!
Yesterday I had the pleasure of working with Rebecca Zur, in a park near Yonge St. / St. Clair Ave. in Central Toronto. Twenty minutes before the shoot was to begin, the heavens opened and there was a brief but intense sun-shower. Afterwards, the sun stayed out, and the air remained quite damp and steamy, but the light took on a soft, diffuse and magical quality, which made it perfect for the shoot/ (I was melting in the humidity, but that doesn’t matter :-)) . I shot Polaroid, digital and conventional film for this shoot, and I have chosen one digital and one Polaroid for today’s post, as the looks are quite different, but equally valid.
Today’s photograph is from a shoot last evening with model/actor Sarah. It was getting dark quickly, but thanks to the 3000 speed instant film (Fuji FP-3000) in my Polaroid Land Camera 455 I was able to get a number of good instant images. If the photo is the destination, then using the Polaroid makes for an interesting journey; Sarah and I were able to review the images as we shot, not as LCD images on the back of a camera, but as a print in our hands, and we both felt that was a crucial difference. Sarah is a perfectionist when it comes to getting her poses and expressions just right, and she certainly did an amazing job!
My stable of instant cameras has grown by one, as I have acquired a first generation Polaroid SX-70 instant camera, dating from about 1972. This camera is a beautiful piece of design and engineering, and it is hard to realize today what an impact it made when it was first announced. For film, as the original Polaroid film is no longer made the only choice is to use Impossible Project film. It is not the most straightforward film (i.e. the prints must be hidden from light for the first few minutes, and the results can be unpredictable), but it is great that an old classic like the SX-70 can still do what it was meant to do.
(My first successful SX-70 image, using Impossible Project color shade film)
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)
This afternoon I finally was able to have the “Old Friends” shoot with my good friends Ken and Bryon. The idea of shooting these two together was the original inspiration for the project, but for various logistical reasons we were not able to shoot until today. Today’s image is a Polaroid instant picture from the session (shot mainly in 35mm and 120 roll film format).
One neat thing that did occur: the Polaroid 100 is not a small camera, and tends to attract attention whenever I use it. Today, a guy at the next table at the pub where we did the shoot noticed what I was using, asked if it was a Polaroid, then ran home to get an old Polaroid he had inherited from a relative. He came back with a Polaroid model 104, a sibling of my Model 100. Without a battery I couldn’t tell if the camera worked or not but the battery compartment was clean and the shutter sounded strong. I told the guy he could still get film for the camera, and I hope he tries it out.
Yes, it was a very good day. 🙂
The guys on the Film Photography Podcast spend a lot of time talking about shooting instant photography, so I decided to take the plunge, and through the FPP store I got a lovely Polaroid 100 Land camera, for which Fuji still makes colour and black and white film packs (the peel apart variety). During the instant photo walk in Cleveland on Saturday (as part of the Analog Pulse Photography Meet-up, to be covered in a future post), I took this image using the FP-C 100 colour instant film. The process of shooting instant is a lot of fun, different from both traditional film and digital shooting, with its own kind of slightly delayed instant gratification. I’m hooked 🙂
My Third Eye 