Yesterday I got together with my friends Maria and Coner for a shoot using my 4×5 Speed Graphic and my 1860’s Brass Petzval lens. The result below (shot on Ilford FP4+ film) just might be my favourite couples portrait I’ve ever shot :-). Love and film photography: both are timeless.
Earlier this week myself and another photographer had a photoshoot with a cheerful and talented teacher and musician named Amy. I used three different cameras, so I will do three different blog posts. Tonight, I am starting off with the 4×5 and1860’s Petzval lens, shot on HP5+. This lens has a knack of picking up interesting expressions 🙂
The third of the images of the shoot with Zoe this past weekend was created with my 1860’s era Petzal Brass lens, mounted on my 4×5 Speed Graphic. Hard to focus, and a cumbersome shooting experience, but the results are so worth it when I get it!
Ilford FP4+ sheet film, developed in Tmax Dev
It struck me in a moment of after-the-fact obviousness that my images of Brent needed to be in my Portrait of the Artist series. As a podcaster and video game designer, Brent has a lot of creative depth, and as I work more with the vintage Petzval lens for portrait work, to my eyes it is a great lens for capturing the depth of a person’s character, and Brent does have a lot of depth and character!
All images were created with my Speed Graphic 4×5, shot on EFKE Ortho 25 film.
Yes, I like shooting gazebos! They have such an interesting geometry about them that I can’t resist, and there is no 12 step program for this particular architectural fetish 🙂
I’m also spending more time shooting large format, and enjoying the slower, more thoughtful process.
4×5 Speed Graphic, 127mm/4.7 Ektar lens.
FP4+ developed in HC-110 Dilution B, 7 minutes @ 20 C
In addition to shooting the 1860’s lens last Sunday in the Beaches, I also shot a comparatively more modern lens on the Speed Graphic: my 127mm/4.7 Ektar. I need to spend more time with this lens!
Speed Graphic, 127mm/4.7 Ektar lens.
Ilford FP4+ film developed in HC110, Dil. BN for 7 minutes @ 20 C
On Sunday of this past weekend I met up with my friend and fellow film photographer Ori, who agreed to pose for a couple of portraits shot with my 1950’s era 4×5 Speed Graphic camera, with my mid 1860’s Brass Petzval lens. The film was expired EFKE, with a speed of 25, sadly no longer made. This stock is orthochromatic, meaning not sensitive to red light, which was pretty standard for the 19th century, and great for male portraits.
I am finally happy with the results from this lens, meaning that I now want to shoot as many people as possible with it! 🙂
Today’s image was created in Niagara On the Lake recently. I used my baby Speed Graphic, with a 120 roll film holder that creates 6cm by 9cm negatives. The combination of the large negative, the classic Kodak Ektar lens, the Kodak Tmax film and Rodinal developer is hard to beat.  There was no post processing of the negative scan at all: no sharpening or anything else, and I love the look!
One thing I like about cameras like a Speed Graphic is how parts can be mixed and matched. I was able to use a Voigtlander Voigtar Anastigmat lens (15mm/f6.3) rescued from a non-working Voigtlander Avus folder from the 1920’s. The roll film holder was from a Mamiya RB67 camera; it mounts perfectly.
Today’s photo is an image of my elder daughter Julia, beside a window in our house that seems to guarantee great light all the time :-). I had a roll of Ilford HP5+ kicking around so I loaded it into my Baby Speed Graphic, using a 6×7 120 roll film adapter from a Mamiya RB67 which just happens to fit 🙂 I’ve never had great luck with that film in 35mm (always too grainy), but in 120 I’m blown away!
My Third Eye 