During lockdown (that’s the first lockdown, not the most recent one… or any of the others we may have in the future!) I was out and about with various cameras and film emulsions documenting the times.
I rarely ventured into town, so there were very little shots of empty streets in usually busy shopping areas. Instead, I was documenting what was around me - a much more rural setting than I usually capture.
I’ve now put some of these into a book. And it’s for sale!
You can see it if you click HERE
My lovely new Bronica EC
What does a good person do when they can’t go to the pub for months?
That’s right - save up that cash and buy a Bronica!
Yes, I went and bought something I’ve wanted for quite a while.
A proper system-based medium format camera.
I couldn’t afford a Hasselblad. I’d been eyeing up the Bronica ETRS for a while, as well as the Mamiya 645 (but both have recently jumped up in price quite a bit). I’d even been contemplating a Kiev 88 or one of its spin-offs (reliability put me off). The Bronica S2A was very attractive, but once again - quite expensive unless you went for the slightly older S2 - and I’d heard that they could be a little bit tricksy with the gears stripping over time.
Which brought me to the EC. People were scared of the EC because of it having an electronic shutter. But I’ve got two other film cameras (Olympus OM10 and Yashica Electro 35) which rely on electronics and they work like a dream. And with all my research, I couldn’t find anyone who’d actually owned one say that the electronics were crap. So the naysayers make the EC a bit of a bargain… and I went for a nice all black one!
A detail of some boat rigging in Charlestown.
The first thing you notice with the EC is the weight. This is not a light, chuck-it-in-yer-bag camera. But that’s OK - I still have my Yashica 635 for lighter days. However, even though it is heavy it is a work of beauty.
And the CLUNK of that mirror! Even my wife had to admit, “Yeeeeah, that is a good sound.”
I ran a test roll through as soon as I got it and all looked good. But the proper test was going to be taking it to Cornwall for ten days on a family holiday/visiting the in-laws trip in October. I know what Cornwall can be like - quite changeable in weather, so I wanted a film that could (a) let me test the camera and (b) handle lots of different kinds of light. I settled on Fomapan 200 - a film I’ve shot with a lot. It hasn’t got as wide a latitude as some others but still perfectly workable for what I needed. Also, familiarity is always important when getting to know a new toy.
Shadows on the floor of a cafe in St Just.
Straight off the bat I was in love with this camera. Yes, it’s heavy. But after a while I didn’t notice that whatsoever. The viewfinder is stunningly bright - I found myself composing and focusing shots quicker than I’d ever done with an unfamilar camera. I was feeling so confident with it that I didn’t even meter every shot, as soon as I had a good measurement for a scene I just went for it and used my instinct.
Much as I love lighter cameras, I am thinking maybe I’ve found a near perfect camera for me. It has a phenomenal lens (a Nikkor 75mm f2.8), it feels great in the hands and - for a medium format - is quick to work with. I love the modular aspect of it - at present I’ve only got the one back but I will buy more so I can load up with different films. But further on from that I can build it with different viewfinders, lenses, grips, even viewfinder screens. It is a fantastic camera that can grow with me.
Film from https://analoguewonderland.co.uk
Dev and scans by https://www.silverpan.co.uk/
The little guy’s gonna end up in here somewhere, hasn’t he?
The quarry at Wheal Martyn. It is BIG. And I love all those textures.
Also at Wheal Martyn, a gorgeous wooded area.
One of the old railway trucks at Wheal Martyn.
Ruan Lanihorne on the Roseland Peninsula. Losing the light whilst metering on something quite delicate.
Waiting for the King Harry Ferry back over the River Fal.
A nostalgic look
It is AGES since I last posted anything on here. January…. and how things have changed since then!
I’m not sure how I didn’t get round to posting a few things during lockdown as I’ve not been slowing down with my photography whatsoever. I finished my 365 project at the end of February (I’m still working on the book of that) and decided that I was going to start experimenting with some more film stocks in 2020.
And then Covid came along.
I’ll post in more length about my Covid photographic adventures soon. But let’s just say that I did get a chance to experiment. And I’ve tried a lot of different emulsions, which has been fun.
But this particular post is about some expired film I bought a while back from Analogue Wonderland. It is Agfa CT Precisa 100 slide film. Analogue Wonderland recommended shooting it at box speed and then cross processing it.
I bought two rolls. This first roll was shot over one weekend in Lyme Regis and Axmouth. The other roll has been waiting to see how successful I’ve been with the first.
Firstly, this stuff comes out grainy. And very, very blue - although the red does pop out as well. I’d read a couple of places that yellows really pop too, but not with my experience with this roll. The cyan/blue was very dominant once scanned - I had to back off the saturation of the cyan in Lightroom quite heavily. Obviously I knew I’d get bonkers colour shifts but I still wanted it to be in a reasonable ballpark.
To begin with, I was a bit disheartened as all I could see was that grain and the completely way-off colours. And started to question why I’d not shot the Kodak Vision 3 50D I also had with me for the weekend. It was perfect weather for that lovely film.
But after a while I started to quite enjoy the look of the Agfa. It gives off a nicely nostalgic feel - even more so with shots of my little ‘un. That could almost be my young self at his age on that beach. The film really does have the feel of the turn of the 70s/80s.
I’m now wishing I’d bought more than the two rolls. Might have to start hunting for some more…!
Ilford Ortho Plus
There was muchos excitement all around when Ilford released this orthochromatic film a couple of months ago. And not wanting to miss out on the party, I grabbed myself a roll from the wonderful Analogue Wonderland.
The talk was of fine grain, nice contrast and excellent tonality. And it did not disappoint…
This film is amazing. It has absolutely gorgeous tonality with near non existent grain in the right light. The contrast is spot-on. Being an ortho film it doesn’t react to red whatsoever, so skin tones are dark. But for landscape and detail-type shots - YUM YUM YUM!!!!
As usual when I’m trying out a new film, I stuck my roll in my Oly OM10. I think all of these shots were using my Zuiko 50mm f1.8 lens. Mostly shot in Cornwall over the Christmas period, the weather wasn’t great - gloomy, misty, rainy…. but the Ortho took everything in its stride. It really captured the atmosphere.
It ain’t the cheapest of films. But it really is worth it as it’s quite special.
Film developed by Silverpan Film Lab.
365 Challenge - into the final two months...
Two months to go. It feels a bit like the last couple of miles in a half marathon - almost there but still needing to push on for that bit further yet. No relaxing too soon!
I must admit, I have been finding it quite hard recently to try and get interesting shots around my home town of Bath. Sometimes no matter the difference in the people in a scene, it feels like I’ve already covered certain angles and views before. But having to try and force myself to find something unique is part of the challenge.
I’ve been away for Christmas and had a two week break from being in town. So I’m hoping I’m coming back with fresher eyes for these last two months of the challenge.
In the meantime (and as it was August I last made a 365 post), here are some of my faves over the past few months. And the full set can be seen here on Flickr.
