MorseBlog

I ventured out today with Mollie after a hectic week of drinking, eating, and celebrating with friends and family over the holidays. It was all very enjoyable but I think both of us needed to get out in the woods for a while. For her part Mollie had a great time in Holme Fen. It rained so hard this morning when we got up she declined our daily morning walk and so by noon was ready for a romp. She quickly got up to her old tricks of jumping, spyhopping, exploring and chasing about the bracken and fallen logs.   Blog Post Cover Image For me this was more about some experimentation which I will get to shortly. The day was not really made for photography and the light incredibly variable with almost clear skies when we arrived to overcast to some clearing and intermittent clouds during the 3 hours or so we were out.  I wanted to have a good demonstration of what box speed on a film means and how this may not always be the best way to shoot film. This came up as a question on ...

Again as the year ends I turn to trying to determine which of last year's photos I like the best. This past year was a mixed bag in what was supposed to be post-pandemic; one still finds travel and activities restricted. My pandemic project 'Three Wood Lands' had concluded and I had nothing else in mind. Still I continued to carry a camera and make photos and spent time in the darkroom. (I managed over 200 images.)  As in the past this is an exercise of winnowing down from a larger list to increasingly shorter lists. Last year I opted for a longer list than years previous as I found it difficult to reduce the list further. I added the novation of separate color and black and white categories and restricted myself to 5 images to each. This shocking lack of discipline I will probably continue this year. Black and White The top of the list has to go to this image I took a few day after a snow storm. It was ( as I described at the time ) one of those image that when you see it ...

Day 1 Well the forecast said fog and so I set the alarm. Mollie got up early with me and we gathered the Intrepid and jumped in the car for the drive down to Holme Fen. It was a little depressing driving to Holme Fen in the pre-dawn light. There were thin patches of fog on parts of the road and a thin haze generally but not what I would call proper fog. Still, I said to Mollie, a good day to be out and Holme Fen is her favorite woodland.  We arrived and parked up and I assembled the camera with 150mm lens and put it on the tripod. This is my usual routine of having it mostly setup and slung over my should as it makes it easy to decide to compose and make an image without unpacking everything. I packed a mish mash of different film including HP5+ B&W, Portra 160, Ektar, and Velvia 50 for color. Today would be about trying to shoot a little softer f-stop and concentrate on 'ma'.  We headed out and I have to say it was a lovely morning but in the ascending pre-dawn light I wa...

Yes another printing post. Sorry but I keep my lab notes here which makes for dreadfully boring reading. Blog post cover photo This image I took during my two days of photography in Holme Fen  when there was persistent fog for a few days. I printed this image as part of a contact print series  and decided to make an 8x10 print. This involves moving upstairs to 'The Beast' my 4x5 enlarger. I am also nearing the end of my pack of 8x10 Adox MCC 110 paper a glossy FB paper so I thought this would be a good use for it.  Looking at my notes from the last time I printed on this paper I setup for an Ev of close to 6 with the negative removed which got me to f22. My first test strip was too dark so I switched to f32. Given my contact print experience and experience with fog in the past I opted for a #5 hard filter only print.  Test Strip (#5 hard filter) (8, 11, 16, 22, 32, 45, 64 seconds right to left.) The test print caused some confusion as I could not decide between 22...

I just mixed a fresh batch of ECO 4812 (1+10) and looked at my notes. This last batch was mixed back in February. Finally, development times were running past the customary 3 minutes hence the fresh batch. I am reminded why I have enjoyed this developer for so long. I am also reminded of Wolfgang Moersch' s own words about his developer... After 20 years of experience with the creation of developers it is time to break new grounds. Modesty and self-effacement are inappropriate. While others beat the drums and blow the horns, a flute would be too silent to be heard: ECO 4812 original “eau de Hürth” is my best positive developer and thus probably the best developer on the planet. Hurth is the town in which he resides. For me the benefits have been 1) a neutral tone as I don't generally like warmer tones, 2) Very economical, 3) Ecologically friendly As far as economy is concerned, I spend time in the darkroom intermittently. I may take off months between sessions. I like to know I...

Last month I made 4x5  contact prints which, until then, I hadn't done in quite a while. I liked the format I made up for 8x10 paper by placing two negatives on one piece of paper and leaving the film rebates in place. Retaining film rebates on images seems to be a recent trend amongst new adopters of film. I suppose it gives the image a badge of authenticity or a nod to the retro nature of the work. So I suppose I have adopted this custom in these images. In any case I like the look so perhaps I am finally trendy! (An alternative format I am considering is to use a piece of 8x12 paper, cut from 16x12 paper, with the prints arranged side by side in landscape orientation.) I used the same test print methodology as in the previous post. This got me to the first print that was pretty close. For the upper low oak image, I used only 16 seconds of the #5 filter as it is very low contrast. For the lower birch image, I used 8 seconds #00 and 16 seconds #5 filter. First Print I decided bot...

Ian Roberts in his YouTube video  Understanding Your Muse  tells a compelling version of the Greek myths surrounding the Muses. In Greek mythology Mnemosyne is a daughter of Zeus and mother to the muses; all are goddess that preside over the creative arts of mankind. Mnemosyne is also the goddess of memory (where we get the word mnemonic from) and she resides in the underworld near the Pool of Memory.  When one dies, in the ancient Greek understanding, they are taken to the Pool of Memory all bound up with worldly experience, ego, ambition, tragedy and fear. They drink from the pool and remember completely all of their unbound human potential. What a moment that must be! But that we must wait to die to experience it. But there is a related belief that when one is in the creative throes and in touch with one’s muses then there may be a moment where you can drink from the Pool of Memory and experience briefly your full potential. ...