MorseBlog

Finally I will explore this image in Lith developer. Lith can be very slow and frustrating but my earlier experience with low contrast images showed some real potential to create a new image. I mostly have 8x10 lith paper (Oriental Seagull) so I will have to opt for smaller images but I will stay with a 16:9 aspect ratio as it suites this image so well. This time I will go for 9x5 on 8x10 paper which is nearly the same ratio (1.8 vs 1.78 for 16:9).  I reviewed my prior posts on lith developing here and here . I then made some notes based on results for Oriental Seagull.  60W lamp 0xND filters No filtration 9x5 image on 8x10 paper Reference point f4 at Ev 2.6 in fog from earlier print Reference point f5.6 @ 45" with 1/2 stop burn where needed 30g Part A Fotospeed Lith 33g Part B Fotospeed Lith I then setup the the enlarger, easel and focus. I found I got Ev 2.5 in a foggy area at f5.6 to match as close as I could what I had done before. I mixed the developer by throwing out hal...

Click Above to go Straight to the Photos on Flickr! The last couple of years I have done what a lot of people do and try and select a limited number of 'best' photos of the year. These are of course by my own judgment though I do factor in likes from Flickr users in my decision.  This year I was very prolific in terms photos taken at about 375 (compared to about 50 last year!). I also have to say the yield of good photos was better. I attribute the increase in numbers mostly to my retirement from full time work this year. Covid-19 has limited travel but also provided a basis for more focus. The number of photos I am happy with went way up I think primarily because I chose to focus on intimate woodland as as subject and my further focus on three local woodlands. I have also been steadily improving technique and looking critically at the results. I ended up with perhaps 30 candidates on my initial long list.  The year divided almost in half betwe...

I have noticed a small trend of a couple folks I follow that are film users. They are moving more to digital. Steve O’nions here and here  discusses a partial switch over due to cost. Justin Lowery has a new project that he uses digital on. Neither of these are full conversions to digital and their choices are their choices. Driven in large part by cost though it is a concern. Fuji and Kodak have both put up their prices in the last year. Color has become much more expensive especially in large format. This lead me to contemplate if I should consider moving to digital for part of my work. It didn’t take long to realize how difficult this would be for me. I enjoy film for the same reasons many do. The slowness and deliberate nature. There is an aspect of connecting with my grandfather and my late brother who were avid photographers as well. However the thing I would miss the most is the tangible nature of film and the sense it has because of that as a craft. Now I don’t want to ...

Retropan 320 film has been around for a few years now. Made by Foma it is a ASA 320 black and white film called retro as it is supposed to look like older film. (It is panchromatic so not that old.) There are some enthusiastic reviews online (as well as some detractors). I got swept up in the enthusiasm and decided to buy a few rolls to try out. I can say now I regret it. My goto film for black and white is Ilford Fp4+ (ASA 125) as a slow high resolution film it is very consistent and pretty cost effective. I have shot some Kodak and Fuji which I like but here in the UK Ilford is a quality product and good value. Normally for high speed film I have shot Ilford HP5+. However having been caught up in the Retropan reviews I decided to see if it would work as my high speed film. I was recently in British Columbia to visit my son so I took a couple of rolls along to try it out. I brought my Rolleiflex f2.8 as it is an easy to carry camera and simple to use. I brought my Sekonic light...

On a short business trip to Japan. Can’t help but spend some time in Shinjuku. Stopped by Map Camera to look at all the old cameras. Map is a palace of Leica with some Rolleis and Hassleblads thrown in as well. Well worth the visit to the basement. For new camera a colleague informs me the prices are better at Map than Yodobashi.  The other stop was Yodobashi and their film department. Here you can get great deals on fresh Fuji (other films as well Iford, Kodak, etc.) Everything available from Fuji from 35mm up to 8x10 large format film. You can also get 220 film here as well. The import film prices for Kodak and Ilford are not as good a deal os course. (Coals to Newcastle).  Yodobashi Large Format Fuifilm Selection I picked up Acros B+W, Velvia 50 in 120 and 4x5, Velvia 100 in 220, Provia in 120 and 4x5. On the way home at the airport found some good prices on Velvia 100 120 film I couldn’t resist as well.     The Film Haul from Odabashi I also pick...

My odyssey in film photography these past short 8 years has taught me a few things about my preferences for cameras. Affordability has always been a factor. I also have a distinct prejudice in favor of medium format. This stems from first my brother’s involvement where he left a distinctly favorable impression on medium format despite having shot 35mm and large format competently as well. He passed away well before the digital era. I also decided that I wanted to avoid 35mm despite the obvious advantages in terms of cost, size and weight. I reasoned the advantages of film over digital was being quickly overtaken and medium format would remain relevant for a while longer. As I write this however it seems the technical advantages of film have been mostly if not completely over-run by advances in digital technology and cost. Never-the-less there are some attendant benefits to shooting film; among are not economy, simplicity, nor instant gratification. So my first film camera tha...