Mamiya(s) test rolls

November 15, 2018 sumacandmilkweedLeave a comment

LDC_20181108_82000001 — Lake Michigan, Mamiya M645 and Kodak Ektar

LDC_20181108_82000006 — sun rays over Lake Michigan, Mamiya M645 and Kodak Ektar

A few weeks ago, before my dog hurt her leg and before I even began to realize that holidays are coming and winter is coming and the days are getting short and there will be snow soon (in fact, it’s snowing as I write this and it’s really beautiful), I was gifted two cameras and I couldn’t wait to use them. So I did use them, on the west side of Michigan, to document the then-colorful leaves and other fall-type stuff.

woods in west Michigan, Mamiya M645 and Kodak Ektar

wooded trail, west Michigan, Mamiya M645 and Kodak Ektar

The Mamiya M645 was easy. It is actually quite a bit smaller than my beloved Bronica SQ-A, and I already had experience with my son’s Mamiya 645 1000s. The differences are that the 1000s has a shutter speed up to 1000 (mine only goes to 500), and it literally eats batteries–to use it, you have to pop the battery in before you take a photo and then pop it out again and carry it in a warm pocket. If you are out and about with it and forget to do this, the battery will croak mid-roll. There’s no meter, but the shutter relies on the battery and will stay open if the battery is dead. My M645 seems to have no battery issues but the foam seals are pretty crusty and I did get some bits on some of my images. I might try to replace the seals myself if I’m feeling crafty over the winter, but it’s certainly usable for now.

LDC_20181108_82040006 — branch, Lake Michigan, Mamiya M645 and Kodak Portra

LDC_20181108_82040001 — driftwood, Lake Michigan, Mamiya M645 and Kodak Portra

Anyway, I may have to underexpose a tiny bit with the M645 as more of my shots seemed slightly overexposed, especially on the beach. But, I couldn’t be more thrilled with this camera and I’m happy to have a non-plastic camera (don’t get me wrong, I love my toy cameras) in the 6×4.5 format. This camera will be in regular rotation.

LDC_20181108_81990001 — Lost Lake, Mamiya M645 and Kodak Ektar

LDC_20181108_81980006 — tree stump, Mamiya M645 and Kodak Ektar

LDC_20181108_81990002 — Lost Lake reflections, Mamiya M645 and Kodak Ektar

The Mamiya C220 is a different bird altogether. A TLR (twin lens reflex) with a standard waist-level viewfinder means you hold it at around chest or waist level and look down into this beautiful piece of ground glass that makes you feel all swoony and happy because something about it just looks like you’re about to get the most gorgeous, dreamy, lovely image ever.

LDC_20181108_000250240001 — old well in dunegrass, Mamiya C220, Fuji Acros

Except that you’re looking at your image flip-flopped, as in right is left and left is right, and if there’s a horizon your brain has to do all sorts of work to figure out just the right way to tilt the camera and your body so that the horizon is straight (if you like straight horizons, which I really do), and then if you’re close to your subject (which you can be very close with a TLR) you have to take into account that you’re framing by looking through the top lens, and the lens that actually captures the image is two inches lower than that, and so your brain just explodes because it’s not used to all of that.

fall, backroad in west Michigan, Mamiya C220 and Lomography f2 film

So, I know that you probably shouldn’t test a new camera with experimental film, but I seem to have a knack for doing just that. The color roll I shot through the C220 was Lomography f2 400, which the folks at Lomography aged in wine casks for 7 years. There is a red/pink line that runs down the right side of all of the images from this roll, and I think it’s the film rather than the camera, because the few shots I got from the black and white Fuji Acros I tested did not have this line. (I only got three shots from the Acros roll–I hadn’t quite figured out the sensitivity of the film forwarding crank.)

LDC_20181108_000250640004 — close up fail, Mamiya C220 and Lomography f2 film

So, the M645 is easy and familiar and wonderful. The C220 challenges me and is going to take a lot more practice, but I’m all in. The C220’s foam seals are also pretty deteriorated, which may account for some light leaks on the edges of some shots.

I just registered for the winter term of the same film class I took two years ago at a local community college and I really can’t wait to take it again, to be in the darkroom processing film and printing again with all kinds of equipment and tools available to me. I think the C220 will be a big part of my winter work there.

I also learned first from another blogger (who you might want to read if you like photography) that flickr is changing their mode of business. I started using flickr to host my photos because it was (fairly) easy to link them to this blog, and it seems like if I don’t do something like that the space here gets filled mighty quickly and I will have to go to a pricey plan in order to stay here. Flickr was free. But now it’s not. So, I need to make some decisions about how to proceed–pay for a flickr pro account or upgrade to a business plan on WordPress, or just upload super low res images (ick) that take up very little space. When I started blogging it was more about having an avenue for my writing, but then I picked up a camera and, well, things just get more expensive. So, decisions to be made.

film, travel, angst

August 13, 2018 sumacandmilkweedLeave a comment

70840007 — twin mullein stalks on the bluff, Bronica SQ-A and Portra 160

Last year, and I can hardly believe it has already been a year, I traveled to Peru and spent a week with my daughter in Lima. I brought two cameras–a Minolta X-700 and a Holga and I was super happy with my decision not to bring a digital camera. In fact, I just gave my now ratty-looking but still capable digital camera to my son to borrow, with the caveat that I can borrow it back when I need to. I like where film is taking me right now so I’m going to keep exploring that.

So in just over a month my friend Jane and I are heading to Iceland and while I am pretty well decided on which cameras I’m bringing, now I am suddenly obsessing about how much and what kind of film to bring. I’m no expert on all the films out there, but I’ve tried a few and I’ve got some favorites. If you don’t believe me that there really are lots and lots of films available, take a look at this compendium by EMULSIVE (this is part 5, but see the links to all four parts before this one if you want your head to spin).

But, I am struggling among my favorites. I know I want to shoot both black and white and color, but should I stick to one film each so my resulting images have somewhat the same voice? A variety, so I can mix it up (my norm)? And, how much film? 20 rolls? 40? I like to have options but I also need to pack smart and consider my budget.

I’m actually more worried about what film to bring than what clothes to pack. Have you been to Iceland in late September? If you have either film or clothing/footwear suggestions, I’m all ears.

Otherwise, after a two and a half week hiatus, I’m back on the shores of Lake Michigan for a little while. It’s hot, the beach has grown a bit, the Queen Anne’s lace and the mullein and the summer squash and the corn fields have all exploded, the bees are busy and the cicadas are humming the evenings away. We watched a bit of the Perseid meteors last night but couldn’t stay awake, although they were beautiful, sending silver glitter streaks through the sky. It’s high summer and it’s just heaven.

Spring, sort of

March 31, 2017 sumacandmilkweed4 Comments

Last Friday’s burst of warmth and color quickly turned to chill, gray, lackluster. I crave that color, but I’m beginning to see things differently. Black and white film opens you up to that, I think.

umbrella, riverfront, rain, Minolta SRT 102 and Lomography Earl Gray

Since January I’ve shot and processed (myself!) 16 rolls of black and white film, 35mm and 120mm. I have one more assignment in the class I’m taking and then I may need to go a little nuts with color film for a while after that, especially as I’ll be in California for one day of sightseeing before a few days of work and then after that in Lima, Peru for a week. I don’t know much about Lima yet, but I am imagining it’s a place requiring color film. I can’t wait to find out.

gnarly trees and clouds, Mamiya 645 1000s, Kodak T-Max 400

But despite the gray, there are green shoots, buds, the smell of wet earth, wildly chirping birds… all these signs of impending color and warm and sun. We are poised and ready and the wait makes the reward that much more delicious.

Marsh in metropark, Holga, Kodak T-Max 400

This week is exciting, different, changing. I have a new outlook. My youngest turned 21 this week, which feels like a new era… both my babies are adults. I shared an interview and photos with a community of film enthusiasts and the experience makes me feel lucky, like pinch-myself lucky, to be considered as someone with a passionate voice. I will have family around me this weekend and I will revel in that.

Good things are coming.

Chasing color (and don’t mind that Holga in my camera bag)

March 28, 2017June 16, 2017 sumacandmilkweedLeave a comment

It’s been the grayest month. Gray everywhere. After some teaser days in February we got just the grayest, dreariest March ever. Well, until last Friday, which was a big, blue, bright, bold, sunny and lovely day with a wind that blew the winter’s dust around and sent the cobwebs packing.

Of course the rain came over the weekend but whatever. It’s spring now and rain happens. But let’s get back to Friday. The temps even hit the low 70s. It was glorious. You shoulda been there.

But you weren’t, so I’m going to share some photos because I sneaked out of work a tiny bit early and went in search of color with my friend Jane.

LDC_20170327_62170002 — car as art, Holga, Kodak Ektar 100

LDC_20170327_62170004 — car and sky, Holga, Kodak Ektar 100

LDC_20170327_62170006 — Let’s Do This, Holga, Kodak Ektar 100

Detroit’s Eastern Market is the perfect antidote to a too-gray month that has gone suddenly, brilliantly bright. On Saturdays the market is alive and crowded, but other days it’s fairly quiet. Go on Saturdays for people-watching (and food buying) and on other days for wandering and mural-gazing.

LDC_20170327_62190003 — Eastern Market murals, double exposure, Holga, Kodak Ektar 100

LDC_20170327_62230006 — Dequindre Cut mural, Holga, Fuji Pro 400

LDC_20170327_62230002 — Ghosts of what I might have been, Eastern Market, Holga, Fuji Pro 400

LDC_20170327_62210001 — 2126 Pierce, Holga, Fuji Pro 400

I’ve got it bad. I sort of made a deal with myself to not acquire any more cameras for a while and focus on the ones I have (and the one I’m borrowing). But I broke my own deal in January when I used gift money to buy a Lomography Sprocket Rocket. And then some fascination with the Holga made me buy one of those, too, earlier this month. I kind of don’t count these two cameras in my deal with myself because they’re plastic. Not that they’re not real cameras–I’d argue with anyone on that. But, they’re really inexpensive. Faulty logic, but there you go.

I fall in love too easily. 120 film is my current crush. These Holga images from Friday’s adventure make me happy I don’t listen to myself sometimes.

LDC_20170327_62210005 — Clouds and corner building double in Eastern Market, Holga, Fuji Pro 400

LDC_20170327_62230001 — Sacred Heart, Holga, Fuji Pro 400

LDC_20170327_62210006 — Razor wire and sun flare, Holga, Fuji Pro 400

LDC_20170327_62230003 — Eastern Market, Holga, Fuji Pro 400

LDC_20170327_62190005 — No idle zone, Holga, Kodak Ektar 100

Fog, film, foray

January 27, 2017January 27, 2017 sumacandmilkweed2 Comments

That foggy day last week warranted an entire roll of film, much of it used in my neighborhood.

church steeple in fog, Kodak Tri-X 400, Minolta SRT 102

forgotten shoes in fog, Kodak Tri-X 400, Minolta SRT 102

Fog changes everything. The familiar is unfamiliar. There’s a lack of color, a mystery about things, a mood. A little eerie, maybe, to some. All I know is I could hardly wait to get to class last night. I had three rolls of film to develop–my first foray into developing my own film.

ldc_20170127_img087 — foggy pier and reflection (+ water spots from developing), Kodak Tri-X 400, Minolta SRT 102

We learned how to work in total darkness, working shoulder to shoulder, cracking open our film canisters with can openers and carefully, blindly, passing scissors to each other. As far as I know there was no bloodshed. And then the processing, this part in the light, fortunately… we poured chemicals together, agitated our film- and chemical-filled canisters, chatted in between watching our timers, fretted about possible mistakes, encouraged each other, watched as images magically appeared.

ldc_20170127_img086 — restaurant terrace in fog, Kodak Tri-X, Minolta SRT 102

The whole process was easier than I expected, and honestly a lot less smelly than I expected. I like that my class consists of mostly people younger than me, with a few my age or older. Some who’ve never touched a camera, some with years of experience or past experience, and some who have taken the class multiple times solely for open use of the darkroom. There is learning and teaching to be had here, and I am grateful for the opportunity to be part of it.

Love letters to the city, part two

January 12, 2017January 12, 2017 sumacandmilkweed4 Comments

More of Detroit’s downtown buildings, these things that make me swoon and forget to look where I’m going.

This time in black and white, also 35mm film. A study in shapes, lines, angles. I took these on both the last day of 2016 and on the first day of 2017, closing out and opening up the new year looking up.

These were shot on two different different Minolta SLR cameras and both with Kodak Tri-X film–an SRT-102 using the suggested film speed (400) and an X-700 pushing the film two stops to 1600. I’m not certain I can tell the difference, but this is my first stab at pushing and I think it might not be my last.

ldc_20170110_94410010 — One Woodward Ave.

ldc_20170110_94410013 — Lines, shadows and reflections

ldc_20170110_94410023 — Westin Book-Cadillac (left, with windows), and the Guardian Bldg. (tall, at right)

ldc_20170110_94410016 — Rosa Parks Transit Center

ldc_20170110_94410017 — Rosa Parks Transit Center

Love letters to the city

January 11, 2017 sumacandmilkweedLeave a comment

ldc_20170110_04690003 — One Woodward Ave., Minolta SRT-102, Kodak Ektar 100

Oh, Detroit.

You’re not what you were. You won’t be the same tomorrow, either. You had a heyday, you declined, then a recession. Today, a resurgence. You are loved and loathed, fought over, talked about, dismissed, underestimated, maligned, deified, abandoned, thriving. Through it all, you stand tall. You’ve got chops. You are what we make of you, but you have your own heart and our stories don’t define you.

I didn’t appreciate you when I grew up in your suburbs. I left; you called me back. Today I honor you–your shape-shifting, your grit, your perseverance.

So nice, I like you twice.

I took these double exposures on a sunny and not-so-cold New Year’s Day. Seemed a perfect way to honor the old and ring in the new.

ldc_20170109_04690018 — Penobscot Bulding, Minolta SRT-102, Kodak Ektar 100

ldc_20170109_04690022 — Federal Building, Minolta SRT-102, Kodak Ektar 100

ldc_20170109_04690025 — Westin Book Cadillac, Minolta SRT-102, Kodak Ektar 100

ldc_20170109_04690024 — Book Tower, Minolta SRT-102, Kodak Ektar 100

User error

January 4, 2017 sumacandmilkweedLeave a comment

Or, happy accidents.

I had trouble loading a roll of Ilford HP5 into my Pentax K1000 just about this time last year. I loaded and reloaded and remember reloading it again. I wasn’t sure the film was advancing correctly while I was shooting, and eventually I just stopped shooting, rewound the film and took it out.

And then I forgot about it for months, until I handed it to my son to develop at school. I was right… it hadn’t advanced correctly at all. I forgot about the negatives until I was clearing out a bit of junk in my office a few days ago and almost threw out the film canister that contained the negatives.

I’m still working on figuring out the best settings for my scanner, but I think the resulting accidental double, triple, and maybe more exposures are at least interesting.

ldc_20170104_img075 — blinds, light and shadow, old theater

ldc_20170104_img074 — underbelly of a bridge, river, trees

ldc_20170104_img069 — trees, light and shadow on wood stairs

November on film

December 30, 2016January 9, 2017 sumacandmilkweed8 Comments

The obsession continues.

Last month, I felt like I was on a mission to capture the last bits of color before the bleak winter set in. It’s not like there are never any blue skies in the midwest in the winter–of course there are lovely sunny days. And there is color. There are warm sandy-colored grasses like phragmites and bullrush and other marsh-dwelling plants that dry into warm shades. There is still green grass here and moss, too. But the colors are much less riotous. Everything seems subdued. And when blanketed in snow, all is white and shades of gray. Still beautiful, but it tends to wear on a girl who craves color and contrast and is stuck in cement-bound suburbs for the winter. But maybe I need to look at winter as a creative lesson? I guess we’ll see in the coming months.

Anyway.

I shot some film in November. Color (Kodak GC 400 and my current favorite, Ektar 100), black and white (Kodak Tri-X, which I am finding I really like a lot), and my last roll of Lomography lomochrome purple (which I still think is some kind of ridiculous, happiness-inducing, magical magic trick). I managed not to buy any new cameras although I’ll admit to scouring eBay listings and dreaming of my next purchase (I may have bought a couple of old lenses but they were super cheap). I used the two Minolta’s (SRT 102 and X-700), the Pentax K1000, and the Olympus EE3 in November. I’m not bored with any of these yet and still learning some of their differences and quirks. It’s too difficult and probably unnecessary to zero in on just one, so I’m not going to.

Stay tuned to one of my other favorite places right now, EMULSIVE, which in ~~January~~ April will feature an interview with… me. Yes, me! A relative newbie to film! I love the community that EMULSIVE has built, with an exchange of creativity and a wealth of information for people like me who have fallen head over heels and all punch-drunk in love with this craft. And, maybe most importantly, offers up for your viewing pleasure a ton of gorgeous (film) photos from some incredibly talented photographers.

So, while I got this film processed weeks ago, I wanted to take my time so that I could choose a few images that wouldn’t be anywhere else (as in here) before they show up on EMULSIVE. My two very favorites from November will be featured there first.

I’m also still trying to figure out how I want to display photos here. I’ve used headers and grouped images by camera (I think I did this for October’s shots). Do I caption each with the camera and type of film? I know when I look at other people’s photos, this is something I like to know. So I’ll try that this time. Do you like to know what kind of film and camera, or is that info overkill or detracting?

Margi

Technically these are not November photos… but Margi came to visit in very late October and this roll got finished in November, so there you go. Not so much a film fan but a Margi (Chicago dancer, teacher, choreographer) fan? The digital images from her visit are here.

ldc_20161213_58800004 — Margi on the bridge, Olympus Pen EE3, Lomography Lomochrome Purple

ldc_20161213_58800008 — Margi in forest, Olympus Pen EE3, Lomography Lomochrome Purple

And, my maiden attempt at a double exposure. Which didn’t turn out exactly how I invisioned but that’s how things go. I attempted to keep the camera still (via tripod), so the trees and bird would remain still, but there would be two Margi’s. Instead it looks a little like a psychedelic trip. See? Learning process.

ldc_20161213_58810005 — Margi with the forest bird, Minolta SRT 102, Kodak GC 400

Late fall

Mostly images from the west side of Michigan, although I finished two rolls in a local metro Detroit park. A few images here are the ends of those rolls.

ldc_20161213_58810016 — Leaf and branches double exposure, Minolta SRT 102, Kodak GC 400

Forest two ways, Olympus Pen EE3, Lomography Lomochrome Purple

Asparagus gone to seed, Olympus Pen EE3, Lomography Lomochrome Purple

Oak leaf in meadow grass, Minolta SRT 102, Kodak GC 400

Dew drops after frost, Pentax K1000, Ektar 100

Milkweed pods, Minolta X-700, Kodak Tri-X 400

Fall arrangement, Minolta X-700, Kodak Tri-X 400

Branches and sky, Minolta SRT 102, Kodak GC 400

Where Halloween balloons and forgotten things end up, Olympus Pen EE3, Lomography Lomochrome Purple

ldc_20161213_58820025 — Sunset, Pentax K1000, Ektar 100

ldc_20161213_58800033 — Dusk on Lake Michigan, two ways, Olympus Pen EE3, Lomography Lomochrome Purple

Thanksgiving

We were lucky enough to again spend our Thanksgiving at the cottage with the people we love best. Of course I ditched them all to be outside as much as possible, but otherwise we had plenty of togetherness and merry-making.

ldc_20161213_59290008 — Farmhouse in ruin, Minolta X-700, Kodak Tri-X 400

Lake and trees, double exposure, Minolta SRT 102, Kodak GC 400

my kid and Lost Lake, double exposure, Minolta SRT 102, Kodak GC 400

Goldenrod seed, Minolta SRT 102, Kodak GC 400

Windows, Minolta X-700, Kodak Tri-X 400

Private property, Minolta SRT 102, Kodak GC 400

Lost Lake, Minolta X-700, Kodak Tri-X 400

Windmill, Minolta X-700, Kodak Tri-X 400

Beach closed, Minolta X-700, Kodak Tri-X 400

And…

Other stuff.

ldc_20161213_59290026 — Window gazing, Minolta X-700, Kodak Tri-X 400

Outdoor seating, Minolta X-700, Tri-X 400

It’s a sign, Minolta X-700, Tri-X 400

Giant, Minolta X-700, Tri-X 400

I’d been a little hesitant to shoot black and white film, but I think I’m over that now. Out of November’s four rolls, I think I most love the images I took using Kodak Tri-X. I still have plenty of other films to try out, so I’m not calling any favorites just yet…

Dreaming in purple

October 27, 2016October 27, 2016 sumacandmilkweed7 Comments

ldc_20161026_77800033srt102_lomo_purple_200 — abandoned farmhouse in Lomography Lomochrome Purple film

A few weeks ago I spent a small fortune on a few rolls of Lomography Lomochrome Purple film on a whim. Because, well, I’m in an experimental phase here and I’m rolling with that. But really, it’s like magic, this film–it turns greens purple (but only sometimes) and mucks about with other colors in weird and wonderful ways and yes, I do know that I can do that in Photoshop but I want to create magic right in my camera with no other faffing around. And I want to be surprised by what I get when my film is developed. And I don’t want to control everything. (I take that back. I kind of like control, but not where film photography is concerned. I am still in love with the surprises there.)

So I put one roll in my Minolta SRT 102 and after that I ran another through my Olympus Pen EE3. Was I surprised? Yes. Delighted? Totally.

Will I use this film again? Yes, oh yes. And I can’t wait.

In the meantime, here are some favorites from those two rolls.