Houston we have a problem

I have inadvertently deleted many of the photos off my blog while learning to use my android phone. Smart phones are great I just wish this user was smarter! Lesson learnt the hard way, so I will be adding the photos back as and when I find them.

Welcome 2012

Its been over a year since my last posting and I now feel like I would like to blog again. Lets get off to a gentle start, above is a photo taken late last year of yours truly with Barbie and Ken, my mum and her companion Ken. 

Long live the King

It's almost a year since my last posting, doesn't time seem to pass quicker the older you get? Plenty has happened this last year, some good, some bad, but hey that's life. I may tell you more in a future posting.

As you can see from the photo above I have been busy photographically, it was taken last week and shows 36 rolls of 120 black and white film waiting to be developed. Since the photo was taken I have developed 6 rolls along with 14 sheets of 10x8 Tri X. This leaves me just 30 rolls of film to develop before I will allow myself to start printing.

For the greater part of 2010 my DSLR has remained in its case, as far as I'm concerned film is king, long live the king!

Spotify

We all like to get something for free and fortunately there are some useful web applications which are free. My favourite is Spotify, which I can best describe as an online streaming jukebox.

http://www.spotify.com/en/products/free/

Just download the software from the link above, and once installed you can select songs from a catalogue containing over 3 million tracks. You would expect the catalogue to contain only old material but surprisingly there are newly released CD’s included, but no Beatles tracks. Do a search by song or artist, drag the track you want to hear to you playlist, and listen to the streaming music through your PC’s speakers.

In between tracks you will be subjected to audio advertising, but if you are willing to pay £10 per month you can get the service adverts free. Just call me tight, but I’m happy to save £10 each month and endure a few adverts.

You can’t save the songs to your hard drive for loading onto your MP3 player, or to burn to a CD. You just have to be online to listen to your favourite songs.

Just download the software and try it, even if it’s just to listen to some music before buying the CD from somewhere like Cdwow or paying for the track through a site like i-tunes.

Buses

You are waiting and waiting for your bus to arrive and its late. You are just about to give up on the hope of one ever arriving, and two arrive at the same time. Yes two blog postings on the same day from me!

The photo was taken a few months ago while walking from Humberstone to Tetney and is of an oil pipeline which suddenly appears from underground to pass over a stream before vanishing back into the ground

Another New Camera

Above is a photo of my latest camera, a medium format Fuji 680 III camera, which I recently bought off eBay. It’s an unfashionable camera with many commercial and hobbyist photographers having abandoned medium format (MF) for digital. I’m bucking the trend, replacing my digital single lens reflex camera (DSLR) with a MF camera.

I prefer the look of film over digital, so hence my latest purchase and the planned disposal of my tiny Sony digital kit on eBay. This is my first MF camera, with me having moved directly from 35mm to large format (LF). The Fuji will not be replacing my LF cameras which I will continue to use.

The Fuji 680 needs to be used on a tripod for optimum results, which suits my slow, deliberate shooting style. I see my new acquisition as the Rolls Royce of MF cameras, with it having a full range of movements on the front standard, allowing me to change the plane of focus, just like you can with a LF view camera. The Fuji 680 will allow me to work much faster than LF, and it’s an ideal camera for portraits when used in conjunction with a prism viewfinder. I can’t complain about the price of the Fuji, which cost me a tad more than an entry level DSLR. I see the Fuji as a bargain, with it being such a versatile camera capable of giving image quality almost on par with 5x4 film.

I have only had limited use of the camera since I bought it, so I’m still evaluating it, but my initial impression is very positive. When I get around to it I will post some jpegs from scanned negatives now that I have a scanner capable of scanning negatives from 35mm right up to 10x8. Yes I have made another eBay purchase, a Microtek i900 scanner.

Caught my Attention - Corey Arnold

Kitty and Horse Fisherman

Living just a stones throw from the docks of a port, which once had the largest fishing fleet in the world, I can connect with Corey Arnold’s photographs of his time spent fishing at sea.

I have never experienced life on a trawler fishing the North Sea, like all of my mothers brothers did. The large fishing fleet of Grimsby has gone forever thanks to the European Unions strict fishing quotas. Fish is still landed and processed here, but far too few of the ships, fly the Union Jack.

http://www.coreyfishes.com/

Change

I’m back with a posting after another long absence. The last few months have seen an enforced change to my daily pattern following the writing off of my car, after a close encounter with a lamppost. Nobody else was involved, and nothing hurt other than the cars driver’s side and my pride. Due to the cars age and high mileage the insurers decided it was more economical to scrap my car than repair the damage.

I haven’t used the insurance settlement to purchase a replacement car, instead I have used the last few months to improve my tardy level of fitness. I have had the loan of a cycle which I has been my mode of transport to travel to and from work. Instead of driving to the local supermarkets and shops, I have walked and I have even been going for a run as soon as I get home from work. Okay I’m not running more than a couple of miles at a time, but I’m pounding the pavements again. Thanks to the cycling and running I’m now half a stone lighter, feeling healthier, and more alert.

Can I live without a car, emphatically NO! I was born with poor eye sight and told as a child my sight was not sufficient to enable me to drive a car. I accepted this I had no choice. For the 1st three decades of my life I travelled either on foot, cycle or public transport. My expectations rose after my sight dramatically improved once I started wearing contact lenses and my ophthalmic technician informed me I was capable of passing the sight test for driving, so I did and the rest is history.

Not having a car for several months has been like going back in time. I miss the independence a car gives me, the ability to just get in the car and drive somewhere, it could be a journey of just a few miles or several hundred, but I was in control. If I want to travel any distance now I must use public transport, which is not cheap, or frequent and I have to work around their timetable.

Having no car has also had an impact on my photography, to the extent that I have done little so far in 2009. I have made the decision to stop using my digital camera and go back to film. I will cover this more in a future posting.

Peter Goldfield

Peter Goldfield 1998 - Photo by Pradip Malde

I have today sadly discovered that Peter Goldfield who ran photographic workshops at Duckspool in Somerset has died.

http://www.duckspool.com/

I attended two workshops at Duckspool the first when I was very fortunate to get a place on a Paul Caponigro workshop, and I was there again in 2000 for a Pradip Malde workshop.

The last time I saw Peter was in 2004 when I bought his remaining stock of Agfa’s long discontinued Record Rapid. Before Peter set up Duckspool he had made a comfortable living importing and selling Agfa B/W papers when Agfa withdrew from the UK market in the mid 1970’s. Peter was an early convert to digital and so he no longer had a use for the paper.

I have fond memories of my times with Peter at Duckspool and I extend my sympathy to his family and friends.

My First Platinum Print

Duckspool 2000

This is my first ever Platinum and Palladium print which I made at the Pradip Malde workshop held at Duckpool in July of 2000. The cold / neutral tone of the print shows that it is in fact a Platinum print with no Palladium.

Caught my Attention - Pradip Malde

 Where are you now Fay Godwin 2008

Going 2008

 Trees Shadow Fog

I attended a workshop on Platinum and Palladium printing given by Pradip Malde back in the Summer of 2000. At the time I was investigating various alternative printing methods for my large format negatives. Pradip teaches the print out version of PT/PD process developed by Mike Ware in the late 20th century. Although at the end of the workshop I had a couple of prints I was pleased with, I decided the process was not for me, even though I find the prints from the print out method of PT/PD to be unique and superior to the prints from the traditional develop out PT/PD printing process.

Here is a link to a large amount of Pradip’s work. http://malde.sewanee.edu/

Snow

Hartsholme Park January 2009

Last night there was a warning on the local news of a strong possibility of heavy snowfall today. The recent winters have been so mild and snow free that I was excited about the prospect of getting out into the white stuff with a camera. Overnight I recharged my camera battery in preparation for lunchtime and after work photography excursions, and as if by divine intervention it started to snow as I set off to drive to work.

By the time I arrived at work I was in the middle of a full blown blizzard. Today parts of Britain have experienced the heaviest snowfall in 18 years, but sadly not in Grimsby. Within an hour of arriving at my office desk, the snow had stopped falling and by lunchtime the settled snow had vanished.

As I sit typing this I can hear the rain pounding on my window, yet only a few miles away snow is falling. I suppose there are benefits of living at sea level!

2009

Sisters 2004

Another new year is with us and some things I would like to do in 2009

Spend more time with family & friends
Read more
Write more
Keep to commitments
Be more cultured
Take more photographs
Travel more
Learn to use CS4

Stay focused

Happy Christmas

Diane Arbus

Tender Foot

Scawby Ponds

My opportunities to take photographs have lessened following the ending of British summertime. Now that I’m travelling to and from work in the dark, the only prospect I have to get out and about with a camera is at the weekend.

Tomorrow is the winter equinox, so in a few weeks time we will see the hours of daylight length, this will lift my spirits as I know that spring will soon be with us.

I’ve also had the misfortune of picking up an eye infection, so I had to temporarily cease wearing my contact lenses. This meant I was unable to drive my car until the infection cleared, and due to the absence of any real public transport, I was consigned to walking everywhere. I have no aversion to walking but its so time consuming. My tender feet were pleased once I received the all clear from my optician, and I was once again able to drive my car.

The last time I was able to use my 10x8 was back at the end of October when I took a few hours holiday on a Friday afternoon and headed to Scawby Ponds, were the above digital capture was made. Opportunities since that afternoon have been sparse, and usually foiled by the inclement winter weather.

As the weekend approaches I check the weather forecast in the hope that the weather will be conducive for large format photography. In other words I want little to no wind, but being situated on the coast there are few wind free days, especially during the winter months.

Caught My Attention - Arno Rafael Minkkinen

This is the start of a new series of postings which will be about photographers who have caught my attention

In 1970 the Finish / American photographer Arno Rafael Minkkinen began taken photographs of himself exploring his body’s interaction with the physical environment.

“The cathedral of the universe is here on earth. We are still part of the rocks and trees, sky and water, the primal landscape we were given in ages past. “ Arno Rafael Minkkinen

http://www.arnorafaelminkkinen.org/

Later That Day

Following my early morning rise I went out in the evening to photography in the quiet light of the late day. This time I had my lenses with me for my 10x8. The light wasn’t as spectacular as earlier in the day but I did expose a couple of sheets of film, so it wasn’t a wasted journey. Above is a digital capture taken from the car park were I parked up before heading to the beach

Lessons Learned

Yesterday were the last really large tides of 2008, so I dragged my carcass out of bed at an ungodly hour and headed to Cleethorpes seafront to expose some film with the sunrise coinciding with high tide.

I set up my tripod on Brighton Slipway and then I struggled to attach my recently purchased Zone VI lightweight camera, to the tripod in the dim predawn light. My perseverance paid off and I completed the task, only to reach into my backpack for a suitable lens, to discover my backpack contained no lenses. Oh #!/* some idiot had not checked his camera gear before setting off.

I had to fallback on to using my DSLR and the image above is one of a sequence I took of the sunrise. As you can see it was an exceptional sunrise and I’m annoyed that I didn’t get to expose the 10x8 colour negative film I had earmarked for the occasion.

Lessons have been learned and I will check in advance of future shoots that my camera backpack is not missing any key items, and I will also be adding a small torch to my bag.

New Tools

Above are my 2008 eBay photographic equipment purchases. These cameras and lenses along with my existing large format equipment have reinforced my commitment to analogue photography. Although I still have my DSLR I only use it for snapshots. At times I struggle with the limited dynamic range of digital. I also dislike my DSLR’s small and inaccurate viewfinder. I much prefer the sumptuous view you get while under the darkcloth, looking at the groundglass of a large format camera.

Perhaps it’s very 19th century, but I enjoy the slow process of large format photography. I feel more involved and in control of what I photograph, than when I have a DSLR to my eye. Maybe I should mount my DSLR a tripod which would slow down my picture taking, but it wouldn’t take away the act of looking through the dark tunnel of its viewfinder. Perhaps it’s time to upgrade my camera or just abandon DSLR’s until there is a camera that meets my needs and my not to well padded wallet.

I'm back :)

Self Portrait September 2008

So far in 2008 my blog has been dormant. This will be my first posting in over 9 months. Okay 9 months is the gestation period for a baby and every time I write it’s as painful as giving birth. I know I’m a mere man so how can I understand the pain involved in child birth!

In future there will be little writing but hopefully plenty of photos from myself, but I would also like to share the work of other photographers who have caught my attention. This will be done ad hoc though it could become a weekly feature, we will see how it develops and how disciplined I can stay as regards this blog. From past experience the omens are not promising.

A short update is perhaps required for the last 9 months. My daytime job continues to be very busy and eventful, following the joint raid by the OFT and European Commission, arrests by the FBI, and investigation by the DOJ 18 months ago. Although former work colleagues are now serving prison sentences, the fallout from their actions continues to envelop my work place and is likely to continue for the foreseeable future. It can certainly make my working day eventful and unpredictable at times.

Butterfly Stitches

I have a scar on my forehead following a confrontation with a swinging gate in a gale force wind early in the year. I had to have butterfly stitches to knit the wound together and stop the bleeding. Oh the gate is okay and undamaged.

My health has generally been good and my weight constant, though I have suffered the occasional bad back. It’s either down to old age or a lifetime of poor posture. Perhaps I should use my works gym more often and build up muscle as well as do more jogging which I have neglected since I acquired a bad back.

Merry Christmas

At the Start

If you where in Lincoln just before noon on Sunday 16th December 2007 and you may have come across a strange sight of, lots and lots of Santas. No your eyes were not deceiving you, it was the 2nd Great Lincoln Santa Fun Run & Walk.

Preparing of Santas

The Run / Walk is in aide of charity. On paying your £10 enterance fee you received your 1 size fits all Santa outfit. Two people could quite easily fit into the trousers, so a tight fitting belt was required, if you didn't want your pants to suddenly drop, which is not advisable if you are running :)

Little Santa

To many Santas?

There were santas of all different ages & sizes, but for some there were just too many santas :(

Rosey Cheeked Finishers

I want to be in the Photo

The Run / Walk was over a two lap course which skirted around the Cathedral and on finishing everyone received a medal. I must applaud the Lincoln Rotary Club for organising the event. It was fun and was very festive. I will be back next year, but with gloves. My little pinkies were frozen, and almost welded to my camera, which I carried with me while I ran. Yeah a stupid idea, but I discovered incamera antishake doesn't work while running, especially when you are using 1/125 sec.

Looking Towards Grimsby

Kilnsea - 2007

Tree & Reflection

Hartsholme Park Lincoln - 2007

Apples

Apples - 2007

Street Light

Street Light - Lincoln 2007

Reflection

Hartsholme Park Lincoln - 2007

Toned Version

Berries

Berries - Kilnsea

New Policy

I’m falling into my old ways again, and making far too infrequent updates to my blog. It’s all down to my loathing of writing. So I’ve decided from now on I will be posting mainly my photos which I will be uploading frequently. I would love to post a photo a day but I’m not that prolific a photographer, but two or three a week should not be beyond me.

Anti Shake

The main reason I bought the Sony Alpha A100 digital camera was due to it having image stabilisation built into the camera body. This feature should compensate for my aging and shaking hands, and give me camera shake free images. This is a good asset to have with camera shake being the number one reason for poor quality images.

Dipton Wood - Northumberland

Above is an example of an image which has benefited due to incamera AS, which Sony calls SSS (Super Steady Shot). This photograph was taken using a 28mm lens and had an exposure of 1/8th of a second at F2. Without anti shake the image would have been very blurred due to camera shake.

Pentax and Olympus also have their version of incamera anti shake systems, whereas the two leading camera manufactures Canon and Nikon prefer to have anti shake built into individual lenses. Which is better? Well below is a link to an article which compares the two different forms of AS.

http://www.popphoto.com/cameras/4615/image-stabilization-special-stop-the-shake.html

The article states that in lens AS is more effective, but in my opinion incamera AS is the winner, with it working with every lens you attach to your camera. I‘m not happy with my Sony camera for a multitude of reasons, but inbody AS has benefited my photography on numerous occasions.

Hadrian's Wall

Hadrian's Wall Looking East no.1

Last month I spent a few days with Colin & Pat in Hexham. Colin had recently attended a photographic workshop on digital fine art black and white photography at Inversnaid in Scotland, and he was kindly passing on the knowledge he had gained from the weeklong workshop with Ray Spence.

http://www.inversnaidphoto.com/

Looking South From Hadrian's Wall

Colin is taking part in a project to photography the Northumberland National Park, so I was going to spend some of my time with him photographing in the park. Sadly the weather wasn’t cooperating and it limited our trips, but we did manage to go for a stroll along Hadrian’s Wall on a grey and windy afternoon.

Hadrain's Wall Looking East no.2

The wall must have been one of the Seven Wonders of the World, when it was completed in around 130AD. It was 73.5miles long and 20’ tall in places. Many of the stones from the wall have been used over the centuries in farm buildings and boundary walls, so regretfully little of the wall remains today, but what remains does give you of a glimpse of how spectacular the wall would have been almost 2,000 years ago.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadrian

http://www.hadrians-wall.org/

http://www.northumberland.gov.uk/VG/romans.html

The Viewfinder / Groundglass

I’m slowly getting accustomed to using a digital camera, but I’m having problems composing with the less than adequate viewfinder of my DSLR. I’m use to looking at a groundglass under a dark cloth. The image I see on my 10”x 8” groundglass is upside down and reversed, but it’s huge which aids composition. In contrast the view through my Sony viewfinder pales in comparison. Okay it’s not upside down or reversed, but its miniscule when compared to my view cameras. I’m also unable to see the full viewfinder when I put the camera to my eye. This is another negative aspect of the Sony.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwEAxrmBz64

The link above is to a youtube movie clip by Alec Soth who eulogises the benefits of using a 10x8 camera. I agree wholeheartedly with his comments.

Ginny

This is Virginia, or Ginny as she is known by her family & friends. She is the daughter of my friends Caroline and Fred.

Ginny is 5 going on 35, and had the same day I visited lost the first of her first milk teeth, as you can see in the picture above. It had been placed under her pillow, wrapped in tissue waiting for the Tooth Fairy to come, and replace it with either a 50p or £1 coin.

I took these photos with my new digital camera. It proved to be a frustrating shoot due to the poor focus capabilities of the camera. Autofocus cameras are a boon to somebody like me, with me aging eyes, and poor eyesight. I just wish it could track a rapidly moving child better. Perhaps I expect too much.