Thursday, 10 January 2008

120 IN A BROWNIE

These images were taken on my brownie that i bought from a local charity shop back home. The camera takes 620 film which is near enough impossible to get hold of these days so i forced a 120 film in their. It got pretty tough to wind on at times but i just about managed. I also had no idea how far to wind it on each time as it is not the correct film for the camera. Despite all this i was actually pretty happy with how it came out. They have a very vintage look them and i think my choice of location and subject are in keeping with this. As you can see i tried a double exposure shot which i actually think is quite good, very haunting. I especially like the sky in these images, it was a pretty overcast day which normally would not be good for taking photos but because of the camera it has come out alright. I think i will use the brownie over the summer when i go back home possibly to shoot my friends band, they are a sort of country/folk/60's band so i think i could get some interesting shots of them.




Wednesday, 9 January 2008

THE LOST FILM

The film that these shots are from is a film that i forgot about and could not remember for the life of me what was on it. To my surprise these three shots were on it all next to each other, and in my opinion make a lovely trio of images. There is quite a nice story behind these two guys as well, where i am from there are two schools who have been rivals for as long as anyone can remember, they were even rivals when my brothers were at school. The two guys in the photo were sort of the two toughest guys in each school, but since leaving their respective schools have become good friends. I quite like the progression of playfulness in this series of images, very heart warming, haha!

Monday, 7 January 2008

CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS 07/08

All of these shots were taken over the christmas holidays back home and are of a number of different people and places.
There are a few of my friends band 'Two Fingers of Firewater'
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=77316233
When shooting this band i had to use 1 second exposures as i did not have a flash which was a bit frustrating as obviously they move about being a band and all. To get around this i decided to shoot the more stationary aspects of the band like the equipment which i think can be just as interesting. Luckily one of the band members plays a pedal steel (sit down slide guitar with pedals, usually used in country) so he didn't move too much and i managed to get some ok shots of him. Otherwise it was them setting up and what not. Also half of the gig was shot on Ilford 400 120 and the other half was shot on XP2 which is the type that can be processed through a colour process, it's quite obvious what was shot on what by the tones. The HP5 400 is true black and white and the XP2 is more of a sepia tone.
There are also the three shots of my friend smoking by the picnic benches at night, I really like the lighting in these, real low key and all natural as well. The only problem i have with them is the lack of detail on my subject down focusing errors. I think i got away with it on the one where he has moved his head and his hand, because that looks slightly intentional.
My dad lives in Greenwich, so i went to see him over Christmas, and after going out for dinner i went round Greenwich at night time and started shooting. Greenwich is a very photogenic place so there was plenty to shoot, i wish i was there for longer actually. Everything i shot was near enough a second exposure and i think this shows in some of them because they are quite grainy and slightly hazy when enlarged. They were shot on Fuji Colour 125 ISO which is possibly why the night shots in Greenwich are a touch hazy. I do like the colours though. A photographer who lives and works in Greenwich is Fergus Noone, he has a very nice traditional style in keeping with the surroundings.
http://www.fergusnoone.com/shop.php?thisPage=1

The rest of the shots are of my home town on a crisp frosty winters day, the light was so good that day that i bunked off work and went shooting with my now ex-girlfriend instead. I was really happy with all the shots i got that day. The 125 ISO was a good choice for that day because it was such a bright and sunny day. I really like the ones of Clementine at the band stand, predominantly for personal reasons but also because of the lighting. Also a personal favourite is the one with the tall tree and the hut next to it with the sun directly into the camera.