35mm · Film photography · Photography

Houses, benches, and bins. Why I photograph the mundane.

Three shots today which are typical of my approach to photography.

White house

I might have said this before, but in case not, one of my favourite photography quotes is from New York street photographer, Garry Winogrand. I’ll paraphrase because I can’t remember if this is the exact quote (he’s recorded as saying a similar thing on many occasions), but it goes like:

I photograph things because I want to see what they look like when photographed“.

This is pretty much my entire photographic ethos. There’s something slightly removed from reality in a photograph. They’re a moment in time and limited by the camera, lens, and recording medium in a way that our usual eye/brain observations are not. Photographs are stripped of movement, or the wider environment, of the sounds and smells that were present when they were taken. I look at a photograph of a scene or object in a way that I don’t if I’m physically present and, despite the removal of so much sensory information, there is something magical about that still image.

Empty bench

The three pictures shared here today are like that for me. I doubt many would travel especially to see these things. They’re ordinary. But they’re also interesting. Interesting enough for some reason for me to press the shutter button.

Bins

Olympus 35 RC & Fuji Superia 100 (expired 2008). Lab developed. Home scanned and converted with Negative Lab Pro.

Taken on 2 October 2025

Film photography · Medium Format · Photography

Bins (and a new camera)

A new camera arrived in the post today. I say new, but it’s both used, and also a camera I already own, so not even new “to me”. It’s another Yashicamat 124G TLR.

I’ve had my current Yashicamat 124G for almost seven years, and it’s a favourite to use. It was my first proper medium format camera (I had a Lubitel 166 Universal before this, but the Yashicamat really surpassed it in terms of quality). Unfortunately my current camera has some haze in the taking lens. While this doesn’t always have an impact on the photos, sometimes it does, producing the occasional image with a foggy, low-contrast look. As I like using the camera a lot, I decided it would be worthwhile finding a replacement without the optical issue.

Just before Christmas I was alerted to a sale at a film camera supplier here in the UK and they had a very nice model there with 10% off, so I took the plunge. The new camera looks in very tidy condition (although my original model is hardly looking rough), so I’ll have to find the time to put a roll of film through it to make sure all is well. After that I’ll look for a new home for my old camera as, despite the haze, it’s still very capable.

It certainly isn’t ready for the bin (a feeble link to today’s picture, I think you’ll agree…).

Bins

Olympus OM-1N, G-Zuiko AUTO-W 28mm f/3.5 & Ilford FP4+. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 @ 20° 10mins.

Taken 21 October 2023.