Steel City Snapper photography
35mm, medium format and large format film photography (with the odd bit of digital every now and then…)
There’s a public footpath that winds it’s way through some of the western docks at Hull. in parts elevated to run along the top of one of the warehouse buildings, and the following pictures were all taken from that path. A mix of FP4+ and Tri-X as I switched rolls part way through.
Nikon F80 & Tamron 28-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD on Ilford FP4+ / Kodak Tri-X. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 @ 20° 10mins / 9mins.
Taken on 9 August 2025
A quick post this evening as I’ve just got back from the cinema (where I saw TRON Ares, which I enjoyed a lot).
Here’s another digital shot from our recent trip to Menorca. This is the Far d’Artrutx lighthouse on the south-western tip of the island. The woman in the shot was there by happenstance, but I think her presence adds a lot to the picture.
Ricoh GR III
Taken on 29 September 2025
It isn’t the first time I’ve posted pictures of the Spurn lightship on the blog – there are a couple more that I posted back in 2019 here and here.
The vessel has been moved to a new mooring now (one that makes it a little more difficult to photograph) so here are two new shots. I have a colour picture to come too at some point.
Nikon F80 & Tamron 28-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD on Ilford FP4+. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 @ 20° 10mins
Taken on 9 August 2025
This guy hopped up on the harbour wall and scurried confidently back and forth, unperturbed by the drop into the sea on the other side. The tide was almost in at this point, and the drop was probably about 12-15 feet, so not too far to the water (and the sea was calm), but even with the variety of life-rings and people around, I still wouldn’t have fancied falling in.
Olympus OM-10 & G.Zuiko 35mm f/2.8 on Ilford FP4+. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 @ 20° 10mins.
Taken on 2 August 2024
I’ve already posted some photographs from our holiday in Dubrovnik at the start of the summer (a summer that is almost at a close!), but not any that I shot on film. I have quite a lot of them!
There will be more to come, either in blocks, or dribs and drabs, and I might break them up with other stuff, but here’s one to start. These are Grebeni Rocks, a small chain of barrier islands not far from the hotel where we stayed. Just visible on the rightmost island is a structure. That is Grebeni lighthouse. While the light is still active, the lighthouse keepers house can be rented as holiday accommodation apparently. A boat is probably handy.
The seas were mostly calm while we were at the resort, but there was one day when a storm had caused heavier conditions and waves were breaking on the rocks with considerable splashes.
Olympus Trip 35 & Colorplus. Lab developed. Home scanned and converted with Negative Lab Pro.
Taken 25 May 2024.
A trio of pictures of the lighthouse at the port of Malaga. The fist was shot on Kodak Gold (and had turned out quite grainy for some reason), the latter two on Kodak Colorplus.
The lighthouse is named La Farola, a unique name as most Spanish lighthouses are called El Faro, using the usual maculine gender. El Faro translated to “the lighthouse”, although Google Translate seems to think “La Farola” translates to “the streetlight” – not sure if there’s a lost-in-translation thing going on there…
It was originally built in 1817, but has been modified several times since then, including to repair damage suffered during the Spanish Civil War. I believe you can enter the building and enjoy the views from the top, although we didn’t while we were there.
Nikon F80, Nikkor 28-80mm f.3.5-5.6 AF-D & Kodak Gold and Kodak Colorplus . Lab developed. Home scanned and converted with Negative Lab Pro
Taken 18 and 19 August 2023.
I think this was the shot where I had to change lens to get the best composition. I’d been using the 75mm Zenzanon up until this point and, had I been stood further away, that lens would have coped perfectly. But that meant that other unwanted elements would have started to creep into the frame due to my distance, so the 50mm came out of the bag to take this picture. I think the 50mm might be a bit softer than the 75mm, but it’s not really noticeable in the main subject here.
I like this angle on the lighthouse. It gives it an imposing character.
Bronica ETRSi, Zenzanon 50mm f/2.8 MC & Ilford Pan F Plus. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 7mins 20°.
Taken on 14 March 2022
I was struck by the way that the lighthouse looked like it stood beyond a rolling sea of grass in this photo. I did wonder about cloning out the lone figure on the left but then decided against it.
In other news, I’m currently scanning a roll of 135 Tri-X that I finished shooting at the weekend. As I often get drying marks on my 135 negatives (although, oddly, never on 120 negs…), even though I use distilled water and wetting agent for the final wash, I’ve taken to using a squeegee lately. This has worked fine all the other times I’ve used it, but this roll of Tri-X looks beset by scratches along most of its length, which is disappointing.
Bronica ETRSi, Zenzanon 75mm f/2.8 PE & Ilford Pan F Plus. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 7mins 20°.
Taken on 14 March 2022
There are two lighthouses at Flamborough Head. The original lighthouse was completed in 1674 but never lit. It stands at the edge of a golf course now with a Grade II listing.
The new lighthouse was first lit in December 1806 and remains in use today, although the last keepers left when the light was automated in the 1990s. As with its older sibling, it also has a Grade II listing.
Standing atop the promontory, the light can be seen from numerous places along the coast as well as, obviously, from the sea. Whenever I’ve visited places like Scarborough or, when I was younger, Filey, I would look for the light in the south as evening arrived. There is something evocative and even a little magical about catching that distant flash of illumination as the beam sweeps your position.
I took a number of pictures of the lighthouse on this trip, so don’t be surprised if they turn up here in the coming days. 🙂
Bronica ETRSi, Zenzanon 75mm f/2.8 PE & Lomography Color Negative 100 .
Taken on 14 March 2022
This is the Spurn Lightship, a floating lighthouse that served in a position off Spurn Point, a long coastal spit at the mouth of the Humber Estuary where it flows into the North Sea.
The vessel was built in 1927 and was in active service until it was decommissioned in 1975. It was restored and has served as a museum at it’s current location in Hull marina since 1987, although it is currently closed for conservation work and re-location elsewhere in the marina.
Olympus OM-1, F.Zuiko 50mm f/1.8 & Ilford HP5+ (pushed to 800asa).
Taken on 19 October 2019
Steel City Snapper photography 