Steel City Snapper photography
35mm, medium format and large format film photography (with the odd bit of digital every now and then…)
I took these pictures (indeed six of the shots on this roll of Tri-X) while walking between Leeds railway station and The Carriageworks, where the Photo North photography festival has been held the past couple of years.
I took a slightly meandering route, meaning I traversed this street off the more well traveled path, meaning I got to see these old buildings sitting nicely in the good light.
Yashica Mat 124G & Kodak Tri-X. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 for 8 minutes @ 20°
Taken on 12 April 2025
This was one of those cases where, as soon as I saw the scene, I thought “There’s a picture!“.
The hunch shouldered look immediately brought to mind the iconic scene of the vampire, Nosferatu, ascending a staircase as a shadow. In this case it’s not a member of the undead blocking the light, but inventor and engineer, James Watt, whose statue stands on a plinth just out of frame. The second shot shows the culprit in better detail.
Yashica Mat 124G & Kodak Tri-X. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 for 8 minutes @ 20°
Taken on 12 April 2025
I seem to have captured a nice range of tonality in this picture. Considering it’s reversal film, I’ve managed to keep detail in both the bright clouds and also the shadows, resulting in a nicely exposed scene. I’m not sure that the colours are quite right though – those red poppies look a little vivid. Or is it just me?
Yashica Mat 124G & Fujichrome Provia 100. Lab developed and home scanned on an Epson V850.
Taken on 30 March 2025
On my previous visit to Cleethorpes last year, the new lifeboat station consisted of little more than a series of concrete pilings set into the beach and surrounded by a metal fence. You can just make it out in the first picture of this post from February 2024.
Now, although at the time of taking these shots there were still construction vehicles parked on the slipway, it seems to be almost complete and, given these pictures were taken over three months ago now, could well be fully operational (I said that in the voice of the emperor from Star Wars, as though describing the second Death Star…).
Yashica Mat 124G & Fujichrome Provia 100. Lab developed and home scanned on an Epson V850.
Taken on 30 March 2025
Yashica Mat 124G & Fujichrome Provia 100. Lab developed and home scanned on an Epson V850.
Taken on 30 March 2025
I was going to write more about photography stuff today but, just as I sat at the computer, one of the fence panels on the back garden blew over. It’s not really windy, but a stray hazelnut tree has sprouted behind the panel and has grown over the past few years. The wind on it’s leaves is pushing the branches against the fence and applying extra force.
I’ve fashioned a very makeshift repair (I’ll be surprised if it lasts the night) and also cut a few of the tree’s branches back which will hopefully help. I think I need to cut the tree back more though and also find a more permanent repair for the fence panel.
Anyway… Here’s a crazy golf hut that I photographed a few months back.
Yashica Mat 124G & Fujichrome Provia 100. Lab developed and home scanned on an Epson V850.
Taken on 30 March 2025
Yashica Mat 124G & Fujichrome Provia 100. Lab developed and home scanned on an Epson V850.
Taken on 30 March 2025
Apologies to my American readers, for whom this play on words will fall slightly flat. 🙂
Yashica Mat 124G & Fujichrome Provia 100. Lab developed and home scanned on an Epson V850.
Taken on 30 March 2025
My wife and I took a day-trip to the seaside at the end or March. We went to Cleethorpes because it’s the quickest seaside place to get to from where we live. The weather was great for the start of spring with plenty of sunshine and pleasant temperatures.
We walked the length of the promenade, ate fish and chips, and ice creams, and had a nice day of it.
I took the Yashica Mat 124G with me and a few rolls of film, but I only shot this single roll of Provia 100. I’ll share the rest of the pictures in the coming days.
Yashica Mat 124G & Fujichrome Provia 100. Lab developed and home scanned on an Epson V850.
Taken on 30 March 2025
My Holga has sat unused (but not unloved) for quite some time. I almost always like the lo-fi results that it produces, so I really should shoot it more often, but I guess having a bunch of different cameras means that some of them have to wait awhile to get their time in the sun (or overcast).
Fellow blogger Dave Whenham posts Holga pictures on a fairly regular basis, and it’s from reading his posts that the urge to Holga took hold.
Here are the results from a roll of Fomapan 400 I shot back in March. Apart from one picture that I wasn’t happy with, it’s the full roll. I don’t think this represents my most successful outing with the Holga, and there’s some element of shooting stuff because it was there rather than being more careful in my choice of compositions, but there are a few that I really like, such as the Thai Boxing gym, the underpass, and the church.
I’m also very pleased with the results of the semi-stand development. I sometimes find that Fomapan 400 needs more light (something you can’t particularly control with the Holga), but the Rodinal has pulled out a full range of tones from every image. I’ll certainly semi-stand Foma 400 again in the future.
Holga 120N & Fomapan 400. Rodinal 1+100. 1 hour semi-stand development.
Taken on 28 March 2025
Steel City Snapper photography 