Tag: Tree

Film photography · Medium Format · Photography

Tree silhouettes

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The final two frames from this roll of Shanghai GP3 which I shot just before Christmas are shown here today. Almost the final two anyway – there is still another I might use if needed, and a few more shots of leaves covered in raindrops, but I’ve started scanning a fresh roll that I developed today, so hopefully those will start to appear soon.

Tree silhouette #1

Tomorrow I need to think about doing one of those “Looking back at the year“-type posts with my favourite photos from the past twelve months. It will be interesting to see which ones I choose from the autumn’s crop of images – I feel like that entire period was something of a dry spell and I’m not sure what I will choose. Anyway, that will appear tomorrow all being well.

Tree silhouette #2

Yashica Mat 124G & Shanghai GP3. Lab developed in Xtol.

Taken on 18 December 2021

Film photography · Medium Format · Photography

Winter fog and a lone tree (and running out of developer)

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I’d hoped to develop one of the two rolls of unprocessed film I have today, but I’m uncertain as to the state of my developer. I use Ilfotec DD-X which Ilford states has a shelf life of around four months once opened. As I’ve not developed many rolls of film in the past four months, I suspect that my partially used bottle might be older than that and I don’t want to risk my time and effort, plus a roll of film, to discover that it’s gone bad. I guess it could be fine, but I’m not going to take the chance.

As a result, I’ve ordered a fresh bottle. The website told me it will be here on Wednesday, but I’m not sure that’s taking into account the fact that today and Tuesday are the Christmas Day / Boxing Day bank holidays, so it might take longer. I do have a bottle of Adonal I could use, but I’d prefer not to use that on the film I have waiting as it’s a roll of Tri-X (that I need to push a stop) and some Delta 3200, and Adonal (Rodinal) tend to be something of an acquired taste when it comes to faster films.

Hopefully I’ll get at least one of the rolls developed before the weekend though, which is when I’ll run out of photos from this roll of Shanghai GP3 that I’m currently sharing pictures from.

Alone in the fog

Yashica Mat 124G & Shanghai GP3. Lab developed in Xtol.

Taken on 18 December 2021

35mm · Film photography · Photography

Archivery

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I’ve been out all day today and haven’t had chance to upload a photo to Flickr, and I now don’t have much time to write today’s blog post either (mostly because I’m hungry and my belly is demanding precedence…). It’s been a very foggy day today though, so I’ve dug out an old foggy day photo that I don’t think I’ve posted here before (I hope).

It was shot on a roll of Rollei Retro 400s which, despite me shooting it at the advertised box speed of 400asa, came out very underexposed. Some of the shots were pretty much ruined, but a few – like this one – I liked. This is the original scan from my V550 flatbed, so it’s a bit mushier than usual.

FILM - The tree on the hill

Olympus OM-1, Rollei Retro 400s. Lab developed in Xtol.

Taken sometime in 2016/17

Film photography · Medium Format · Photography

Running out of new photos

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I’m really eking out the shots from this roll. The number of photos I’ve made over the past three months has been minimal compared with what I’ve done previously, and I’m about to run out of new stuff to publish soon (in the next few days in fact). I’ve talked about this before, but have always managed to get some more in the can before that happened, but this time it will be pretty tight and I might have to fall back on the archive.

I start the best part of two week’s leave in a few days time though, so I’m hoping that I can get out and do some proper photography and fill the tanks a little. We shall see.

My new laptop arrived this morning. Thanfully this one a) isn’t filthy and, b) actually works. It’s currently restoring my backed-up data so I’m hoping I’ll be largely back to normal operations by the start of next week (just in time to go on leave…). As is always the case, while I’ve been getting the new machine set up, the weather outside has been (not frightful) lovely and it would have been a great day to head out with the camera. This afternoon the clouds closed in and we now have mist as the evening draws in. Part of me is tempted to go out and do some nightime photography, but I have to cook food for everyone today and I doubt I will still feel like going out when that’s all sorted. Got a day out tomorrow though, so maybe I’ll get some pictures then…

By the tree a bench

Yashica Mat 124G & Ilford HP5+. Lab developed in Xtol.

Taken on 6 November 2021

Film photography · Medium Format · Photography

Springtime

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A blossom laden tree and stone built house make for an attractive scene. Although 6×4.5 is pretty small where medium format film sizes are concerned, I’m always happy with the quality of the photographs produced by the Bronica ETRSi.

Blossom on the trees
Soon to fall in white cascades
Herald of summer

Springtime

Bronica ETRSi, Zenzanon 75mm f/2.8 PE & Kodak Portra 160.

Taken on 6 April 2021

Film photography · Medium Format · Photography

The road to Bolehills Quarry

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This is the track that leads to Bolehills Quarry. On the left, just beyond the tree, you can see a stockpile of abandoned millstones. Presumably this is where they were stored before being transported elsewhere, and here they remain since the market fell away, gathering coats of moss and lichen and providing something nice to look at as you pass by.

Abandoned millstones
Lining the route to Bolehills
In the spring sunshine

Towards Bolehills Quarry

Bronica ETRSi, Zenzanon 75mm f/2.8 PE & Kodak Portra 160.

Taken on 6 April 2021

Film photography · Medium Format · Photography

Fairy Bells

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A saw this tree as I was beginning my climb back up the side of the Hope Valley towards where I’d parked the car. A small cluster of Wood Sorrel – sometimes known as Fairy Bells – had found a home in the mossy surface of the tree trunk.

On this April day
My eye was drawn to flowers
At home on a tree

Arboreal cradle

Bronica ETRSi, Zenzanon 75mm f/2.8 PE & Ilford HP5+. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 9mins @ 20°.

Taken on 6 April 2021

35mm · Film photography · Photography

Trees and drystone walls

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Two photos of scenes only a stones-throw apart – up on the western edge of Padley Gorge.

Lone pine

There’s at least one more photo of this same wall to come in a future post, but that one was made with the GW690 where these are born of the OM-2n.

How many rocks are here?
Hundreds, though across the land
There are millions

Drystone wall

Olympus OM-2N, Zuiko Auto-S 50mm f/1.8 + orange filter & Ilford HP5+ (@800asa). Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 10mins @ 20°.

Taken on 29 March 2021

35mm · Film photography · Photography

Driven to abstraction

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As I type this it’s after 11pm here. I normally write these blog posts much earlier but today got waylaid trying to successfully scan some Portra 160 negatives. I thought I had a good system in place for getting the colours how I wanted them, but somewhwere along the line that particular train has left the tracks, and my scans looked like crap.

My process has been to scan as a linear tiff file and then invert using the Grain2Pixel plugin in Photoshop but today, for some reason , it’s made the colours look horrible on the frames I’ve scanned so far. So, after messing around for a while, I’ve resorted to EpsonScan of all things. While I use this Epson software very successfully for my B&W medium format scans, I’ve never been too happy with the results for colour photos. Today, however, it seems to have made the best job so far.

I found this blog post by Colton Allen about scanning colour negatives with EpsonScan that has proven extremely useful and given me some pretty decent results. If I can figure out the issue with Grain2Pixel I’ll resume using that (and will use it on a roll of Colorplus I’ve yet to scan – but that’s 135 format and will be scanned with my Plustek, so a whole different ball game anyway), but for now I’ll use EpsonScan for this roll

I’ll post the Portra photos in an upcoming post, but today no colour faffing is required for this black-and-white abstract image of a birch tree reflected in a water.

Wibbly wobbly tree
Gelatinous in water
Shimmering beneath

Reflected birch

Olympus OM-2N, Zuiko Auto-S 50mm f/1.8 + orange filter & Ilford HP5+ (@800asa). Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 10mins @ 20°.

Taken on 29 March 2021