It's Vacillating Bruce here again, he of the feeble mind who struggles to stick with one idea. I'm still switching between graphic-type shots and more conventional landscapes and scenes but starting to get comfortable with the to-ing and fro-ing. At the end of the day, what does it matter?
The above photo is one of the more successful graphic shots, sunlight striking a cane chair and casting a shadow peppered with tiny little sun spots. I was in two minds with this one whether to print it as it is above or to go a bit contrastier.
In the above shot, (your monitor permitting) you should be able to see into the shadow to the left of the chair. The temptation was to lose the detail in that shadow and just make it black. It's not as if the detail there is even remotely interesting - just a small vent on the wall and the decking the chair is standing on - but I decided to preserve it anyway. It maybe helps to retain a feeling of luminosity in what was quite a bright scene. Insert shrug emoji.
The picture is a scan of the print I made on Ilford's MGV RC paper in pearl finish. It was developed in Fotospeed's warm tone developer but I think it's still quite a neutral-cool print. The Nikon F90X's matrix metering got the exposure for this one spot on and the XP2 negative prints very well. I used an 85mm AF-D Nikkor to flatten the perspective just a little.
I use matrix metering almost all the time with the Nikon AF cameras because it's so good. If I ever have to intervene more than a few shots on a 36-exposure roll that's unusual. I know some serious MF and LF photographers will be rolling their eyes but it suits the way I work. When I'm concentrating all my attention on what I'm seeing in the viewfinder, I don't want to have to break off to figure out the technical details. In fact, the less chatter there is in my mind at this point the better. The aim is to feel the picture rather than think it.
If you're not a great fan of the graphic shots, here's something more conventional, same 85mm lens and XP2 - and same matrix metering.
Still life-type photography is something I've never really had a great interest in but, lately, I've been wondering if it might be a good job for the Rolleiflex SL66E outfit which has hardly had any use for a couple of years. I'm finding the SL66 to be just a bit heavy and bulky for outdoor use and it's proving harder for me to focus accurately with it.
Maybe indoors on a tripod and with a well-lit subject I would find the whole SL66E experience a bit more enjoyable. The Rollei is perfect for this kind of work, too. It has bellows focusing so can get in nice and close but the lenses can also be reversed without any attachments making greater than life-size images a possibility. I could even add a modicum of lens panel tilt as well to help depth of field along. In fact, I'm beginning to wonder why I haven't thought of still life before now.
I like both of these images, with a preference for the still life.
ReplyDeleteAnd you answer to no one. Shoot what you like! It can change every day if that’s your workflow. “Do you” is all that matters.
Well said!
ReplyDeleteNot sure that two dimensions can ever be a faithful representation of our three dimensional world, but then neither are our (included from birth) eyeballs since they both require a brain/computer to figure out what those organs/devices are seeing and interpreting.
ReplyDeleteThose eyes are just a lot more efficient at the task.
Why limit yourself. It's your life. Photograph whatever appeals to your eye.
ReplyDeleteYou’re right, of course, Dave. Less thinking, more “just get the hell on with it” is often the answer.
DeleteI agree with Dave. Having had the privilege of seeing your (varied) prints, I would say just photograph whatever makes you happy. View everything as a small project - still life could definitely be one. A tip from Roger (bloody) Hicks is to include the barcode from a box of film in the subject area when composing if you are struggling to see - makes focusing a snap and it does work.
ReplyDeleteI am jealous as hell of the SL66 - having now handled it, jings that's a hell of a camera - please use it more!
Still life on the SL66 makes sense, doesn’t it. I could use a barcode as an aid to focusing but, knowing what I’m like, I’d develop the negs only to realise I’d forgotten to remove it before taking the pics. Now, what if the subject of the still life was a bunch of bar codes…
DeleteStill life of barcodes sounds good to me!
DeleteHow are you developing the film?
ReplyDeleteI send them off to AG Photographic’s lab and let them do it. The negs come back spotless every time. I rate the film at 400 ISO most of the time because I tend to struggle with low contrast up here. On a bright sunny day I’d rate it at 250 ISO.
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