Posting Images

Some images from the recent past. 

Some day in September 2014, Edmund, my son, and I, managed to catch a rehearsal of the Huskies Band in front of the NIU Art Building. 

We were on our way to the NIU lagoon when we saw them arrive to the lawn in front of the Art Building.  There's Edmund watching them go by.

The big drums pay attention to the conductor's instructions.

Big brass is always fun to photograph.  Here, I metered on the tuba, but opened one stop to compensate for the brightness of the sky.

The conductor leading the band.  It was a beautiful, sunny day, and quite agreeable in terms of temperature.  Here ended my roll (this is exposure 35, I think), and I think it was a good end to it. 

Of course, the camera was my M4-2, and the film was Kodak chromogenic BW400CN, recently discontinued. 

Shameless Plug

I'm talking about the stuff I use, that helps me do what I do, at least when it comes to photography.  Hence, I'm going to plug (shamelessly) some products, with the only authority I have, which is that I own them. 

First, my cameras.  But then, if you're reading this post, you're in the choir and there's no need to convert you. 

Second, my film.

I used (and still use what's left of it) Agfa stuff.  I liked it because I found the tonal range quite satisfactory, the grain was extremely fine, and it allowed me to push it even three stops (and I did this a few times).  When Agfa folded, then I bought the Arista II stuff, which was supposed to be leftovers from the big red-and-blue German A.  But all good things had to come to an end, and Agfa-Arista flew off the shelves...  That was bad...

So, I switched back to the manufacturer that got me started: Ilford.  Since I was looking for a fast type, I picked HP5 to try.  It wasn't bad...  Comparable to the Agfa-Arista in my eyes, just a tad less... something (like less contrasty, but then, developing also has to do with that).  I chose to stick to it, given that APX was history.  

That was fun, I'll say.  Shortly after all the lamentations and regrets were old news, I found something out: my idol of silver emulsion has feet of clay because it curves like an art nouveau design.  By that I mean that after developing, while drying, it won't remain flat, it picks a very curvy profile.  I remember having scanned some negs years ago, with an HP scanner I used to have, and got some very nice photographs that were simply unprintable because of all the Newton rings on them.  Now, after being forced to choose the home developing route, I wasn't feeling like dealing with more of those nasty things again...  But what to do then?

Find out...

So, I scanned a small batch of Arista-Agfa that I had developed some time ago.  Not even after being in the negative storage leaves had they learned the lesson... They were just as curved as... as curves.  However, I followed the directions in my Epson V500 (yes, I know, old model) and, voilà!  There we are: nice scans, without Newton rings.

So, here's where I finish plugging my (unavailable) film, to promote my scanner.  Sure, it's old, and according to the ScanDig site, a relatively modest machine.  But this humble scanner worked on my curvy negs and gave me nice images in return, so, praise the Lord and thank him for Epson film scanners, even if they're old!

But in the end, the film story takes an unexpected turn.  Remember how my favorite film had this undesired curve profile?  And how afraid I was about scanning because it would give me artifacts?  Guess what about the replacement stuff, the HP5?

It won't curve...

I checked and double checked some 24 hours ago.  The sleeved negatives in Agfa-Arista look like they were molded that way, while the ones from Ilford stock aren't that bent.  In fact, some are nicely flat.  Well, to me those are good news, and that also means that Ilford films deserve a nice plug here, there and everywhere.  What else can I expect?  They're not terribly grainy, and they have a nice range... and, it seems to me, they can be push-processed also...  Heck, looks to me I'm going to stock fairly nice amounts of HP5. 

Also, since I'd like to use a lens that would allow my fast glass to show some OOF areas under daytime light, I'll see to pick some FP4, ISO 125 film.  I know it won't curve, and it'll be nice to scan it in my V500. 

So, right now, I'm a happy guy, ready to continue developing and scanning film.  There's a huge backlog, but now I know there's an end to it. 

PS.  All the photographs above were made, like the ones in the previous post, with my M4-2, a Zeiss Biogon lens, and finally curved Arista II film.  The meter I used was a Sekonic L-208.  Location?  Sure: Madison, WI, on early October 2014.  

Home developed and scanned

My experiment on independence finally came to fruition.  

In October 2014 I went to a conference in Madison, WI, and took with my M4-2, and a newly acquired Zeiss Biogon 35mm f2, with lots of Arista film.  I developed the film later that month, and had to deal with the ugly curving that results from lack of humidity in the bathroom where it dries.  Then, I had to overcome my reluctance to scan (bad experience with Newton rings with a previous scanner).  However, I had to face my demons and scanned a few frames... and here's the results.

The night I arrived I went for a walk, looking for a place to have dinner.  Found it in this old establishment on State St, called... yes, State Street Brats (1/30, f2.8 on ISO 400 film).

For my last day of the conference, I walked all the way to the Capitol and decided to perambulate the area.  When I looked up, the intense blue sky, architecture and curvy lamp post hit me... and decided to hit back (1/1000, f5.6). 

Part of the charm of Madison is the Saturday Farmer's Market, for which people of all walks, colors and persuasions congregate around food, strolls and street shows.  Here are some musicians setting up shop not too far from the capitol (1/1000, f5.6-8)

I've been scanning some more film, so you'll get to see other photographs, in luminous black-and-white, from my M4-2 with the Zeiss or Konica 35mm, and from my M4-P with the CV 28mm f2 I got earlier in 2014. 
 

Made in Spain

This summer of 2014 I was in Spain, family and all, with a group of undergraduate students from my university.  Needless to say, I took a film body.  Again, needless to say, it was not any other Leica but the one this blog was started for: my M4-2 (and its inseparable companion, the Hexanon 35mm f2 lens). 

Here are some of the results from Madrid.

Plaza Mayor, weekly market

Custom-Made Poem, made by artist at the famous El Rastro, in Madrid.

Antique vendor in El Rastro

I just liked the textures under the intense sun in Madrid.

The lady on the bicycle saw me prefocus from a distance and smiled.

Plaza Isabel II at night (I think this was done with the lens wide open and at 1/50th or 1/30th of a second).

Light in Spain offers never ending opportunities.  Here's what I saw in Toledo during my stay.

Light leaking from a corner...

Light drawing boundaries between wall and ground.

The few times it seems to be uniform or even, one has to move fast...

It also creates beautiful effects... every day.

And I learned that nothing says "light" louder than pleasant shadows.

And nothing says weird better than shadows too!

A farewell to Toledo: night in the Plaza de Zocodover.

So, even though I'm slightly dissappointed (frankly, I expected better from myself), all in all, it could have been worse.  I learned something from this: not to repeat myself.  I don't know how many times I took the same photograph (the canopy over the street), but then... it's such a pleasant experience to do it that I may end up doing it again... and you, my brethren, my reader, will be glad to waive your finger at me and say "I told you so..."

Until then, thanks for your patience and have a very merry Christmas!

New Friend

New friend, just joined the ranks.  It's a Leica M2, anodized black (it was made in chrome silver), and in a more or less good shape.

The top looks a bit chipped.  I have repaired some of the finish with a permanent black marker, but this camera will definitely need a better, professional black paint job.

Here is the front; notice the two small screws next to the viewfinder window.  They're not original of the camera.  Let's hope it's not a banged up job of rangefinder replacement or some such thing...

By the way, these photos are not mine; the seller, Ken Hansen, took them and used them in the eBay auction in which I bid and won this camera. 

However, the camera isn't too bad of a picture taker.  I put a nice Zeiss Biogon 35mm lens on it, and then loaded it with some B&W film (which I haven't developed yet).  Later, I also used some color film with it, and here are some of the results.

Violin practice: part of our daily routine here in DeKalb.

My in-laws backyard.

The Chicago Apollo Choir, singing in front of the Art Institute, right after Thanksgiving.

Skater at Millennium Park (prefocused shot, exposure at 1/250, f4, on ISO 400 Kodak color film)

For the moment, I've yet to scan some of my film "production."  I just don't feel like scanning... because I'm afraid it's going to take forever and I won't be happy with the process or the results.  But I must try, sooner or later, and it's not like I don't have negatives...

Some time soon, this camera will leave for the Leica Spa in Oregon, WI, with Don Goldberg.  I want him to repair it or at least check it before I send it to Youxin Ye in March 2015, for its paint job.  In the meanwhile, I'll keep you guys posted!

Corners

I am not gone again, taking an three-year leave...  I'm actually busy developing film that I exposed in all of my Leicas.  I have run a number of rolls through my Ilfosol soup, but haven't scanned any yet because all the negatives are terribly curved. 

All in all, I didn't want to neglect this blog for long, so, given the response to the tilted framing question, here goes one more: let's do corners.  Here are some that I like, all made with my M4-2 and Konica Hexanon 35mm f2.

Ellwood Mansion's roof meets the blue skies of DeKalb.

Street near the main square in Woodstock, IL.

Funky mailbox at home in Prospect Street, DeKalb.

Chevrolet 1952 that used to be parked in front of a house in Lacas Street, DeKalb.  Its driveway mate was another Chevy '52, identical color and model, with the licence plate L17 9487. 

Stairs inside the Art Institute main entrance. 

And, speaking of entrances, here's a quinceañera, being photographed right in front of the Art Institute entrance on Michigan Avenue, Chicago. 

These are all corners, in one way or another.  Corners are meeting points, spaces of confluence, something begins and something ends in corners; hence the roof lines (all straight) against the capricious, irregular pattern of the clouds, the corner at the end of the tilted street view in Woodstock, which is not the same corner (but a corner nonetheless) as the one with the pot mailbox.  These corners led me to think about corners of things, like the Chevy corner, made in 1952 and never driven again after some point.  Then, what do we make of all the corners in the stairs inside the Art Institute, or the corner turned by the girl who just turned 15, who is "cornered" by the photographer into posing strangely sensual, next to a lamp post?

What do you think?

Possibly more corners next time... that, or some camera porn! 

Tilted frame

Even if I have a 35mm eternally attached to most of my camera bodies (my two M5s have it, and so do my M4 and M4-2, and one of my M6TTL), not always am I able to "take it all" in the frame.  Some times I have the need to tilt the camera in order to capture what I want within the frame.

All these photographs were made with my Konica Hexanon lens, with the exception of the 4th and 5th, in which I used a Voigtlander Ultron 28mm f2.
I do like the tilting of the frame; to me, it shows a slightly different view, less conventional, a bit quirky.  Hence, I do it often, and sometimes even in vertical.  If I find the ones I have in mind, I'll post them.  In the meanwhile, let me know if you have done this, when and why.

Sometimes I use color film

Sometimes I use color film.  My favorite is Kodak Max 400.  I simply like the greens and blues it yields.  I've tried other brands (Fuji, Konica, old Ferrania) and I always returned to the big K. 

Here is the reason.

My favorite corner: Thornbrook Road meets Park St.  There's something with that fire hydrant that draws me in all the time.

The corner of State street and another street in Sycamore, IL, at night.

Still Hall in Northern Illinois University, with a very appropriate sign next to the Photographer Huskie.

Sunset, as it's seen from Thornbrook Road.  Given that this is film, I knew I'd get the orangey tones in the sky (which is where I metered, by the way).

One small variant in all these shots (in addition to the fact that they all were made in February 2014) is that I used a different focal length—which only means new lens: a Cosina Voigtländer Ultron 28mm f2.  Do I like it?  I do, but I keep it on a (new) Leica M4-P body because it has the correct framelines for it.  In this camera, I had to guess a lot, hence the absence of "excentric" (not aligned in the center) subjects.