On Cloud Seven

Wanna shoot film?  Here is a nice (and cheap) combo.

Minolta Hi-Matic 7s and Walgreens

First and foremost, cameras had awesome names in the 60s.  The Hi-Matic sounds like Ron Popeil named it.  The 7s is a 35mm rangefinder with a fixed 45mm f1.8 lens.  It has manual aperture and shutter speed controls as well as a matched needle meter (the only function that requires a battery).  Best of all, it is cheap.  At time of writing, this camera was only $9.99! 

The second part is the processing.  My regular lab (Richard Photo Lab) is very good, but professional quality work is not cheap.  So, for some personal work and test rolls, I use Walgreens.  There is a big difference, but I think it is an amazing value for the price.  Especially when you consider they will do it in one hour.  Normally a roll of 35mm costs $5-$6 (oddly, it has never been the same price twice) for processing and low resolution scanning.  

So, find a camera (preferably with manual controls) and shoot!

Tech Notes:

The shot of the camera was taken with a Fuji Instax 210.  The clouds were taken with the Hi-Matic 7s on VERY expired Fuji X-Tra 800 film.  Processed and scanned by Walgreens.

Upcycled WIN

One of the best parts of shooting film is the ability to easily and cheaply make your own camera.  Pinhole cameras are ridiculously simple and can be made from almost anything.  I've seen paint can cameras, shoebox cameras, and even beautiful wooden cameras.  This is a new one.  Apple makes a great box for the iPhone.  This lady makes it better.  It is not cheap, but it is wonderful in its perfection.

A Child's Touch

My dad buys me cameras at thrift stores.  Most use discontinued film, but occasionally he finds some real gems.  The recent batch was no exception, except...


He found a camera that uses discontinued film AND is a real gem.  The Polaroid 95A Land Camera used Polaroid roll film and was produced from 1954-1957.  The film has been discontinued for more than a decade.  Some convert these cameras to use modern Fuji instant film (probably my choice), but I found this solution for updating the 95A.


I've built quite a few things out of Legos, but I've never used them to convert a camera.  It is amazing what the human mind will dream up.

Favorite Paint Color?

Light painting is the technique of lighting an object or scene with a small light source.  It is achieved by shooting in complete darkness while leaving the shutter on your camera open.  During the multi minute exposure, you light each part of the subject separately.  You can use a flash, flashlight, etc.  The result can be creepy or beautiful, but it has a distinct look.  


I've never tried this on a large scale, but I must.  Here is a small scale experiment from many years ago.  

Tech Notes:

I don't remember everything, but I believe it was shot with my Canon Elan II 35mm camera.  It was lit with at least 20 pops from a Vivitar 283 flash.

Southern For Darling

Heather and Andy took me to a favorite spot for them outside Clayton, Georgia.  We drove, and we drove, and we drove, and we drove, and we drove.  I wondered if it would be worth it.  It was.  It has now become a favorite place for me.  You'll understand better when the film gets back from the lab.  Thanks guys!  

Tech Notes:

Fuji FP-3000B shot with my Mamiya Universal and 100mm f3.5 lens.

Studio Space

They have finally finished the construction and painting.  I get to start moving tomorrow.  I'm so excited.  Here are a few images of the finished space.

Oh, for those who don't know the back story, my landlord made me an offer I couldn't refuse.  He needed half of my current space for a dance studio that wanted to move in.  I get lower rent and tons of new prospective clients right next door.  Win, win!

Tech Notes:

Prints from my Fuji Instax 210 camera.  Scanned on my Epson flatbed.

Before The Oil

The vegetation and dunes at Ft Walton.  The oil was still off shore.  Who knows what the future holds.

Tech Notes:
Fuji FP-3000B shot with Mamiya Universal and 100mm f3.5 lens.  Scanned negative on my flatbed scanner.  Inverted and added contrast in PS.

Hot Hydrangea

We inherited this Hydrangea bush when we bought our current home.  It is huge and beautiful.  

Tech Notes:

Fuji 400H shot with Mamiya 645AF with 80mm f2.8 lens.  Processed and scanned by Richard Photo Lab.  

BBQ On Blue

St Louis style ribs are amazing.  I cooked this slab on Memorial Day.  I used my own rub and smoked them until they fell apart.  They weren't pretty, but they were tastey.  

Tech Notes:

Fuji 400H shot with my Mamiya 645AF and 80mm f2.8 lens.  Processed and scanned by Richard Photo Lab.

Photo Booth

Katie and Rob had a beautiful wedding a few weeks ago at the Blacksmith Shop in Macon.  I especially enjoyed the crate myrtel "snow" in the courtyard.  Here are a few favs from the film I shot.  

Tech Notes:

Color images are Fuji 400H shot with a Mamiya 645 AF with 80mm f2.8 lens.  Black and white images are Fuji Neopan 1600 (pushed to 3200) shot with a Contax G1 with 45mm f2 lens.  Everything processed and scanned by Richard Photo Lab.

Beach Lovin'

Here are a few Fuji instant prints from Saturday in Fort Walton Beach.  The heat caused some problems, but it is always exciting to see what happens.  The image of Valerie and Mark dried before I could pull it.  I only waited an hour.  I almost threw it away, but then I decided I liked it.  

Tech Notes:

Fuji FP-100C (Color) and FP-3000B (B&W) shot with a Mamiya Universal with 100mm f3.5.

Where I Live

I find myself shooting more personal work since returning to film.  Since the lab charges for the whole roll, I have to find inventive ways to use up the frames left after a wedding.  Here are a few I took in just a few minutes in Macon.    When I got my license at 16, downtown Macon was my first destination, because I grew up in Byron which lacked a "downtown."  I loved the old buildings, urban decay and quirky denizens.


As I remember the story, the second doorway was once a jewelry store.  It is the jewelry store where my wife's grandfather bought the engagement ring for her grandmother...while her grandmother sat outside in the car.

Tech Notes:

Fuji Neopan 1600 (pushed to 3200) shot with a Contax G1 with 45mm f2 lens.

Would A DVD Survive?

Would a DVD survive 150 years in an attic?  Would it survive 50 years?  How about 5?  A good print will.


Click here to read the story.

An Actual Polaroid

This is a Polaroid I took a few years ago at a wedding on St Simons Island.  I had just bought a Polaroid 600SE and "needed" to try it out.  I still love the image.  So much, in fact, that it is framed at the studio.

Tech Note:

Polaroid 667 (I think) shot with a Polaroid 600SE and 150mm f5.6 lens.

Decade

Today is my tenth anniversary and my birthday!  Jeca and I have known each other since we were 10 years old, but didn't start dating until we were in our early twenties.  Actually, it all started when I was photographing one of my very first weddings.  Jeca was a bridesmaid.  


It has been so much more than I could have hoped.  The next ten should be even more amazing.


To celebrate a decade, we had our good friend (and even better photographer), Hassel Weems, photograph us at the church where we were wed.  While he shot most of the images digitally, he did agree to do a few on film.  

Tech Notes:

Fuji FP-100C shot with my Mamiya Universal and 100mm f3.5 lens.

Morning View

This was the view in my camera room as I walked to make coffee in the mornings.  The chairs cast a very cool shadow on the back of my seamless background.  It is no more.  Many exciting things are coming.  Stay tuned.