Film Friday - A Whole Roll of Black and White, Mostly Montreal

An interesting exercise today. I thought I'd share with you a whole roll of medium format film (I only get twelve photos per roll with a 6x6 camera), and I decided to share it all in the order I shot it.

A couple of things you might learn from this: I almost never photograph any scene twice. Film is precious to me (and expensive!) so I try really hard to get it right the first time. If I don't get it right, I don't get the shot. That's okay; that's life.

I'm also, especially with the square format, really attracted to symmetry. I love shooting down streets and alleyways, and I always feel like I have to be dead center. I'm sure there are some photographers who feel like such symmetry is boring. Maybe so - for me, it's calming.

I love this little parklet! It's like an oasis in the middle of Montreal. This day was so hot and sticky. It was refreshing to walk into a green spot, even if only for a few moments.

As I recall, these flowers were orange. Hard to tell now!

I just loved these little window vines.

Nothing better than a gelato on a hot afternoon.

The next morning we stopped into this little bakery for breakfast. Out of habit, we tried speaking French to the guy behind the bar. Turned out he was Australian, and his French was pretty much nonexistent! The coffee was great, though.

That concludes the Montreal photos. The last three are just me trying to finish up the roll so I could get it developed already! I started with a classic mirror self portrait.

Then a little still life of my dresser. Should probably cut off that made in China tag!

And last, my favorite (and almost only) purchase in Montreal: my glass water bottle. I just love drinking out of glass. It's so much more comfortable than plastic or metal, and I can't explain exactly why.

So there you have it! Twelve photos, one roll.

*Interested in a film or digital portrait session? Please contact me for details!*

*Want to see more film? Check out all the Film Friday posts!*

Experimenting with Double Exposures

A couple of double exposures (in Photoshop) from a recent wedding. I have to say, I've never really been enamored of double exposures, but I think that's because I usually see them in color and then it seems like there is way too much going on. In black and white I'm intrigued by the possibilities to tell a wider story than one image can usually tell.

What do you think? Double exposures, yea or nay?

Film Friday - Santa Barbara in Black and White

A few more photos from Santa Barbara, this time in black and white. One roll of Ilford HP5 Plus, and one of Ilford Delta 3200.

Film Friday - Black and White Musings

Here are a few photos of San Francisco in black-and-white. The first two I shot on the same day as my first roll of Velvia with David - what a wet day! Whew.

And then these I shot on a day when I was on my way to a dentist appointment, and I took advantage of the little bit of extra time I had and made my way to the ocean. Something about that open space and infinity of beach and sky just gets me every time. And I knew it would look good in black and white. What I didn't expect, was to see the people working on the roof, or to be inspired by the row of houses all exactly the same except for the color (somehow still expressed well in black and white). 

And the calla lilies, effortlessly elegant as usual.

I've been experimenting with doing a little bit of meditation every day when I can manage it. There's something about five minutes of just relaxing not doing anything that really focuses the mind.  

Shooting film is like that for me. When I'm shooting a roll with only twelve frames, I don't think about anything except my next shot (and I know there's only going to be one photo of this particular subject, unlike my digital work) and that's very freeing. With digital I can take any photo I want, so somehow I don't want to take them as much. 

Of course, there are some limitations. For example, shooting film that's 50 ISO is really difficult. Even on a bright sunny day I find that there are compositions that are too dark to make the photograph. This is a problem you never have with modern digital. 

But maybe that's the point. Maybe it's the problems that make the solution feel more elegant. Get rid of the problems and what's the point?

*Interested in a film or digital portrait session? Please contact me for details!*

*Want to see more film? Check out all the Film Friday posts!*

Film Friday - AnnMarie and Paul

Another recent film portrait session. AnnMarie and Paul were troopers, meeting me just after dawn at Stow Lake in the bitter cold. (Okay, bitter for here, anyway.)

We took advantage of the beautiful light and managed to get some great portraits of the two of them as well as their trusty sidekick Leo.

I just love the look of film, the buttery highlights and the soft bokeh. Digital is convenient, yes, but it doesn't have the same special feel.

Thanks again, AnnMarie and Paul. It was a wonderful morning!

*Interested in a film or digital portrait session? Please contact me for details!*

*Want to see more film? Check out all the Film Friday posts!*