Tough Decisions Towards Better Photography

Good morning, afternoon and evening everyone!

Hope all is well with you all

I have a very interesting circumstance to speak to you about

The first couple of months of this year have been a bit hectic for me

My birthday passed, i took a break from shooting film, i finally got settled in at my new home, moved some stuff around at job and worked on some things with family

And also….sold off all my digital photography gear..

Caffenol CL vs. Kodak HC110 😵

Hello Everyone,

My apologies on the time between posts lately as I’ve just moved to a new place and also got a quick mini-vaca in recently (more on that later) from work

As mentioned in my previous post, I’ve been developing ALL my black and white film with Caffenol (specifically Caffenol CL) in place of all the chemicals I used to use

I mostly shoot Kodak Tri-X, ilford HP5 and also the Lomo Earl Gray films these days. All have been developed in Caffenol mixtures

I was very serious about being happy (also a bit shocked) about the results I was seeing

But is it really as good as I’ve been viewing it or has the romance between this developer and I finally ended?

Finally! Caffenol CL

Ladies and Gentlemen and all readers of this blog, I finally decided to do it

You’ve probably already read a previous post where I mention this very dedicated group of individuals who use Coffee to develop film (more accurately Coffee, Vitamin C and Washing Soda)

If you’d like to catch up by reading that previous post, here is the LINK

After some searching on the inter webs, I located the holy grail for all things Caffenol, http://www.caffenol-cookbook.com/index.php

It’s chock full of recipes, tips, and other great resources

Rangefinder Love: Fuji GW690III

Today I’d like to tell you about a camera I’m slowly beginning to fall in love with

I think in part due to the fact it reminds me of my time with the Leica M when I first really started to delve deep into film photography but in a much larger format

It’s definitely not a camera that can fit in your pocket, but what you sacrifice you portability, you gain in image quality and resolution

The camera I’m speaking of is the Fuji GW690III, a fixed lens medium format film rangefinder

If you’ve never seen what one looks like, it’s basically a Leica M on steroids with some differences since it was designed by Fuji and not Leica

My Trip to New Orleans with the Holga 120, Leica M2 and M8

Hello everyone!

Not long ago I was fortunate enough to have saved enough $$$ for something I’ve been planning on doing for a long while.

A trip down to the “Big Easy” New Orleans, Louisiana!!

Once I felt comfortable with funds 🙂 I went forward and made reservations for the flight and hotel stay

Now, this trip was not just for vacation, but also to spend some time solely dedicated to photography.

During my planning for the trip, a couple things went through my mind..

The Leica M8 and I

Hi everybody,

Recently I had the opportunity to purchase a used Leica M8 for a reasonable price..well…reasonable by Leica body standards, and in pretty good condition too!

I had never shot a digital rangefinder before, I mean aside from a quick tryout at a photo store I pass by frequently, so I decided to purchase this cam and add to the collection 

I am very excited to put this camera through my regular “street walks exercise” that i usually do with my film cameras most of the time.

Now as many of you know, this was Leicas first attempt at delving into the digital market..so it had its fair share of issues.

Two Film Formats at Once

Hello Everyone!

Been a while i know…i’ve been up and down, left and right and all over the place lately.

Felt it was time for a much needed update 🙂

I recently did a shoot with a friend at his apartment to test out a new lens for my Pentax 645n and also to get more used to shooting in low light conditions.

We agreed that we would use one light source only, dimly lit, so when i would push the film there would be more shadow details.

I also decided to bring along my Leica M2, which i haven’t used in a while and was happy to have out with me.

It was kind of interesting having them both in my hands and switching between the two.

The Kodak / Pakon F135 Scanner

Hello Everybody, hope all is well

I’ve been busy and studying hard as always (all the while juggling work and life) but it’s great to get back to the blog

As many of you know, i do a lot of film photography work (i prefer it even though i do work with Digital photography as well) and i develop 99% of it at home, mostly 35mm.

After i develop my 35mm rolls, i would always scan them using the Plustek 8200i film scanner and use the Silverfast or Vuescan software to convert them into JPG/Tiff format

This would take a very long time (even though i loved the results!) especially when developing 3-4 rolls at the end of the day, which is often

I began to think about how there may be a faster way of doing this without spending a lot of money on labs or much more expensive scanners..

Checking out the Voigtlander VC Meter II with Leica M2

Hi Everyone,

Lately i’ve been reading the back and forth conversations (arguments?) between street photographers and the light meters that they prefer (or if they use one at all!)

Particularly those conversations between people who work almost exclusively with Rangefinders cameras, like the Leica M or Canon 7 for example.

My experience with my Leica M2 (as i have mentioned before) has always been without the use of a light meter.

I guess i just like making things more difficult for myself or i just truly didn’t think i was a real “Leica Shooter” if i didn’t know how to meter in my head when i first purchased.

In a way, i still do feel this way..but i’m not against the use of a Light Meter if one chooses to use one.

Importance of setting goals in Street Photography

I will be the first to admit that i may have an issue with ADD (attention deficit disorder) or anxiety, as well as Obsessive Compulsive (as you can see about how i obsess with photography lol) when it comes to certain things.

To cope with these bouts of EXTREME boredom, and/or just feeling the need to be inspired and keep working, i do my best to think up goals/projects for me to move towards.

Stay busy, stay moving, stay shooting, stay learning,  stay documenting

Soooooo……hence this blog lol