When I started my summer job, I knew that I would have to take any opportunity to take photos I could. But — just for myself — I also took those weeks to learn how to use my newest camera. I took that camera — a Zeiss Super Ikonta 532/16 with its Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar 80mm f/2.8 lens — and a roll of Fuji Pro 400H, and just became a fly on the wall.
The photos here came from multiple excursion days where I had to choose my moments to take a photo. From going around South Florida, I had to take my roll of 12 photos seriously and choose my shots more carefully than I usually would. Normally, I wouldn’t care about conserving frames, but the fact that I was doing a personal project during work time made me a little conscious.
Fujifilm Pro 400H is a film I used previously; I knew that the film could make a beach scene peaceful, but I had never shot the film in other scenarios. While I could predict how some of the exposures would turn out, there were a few that I was sure were wasted until I saw them. I had to trust myself and my light meter.
Considering that it took about a few weeks to see them, since I waited until the summer job was done to get the roll developed and scanned, I was feeling the weight of potentially wasted frames for a while. It was a welcome surprise to see that the film was able to come through in situations I never used it in before.
The Super Ikonta was another welcome surprise. I honestly hate saying this but it’s true; the camera became an extension of my eye. Using the camera became so intuitive. While it was definitely quirky, it was quirky in a way that made establishing a routine of using it almost instant.
The camera basically cemented my love for 6×6, and Fuji Pro 400H cemented my love for this summer.
~ Randy
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One response to “5 Frames… With Fujifilm Fujicolor Pro 400H (EI 400 / 120 format / Zeiss Super Ikonta 532/16)”
Excuse me, you shot a roll of film during the whole summer and the camera became an extention of your eyes?