5 Frames… Of a day at the slopes on Kodak Gold 200 (35mm Format / EI400 / Canon EOS 1N + Canon 50mm 1.8 STM)

I’ve been into photography since 2004 when I first picked up a Canon AE-1. Since then I’ve explored many different brands and lens combinations for both professional work and hobbyist work, however shooting film always takes me back to a certain purity. I do love the manual aspect of shooting film especially 120 in my Hasselblad 500cm but since picking up the Canon 1N I love the balance it has with both automation features but still being grounded in the film process. I enjoy the light meter, auto winder, DSLR feel but I know I can just fire away as 36 exposures will go by in a blink of an eye.

My first outing with the Canon 1N was a gorgeous Sunday at Breckenridge Ski resort and I took the Canon and loaded it up with a roll of Kodak Gold 200. I usually am a Portra, Ektar, Fuji Pro film shooter but figured I give Kodak a shot and just see what happens. I got to the slopes early and had great morning light up till about noon. The great thing about Colorado in the winter is that the sun doesn’t get too high in the sky and stays sort of mid range the whole day until it begins to set again around 4:30 to 5:00pm. This makes for some great color and long shadows which I always love.

I tried to explore by showing the landscape off and elements of the ski resort and finding shots that just spoke to me and tried to choose quality of quantity… knowing I only have 36 frames to work with. I tried to meter for the shadows and mid tones knowing that I shot the roll at 400 iso planning to push the developing by +1 stop.

The day was sunny but pretty windy and cold but the Canon didn’t miss a beat. There is something satisfying using a flagship camera from 25 years ago that just works as it did when it came out of the original box. The sound the shutter makes after an exposure is taken is rewarding in it’s own sense as well. Paired with the camera for the day was the trusty Nifty Fifty 1.8 STM. I’ve owned this lens 3-4 times prior to buying it again with this camera body and it’s just a lens you can always rely on and go back to. It’s like a best friend that you might not always talk to on a daily basis but one phone call later you are caught up like no time ever elapsed. It makes for a compact size, pretty solid image quality and focus is pretty fast and reliable with the 1N system.

All in all I’m pretty happy with how my roll turned out. I had them developed by my local camera shop and I scanned them myself with my Epson V600. I think next time I might shoot Kodak Gold 200 at box speed, still expose for the shadows and Mid Tones and see the difference. Although I think the +1 Push added some contrast, I think it lost a bit of detail in the shadows in some shots.

Thanks for the opportunity to post my 5 frames, please let me know if there are any questions or suggestions for next time I’m out shooting, for development, scanning or post processing.

Cheers!

~ JP