I’ve been into photography since I was a student at university, it was during the time DSLRs started to become reasonably affordable and were all the rage. Long story short, I bought one and took a bunch of photos over the next few years, but there was always something missing. I got tired of the pursuit of technical excellence rather than the pursuit of substance. Also seeing silver gelatine prints of black and white film didn’t help my digital photography journey either, but I always thought of film photography as a hard, expensive and unrewarding process…little did I know.

During the first lockdown due to the pandemic, I decided to try it out. Jumping straight to square and medium format seemed the right way to go. Pricey Hasselblads were out of the question and after some research, I chose a Bronica SQ-B and an 80mm f/2.8 Zenzanon PS lens — I didn’t regret it.

Shooting with the Bronica is unique kind of experience. Looking through the waist level finder, your frame feels so much more alive, bright and 3D, popping the magnifier glass to help you with focus feels like watching old cinema. Everything slows down when operating this camera, you first have to remove the dark slide, manual focus and framing takes more time as you only have 12 frames per roll available, making each shot super precious.

Other limitations are the non existent meter and the shutter speed, that only goes up to 1/500th of a second. Υet I found out that working around these limitations gave me better results than I ever had with all the bells and whistles of a Minolta X-700 I also bought and use.

Carrying the Bronica around isn’t cumbersome at all, and despite its weight, with the right strap, it is more comfortable than carrying a 35mm SLR that tends to jiggle around. The sounds this camera makes when operated is another pleasure to be experienced, the Seiko leaf shutter of the Zenzanon PS lens can barely be heard, because of the unapologetic big fat slap of the mirror, that thing definitely turns heads! The gears of the manual hand crank are equally loud and satisfying.

The first time I shoot with the Bronica was at my summer Vacation in Crete, Greece. Shooting under the Greek summer sun meant I had to choose a fast film, so I loaded an ILFORD FP4 PLUS. I enjoyed the whole process so much. Every picture I took, as well the ones I didn’t. After processing the film at home I was amazed at the detail and the sharpness of the negatives. I am not sure if it is the size of the negative, the lens, the film, or the combination of everything but I never thought the first roll would come out so beautiful.

I will definitely keep this camera forever.

~ Stelios

Submit your 5 Frames… today

Get your own 5 Frames featured by submitting your article using this form or by sending an email via the contact link at the top of the page.

Share your knowledge, story or project

The transfer of knowledge across the film photography community is the heart of EMULSIVE. You can add your support by contributing your thoughts, work, experiences and ideas to inspire the hundreds of thousands of people who read these pages each month. Check out the submission guide here.

If you like what you’re reading you can also help this passion project by heading over to the EMULSIVE Patreon page and contributing as little as a dollar a month. There’s also print and apparel over at Society 6, currently showcasing over two dozen t-shirt designs and over a dozen unique photographs available for purchase.

Similar stuff on EMULSIVE

5 responses to “5 Frames… Of ILFORD FP4 PLUS in my first roll in my new Zenza Bronica SQ-B (120 Format / EI 125 / Zenzanon PS 80mm f/2.8)”

  1. Stelios Themelakis Avatar
    Stelios Themelakis

    Thank you, most of the photos I have on my instagram account are from Crete, have a look “@steliosthem”

  2. Beautiful photos, beautiful memories of visits to Greece, especially Naxos, but missed Crete. Thanks for your story and for sharing the results of your work.

  3. Bravo 😉
    Great !
    Good choice and great results.
    Thank you so much

  4. What happened to my comment?

  5. Yasou o Stelio! Excellent post, excellent camera.

    What jumped out at me from your photos was the shot of the bicycle at the lamp post. I looked carefully at the lighthouse and said “That must be Chania!”

    Chania is my jumping off place for the Levka Ori, where I carry my folding Zeiss Ikonta, also 6×6. Those mountains are a hard and savage place; I wouldn’t risk a Bronica or my Leica there. Besides, if the gods decided against me, I would be out $200. Still, I would miss its wonderful f3.5 Novar lens.

    Heirete! Jk

 

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Discover more from EMULSIVE

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading

Discover more from EMULSIVE

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading