These are the 31 days and 34 articles that made EMULSIVE in August 2020. As usual, you’ll find a recap of all the articles published.
Enjoy!
~ EM
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5 Frames… Chasing a 2 year old on Ferrania P30 (35mm / El 80 / Canon AE-1 + Canon 50mm f/1.8 FD)
At the start of 2020, I decided to start seriously shooting film again. It’s a familiar story. When I was 12 I got a Pentax KX from my uncle and used it through college. I would have loved to keep shooting, but graduating into the Great Recession did little to free up to the discretionary income needed to keep shooting regularly. Plus after college I […]
How-to: Light portraits on film using LEDs + ideas for all budgets
Like anything in life, it’s important to choose the right tool for the job. When it comes to shooting portraits you can choose strobes or constant lights for your lighting. In this article, I’ll chat a little bit about my workflow for portraits with photographic film and why I choose a certain light type for a certain shoot. My hope is that you can use […]
5 Frames… Of the last time we all met on Kodak Pro Image 100 (35mm Format / El 100 / Seagull DF-300A + Seagull-610 MC 50mm f/1.8)
The semester was finally over and I had started to commit more of my time to my hobby of film photography. I’d recently got myself my first SLR: a Seagull DF-300A (a licensed third party copy of the Minolta’s X-300), which came with a not-so-sharp 50mm f/1.8 lens (the Seagull-610 MC) but that didn’t bother me too much. I also got myself some Kodak Pro […]
5 Frames… Of the apocalypse that never came (Holga 400 / 35mm Format / EI 400 / Canon A1)
I panicked. A couple of months ago, I saw the apocalypse coming, and I ordered about $500 of film. I mostly bought film stocks I’d never shot before and then stocked up on some basics, like Kodak Gold 200, Fujicolor Pro 400H, Kodak Tri-X, that kind of thing. Along with those, I also bought a roll of Holga 400 35mm film. Fortunately, the apocalypse has […]
Chatting with Jeff “The Dude” Bridges, Panoramic Photographer
I’m going to assume that you know who Jeff Bridges is. If you don’t, a quick online search will tell you all you need to know about his amazing career as an actor, and a few more minutes will reveal that he is also a musician, visual artist, and photographer. I’ll admit right at the start that I have been a fan of Jeff’s films […]
5 Frames… In the bathtub with Kodak Portra 400 (35mm Format / El 400 / Contax G2 + TLA200)
I’ve been using the Contax G2 with the 45mm Planar lens for about 5 years now. It was the second proper film camera I had ever purchased, and upon shooting for the first time, I was in love. No other camera in any format has been as perfect for me as the G2. Similarly, as I imagine many film shooters have experienced, I had this […]
5 Frames… With the curious Nikon Nikkor-P.C. 10.5 cm f/2.5 LTM on Adox Silvermax 100 (35mm Format / EI 100 / Leica M7)
Let me share some thoughts. For most of the year, my city has plenty of light. And good light, too. This is fortunate for a number of reasons but, in particular, it allows me to use lower ISO film for street photography. Good resolution and plenty of flexibility. ADOX Silvermax is a fantastic film for shooting in my everyday conditions and is quite easily available […]
Camera review: The unlovely (but very good) Pentax MZ-S
First an admission, I am an accidental Pentaxian. Like thousands of others, quite by chance I first learned to shoot film on a Pentax K1000. Since then many other Pentaxes have passed through my life: Spotmatic II, KM, MX, LX, 645n, both the 67 and 67ii and the MZ-S of course (twice!). The attraction is that they just work…without any fuss. So there’s an inbuilt […]
5 Frames… Of medium format on a budget (Kodak Portra 160 / 120 Format / EI 160 / Minolta Autocord RG1)
I, like many of you here, suffer chronic GAS. It remains true that a great picture comes from the photographer, not the camera, but there is something uniquely satisfying about using a camera that looks and feels good. Although my student budget places heavy limitations upon my Leica-laden aspirations, bargains can be found, which may produce images just as good as the pricey alternatives. To […]
5 Frames… Helping me contemplate my questionable life choices on 5×7 Arista EDU Ultra 100 (EI 200 / 5×7 Format / Linhof Technika)
This is what I was thinking… “Golly, that 5×7 camera is going for a good price. Anyway, I can always sell the lens (who am I kidding… I’m not going to sell the lens) and make some of my money back. Who cares that I’ve never shot 5×7 and don’t know if I would even like the format.” So now I have this 5×7 Linhof […]
5 Frames of the smallest town in Germany: Blankenberg on respooled Fujifilm NEOPAN 100 ACROS (Kodak Medalist II / 120 format / EI 100)
“My love affair with photography began about 45 years ago, parallel with my love affair with my first girlfriend. My passion for photography never ended. For about twenty years I used medium format cameras for the best quality feasible at the time, mostly 4.5×6 and 6×7. The lab process was also done in my own lab, both black & white and color. Many years I […]
Night photography with the MiNT Camera Instantkon RF70 and Fujifilm Instax Wide film
There have been few opportunities for me to take the Instax Wide format MiNT Camera Instantkon RF70 on a night shoot, a favourite activity of mine. With the “iso” in Sydney having lifted in June, I was excited to have an opportunity to see what it could really do in low light. The Instantkon RF70 is produced by MiNT Camera, a company that started selling […]
5 Frames… On Fujifilm Fujicolor Pro 400H (120 Format / EI 400 / Pentax 645 + SMC Pentax-a 645 45mm f/2.8)
Being at home for the last two months has only afforded me opportunities to be outside shooting pictures here and there. One night while I was going through some images I had shot on a Lubitel 166b I had bought to start playing with medium format photography, I found myself yearning for something a bit more. The novelty of a Soviet camera being a comparatively […]
Stop cross processing your slide film: #Saynotoxpro
That’s right I said it, stop cross-processing lovely slide film. Slide film was designed to produce lovely true striking colours, with great contrast, sharpness and fine grain. It allowed photographers, artists and printers to see exactly what they were getting. Yet you want to xpro it to make it grainy, blurry and a complete smorgasbord of washed-out colours that you totally knew you were going […]
5 Frames… From a Kodak Brownie Target Six-20 on T-MAX 400 (620 Format / EI 400)
Before I even got in to film photography, my mother gifted me a Kodak Brownie — a Kodak Brownie Target Six-20 — complete with original box, manual, and envelope to mail in the film. The camera sat on my shelf for months, until I decided to see about getting some film for it. I had read online that it was possible to use 120 film, […]
5 Frames… Of ILFORD HP5 PLUS developed in Cinestill Df96 Monobath (35mm / EI 400 / Nikon FM2)
The staying indoors because of the COVID-19 pandemic has allowed me to work on several projects that I been neglecting for several months now. This time, I decided to develop some film I’ve been neglecting for several years. Originally I’ve ether been sending my film off for processing, or developing it myself. I’ve been rather lazy about doing it myself again at home, although I […]
The Homemade Camera Podcast’s “Unconventional Camera Convention” is now on YouTube
I have been stuck inside my house for about 5 months now. Quarantine for me, more or less is like the rest of my life. I work alone, in a shop in my backyard, and in some ways I am a bit of a hermit. I have noticed, and really started to miss what little social interaction I used to have before the pandemic. The […]
5 Frames… Of stand developed ILFORD HP5 PLUS in DD-X at 30°c
I’ve found myself with quite a backlog to develop from the last few weeks of sun, but encountered an issue I hadn’t really faced before when developing – the heatwave we’ve been having here in the UK means that all of my chemicals would be quite a bit above the recommended 20°. Temperature is an important aspect of the process, and using my usual formulas […]
5 Frames… in Nuremberg on Kodak Vericolor III (120 Format / EI 50 / Mamiya RB67 Pro-S)
When it comes to expired film you‘ll never know exactly, if your shots turn out or not. From harsh grain to weird color shifts, anything can happen. Some folks like all these flaws and shoot expired film because of it, but I generally don‘t and that‘s why I usually tend to avoid it. One day I decided I‘ll give it try and ordered a pro-pack […]
Month in review: July 2020
These are the 31 days and 33 articles that made EMULSIVE in July 2020. As usual, you’ll find a recap of all the articles published. Enjoy! ~ EM
5 Frames… Climbing County Kerry’s Carrauntoohil on Fomapan 100 Classic (35mm Format / EI 100 / Olympus XA2)
Growing up in Cape Town, I am very much an outdoors type of guy. I grew up going to the beach for Christmas, bodyboarding and surfing, hiking and cycling. Basically, it can all be condensed down to mountains and beaches. So, when my friend Chris asked me to go hiking in the Kerry landscape, with him and a couple of friends, I was all in. […]
5 Frames… Of a night out in Trastevere on Kodak T-MAX 400 pushed to 3200 (35mm format / EI 3200 / Nikon FG + Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 AI-S “Pancake”)
The following five frames were taken on a typical summer night in Rome, in early June 2019, where I had moved to in the spring to spend a semester abroad and work in the Italian galleries. Back then, I could already reflect on a long career as a photographer if you consider my young age. In fact, I started to take photos when I was […]
Fairchild K-20: the making of a meaningful portrait
A friend of mine gave me some 4×5 film a while back. It was originally purchased by her dad in 1979, who at the time was a professional photographer. He used mainly 120 medium format and 4×5 film for his work in that era, but did a ton of aerial work on a Fairchild K-20. Her dad is currently in a long term care facility, […]
5 Frames… Of Fomapan 400 Action developed in a Rondinax (35mm / EI 400 / Olympus MJU)
Being a member of a film photography society called NEG35 I have to admit to storing a small collection of film cameras in my spare room. Some work, some don’t, but just look too cool to even think about throwing away – come on I’m sure we’ve all been there! So why is it that I choose to do 5 frames with the Olympus MJU, […]
5 Frames… Of a desolate Blackpool with Kodak ColorPlus 200 (35mm Format / EI 200 / OLYMPUS OM-2)
I’ve been shooting on film (or with any non-convenient high-megapixel low-character smartphone capacity) for a little under half a year now, starting very feebly with what I chose would be worthy of taking a photo of, I slowly garnered the courage to capture moments spontaneously without fear of running out of film – I started to truly embrace my joy of film photography. I always […]
5 Frames… Of ballet on film shot on Kodak Portra 800 (120 Format / EI 800 / Yashica 635
‘Ballet on Film’ is an on-going collaboration with Honolulu Classical Ballet and artistic director Romi Beppu. It is an exploration into the rich hues, spirited movements and magical artistry that is ballet in Hawaii. Instead of focusing on the performance on stage, much of the visual story revolves around the in-between moments during rehearsal – all the little details that are woven together to create […]
5 Frames… On a panoramic-mod Zeiss Ikonta 521/16 and Rollei Retro 400S (EI 4200 / 120 Format)
I have an obsession with panoramic photos and the cameras that take them. Walk into a museum or historical exhibit and chances are you’ll find a panorama; often impossibly long and expertly taken by masters of the past. Often there’s a bigger opportunity for unintended scenes, objects, people, and situations to be captured in time. Finding these candid moments are just one of the many […]
5 Frames… With a Leica M3, Summarit 50mm f/1.5 LTM and ILFORD PAN F (EI 50 / 35mm format)
Leica’s 50mm f/1.5 Summarit, which comes in M- or LTM mounts — I bought last year a mint LTM lens copy which I can use with an adapter on my Leica M3 — is often reviewed as an old vintage lens not being sharp enough in the center of the frame wide open. Even though it might not be as sharp as the modern f/1.4-based […]
5 Frames. Cumulus afternoon with a red filter on Rollei Superpan 200 (EI 200 / 120 format / Rolleiflex T)
Once again it was time for a spontaneous photo tour with a fixed theme. Normally I only shoot what comes to my nose. I am always very free. But that was a wonderful day, Saturday 30 May 2020. The sun was shining and cumulus clouds were gathering in the sky. The ideal weather for cloud photography with a red filter. I know, the afternoon is […]
5 Frames… In Leipzig with Kodak ColorPlus 200 (EI 100 / Revue 400SE)
One day I woke up with the feeling that I really needed to have a classic rangefinder from the late 1970s. After some Googling in fora and other resources, I decided to go for the REVUE 400SE – a white-labelled camera based on a standard design that has been used by other brands like Konica or Minolta and introduced in1978 by Foto-Quelle. Its bold mechanics and […]
Building the CAMERADACTYL Brancopan
“Are you drilling?” asked my bleary-eyed wife, coming out of the bedroom of our small apartment at 1:30am. My desk was cluttered with tools, plastic shavings, and a half-completed CAMERADACTYL Brancopan 3D-printed camera. Of course I was drilling: the Brancopan has 27 fasteners with 1,094 thread revolutions, and there was no way that I was tightening them all by hand. I have standards. Reason prevailed […]
5 Wide Frames… From a wide lens with Kodak Ektar 100 (35mm Format / EI 100 / Mamiya RB67)
I’ve been shooting a lot of panoramic images over the last few years. There’s something about the wide 1×3 aspect ratio that really appeals to me. I have a few different cameras that I use for this, but more often than not I am usually shooting them with my Mamiya RB67 ProSD with 35mm film in a 220 back. Shooting with the RB in this […]
5 Frames… Of everyday household objects in a tiny “Studio” on Fujifilm Superia Premium 400 (EI 400 / 35mm Format / Olympus OM-1N)
I don’t know about the rest of you but the COVID-19 lockdown pretty much took away my photography mojo for a while. I mean, when you are worried about the health of your family, friends and yourself, these things are going to take a back seat. What I found eventually once we settled into the new norm, was that photography was one of the things […]
5 Frames… Of Prague on ILFORD FP4 PLUS with my new Nikkormat FT2 (EI 125 / 35mm Format)
The Czech Republic has not escaped pandemic-related restrictions, with the country entering a state of emergency and national lockdown fairly early in the crisis. Outings for daily exercise were permitted, and while Prague’s parks were busy, the city centre – usually thronged with tourists – was all but deserted for several weekends. ILFORD FP4 PLUS has always been one of my favourite films, but in […]
EMULSIVE Interview #221: I am Gaetan Cormier Interview and this is why I shoot film
Stormchaser, landscape photographer and portraiture, today’s interviewee has a long and varied photographic history. Please give a warm welcome to Montrealean (-er? -an?), Gaetan Cormier! Over to you, Gaetan. Hi Gaetan, what’s this picture, then? GC: I learned about these cute farm buildings and trees on a Facebook group about beautiful trees of Quebec. Location was vague so I used Google Maps to locate the […]
5 Frames… Of prototype Adox HR-50 on a tiny Rollei (35mm Format / EI 50 / Rollei 35S)
I love cycling. I also love taking pictures. An old Rollei 35mm camera turned out to be the ideal way to marry these two things without putting my fancy digital camera in danger, I even liked the pictures so much that the modern monster now stays at home for most days. One day I found myself ordering film once again from a famous German retailer, […]
5 Wide Frames… With a CAMERADACTYL Brancopan and Fomapan 400 Action (35mm Format / EI 1600)
Well, here it is. My second 3D printed camera in all its glorious plastic glory, with a Mamiya universal press lens again. Actually, the same lens as the one on my Goodman One, the 65mm f/6.3. This time I’m using 35mm film, not 120…and a 2.5:1 aspect ratio because why not? That’s 24x60mm negs for those in the back that aren’t paying attention. So, wide. […]
Kodak Tri-X 400 follow-up: Does it even really matter?
I wrote an article here on EMULSIVE in April 2019 where I discussed some of the steps I made early on in my film photography process. I covered my earliest roll in 2016 to my then most recent work on Kodak Tri-X 400. I had sampled almost everything on offer by ILFORD, quite a few by Fujifilm, Agfa, Cinestill, and Kodak – but had left […]
5 Frames… Of Kodak Plus-X Aerecon II 3404 (35mm format / EI 50 / Nikkormat FTN)
I bought this film in a “group buy” with a couple of other people over on Filmwasters.com and honestly, I didn’t know anything about it. I remembered shooting Plus-X back in the day and liking it, but that was the extent of my “knowledge”. As it turns out, I think that this is NOT Plus-X emulsion on a thin estar base designed for aerial reconnaissance. […]
The Leica M3: 5 reasons why it’s the greatest camera ever
The Leica M3 doesn’t do anything that another camera can’t. In fact, by today’s standards, it is severely lacking in features that are normally considered standard. No light meter. No hot shoe. No autofocus. No automatic exposure. Limited frame line selection (50/90/135). 1/50 max flash sync speed… On paper then, one might ask why anyone would choose a camera that costs roughly $1,500 — used […]
5 Frames… On my father-in-law’s 80 year-old Agfa Billy Record I (120 Format / EI 125 / ILFORD FP4 PLUS)
I recently found my father-in-law’s 80 year-old Agfa Billy Record camera in a drawer. He bought in Germany in 1942 and it was last used about 70 years ago. This model was manufactured between 1936 and 1942. It shoots eight 6×9 cm photos on a roll of 120 film. Fortunately, I had a roll of ILFORD FP4 PLUS film in the fridge and a bright, […]
5 Frames of Seattle and the surrounds on ILFORD HP5 PLUS (35mm / EI 400 / NIKON F100)
I came about photography as a teenager. I bought an old Canon TX from a pawn shop and used the most inexpensive black and white film I could get. When I got back into photography about eight to nine years ago, I wanted to relearn everything about film and developing that I had forgotten. I am still trying to grow as an amateur photographer. My […]
Thanks for reading!
~ EM
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