Gambling.

So, recently I've been completely obsessed with home developing.  More specifically:  chemical free home developing.  I found a solid caffenol site and worked on a recipe.  The first few tries were recorded in a notebook I've dubbed my Photography Notes notebook (where I will be noting everything I need to note photographically) like a mad scientist perfecting an experiment.  Well, that's what I was doing, really.

The Experiment

The first test roll was literally a full 36 exposure roll of Kodak Tri-X shot in the Recesky TLR.  That was a huge mistake.  Whole roll ended up completely overdeveloped.  But, the Recesky is also pretty fixed by way of apeture and shutter speed.  So, it could have been a bit under exposed too... we'll never know.  What we do know was that it was a failure.  But, I learn from my mistakes.

Next test was done with another roll of Tri-X shot in the Mamiya 500dtl.  Shot one pictre, same lighting and camera settings, 36 times.  Pulled one revolution in the tank spool from the roll and dev'd that.  This time I didn't make enough developer.  So, only half the negative was developed.  However, that section didn't look overdeveloped.  It was really thin, stainwise.  So, I adjusted for a third try.

The third Tri-X try was a success.  But, the image was... flat, I guess.  There wasn't much by way of midtones or shadow detail.  Afterward I did a little more research on specifically Tri-X in caffenol.  I found that there was a certain chemical missing that was required for the Tri-X emulsion blend.  Over the counter I would be ordering a dog sedative from Europe.  I said, "no thanks," and went back to the drawing board.

At this point I did more reading and found that Fomapan 100 was supposed to be an ideal film to use with this concoction.  So, I ordered a bulk loader and two 100' bulk rolls of Foma100 (the rolls were stupid cheap, 2 seemed right).  And that's when the magic happened.

Rolled out a 10 shot roll and loaded the 500.  First attempt wasn't bad, just needed some tweaking.  Adjusted the recipe and added a little time and this is what I got:

It's still a little foggy, but it has a definite texture/feel to it.  I'm really happy with these results, I think.

So happy, in fact I decided to gamble and run a roll through my Zorki 1 and develop it using the same recipe as the successful attempt.  Thus far it looks pretty promising.  It's hanging to dry in the bathroom as I type this.  Will scan in the morning and see if it will be feasible to run a roll tomorrow. 

Anywho, mostly I'm just running the materials for this little endeavor out as I've ordered some proper HC-110.  It's really cheap, at least as cheap as if not cheaper than the caffenol.  And, it's supposed to be more environmentally friendly than other developers.  So, that makes me feel a little better.   All in all, rolling my own rolls and developing my own film is going to cut my photography costs significantly.  Too bad I can't develop slide film as easily.  I've just gotten hooked on those gorgeous color shifts.

Always Learning.

This past weekend I got to enjoy some quality shooting time with my old friend the Mamiya/Sekor 500dtl.  My wife and I went to the International Festival in St. Louis and there were just an immense amount of people there.

When I had time I found myself attempting to shoot like Winogrand:  I set myself up in a busy area and just stood there with the crowd moving and milling around me.  It was intense!  I felt so immersed in the people.  I tried to smile and make eye contact and hopefully keep a mug that would help people feel at ease and not freak them out.  I didn't get shouted at once, they just kept moving.  I got some weird looks, sure.  But, all in all it was event free. 

When I got home, though, I'd already begun thinking.  It was taking me far too long to find the shot, frame the shot, focus... focus... then shoot.  I'd preset my meter and stayed in an area where the metering would be ideal.  But, the focusing.  That's when I came across an article discussing the markings on a lens.  Now, I'd like to think I'm not some amateur jackass with a camera just pulling the trigger on anything... but, I guess I sort of am.  I don't have a formal education in photography, but I'm trying to increase my knowledge. 

To the point, though.  I learned, just last night, that I can overcome this focusing issue by finagling the aperture and film speed settings on my camera just so to produce a very wide zone for my focal depth.  I did not know.

This information would have been nice this past weekend.  But, I learned and hopefully at the Japanese Festival next weekend I will be able to utilize the information and take better pictures. 

The afore mentioned roll of film has not yet been developed, will post pictures later this week.

New Beginnings

Many moons ago, when I was young, my friend Mark and I would go out to the local cemetery and shoot rolls of film with our fathers' old cameras.  In fact, they were the exact same cameras:  the Mamiya/Sekor 500DTL.  My father got his around the Vietnam war era and I forget when Mark's dad got his.  This was about ~2002.  We would drive out in my jeep with the wind in our hair and sneak about with hotboot flashes firing off shots.

Fast-forward to this year.  I found myself completely enamored with lomography.  I like the way the pictures look, it reminds me of how the photos Mark and I took looked.

In the beginning of my foray into this mystical art I was using an Olympus 600-UZ set to the pinhole setting.  I'd enhance the vignetting and then Photoshop the color changes to make it look cross-processed.  After a while I was playing with "multiple exposures."  And this was entertaining for me.  But... it didn't feel right.

Some time ago, maybe 5 years ago, I found myself believing that digital was this hot thing.  My wife was utilizing film at the time and we were trying to save money.  I calculated that spending a good portion of money on a digital camera would end up eventually saving money as we wouldn't pay for processing.  So, somehow I ended up with a digital camera and doing what I'm doing. 

Recently, since I've taken up the Diana Mini, my thoughts have changed.  With the Diana the film becomes a canvas on which to paint with light.  There isn't instant gratification.  I can't just shoot shoot shoot (if I'm in square format I can't, I guess.  But, if I'm in half frame on a 36 exp. roll 72 shots sounds like forever); there's thought that goes into a shot. 

So here I am, older... a little wiser maybe; realizing I made a mistake.  And this is my journey back to film.  This is my catalog of my adventures in analogue.