Posts from the ‘Beach’ Category
In Transition
Pan F, Rodinal, Nik Efex for interest
Back to the old theme for a day while some work is being done behind the scenes. Another shot from Weston Beach for your viewing pleasure. You’ll see an announcement when we’re at a point where you can look and comment.
Weston Rocks
Pan-F, Rodinal
Another image from the Weston Beach rolls. Auditioning yet another theme. Obviously the images in older posts are squished a bit (well, more than a bit).
Auditioning this theme today. If I went with this, I’d increase the image size; that’s the one thing I really liked about yesterday’s theme. BIG photos.
MYC.
Standing on Weston Beach
Rodinal, Pan-F
Last January I got my second chance to wander Weston Beach at Point Lobos, California. Although I’m not an expert on Weston’s history, I assume this beach was named after him based on some kind of info that he had spent a great deal of time on the beach, probably photographing the area.
This was shot #1 on roll #1 of two rolls I had never scanned. Both rolls I discovered as I was going through my backlog, which now consists of *only* 14 rolls of 35mm and 1 roll of medium format film.
Yikes. And I developed two rolls of Adox today, so that makes 16 rolls of 35mm to be scanned.
Good thing I’m on vacation.
Merry Christmas to all!
San Gregorio Beach
The day before I drove to Muir, I traveled to the California Coast just south of Half Moon Bay. I tried to chase the sunset, battling the incoming Marine layer to try and get far enough south to avoid it. I lost that battle, and ended up at San Gregorio Beach, where I grabbed this image. Photomatix and Nik Silver Efex together.
Summertime
Bessa, Biogon, Fuji color film
Back from my trip to NYC. I didn’t do much posting (in fact, none at all) but did a lot of shooting. Took an Amtrak train from Pittsburgh to NYC (took some images on that leg, all film), then walked around NYC on the day after (took both film and digital), then more walk-around images during the week (all film). On Thursday I visited the Cartier-Bresson exhibit at the MoMA (more on that later).
Also while I was away I received back in the mail some color film images that I sent away for scanning. Above is an image from the Rio trip (the only roll of color film I shot on that trip). Sort of thought it would be appropriate for this first semi-official weekend of summer.
Tri-X on the Beach in Rio
Is it volleyball or soccer?
I don’t know whether these men have dibs on the next match or whether they are just relaxing in the blistering heat with their Cachaça as they debate the skills on exhibit.
I developed three rolls of Tri-X last night from the trip to Rio. ISO 320, Fg7, 12 minutes at 70 degrees. Throughout the next week or so I’ll be posting images from those rolls.
Just as an opening thought in a series of them from this trip, there was something that really came alive for me using the Bessa rangefinder this time. I took only two cameras (the 5D for color work and the Bessa for b&w). I really wanted to limit myself when I was out walking, and just stick to one camera and one focal length. This really forced me to use the Bessa and the 35mm biogon. I had done this in San Francisco, but this trip I really worked it in the street and at the convention we attended.
I don’t quite know how to describe it, but I crossed some kind of threshold with the rangefinder on this trip. I had always liked using it, but the open rangefinder window with the frame lines had never been as comfortable as an SLR finder to me. This time I began to use the ‘outside the frame line’ area to anticipate the shot, which is THE big advantage of that kind of work. Also, as I walked the streets and especially when I wandered the show and the market we visited, the camera just didn’t attract as much attention as the 5D. The difference was really noticeable, and the size just felt better in terms of the actual work of getting the images. The more responsive shutter also started to feel right to me. I quickly looked at the negatives, and saw many images that I was proud of. I only had a few minutes tonight to scan frames, and the image above was frame #4.
On the flight back, I found myself really considering options I had never before, such as a) selling my Canon FD equipment entirely and putting any cash into a 50mm M-mount lens and/or a second M-mount body (Bessa or Zeiss), then b) selling the Nikon F100 w/lenses and doing the same thing, so that my digital system is centered around the Canon 5D w/ EOS lenses and the 35 mm film system is just M-mount bodies and lenses. (The Mamiya system is on a different level and purpose entirely in my mind).
Considering the history I have with the FD system, that I would even think about this is kinda a big deal for me.
Rio Dawn on the Beach
This is my last day in Rio, and I had promised myself I would go down onto the beach at dawn to shoot before I left. So, this morning I managed to drag my butt out of bed at 5:15 and walk on the sand. One thing I hadn’t thought of was the humidity; the 5D was in the hotel room and the beach was, well, very humid. Condensation on the lens through me at first, and then I embraced it. These days with color I tend to add a Nik preset to emulate some film emulsion. These images are pretty straight out of the camera.
Just as I reached the beach, before the condensation had evaporated
Not the best image in the world, just wanted to show what it kind of looked like when I arrived
This is later, after the lens had cleared. Those people had been on the beach all night.
Leblon is Rio's old hollywood, the stars live on the hillside
So, today we check out and fly all night to get back home tomorrow by noon. Oh it will be good to be home, I’ll say that.
One of my readers asked me to include more color. The color out of the 5D is beautiful, and the color scans from North Coast equally so. Have no fear, I’ll post more color. Whiie I do love B&W, it is also a space where I’m teaching myself to see tones better, so that’s part of why my concentration has been there over the last year.
Rio Dawn
Looking East from my hotel
This image has a bit of ‘impressionism’ about it. The lens sharpness (the cheapest Canon 50mm f/1.8) isn’t the best wide open (which this was). It also vignettes, which adds a bit in this case. The teeny tiny point of light on the horizon is, I believe, a tanker in Rio Harbor. This image uses the Nik Color Efex Fuji 160 preset.
Return of my Mamiya
Mamiya 645 w/80mm lens
Captured this on the beach in La Jolla with my Mamiya 645e, hand-held (and if you knew who clumsy that beastie can be at times, you’d understand why I added that phrase). Fuji Provia, with the color almost as rendered by the scan (I goosed the Vibrancy +5 to better reproduce the chrome as it appears on the light table to my eye). Great to have medium-format images back.
I had these processed and scanned at North Coast, along with a roll of 120 Velvia and two rolls of 35mm Ektar. The box with the CD and the developed film was waiting for me when I got back from the airport tonight. I’ll post more images from those rolls over the weekend.
Just for kicks, I took the image and loaded it into Nik Silver Efex. The image below is processed in NSE with the ‘underexposed 1 stop’ preset and using the FP4 film type. I also added a u-point towards the bottom of the frame to bring up the exposure there. I’ll be interested to see which of these two you like better.
As above with some Silver Efex thrown in.
Seagull at La Jolla
Tri-X, Tmax Dev, F100
This image is a bit grainy as it is a tight crop from a larger frame. I followed this guy around on the beach that morning. He took me to all his favorite places.
