Search results

"Thanks for posting some photos, I was beginning to think that I was weird." Not that one should preclude the other, of course.

It's been a little while so I thought I'd add another entry. Last week I was at an outdoor training course with my RB67 and one of the instructors asked if it was a Hasselblad. Apparently he used to shoot 4x5. Some of the students told him about the camera I usually use (a Graflex RB) and he was...

It's at times like these the great heaven knows That we wish we had not so many clothes. So let's loosen up with a playful tease Like all lovers did through the centuries We're just following ancient history, If I strip for you would you strip for me? Strip it. Nothing looks better...

Start with 10% less, it's easier math. The film is still in constant contact with the chemicals during the rotation, they are streaming down the sides. It would have to be intermittent rotation for them to not be constantly bathed. Even when developed to the same relative density I find that...

There are solutions to these sorts of problems... Someone once said that the gift is in the giving. Giving the gift of a gift would make it even better!

You can also put the processed negative in water and clear it later. That way if you want to check it but don't want to cart the chemicals around you'll be alright. Get some sponges and some tupperware, you can sandwich the negs between wet sponges if you're worried about them scratching each other.

Lately I've been using darkslides slides that are for the next largest side and cutting down the sides in order to be able to get a better grip on the tops (More info here). Lately I fixed a few extras real good - they won't be troubling anyone from now on.

It can be useful to use a rangefinder or TLR-style camera in these situations. It won't keep the people from blinking, but you will be able to better judge whether another shot is necessary. Maybe setting off a loud firecracker (or clown horn) at the moment of exposure would work, that'd open...

I'd go with the 50 as well. I use it a lot more than I ever thought I would.

Thanks, Mike. I try to avoid the mystique and zeal sometimes associated with the craft, it's just photography after all, there are no secrets anymore. Kind of like the Penn & Teller of photography, in a way. It's all just so much smoke and mirrors and hidden wire.

Thanks, Jim. The technical challenges are part of the allure for me, I get to engage the problem-solving part of my brain alongside the creative part. I'm a firm believer in end results and "doing it yourself." Necessity is the mother of invention and I have found that once I obtain a coveted...

I was prepared for the worst, but William Wegman she is not.

In my experience the intensity of light varies between sources more than the "quality" of light. I do a lot of shots with multiple types of light (tungsten, halide, and LED) and I couldn't tell you which was which just by looking at the negative. You can add modifiers to any light source to...

I got the following from a FujiFilm USA rep a while back when trying to find out if it was possible to do a special run of Neopan in sheet film sizes. Not that it is directly related to this discussion, but just as an informational post that is perhaps a bit more on topic than who will be the...

Thanks. Before moving a few years back my studio was in a bare garage, yes. My chemicals would freeze in the winter and be uncomfortably hot in the summer! Now I have an attached garage with actual insulation, it feels pretentious. Focusing is just about the biggest challenge, taking upwards of...

Thanks, Jeff. At the risk of exposing the magic for the mundane, here are some behind-the-scenes shots.

Yep, same way as my portraits of humans!

You're going to have to give it a try and see for yourself. They will be different, but exactly how different and what that means to you is best left up to your own judgment. That you are using B&W and not color will minimize the differences to the point where I think you will not notice too...

Thanks, Mike. Obviously I don't have any control over what the galleries choose to put on their pages. Sometimes I don't even get a say in what the exhibition is called (they called this one "Bugs"). Oh well, I try not to worry about things out of my control. I think that the online versions...

Flex your head.

I'm a little late in getting this out, but better late than never! Selections from my award-winning Angels & Insects collection of large format photographs will be on display at the University of Notre Dame through November 20th, 2009. Link to info page at the university...

For example: Or this cheery holiday scene:

That's why I suggested cross-processing: Wash out the colors. You get the best (or worst) of both worlds.

Or Dario Argento's Phenomena. Of course unless times have changed drastically irony was never well-received by the youth of the day (Minor Threat being a case in point).

Emil, It's been a while but I think I still remember the feeling well enough. Celtic Frost did some interesting things, more Hieronymus Bosch than metal. There is a modern death metal band from your region (aren't they all these days?) that often features the main character sulking...

The Art Deadlines suggestion is excellent. I make extensive use of their service. You'd really get CIM out in front of a lot of people that way.

I have yet to find a method to the madness with each inspector being different. So far they've all been friendly and understanding and I've made a point of asking about any standing policy. As far as I can tell it's done at the airport-level, so whereas one airport may tell their people they can...

Whoops, the people on the phone say one thing but the website says another. Sorry about that.

I get it shipped from Freestyle all the time.

I really like the tones I get from it. For me it's like falling in love every time I use it.