have you slowed down photographically ?

Tom1956

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Vaughn

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A divorce (3 yrs ago), three 16-yr old sons, and a new girlfriend seem to limit my photography time.

But I took a walk this afternoon in our local city park (acres of redwoods, a pond, etc) and got to thinking that I'll be in Eureka for at least two more years (until the boys grad. from HS) and I have this great park that I have been ignoring -- basically because it is not as 'nice' as the national and state redwoods parks (that are ~50 miles away, north and south). So here is a place I could easily make images in -- capturing its uniquiness as a city park with old-growth redwoods and its heavier mark of man.

A couple minutes from my house by car (to haul the 11x14), I can step out side to check the weather and light and quickly head on over for just a set-up or two. Going to the state and national redwood parks tends to be an all day thing, making the drive (and gas) worthwhile.

I have been using my Rolleiflex a lot, though, on whatever trip I happen to be on. So I have scores of rolls I have not printed and about 10 rolls on hand to develop. I am giving most of them extra development (~100% more) to make little platinum prints with, some I develop to eventually make silver gelatin prints with...yeah, right. If I have time to print, it will most likely be my backlog of 8x10 and 11x14 negs in pt or carbon!

But the boys will be out of the house (in theory only) in two years, I am looking for a place to buy with studio space to make carbons, give workshops, etc. So as I hit my 60's, I hope to be able to reverse my trend of slowing down and instead increase my time spent photographing, developing and printing.
 

benjiboy

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As a prominent American journalist Ambrose Bierce once wrote "wars are Gods way of teaching Americans geography"
 

Thomas Bertilsson

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Not shooting as much as I used to, which is a blessing in disguise, because I can actually somewhat keep up with my printing. Instead I am printing like a mad person. Lots and lots of printing, which I love to do. Then I really love to sit down and spot the prints. Those finishing touches have become very enjoyable to me.
It's a matter of trying to build some portfolios of work, and I'm all of a sudden very inspired to do so. In the last couple of months I've gone through two entire gallon kits of LPD, a lot of paper, and a couple of gallons of fixer. This is fairly extreme for me.
 

Toffle

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This is a very interesting thread, as there are quite a number of factors which influence our photographic "metabolism". I am shooting far less colour film lately, partly because of the rising cost, but also because I am increasingly identifying myself as a black and white photographer. I am also shooting a lot more sheet film, which reduces the overall number of exposures, but generally increases the productivity of my work. Ever mindful of the growing backlog of negatives I have yet to print, I have taken to pausing a second or two before pressing the shutter to ask myself whether the photo I am framing is worth the time in the darkroom to create a final print. On top of these factors is the fact that my darkroom is in a rough cellar which I access through a trap-door in my kitchen, and which is the domain of many sinister spiders in the summertime, who like nothing better than to wait for me to turn off the lights so they can tickle the back of my neck. :confused:

Nonetheless, I still shoot some film every day. As I am sure I have said far too often, I started the photo-a-day challenge on January 1, 2010 and have not missed a day yet. I shoot more when I am on a project or am preparing a show... less when I am between.
 

BradleyK

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BradleyK said:
I live in one of the most beautiful cities in the world; the photographic possibilities here are virtually boundless. While my shooting ventures do tend to drop off during the rainy season, I do shoot year-round.
Click to expand...

Re above: And living a block and-a-half from the university, where else would one see, on a warm 21st of July afternoon, an attractive young woman, dressed in an aquamarine blue mermaid suit, being pulled around campus, in a bright red radio flyer wagon, by two individuals, one dressed as Darth Vader, the other as an Imperial storm trooper? A case in point why I always carry a camera and why I carefully monitor the film inventory in my frig (especially the HP5 and, for the time being, the E100G).
 

benjiboy

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In my neck of the U.K the temperature was 93 F yesterday, I avoided going out with my camera in the middle of the day, and when I did go out I just took a Canon F1N body with the 50 mm F1.4 lens, and even this was too heavy to carry for any length of time, (the F1 isn't a lightweight camera) and even wearing cotton shorts and a T shirt it was still too damned hot.









F1
 

benjiboy

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The main reason Stone Britain lost the war of 1812 was we ignored one of the major principals of warfare to never fight a war on two fronts at the same time, and we were heavily committed to fighting the French Empire in Europe at the same time, without sufficient resources, because we are only a small island.
 

Rick A

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Not shooting as much, but shooting with intent and not just burning film. Guess the 4x5 has me thinking more, and picking up my 35mm less. The divorce, being a single dad of a 15 year old daughter, and the new girlfriend haven't hindered me at all.
 

Vaughn

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Sal Santamaura said:
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
Click to expand...

LOL! But the point of experience is to learn when to run away and when to run with it!

I'll be in San Clemente for a week starting on about the 26th if you would like to get together and share some prints.

Vaughn
 

StoneNYC

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I'm part British BTW... if you heard my full name you would be like... OH! Haha


~Stone | Sent w/ iPhone using Tapatalk
 

StoneNYC

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BTW, can't you take the battery attachment off? I have the 1V and used to have the 1N and sold the body and kept the vertical grip battery and thw 1V is just fine without the grip... Though I also don't think the 1V with grip attached is very heavy...


~Stone | Sent w/ iPhone using Tapatalk
 

benjiboy

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StoneNYC

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benjiboy

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StoneNYC

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benjiboy said:
I must be a weakling, Stone , but I am almost in my mid seventys.
Click to expand...

You youngin's these days, when I was your age we carried whole darkrooms on our backs in Antarctica just to take one picture a year on a piece of wood hand coated with emulsion from chemistry we mined the year before...



No worries, the important thing is that you shoot when you can and enjoy yourself.



~Stone | Sent w/ iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Cybertrash

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Definitely experiencing a big dip right now. Not taking photos or making prints. I completely lack any kind of inspiration, I'll think of a shot and then go "no, that'll just be boring" and when I look at my negatives to make prints I see only bad work. Instead I spend too much time looking at gear on eBay. All the while I'm trying to find my "style" as a photographer. Feels kind of bad, hopefully I'll get out of it soon enough.
 

Vilk

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I think the big hoopla trend that started a few years ago is finally coming back to earth. Hipsters dump their awesome AE-1s, turn to other chick-magnet pursuits, the momentum drops, the glory dims... Anyone remember golf around 2005? Dozens of golf bags in every rush hour subway car? And then came the Rebel and everyone was a "photographer" overnight. Human groups, societies, nations are living organisms--they suffer from overeating just like individuals do. Set the pace right, put your heart in it--and you'll be OK.

 

Thomas Bertilsson

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Last time I went through this, I just went out and photographed anyway. Then I proceeded to print every frame on a roll of film, whether I thought they would turn out or not; I did my very best with each frame.
Then I shot another roll, of random things, and eventually figured out that I really wanted to do night time photography on tripod, like urban landscapes, and then during the day my passion is to photograph people. Not every single person, but those who I feel connected with.

Eventually things loosen up, and you'll find yourself knee deep in a project again. Keep at it, grab your camera and go shoot. Take those pictures that you think would be boring; the practice will do your photography senses good, and before you know it, the subject matter will come to you.
 
OP
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i have slowed down a little at different times of year i guess
life sets in, and i don't get a chance to do much ...
but ... i always see stuff gets me thinking for the next time ...
 
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