Hi all,
Just a few words to introduce myself. I am as the title says. Originally from Dublin, I've pretty much worked everywhere and have now settled in France, near Lille.
I was first bitten by the photography bug when I saw the 1977 Guinness Book of Records, featuring a generic pentaprism on the cover, and containing some spectacular, if lurid, photos. The hours I'd spend looking enviously into the window of camera shops...
I picked up the threads of that passion (having long been an avid consumer of the products of photographers rather than a creator myself) a few years ago, with the purchase of a near-mint Pentax Spottie and the first of a small collection of Takumars. Within a year I'd removed the battery and was expecting of the order of 95% hit-rate on exposure. Since then, myself and my son (15) have expanded the range of cameras to include digital as well as analogue. He is most firmly rooted in the past, though, having built an Afghan Street Camera this summer.
My current range of gear is very eclectic. I have the beloved (and now somewhat battle-scarred) Spottie. A TLR which is a French knock-off of the Rolleiflex, assorted other boxes and lenses, a Fujifilm XT-5, and my recent acquisition - the SINAR F2. I also have a most enjoyable camera in a Kodak Retina model 19 Ib, which is so cool -looking that it appears that I'm having a mid-life crisis.
My son's adventures with the Afghan Street Box were a prelude to our entry into Large Format and developing, along with our current project, which is now well-advanced. We are currently in an effort to recreate and implement autochromes. We have two aims: one is to recreate the original process in its entirety. However, while on the path to that, and as a proof of concept, we are also looking at making modern versions using easier processes and material. In that respect, I am lucky enough to be part owner of a manufacturing and development lab (not photographic, alas), so I have access to chemicals and equipment.
I've had huge help in this from the expert in the field - Jon Hilty in the US.
Ultimately, we want to take autochromes, per the original formula, using the Afghan Street Box.
For the moment, though, the precision of the SINAR is absolutely required. We have to test different formulations and combinations for the filters, and we have to calibrate exposures, with repricocity being a major factor.
If all this makes me sound like a film man, - far from it. I recognise and appreciate the benefits of digital too. It's also difficult to complain about Photoshoppers when you yourself are rescuing a negative in the dark room. Hell, we even share the same vocabulary of "dodge and burn". In fact, the most reassuring thing I discovered with digital was not its successes, but also its failings. They're all boxes catching light. The laws of physics are immutable at the level we operate at. So I love my Fujifilm too.
I hope to continue to learn and I'm sure that is a place to do so.
Just a few words to introduce myself. I am as the title says. Originally from Dublin, I've pretty much worked everywhere and have now settled in France, near Lille.
I was first bitten by the photography bug when I saw the 1977 Guinness Book of Records, featuring a generic pentaprism on the cover, and containing some spectacular, if lurid, photos. The hours I'd spend looking enviously into the window of camera shops...
I picked up the threads of that passion (having long been an avid consumer of the products of photographers rather than a creator myself) a few years ago, with the purchase of a near-mint Pentax Spottie and the first of a small collection of Takumars. Within a year I'd removed the battery and was expecting of the order of 95% hit-rate on exposure. Since then, myself and my son (15) have expanded the range of cameras to include digital as well as analogue. He is most firmly rooted in the past, though, having built an Afghan Street Camera this summer.
My current range of gear is very eclectic. I have the beloved (and now somewhat battle-scarred) Spottie. A TLR which is a French knock-off of the Rolleiflex, assorted other boxes and lenses, a Fujifilm XT-5, and my recent acquisition - the SINAR F2. I also have a most enjoyable camera in a Kodak Retina model 19 Ib, which is so cool -looking that it appears that I'm having a mid-life crisis.
My son's adventures with the Afghan Street Box were a prelude to our entry into Large Format and developing, along with our current project, which is now well-advanced. We are currently in an effort to recreate and implement autochromes. We have two aims: one is to recreate the original process in its entirety. However, while on the path to that, and as a proof of concept, we are also looking at making modern versions using easier processes and material. In that respect, I am lucky enough to be part owner of a manufacturing and development lab (not photographic, alas), so I have access to chemicals and equipment.
I've had huge help in this from the expert in the field - Jon Hilty in the US.
Ultimately, we want to take autochromes, per the original formula, using the Afghan Street Box.
For the moment, though, the precision of the SINAR is absolutely required. We have to test different formulations and combinations for the filters, and we have to calibrate exposures, with repricocity being a major factor.
If all this makes me sound like a film man, - far from it. I recognise and appreciate the benefits of digital too. It's also difficult to complain about Photoshoppers when you yourself are rescuing a negative in the dark room. Hell, we even share the same vocabulary of "dodge and burn". In fact, the most reassuring thing I discovered with digital was not its successes, but also its failings. They're all boxes catching light. The laws of physics are immutable at the level we operate at. So I love my Fujifilm too.
I hope to continue to learn and I'm sure that is a place to do so.
. France is a beautiful country. My favourite country to travel to and to take pictures of.