SMF

M7, Summilux 75, XP2 @200, Rodinal stand, Nikon 9000:





Chris

Monday's film - Plus-X @400 in Diafine, M7, Noctilux and Hasselblad X1 scans:









Confined to the garden for now.

Chris

Wednesday I left the house and drove around for some hours with the M7 and a Nikon F6, each with a 35mm lens and a roll of Ektar 100. I wanted to compare them so I did each shot on both cameras. (The Leica won, but the F6 still has a place for B&W portraits with the 85/1.4 lens.)
There are some beautiful places in Nova Scotia. All of these are with the M7, 35 Lux FLE, Ektar 100, Unicolor presskit, Hasselblad X1 scans:













I'm not getting the colours just right. Ektar is famous for being over-saturated, but these have a blue cast. Might be the new mix of C-41 chemicals.

Chris

Since my white count was 2.2 on Friday morning I celebrated by going for a walk this afternoon along the TransCanada Trail, which runs alongside my property. I took the M7 with Elmarit-M 24mm and another roll of Ektar 100. Firstly I went past my neighbour's house, The Lynwood (which where the 'fathers of Confederation' stayed the night before sailing to Charlottetown to sign the Confederation document that linked Canadian provinces into one country in 1867):



Then onto the trail, which is the roadbed of a closed railway:



Some silver birches along the way:



To Nelson's Park:



Looking back along Waugh's River (I live on the right bank among the trees):



I think I'm getting the hang of scanning the Ektar. I had always believed that all adjustments should be made after the scan, and all the possible corrections in scanning software should be set to 'neutral'. But I'm finding it much easier to correct the odd colours of Ektar in the software that drives the X1. These photos have minimal tweaks to WB and Tint and seem better than Wednesday's efforts as far as colour goes.

Chris

My fifth roll of film this week!
Today I felt the need to enjoy some real blacks! I walked long the disused railway line in the opposite direction to yesterday's walk, and took the M7, Lux35FLE, Acros 100 @80, and a yellow filter. Film was developed in Rodinal 1:50 and scanned on the X1. Very contrasty negatives - I will shorten the development time if I use this combination again.
The old train station (now a restaurant and hotel):




A grain elevator at the old creamery:




A box girder railway bridge




This boat won't float


Back to "civilisation"


Chris

M7, Lux 35 FLE, Acros 100, TMax developer, Hasselblad X1 scan:





Chris

All good stuff, Chris, I'm a big fan of Fuji's Acros 100 film and I think it suits your style of photography very well.

Regards,
Mike

Here are some results from my stupid development of Ektar 100 in TMax developer, all M7, Lux 35FLE, X1 scans:







I guess I have made worse photos!

Chris

I'm sure it's a very pleasant place to wander aimlessly and grab some random photos. Good for the soul!

Two hour walk today, M7, Lux 35FLE, Kodak Ultramax 400, Unicolor presskit, X1 scans:







I also have some Fuji Superia 400 coming - only $2.25/24 shot. These cheap films aren't all bad!

Chris

Very nice pictures, Chris.

What is Lux 35FLE?

Good to see that you are feeling well enough to get out and do all of this photography. That alone should do you good.

I like these color shots and I'm still impressed that you are processing your own color. (I'm also amazed that you got such good results from Ektar processed in B&W developer.)

- Murray

More than nice -- wonderful as always!

drmoss_ca wrote:I also have some Fuji Superia 400 coming - only $2.25/24 shot. These cheap films aren't all bad!

Chris

Chris, cheap is good! When I shoot color film I go with Fujicolor ISO 100 color print film. I think it's only available domestically here in Japan. It's cheap to buy and cheap to have processed (I don't do my own processing) and the results seem good enough for me. Actually, I think the only reason I shoot color film is to use my film cameras. I like the way they feel in my hand, the weight, the quality, and there's the cocking of the film advance lever! Nothing about any of my digital cameras comes close to the feel of a film camera. I do appreciate the ease of processing digital images compared to film and I think scanning negatives is a pain in the but. As long as I'm rambling on I will say that nothing in photography thrills me more than getting it right when using black & white film. That's the ultimate high!

Regards,
Mike

It's odd, but I enjoy the developing and scanning. All in all, I feel much more like I have actually done something when it's on film. And you are absolutely right about the mechanical satisfaction of working with nicely engineered tools like older cameras.

Murray - the Summilux 35mm.f1.4 with floating lens element (as opposed to it's predecessor, the Summilux 35/1.4 ASPH, and the model before that, the 35/1.4 pre-ASPH, known as 'the king of bokeh'). Leica lenses have names associated with certain maximum apertures - it's not a hard and fast rule, but in general:
Noctilux, original f1.2, most versions f1.0, and the current version is f0.95
Summilux, f1.4
Summicron, f2.0
Summarit, f2.5
Elmarit, f2.8
Elmar, f4

Chris

Thanks for the rundown on the Leica lenses, Chris. I knew a couple of them, but not all, and I sure don't know all the variations of each.

I agree with you guys about the handling of old cameras. I'm still a film-only shooter and I'm leaning more towards medium format now. Nevertheless, I would still shoot 135/35mm purely for the experience of using my old match-needle metering, all-metal SLRs with manual-focus prime lenses that have sensually damped focusing rings and depth-of-field scales on the barrel as God intended.

- Murray

Kodak Ultramax 400 again, this time exposed at 200 to reduce grain:

Two separate beaver ponds (with a lodge in the middle of the second):




The maple leaves are beginning to go red


Bracket fungus:


Chris

I failed totally to get any photos in Halifax, but I went to the beach yesterday and finished a roll of Ultramax 400 (at ISO200). All M7, Lux 35FLE, Unicolor chemicals, X1 scans:

Virginia creeper










Chris

Those wave patterns in the mud bring back a childhood memory at about age 7 or 8 barefoot wading in the street at home after the rain. Thanks for that Chris.

My mountains may not be as big as some, but they do have blueberries!
Fuji Superia 400






Chris