I’ve moved this domain off of squid18 because they’re migrating all their server’s into the ‘cloud’. Hosting with Scott and gang was awesome, and I’d recommend them to anyone looking for a small bit of internet.
This will likely be my last post on here as well. I just don’t have the time anymore. I can’t be bothered with the internet outside of work. I’ll leave it here for historical and nostalgic reasons.
It’s been a while. We’re in the hospital now waiting on our daughter to undock from the mothership. We got here last night at 6:30, had a shit sleep, and up bright and early this AM. It’s been a rough 9 months for me but am hanging in there. She doesn’t have a name officially yet, but it will likely be Gabriella. I’m armed with my Mintolta X700, 50mm 1.7f lens and 5 rolls of expired Tmax3200 to document this adventure.
My friend Adam was awesome enough to give me a motorcycle – an 85 Honda Shadow. I love it. We’ve formed a pretty rad two person gang with a badass name: The Vogon Fleet.
Rather boring update. That’s all I have to report.
I decided to give Caffenol a shot – specifically because I’m going to give a class at Hive76 about developing film DIY style. Should probably know wtf I’m doing before trying to teach someone else how to do it, right?
I went with Caffenol-C. I don’t have a good reason why – just seemed like a good idea.
The recipe is simple. While I bought the majority of my ingredients online, that’s only due to my laziness and lack of wanting to see if I could get these things at a local store.
That said, you’ll need some instant coffee (non-decaf), Washing Soda and some Vitamin C powder. I had my bride pick up the instant coffee while she was out.
For my first attempt, I chose to use some Tri-X 400 120. I mixed up only what I needed to fill the tank.
3 cups water
2.5 Tablespoons Washing Soda
3/4 Tablespooon Vitamin C Powder
4 Tablespoon Instant Coffee
There seems to be an order of which you should mix these… one way being the correct way, and the other leaving you with white ‘rocks’. I didn’t pay enough attention to what I was doing to tell you which is better, but I can tell you that if you let said ‘rocks’ sit 20-30 minutes, which is recommended anyway, they will dissolve.
Once mixed up, and rocks dissolved, I brought the mix up to 68 degrees and developed for 15 minutes, which I found to be a little short. 20 minutes for Tri-X is the sweet spot for me. The Stop process is replaced with a 1 minute wash (about 3-4 fills, empty, repeat), and a normal fixer (The only real photo chemical required), followed by the usual wash. It’s worth noting that the fixer didn’t seem to be effected at all. I ended pouring it back into my supply. It’s not worth using a commercial stop bath, as I suspect you wont be able to reuse it.
The Stop Sign above is a first result. I scanned them as ‘color’ to get that coffee feel. Also, they smell wonderful. My second round was also exciting.
So, if you’re out of developer or just in the mood for something different, Caffenol will get the job done. You’ll get some nice grain (maybe a LOT of it – like those digital folks try with their photoshops lol), and some nice smelling negatives. It’s definitely worth trying at any rate. I really enjoyed it – it’s fun!
If you haven’t heard me go on about this already… I got a new camera. Scored it off eBay for a reasonable price. I was sad to learn that it didn’t work (well, neither back it came with worked, the body was ok). So, I took it to Authorized Camera Repair at Kelsey’s recommendation. So, three weeks later, I finally have it back in awesome condition. So far I’ve only ran three rolls of really expired rolls of film through it, all of which I’ve developed myself in the sink. That said, I can’t wait to see some real results from it.
It came with the Speed Grip-E, AE Finder E and a non-metered prism finder. So far, I’m really enjoying the crank/waste level finder/light meter setup.
I guess it’s time to add a Photography category here since I haven’t post about anything else in months. I plan on making some stuff soon though. Probably will be camera related.
Also new to my lineup, a Holga! Christina got it for me… it’s a log of fun to shoot with.
That’s all I have to report.
Just as easy as D-76! I need to build a processor though. I’m not sure I kept 102 degrees the whole time. I think I’ll pick up a tropical fish tank heater tomorrow and get started on that. Definitely not pro quality, but I kind of like the old feel I got out of them.
This was a test roll for two reasons; One, I was testing the Olympus OM10 I got with the bundle off craigslist, so I figured it was a good candidate for my first go at C-41, since most of the roll was just rubbish shots anyway.
I scored the kit from Freestylephoto for the price of one roll with single matte prints.
I’m not sure why C-41 intimidated me so.. Black and White is so easy, this isn’t much different. I’m sure the next few rolls will improve.
More photos after the break…
She was pretty upset about this little guy, it was kind of sad.
Taken with my 70-210mm lens, I rather like the effect. Tri-X 400
I’ve told some of this story before, but people keep asking me, so I’ll dish it all out now.
Last night someone asked “What’s the perk of using old school cameras though? When a Photoshop filter would give it the same rustic look?”. Well, aside from that not being any fun, and in fact, more work… the long answer:
My Mom gave me my grandfathers Minolta X-7A a while back. Around 3 or 4 months ago, I decided to start using is for everything. Then, suddenly, the fear of something happening to it hit me, and I bought an X700 to use instead of the 7A, which was an upgrade feature wise. That of course led to a small obsession with all things Minolta X-700.
I’m a rather impatient person. I can’t stand being late, and more so, I can’t stand waiting for things/people. When I want something, I tend to need to think I need it now. Shooting film doesn’t fit well into this personality trait at all. Not even a little. For some reason though, I really like the fact that I’m not seeing any results immediately. How bizarre it that?
This, at least the way I’m taking it, is a lesson in patience.
All that said, it’s gotten me off my ass as well. The past 3 weekends, I’ve woken up on Saturday and ran out the door, camera(s) in hand. I’ve visited places I used to just talk about going to. I need more things to shoot! So I’m now constantly on the lookout for new places to visit, and more importantly, actually going to them. Before, there wasn’t really a purpose behind the idea. Now I have one that laziness can’t defeat.
Of course this started getting kind of expensive, the next logical step was to save money, and start developing my own film. I was pretty intimidated by this until I actually did it. I spent a week or so read up on it, watching videos on the youtube, and even bought a book (Which never/hasn’t arrived :/ about it. Turns out, it’s real easy! Well, it was for me anyway. My first couple of rolls I had made mistakes and over developed, which turned out to be due to an inaccurate thermometer.
Developing film – Finally seeing the results of my efforts and the almost ritualistic means to get to that end – It’s Zen. Will I stop being amazed each time I take the spool out of the tub and see that the process worked? I sure hope not.
I usually run out at lunch, camera strapped to me and roam downtown in search for something that catches my eye. The other day, I ran into a homeless man with a white pit bull. He’s one of the better homeless people, if that’s a thing. He doesn’t ask for money, he isn’t rude and doesn’t get butthurt when things don’t go his way. He simply sits there with his cute dog and tells people to have a good day with a smile on his face. Anyway, I asked him if the dog was his. He replied with “She’s not my dog, she’s my daughter” with a wild grin. I laughed, and asked if I could take her photo. He said yes. Once I was done, he asked if I wouldn’t mind bringing him a print of the shot I took. “Absolutely!” I told him. I asked if he was going to be around, and he instructed that if not, to give it to the people who run the booth that’s usually there. That weekend, I developed the film, and printed him his photo. Monday rolled around, and I had forgotten the photo. This worked out alright, as I didn’t see him or the booth that day.
I remembered Tuesday though. Lunch rolled around, and there he was in the same spot. As I was giving him the photo, a cute blond girl had stopped petting the dog, and handed him $2. The girl and I started to walk away when he stopped us with “Hey! Are you two together?” We both laughed, and said no. Then he says “Well, would you like to be!?”, which caused us to laugh even harder. She told him to stop playing match maker, and that was that. The whole event really just made my day. I was laughing about that all day…
I shoot film for moments like that, even though it was the first moment, I’m sure there will be more of them.
I shoot film because it feels like an adventure.
I developed my own film today for the first time. Behold:
They didn’t turn out super, but I’m very excited about it anyway. I’ve got another 8 rolls of Tri-X 400 to shoot, all of which I plan on developing myself.
I made this when I was a kid. Not sure how old I was, but young enough to make things like this at school. I gave it to my Mom, and apparently forgot all about it. I still have no memory of this little guy. She re-gifted it to me this past Christmas. All obligatory guilt trips aside, I’m glad she kept it (and who knows what else) around as long as she did. Now I bear the burden of hanging on to it.
Totallly giving it back to you next year Mom 