Some images from a lunch hour photo walk back in early November. The film was expired Tri-X that I think was dated 2002 which explains the grain and base fogging. I quite like the dated look to these images, there will be more to come from the same roll.
[Tech info:] Bronica ETRSi, 75mm/f2.8 lens, loaded with expired (2002) Kodak Tri-X. Processed in Rodinal (1:100) for 1 hour.
Shop window, Turl St.
Footpath closed
Bicycle, St Giles.
Here are some shots of the cast from a student production of a play called Vagrant that was at the Burton Taylor theatre a couple of weeks ago. The writer/director Alex Darby contacted me to see if I wanted to do some photography of the cast before the performance started so I took the opportunity to test out pushing Kodak TMAX 400 film to ISO1600. I had previously had great results with this film while doing some backstage photography during  Oxford Fashion Week but I knew the light in the theatre would be a lot more contrasty so it would be a good test. I’m pleased with the results I got here and the grain is amazingly fine apart from the shadows which is to be expected.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RZ67, 110mm/f2.8 lens, loaded with TMAX 400 (rated @ ISO1600). Processed in Kodak HC110 (1+31) for 7:30.
These images are all from the same roll of film that I shot during a recent lunch break photo shoot I had with Georgina who I first met at the Haute Couture show during Oxford Fashion Week 2012. What’s not apparent here is the amazing colour palette we had in these shots. The light was perfect and after I finished this roll of black & white I shot some images in colour but that roll is still in my camera because I ran out of time to finish it. Georgina was very nice to work with – very relaxed and easy going – and I hope we can collaborate some more after the new University term starts in the new year.
[Tech info:] Bronica ETRSi with 150mm/f3.5 lens loaded with Fuji Acros 100, processed in Kodak HC110 (b) for 5:30.
These shots are from a recent photo shoot I had with Adam who you might recognise from some of my shots from the Oxford Fashion Week 2012 Haute Couture show. It was an opportunity for me to test out a new lens that had arrived that morning and also to see how a certain film/developer combination handled very flat overcast light. When I say very flat light I mean extremely dull hard to get inspired horrible light. After starting off in an open area (top and bottom left) we moved under some cover which was a lot better because it gave some light/shadow to work with. I think the shots made during the second half of the shoot are the best and overall I’m pleased with the 150mm lens. Adam was very easy to work with and hopefully we’ll shoot some more in the future in better light and weather.
[Tech info:] Bronica ETRSi, 150mm lens, Fuji Acros 100 film processed in Rodinal 1:100 for 1 hour (semi-stand).
You might recognise Kristina from some of my Oxford Fashion Week images because that’s where I first met her. I made these shots during a short photo shoot in my lunch break. The light was very flat on a cold overcast day. Kristina’s outfit certainly wouldn’t have been my first choice as being particularly photogenic but sometimes as a photographer you have to work with what you’re given. The light bouncing off of the white jumper was so bright compared to everything else in the scene but the film and processing has kept it under control nicely. I semi-stand developed this film which tends to retain highlight and shadow detail incredibly well.
[Tech info:] Pentax 67, 105mm/f2.4 lens, Kodak Tri-X film processed in Rodinal 1:100 for 1 hour (semi-stand).
Kristina
The second set of my images from back stage at the Oxford Fashion Week 2012 Haute Couture show at the Ashmolean museum. These all turned out extremely well considering the amount of space I had to work in. Just out of shot to the left is a lift that I didn’t want to include in the shots! (Click on the thumbnails below for a larger preview).
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For a long time I’ve wanted to do a photo shoot where I experimented with window light so this is what I did in my recent photo shoot with Helen. Previously we have always shot outside so it was nice to have some limitations to work within (space being one and the light being another). These shots were all made a few hours after my shoot with Jake Dean (previous post) and by this time the sun had already started to drop along with the light level. The windows that were directly behind me face north which helped give a beautiful softness to the light quality which reminded me of paintings by the old masters. It was very interesting to see how moving a small amount made quite a difference and by using curtains you can completely change the feeling of the light altogether.
As with my previous shoot I shot both film and digital – these are all digital. I’m especially excited to see the results from film because I used a new type (Kodak Portra 800) which I haven’t used before. I also shot a roll of TMAX 400 at ISO 1600 after the great results I got from Oxford Fashion Week. Those shots will follow at a later time.
[Technical info:] Nikon D700, 50mm/f1.4D lens.
Here are images from a photo shoot I had with one of the models from the Oxford Fashion Week Couture show yesterday. The light outside was amazing and I’m really pleased with the results. It’s very rare for me to take a digital camera with me on a photo shoot these days but I decided to on this occasion simply for convenience so that I could get some images to Jake without too much delay. I also shot some film so some of those may follow at a later date. Jake was very easy to work with and it wouldn’t surprise me if he gets snapped up by a London agency soon.
[Technical info:] Nikon D700 with 50mm/f1.4D lens.
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These images span two shows, The Elysium Show (held at Oxford Town Hall) and The Haute Couture Show (held at the Ashmolean Museum). All of these images are from the same roll of film. There are only 15 frames on the roll so I had to exclude some here because I wanted to make a neat grid. I’ll post the others in a different post. This was the first time I had used Kodak TMAX 400 film in many years so this was somewhat a bit of a test to see how it would cope in low light being pushed 2 stops. I’m stunned at how fine the grain is and how smooth the tones are considering the harsh lighting conditions I was working in (overhead ceiling lights). The results look better than the Tri-X I shot at the same time.
[Tech info:] Bronica ETRSi with 75mm lens, loaded with Kodak TMAX 400 film, rated at ISO 1600. Processed in Kodak HC110 for 7.5mins.
To break up all of the images I have to post from Oxford Fashion Week we return to our regularly scheduled programming to bring you images of some people that I photographed during my lunch hour photo walks around Oxford city centre. These are mostly from the same day. You’ll notice some familiar faces in amongst this set. I’m very pleased with how these all turned out.
[Tech info:] Bronica ETRSi, 75mm and 50mm lenses. Fuji Acros 100 film stand developed in Rodinal 1:100 for 1 hour. Note the top left image was made on expired (2002) Tri-X. I meant to semi-stand and agitate at the 30min mark but I was processing some other film at the same time and forgot.
Some of my photography from backstage at the Haute Couture show which was held in Oxford’s Ashmolean Museum. Regular visitors to this blog may recognise the tailor’s from Clements & Church (especially Richard) who I tend to photograph quite regularly. It was great to see them in their element, doing what they do best. I have lots of images to post so I’ll be drip feeding them as I get time to do so. I’ve been doing so much photography recently that my backlog is slowly building up. Apologies to anyone waiting to see their images.
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Here are the Fujiroids (aka Polaroids) that I shot last night, back stage at the Haute Couture show which was held in the Ashmolean Museum as the finale to Oxford Fashion Week 2012. When I think back at all of the amazing dresses and stunning models that were at the show I can’t help feel a little frustrated that this is all I managed to come away with in terms of instant pack film shots. The schedule was so tight compared to last year there wasn’t enough time allowed for photography – something that surprises me considering the benefit to everyone (designers, models, photographer and OFW). I did my best with the time and limited space I had to work in and came away with a set of images that I am pleased with but it’s the ones that got away that are hard to forget. I shot with a range of cameras, digital, colour and black & white film so there are plenty of more shots to come. Something I love about Fujiroids is that they are unique one of a kind gems. You want limited edition? This is it! The scans here don’t do the original prints justice.
Thanks goes to the back stage crew that helped me and to the models for being patient while I juggled different cameras and lighting. The shot in the bottom right corner is of two of the OFW crew that helped me test my lighting setup.
Haute Couture show, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. OFW2012.
