It’s been 10 years since I first photographed at my local skatepark. When I mentioned this to a friend of mine he kindly tipped me off about a BMX Jam which was taking place there the following weekend. Despite the heatwave at the time, I ventured along and made some portraits.
[Tech info:] Pentax 67, 105/2.4 lens, Fuji Acros 100 (expired), developed in HC110 1+31.
These pictures are from the interior studio set of Castle Gate police station on the final day of filming Endeavour 7 | FILM 3. The second half of the day was spent filming in Bright’s office but as the crew were preparing that part of the set I took the opportunity to document some of the other areas as they had been left from a previous day of filming. The evidence room used to be Thursday’s office in series 6. There isn’t any natural daylight on this set, all of the lighting is courtesy of Vince and his lighting crew.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RB67, 50mm, Kodak Portra 400, Noritsu scans.
I was recently asked to make a promo shot for a new band called Transmission From Nowhere to coincide with the release of their new CD. One of the band members is a fellow film photographer and suggested doing the shoot on the now illusive Fuji FP-3000B instant b&w film which I was more than happy to do. I’ve got a range of cameras that can use this film but I decided on my Mamiya RB67 because I have a sliding back for it that allows two different exposures next to each other on the same print which results in a diptych.
We used the whole pack of film for the shoot – a whopping 10 shots – and I can’t begin to tell you how much fun it was. All double exposures were done in camera. No batteries and no squinting at LED screens required.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RB67, 127mm lens, Fuji FP-3000B instant b&w film (expired).
During the summer ball season here in Oxford you will find that Radcliffe Square is a popular place for students to visit for group pictures before they carry on to the college where their ball is being held. On this particular evening last June there were quite a few summer balls being held so Radcliffe Square was fairly busy with activity. I had been waiting for an opportunity to try out some Kodak Portra 800 film that I bought a while ago and this was the perfect occasion with low light levels but not too low.
[Tech info:] Pentax 6×7, 105/2.4 lens, Kodak Portra 800 film developed in Fuji Xpress C41 kit.
When Giffords Circus were here in Oxford last month I tried to do as much backstage photography as I could manage in my limited spare time. Here are some backstage portraits during a performance when we had scorching hot weather. These were difficult to do because obviously I didn’t want to delay anyone so I had to be quick, one shot each, no bracketing exposure, no second chances, one and done. Many thanks to the Giffords performers for being so generous with their time.
[Tech info:] Pentax 67, 105/2.5 lens, Fuji 400H (expired), developed in a Fuji Xpress C41 kit.
Ducker & Son Ltd, Turl Street, Oxford, traditional shoemakers since 1898. All gone now. Soon to be a wine shop, right next door to the Whiskey Shop. Just what Oxford needs. When I found out that Duckers was closing for good I felt compelled to document what was left of the shop. Over the years I have photographed the shoes in the window countless times but this was the first time I had actually set foot inside the shop. It’s a real shame to see this shop close. When I got there in my lunch break there were lots of people coming and going and it was difficult to not be in the way with a tripod set up. I wanted some nice quality pictures so I decided to take a Pentax 67 with a wide-angle lens. I knew the shop was quite dark inside so film choice was very simple – Neopan Acros 100 because it doesn’t suffer from reciprocity failure until you go past 1 minute exposures. Most of my exposures were around the 30 seconds mark. I only had enough time to finish one roll of 10 frames but that was more than enough to get these results.
[Tech info:] Pentax 67, 50/4, Neopan Acros 100 developed in Rodinal 1+50.
These shots are from a few days ago during a photo walk around town with a fellow film photographer friend of mine, Chris. Neither of us had anticipated the icy cold wind that had come in and after braving it up until the light started to fade we decided to head to the Natural History Museum which is not only one of my favourite places to photograph but it’s also guaranteed to be warm 🙂 I made a mistake with this roll because it came in a batch of mixed expired films and had no box. At a glance the roll looked like Fuji Neopan 100 Acros but it was actually Neopan 400. I wanted to test Acros pushed 1 stop in Xtol developer but because this was an ISO 400 film I ended up over-exposing it by 1 stop and then pushed it 1 stop in the developer. I’m amazed I got anything usable from the roll and it’s a credit to the latitude of film.
[Tech info:] Mamiya Universal, 100/2.8, Fuji Neopan 400 (expired), rated at ISO 200 and pushed 1 stop in Xtol 1+1 for 13 mins.
These shots are from my first shoot with Suzie on an overcast Saturday morning. I decided to experiment a little here and keep the overall look a little underexposed for a heavier feel. Two different cameras were used on these shots – one of them had a wide-angle lens on which was not what I had intended but I decided to go with it anyway and I quite like the results despite the obvious distortion. More to come.
[Tech info:] Pentax 6×7, 105/2.4 lens. Bottom two images with Mamiya RB67, 50mm lens. Kodak Tri-X (expired), processed in Kodak HC110 1+31.
Some shots from a quick session I had with Iona a couple of weeks ago. I first shot with Iona during a promo shoot for the Christchurch Ball but as there was a specific theme for that shoot and quite a few other people involved so I didn’t have much time to shoot much film. The two Polaroids I shot of Iona were overexposed due to a sticky shutter in the lens so I was pleased that we were able to find time for this shoot. These shots are all from the same roll of 10 frames. I also shot a roll of slide film which I hope to develop later in the summer once I’ve built up a batch of rolls to develop at the same time.
[Tech info:] Pentax 6×7, 105/2.4, Kodak Tri-X [expired], processed in Kodak Xtol (stock).
I caught the end of one match and the beginning of another in University Parks. Trying to photograph sport with a hulking big medium format camera was quite fun but unfortunately I didn’t have much spare time to stay because I had to get over to Iffley Road for the swimming and water polo.
[Tech info:] Pentax 67, 165mm/2.8, loaded with Ilford FP4 (expired), processed in Kodak HC110 1+31.
Last weekend was packed with sporting events for the Oxford vs Cambridge Varsity 2014 competition and on Saturday morning I attended the Fencing which was held at the Examination Schools on the High Street. It was a grand venue for a sporting event and I really enjoyed seeing some of the action. Although I went prepared with a small lighting kit I decided to make use of the daylight coming in through the windows. These portraits were all made during the competition which is why there aren’t very many. This is the contents of an entire roll of film, all 10 frames. I did also photograph some of the action but those shots will follow at a later time.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RZ67, 110/2.8 lens, loaded with Kodak Tri-X 400 (expired), processed in Kodak HC110 (dilution b).
The last time I photographed the Oxford v Cambridge Varsity Powerlifting was in 2012 and two years later I was photographing it again. Interestingly there were some of the same students lifting for both teams, some of whom I photographed at the previous event. There will be more film shots to follow, these are the only colour portraits I managed to make during the event due to lack of time, they are all from the Oxford team.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RB67, 90/3.8 lens, Fuji FP-100C instant pack film (expired), sliding Polaroid back.
