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.
The last time the OWP skate park held a BMX Jam event was 2015 and here are some pictures from that event that I just found in my archive. I don’t manage to get over to the skate park as often as I’d like for photography but whenever they hold an event – whether that’s BMX or skateboarding – I always do my best to make it. Some of these guys can be a tricky bunch to photograph because they tend to be camera shy but I do my best to stay out of the way to record some candid moments and hopefully they’ll now see the value of documentary photography at an event such as this, two years later. More to come.
[Tech info:] Leica M2, Voigtlander 50/1.5 Nokton Classic, Ilford Pan F (expired), developed in Rodinal 1+50. Pakon scans.
This is the first set of my pictures from this year’s BMX Jam that was held at the Oxford Wheels Project skate park on Meadow Lane in Oxford. I always look forward to the BMX and Skate jam’s that are held there in the summer because the events attract a lot of talented riders and skaters. In previous years I have concentrated more on making portraits but this year I decided to focus more on the action. It can be a challenge trying to photograph fast moving action using a completely manual camera (that doesn’t have a motor-drive or a built in light meter) with a lens no longer than 50mm but I enjoy the challenge and my pictures show what’s possible when you put your mind to it.
[Tech info:] Leica M2, Voigtlander Nokton 35mm and 50mm lenses, yellow filter, loaded with Ilford HP5, developed in Kodak Xtol 1+1.
Whenever the OWP put on a Jam at the Meadow Lane skate park it’s always a great opportunity for photography. I only made it to the second half of last month’s BMX Jam because it was too hot for me at midday. Here are some shots of the long jump competition that was full of thrills and spills.
[Tech info:] Nikon FM2, 50/1.4D, Kodak Hawkeye film, processed in a Tetanol C41 kit (at over 12 months old the chemicals are probably a bit past it now).
These are the only 35mm shots I managed to make at the BMX Jam that was held at the Meadow Lane skatepark back in July because halfway through the first roll of film the mirror inside my camera got stuck. I didn’t want to risk taking the lens off to look inside because of the risk of ruining the shots I had already made so I put the camera in my bag and switched to medium format for the rest of the event. This resulted in fewer shots and more portraits but less action (see my previous posts, part 1, part 2). After I got home and investigated a little more it turned out to be a piece of foam inside the camera that had gotten a little sticky with age, an easy fix. My beloved Nikon FM2 is back in service again, still going strong after 25 years.
I really enjoyed this BMX Jam and as it was my first one I didn’t quite know what to expect but now I know what it’s all about I can’t wait for the next one. It poured down with rain on the original date that had been set for this but on this day we had fantastic summery weather and a really good turn out. The portrait at top left is local BMX legend Alex Leech who I started my first day of school with many moons ago. I’d say he’s almost as passionate about BMX as I am about film photography and I always enjoy bumping into him at the skatepark.
[Tech info:] Nikon FM2, Zeiss 50/1.4 and Nikon 105/2.5 lenses, loaded with Fuji Superia 200, developed and scanned by ASDA in Swindon.
This is the second instalment of my pictures from the BMX Jam that was held at the Meadow Lane skatepark last month. It was a really fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon – even my wife and daughter stayed for the whole thing so it must have been good! I tried to photograph some of the action but with a maximum shutter speed of 1/400 it proved to be quite challenging to capture the peak of the action but I gave it my best shot.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RZ67, 110mm and 150mm lenses, loaded with Fuji Acros 100 and Kodak Tri-X 400. Processed in Kodak HC110 1+31.
Today I had a little spare time just before midday so I went over to the Meadow lane skatepark to see if I could make some portraits before it started to rain. There weren’t many people there but I did manage to make these two portraits before heading back home.
[Tech info:] Graflex Speed Graphic 5×4, Kodak Aero Ektar lens, Fuji FP-100C instant pack film.
Skateboarder
BMX rider
Last Sunday I went along to a BMX Jam at the Meadow lane skate park that had been organised by local BMX legend Alex Leech. As I’ve never been to one of these events before I didn’t quite know what to expect but after enjoying this one so much I can’t wait for the next one. It was great to see some familiar local faces that I’ve photographed there before and plenty of new ones too. I took along two cameras with me but sadly one of them (a 35mm SLR) developed a fault shortly after I got there so I was down to just my medium format camera which has a maximum shutter speed of 1/400 so action shots were proving a bit tricky but I gave it a go at anticipating the peak of the action. The shots below are all from the same roll of film – I only get 10 frames with this camera. More images to come.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RZ67, 110/2.8 lens, loaded with Kodak Tri-X 400 film (expired 2004), processed in Kodak HC110 1+31.
These two portraits were made yesterday at the same skatepark session as the two in the previous post except these were made on 5×4 black & film. The maximum amount of 5×4 sheet film I can develop at the same time is 6 sheets so that’s usually how many I load into film holders at the same time. I had already used 4 sheets from this batch at a shoot I had with Imogen so I only had 2 sheets with me when I decided to go to the skatepark. It’s a shame because the light was nice (when the sun wasn’t behind a cloud) and there was a good crowd there.
[Tech info:] Graflex Super D 5×4, Pentac f2.9 @ f4, Ilford Delta 100 processed in Ilford DDX 1+4.
These two portraits were made at my local skatepark today. It was a really fun session and my portrait volunteers did really well to stay still whilst being heckled from their friends. I wanted to test out my Super D camera after I had some focus issues the last time I used it and the good news is I’ve managed to achieve critical focus again with my workaround but the bad news is that I need to use the camera on a tripod to do it. When you’re working with really shallow depth of field it’s always a good idea to mount your camera on a tripod so it’s not the end of the world. I only had two sheets of film with me and these last two shots of Fuji instant pack film. The film shots will follow (I left them drying in the darkroom overnight).
[Tech info:] Graflex Super D with Pentac f2.9 lens @ f4. Fuji FP-100C instant pack film.
This is the second batch of portraits that I made back in April at the Meadow Lane skatepark. It was a great session and I made a total of eight portraits (that’s all the film I had with me). The first batch can be seen here. I really enjoy using 10×8 but unfortunately the camera and lens alone are a bit too heavy for me to safely cycle with on my back, not to mention the tripod and film holders I need to carry as well. This limits my usage and how far I can travel with it which is a shame because there are so many images I’d love to make with this size of film. I really like how these have turned out and I hope to make some more during the summer if time permits.
[Tech info:] Wista 10×8, 300mm Sinaron lens, green sensitive x-ray film, ISO50, processed in Rodinal 1+50 for 6mins.
The warm summery weather we had last weekend was a little short lived and didn’t last very long so I didn’t manage to visit the skatepark on Meadow Lane this weekend. Here are a set of portraits I made last Saturday on medium format film. These guys are the early birds who were there right around when the park opened in the morning, more than likely making the most of it before the hoards arrived.
[Tech info:] Rolleiflex SL66, 150mm lens, loaded with Kodak Tri-X, processed in HC110 (1+31).
