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).
Here’s a set of images from my first shoot I had with Charlie. This was a very quick shoot using only natural daylight coming in through a large window in the late afternoon. I decided to take the opportunity to test out a lens that I’ve had sitting around for quite a while but have never used, a 110mm f2.8. One of my favourite lenses for my Mamiya 645 is the 80/f1.9 and I use it so often that you’d think it was welded on but the depth of field at f1.9 is so shallow that I tend to use that lens mostly at f2.8. When I decided to test out my 110/f2.8 lens I used it wide open at f2.8 for these shots. I really like how these shots turned out but I need to do further testing outside with more distance to the background so that I can see what the bokeh is like with this lens.
[Tech info:] Mamiya 645 Pro TL, 110/f2.8 lens, loaded with Kodak Tri-X 400 film, processed in Kodak HC110 1+31 (dilution b).
These images are all from the same roll that I shot with Chloe a couple of months ago in her room at college. The nice thing about this room is that instead of having a standard window, there are two walls of glass that meet in a corner. This was more of a quick test shoot to see what we could come up with in this location and after seeing these I can’t wait to shoot some more there.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RB67, 90mm lens, loaded with Kodak Tri-X 400 (expired 2007), processed in Rodinal 1+50.
Here are some portraits I made on large format 10×8 film yesterday as part of my ongoing personal project to document the users of the Oxford Wheels Project skatepark on Meadow Lane. We had a sunny morning with next to no breeze which is ideal conditions for dragging out a 10×8 camera. Fortunately it wasn’t too busy so I had space to set up and I managed to make 8 different portraits, my most successful session so far. I absolutely love shooting 10×8 and I can’t wait to shoot some transparency film at the skatepark. Below are the first batch from yesterday, I haven’t processed the others yet. These web sized images don’t do the originals any justice. The negatives are a sight to behold and the original high-resolution scans have so much detail in them it’s mind boggling.
[Tech info:] Wista 10×8, 300mm Sinaron lens, green sensitive x-ray film, ISO50, processed in Rodinal 1+50 for 6mins.
The 10x8 Wista camera I used.
This morning I went over to the OWP skatepark on meadow lane right after it opened at 10am to do a little photography. I had a lot of things to do the rest of the day and I knew the weather was going to be really nice so I made the most of it with an early start. The nice thing about getting to the skatepark early is that it’s not too busy so there’s time to set shots up and space to move around without getting in peoples way. Another benefit is the sun is low enough in the sky to cast lots of shadows everywhere which is something I like because it helps to give contrast to an image. There were a lot of skills on show this morning and the BMX riders certainly knew how to make their riding skills look easy as they whipped around the bowl. I set up some shots with Lima, who I think is able to get the most height out of the bowl but unfortunately I accidentally double exposed the last two shots. Sorry! I’ve included it for reference below. I also shot some frames of b&w film, those will follow later.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RB67, 180mm lens on Fuji FP100C instant pack film (aka Fujiroids).
Some shots from a photo shoot I had with Christy a few months back in January. These were towards the end of the shoot and the late afternoon light coming in through the windows of her room at college was beginning to fade quite quickly so we had to light the background in the left two shots with a desk lamp. Shooting with large format film is not a particularly fast process but Christy was extremely patient and I really like how these turned out.
[Tech info:] Speed Graphic 5×4 camera, Kodak Aero Ektar lens. I think the film was Ilford HP5 processed in HC110 (1+31) but I’m not 100% sure on that. Must keep notes!
Here are some portraits I made at the new OWP (Oxford Wheels Project) skate park on Meadow Lane yesterday. This is a personal project to document some of the users of the park because I think it will be great to look back at these images many years from now. I’ve never owned a BMX and I could never balance on a skateboard to save my life so I never found myself visiting the old ramps which is a real shame. I wish I had thought about starting this project years ago because it would be interesting to see how the bikes and fashions have changed over time as well as the riders and skaters themselves.
[Tech info:] Speed Graphic 5×4 large format camera with a Kodak Aero Ektar lens on Ilford FP4, processed in Kodak HC110 (1+31) for 7mins.
Setup shot - photo by Alex Leech
We finally had some nice weather last weekend so I made the most of it and did some large format film photography at the new Meadow Lane ramps. On Saturday I took a Super D 5×4 SLR camera (first two shots) and on Sunday I took a Wista 10×8 field camera. I’m not sure how much BMX action photography has ever been done with a 10×8 camera, I suspect not much at all. It was my first time photographing at the new ramps and I really like the new layout. I hope to spend more time there documenting the riders and skaters through the summer if the nice weather continues.
[Tech info:] 5×4 shots made with a 190mm lens on Ilford HP5, processed in Kodak HC110 (1+31) for 7:30. 10×8 shots made with a 300mm/5.6 lens on green sensitive x-ray film, rated at ISO50. Processed in Rodinal 1+50 for 6mins.
A rider from Carterton
Oxford rider
Hitting the mark
The first shot below and the rest were made over a month apart because the camera (a Mamiya 645 Super) jammed after the first frame. It had arrived earlier that morning from a dealer that I purchased it from so fortunately I was able to return it for a refund. The other shots were made with a Mamiya 645 Pro TL on the same roll of film (thank goodness for removable roll film holders). The Pro TL was part of a whole kit which included a 150mm/f2.8 lens which I haven’t come across before so I was keen to try it out. So far I really like it and the shallow depth of field it gives even at f4. It’s a bit on the large size so it tends to attract a lot of attention in a paparazzi kind of way but I can live with that. These shots were all made in Radcliffe Square, one of my favourite places for street portraits.
[Tech info:] Mamiya 645 (Super & Pro TL), 80/1.9 and 150/2.8 lenses on Kodak TMAX 400 film, processed in Kodak HC110 1:31.
Late afternoon light along Broad Street. My 150mm lens kept attracting attention so I waited patiently to pick my moment to use the last frame on the roll.
Some rolls of colour film that I sent off to a photo lab for processing and scanning a week ago arrived back this morning and it was nice to see shots from lots of different photo shoots among them, mostly from the end of last year. I usually do all of my own processing and scanning but colour is tricky during the winter because the temperature of the chemicals needs to be kept within a very small tolerance (less than 0.5 of a degree) and my studio where I usually do my processing is an ice box during the winter. After building up a small batch of exposed colour film I decided to test out a new lab I had heard about rather than wait until the weather warms up in the spring and because I usually struggle a bit with colour scanning I went for the option to have the lab do it for me. I’ll drip feed the scans instead of cramming them all in together.
Here are a few shots from a lunch hour shoot I had with Georgina (I think at the beginning of December). We lucked out with the weather and nice wintery sunshine on that day. These were some of the last shots I made and the ones I was most excited to see, especially the two portrait shots where the sun is backlighting but also bouncing off a stone wall behind me to give a soft front light (one of my favourite kinds of light). These shots have had zero retouching done to them, one of the many joys of shooting with film.
[Tech info:] Bronica ETRSi loaded with Kodak 160VC.
One of my favourite kinds of light.
In front of the Sheldonian Theatre.
Here are some shots from a recent lunch break photo shoot that I had with Jess to test out a new (to me) camera and lens combo that I picked up. Despite the sunny weather that we had on this day I decided to use some fast speed film that you’d only usually use in low light because I already had one roll of it to process and I like to process two rolls at the same time whenever possible. I really like how these turned out with the grain and I can see myself doing this a little more often.
[Tech info:] Mamiya 645 Pro TL, 150mm/f2.8 lens, Kodak Tri-X rated at ISO1600, processed in Rodinal (1:50).
Here’s a Fujiroid from a recent lunch hour photo shoot I had with Sylvia. I also shot some colour film but that has been sent to a lab that I’m trying out so those shots will follow at a later date. You may recognise the location from some of my other shoots and that’s because it’s close to my office and very convenient to walk to. I’ve been trying not to repeat the same shots at this location so it’s a bit of a challenge but I like that.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RB67, 180mm/f4.5 lens. Fuji FP100-C instant pack film loaded into a sliding Polaroid back.
