Some shots from the Teddy Hall Ball that I photographed recently, the first ball of the summer for me. I’ve got some exciting ones coming up this year which I’m very much looking forward to.
[Tech info:] Nikon FM2, 50/1.4, Fuji Press 400 film. Developed and scanned at ASDA, Swindon.
This is how some students celebrate the end of their exams, Oxford style (aka trashing). After weeks of not coming across anyone in my lunch hour I finally managed to bump into quite a few students on the same day. These shots are from last summer but I didn’t want to post them too soon because I didn’t want anyone to get into trouble for it. I think almost a year after the fact is probably fairly safe.
[Tech info:] Rolleiflex SL66, 80/2.8 Zeiss Planar, loaded with Kodak Portra 160VC (expired), processed by Ag Photo lab, scanned by me.
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.
Some shots from a photo shoot I had with Georgina a few months ago. Georgina had been rushing around organising things for the Balliol Commemoration Ball so I was glad when she managed to make some time to fit in this shoot a few days before the ball. This room was a tricky space to shoot in because of the height of the window and the amount of furniture in the room but I’m pleased with what I managed to achieve. I quite enjoy having to work to find images in less than ideal situations because it’s a great way to learn.
[Tech info:] Pentax 67 with 55mm and 105mm lenses, Kodak Portra 400VC and Tri-X films.
The Ashmolean Museum had a fashion themed event a couple of weeks ago and I went along to do some backstage photography for Clements & Church, the awesome tailor’s on Little Clarendon Street. The schedule didn’t allow much time for photography before the models had to head off to the catwalk but I did manage to make some portraits on Fuji instant pack film with a Polaroid passport camera that I’m beginning to really like – here are a few of them. Others to follow. It was nice to see some familiar faces at the show from previous Oxford Fashion Show events, you might recognise some of them from my blog. Please note that as this film expired in 2006 the colours are not 100% accurate.
[Tech info:] Polaroid passport camera, expired Fuji FP-100C instant pack film (bleached negative).
These are the last set of portraits that I made of the Giffords Circus performers while they were in University Parks here in Oxford. They were performing their last show while I was making these portraits and I’m extremely grateful that they gave me the opportunity because what you can’t see in these shots is the backstage area being dismantled by the performers while the performance was going on and this was on one of the hottest days of the summer. It was a little tricky to stay out of peoples way while looking for areas of nice light to place my subjects in because the sun was very harsh but it all worked out and I love how the colours have turned out with this film. I really hope that Giffords will be performing again in Oxford next summer.
[Tech info:] Mamiya RB67, 90/3.8 lens, Fuji Pro 400H film, developed and scanned by Ag photo lab.
On my way to the Keble ball earlier this summer I cycled through Radcliffe Square and came across a group of students waiting to go into the Brasenose college ball so I stopped to make some portraits. The combination of gorgeous summers evening light and the splashes of colour from the various dresses that were being worn made for some great pictures. I don’t know any of these students (apart from Amber with the headphones) so if you recognise any please pass on the link to my blog so that they can see these. The couple in the last picture were sitting patiently watching the fashion show so after everyone had gone I thought it would be nice to include them in this set.
[Tech info:] Mamiya C330f, 80/2.8 lens, loaded with expired Kodak Portra 400 VC. Developed and scanned by Ag Photo lab.
These images are all from the same roll of film made on two consecutive days last week. There’s a big demolition project underway in Jericho at the moment which is close to where I work so I decided to head over there to make some images of the area before it’s all gone. While I was there I had a little wander around some of the Jericho streets and found it to be rather a nice little area to photograph with lots of interesting buildings and architectural details that would be easily missed if you’re not looking with photography in mind. So often we overlook things that are right on our doorstep and that’s certainly the case here. I’m going to make an effort to explore Jericho a little more in the near future.
[Tech info:] Bronica ETRSi 645, 75mm/2.8 lens, loaded with expired Ilford FP4, processed in Kodak HC110 1+31 for 7mins.
Most of my photography is done outdoors but I really enjoy shooting indoors with natural light whenever I get the chance and this location was perfect – it’s a rented house that was empty because the people haven’t moved in yet. I love the film noir quality of these. This shoot was not about smoking, it was more about using smoke as an added element but as it turned out there wasn’t very much of it so we tried using incense as well. These are all medium format shots, I did also use 35mm which will follow at a later time.
[Tech info:] Pentax 67, 105/2.4 lens, Kodak Tri-X 400 (expired) rated at iso800, processed in Kodak HC110 1+31 for 9:30.
Usually when I’m on my lunch hour photo walk around Oxford city centre I notice a lot of people stopping to have their lunch. At the moment there seems to be a lot of construction projects on the go which means quite a few workmen are around. I think workmen (and women) make excellent subjects for portraits and if you look back at old photographs from the 20th century you’ll find many excellent examples. Here are two Fujiroids that I made on my lunchtime photo walk a couple of days ago.
[Tech info:] Mamiya Universal, 100/3.5 lens, Fuji FP-100C instant pack film (just like Polaroid).
Ship street
St Giles
At long last I have the shots I made on colour film at the Balliol 750th Commemoration Ball and I couldn’t be more pleased that I decided to send these out to a lab to have developed and scanned. This set of images is every frame from two rolls of film. I find it very exciting to send off rolls of film in the post and then patiently wait for them to return which is something that you only get with film. Despite these films being past their expiry date the colours have turned out beautifully – thank you Ag photo lab in Birmingham for doing such a great job. I bought a good sized batch of this film from a fashion photographer that used to use a lot of it but as his clients request digital photography now he had no need for it.
[Tech info:] Mamiya C330f, 80/2.8 lens, loaded with Kodak Portra VC, developed and scanned by Ag Photo lab.
Here are some Fujiroids from a recent photo shoot I had with Helen. We lucked out with some gorgeous sunlight and a great location to shoot in. The great thing about the room we used for these shots is it had three windows in it, two facing south and one facing west. The great thing about this in terms of photography is if you’re in the right place in the room as the sun is starting to go down in the early evening you end up getting lit from two different directions. I’m very pleased with how these turned out considering the film expired in 2007. Film shots will follow at a later time once I’ve had a chance to develop them.
[Tech info:] Mamiya Universal, 100/3.5 lens, Fuji FP-100C instant pack film.
