Ian's 52 for 2021

Reflection - interesting back story and thanks for sharing the contact sheet. As a kid I always wondered why my eyes followed me as long as I kept looking in the mirror... just like the man reading the news on TV - it didn't matter where I was in the room, he was always looking at me :D

I like both images you've posted, but probably the first one pips it for me. I like the position of your face and the frames of pictures and door are almost like leading lines through the image.

I think it's amazing that you can manage to focus a camera like that with your non dominant eye - AND you've got the other eye open, which is engaging. I wouldn't have a hope.
 
I like them both and the grainy processing. Your expression on #1 makes the better from the two in my eyes.
 
So this was a good one for me. I initially didn't know what to do, but it forced me to think about what to do which is the whole point of doing this.

A cheese grater was top of my list...

2020-03-12-hp5at1600-eos1v.jpg

But as you can see, after cats and cheese graters, I focussed on my microphone. I've had a dabble at podcasting (not very good!) but I really quite like taking photos of the mic. And as it has a rough surface. Bingo.


Week 10: Rough by Ian, on Flickr

So I chose this image because it also hits the "low key" theme for me, and I doubt I'll be able to hit it with anything else. It might not be 100% "rough" in terms of theme hitting, but I think it's a pretty good photo. Still have a better shot (on Flickr from last year) but it won't do any harm to try and get better.3

The cheese grater kinda worked out but was too bright for low key and I couldn't get a composition that was remotely symmetrical...

2020-03-12-hp5at1600-eos1v-07.jpg

Not sure what happened with frame 8...

All taken with an EOS-1v on HP5 at 1600 with a combination of the 40mm f/2.8 STM and/or the 28mm f/2.8 occasionally with a Raynox.

Edit: This was a roll of 36 and I lost 2 cat shots due to taking my hands out of the changing bag to run downstairs to answer the door.
 
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That's the right one - lovely. That's impressively little grain for HP5 at 1600 - what was it processed in..? I'm just getting to grips with a new Arax 60 (Kiev 60) and an thinking that my "usual" FP4 might have to change to HP5 when I move from Vegas to the UK...
 
Shugpug said:
what was it processed in..?
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Thank Alex. It was processed in Ilfotec DD-X which is a perfect match for HP5. More expensive than Rodinal or HC-110 but a much gentler developer. Will push to 3200 and even 6400 although that appears to be the limit of HP5. 1600 is quite comfortable for it though, which, in the UK at the moment, helps.
 
A nice simple uncluttered subject for rough, it works well Ian.
 
A good choice - an original take on the theme.

I like your cheese grater one as well, and frames #10 & 11 look interesting too.
 
Boots said:
I like your cheese grater one as well, and frames #10 & 11 look interesting too.
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That was a Parmesan grater. The image didn't really work out on its own sadly.
 
I really like the Parmesan grater, because I had a look at the same thing. But I really the shallowness of yours. (perhaps with a crop both top & bottom making it square with sharpness dead centre).
 
Reflection
I like the stylistic nature of the second image more but nothing wrong with the first one. Did you think about setting the time to the aesthetically pleasing 10 to 2 position?
 
The mics a nice shot and very much low key which seems to be an issue this week
could be a shot for microphone of the month its not often you can reference a Half man Half biscuit song :banana:
 
I guess I might as well bung the contact sheets in here when they are relevant to the theme. I struggled with this one mainly because I had the word "soft" in my head all the time and every time I came up with an idea it was "doh, nope. It's smooth, idiot"

I really wanted to do guitar strings as rough but came up with something else, so decided to use the guitar theme for smooth instead. Smooth curves, and smooth sounds when someone competent plays it.

RB67, Ilford Pan F+ w/127mm f/3.5 Sekor C.

2020-03-20-panf-rb67.jpg

This is scanned in reverse so the under-exposed shots (caused by the lightmeter bulb sliding to reflective from incident when I was pointing at the sky - yay me) were at the end. 7, 8 and 9 were the key ones taken at different apertures. I also wanted "smooth" to be the grain here, so these were shot on Ilford Pan F which is very low grain film. ISO 50 though meant multi-second exposures at narrow apertures. Frame 7 was 30 seconds at f/32!

I really liked the 1st frame (10 above), but it wasn't smooth, so I went with frame 3 (8 above).

Developed in DD-X (8min) which looks very nice indeed. I really quite like this film, but in the UK, ISO 50 isn't a user friendly ISO. Maybe I should move to California!


Week 11: Smooth by Ian, on Flickr
 
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I think you chose the right frame from the roll.

Although I understand about ISO 50, for still life, once you put the camera on the tripod, it doesn't make such a difference. Having said that, I haven't gone below ISO 400 yet!
 
Thanks Paul. Delta 100 and Pan F are my "tripod" films. They look lovely but handholding outside of bright summer days can be a challenge.
 
I think you could also have gone for a smooth top which no. 6 shows really well. There are some guitars with smooth strings too, though not yours :)

It's fascinating the way that with the narrow depth of field, it almost looks like the strings are moving. I like the viewpoint you've chosen.

I can see I missed your rough submission. Both the mic and the grater work well for the theme.

I think this is the great thing about the 52 - it does get you thinking and does get you using your camera - even if some weeks it's hard to get anything more than a quick shot. Using film is a far greater challenge than us digital photographers face. I ended up setting up the ironing board for smooth today and even doing some ironing before I decided it just wasn't going to work :ROFLMAO:
 
Bebop said:
even doing some ironing before I decided it just wasn't going to work
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I think that would be a step too far for me :)

I agree about doing a 52. It's forcing me to use my camera - and oddly, lockdown is making that better. If I weren't doing this I'd likely be staring at cameras gathering dust thinking that there is little point in taking any photos.
 
Good work Ian, you had quite a few there that were worthy choices but I think you've chosen well.
I think the ones taken from that perspective best suit the theme.
I also enjoy the back story and contact sheet, it gives the viewer a little insight of what goes on with your thought process.
 
blakester said:
I also enjoy the back story and contact sheet,
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Thanks Iain. It's really helpful to me to get feedback on the whole process. When Bee said...

Bebop said:
I think you could also have gone for a smooth top which no. 6 shows really well.
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I found that really useful. I'm just not happy with the overall composition of that frame and (for me) it boils down to "which images would I put on the wall?" So whilst frame 6 might have been thematically the best choice, I would have found it boring on the wall. I did umm and aah over it for a while though so it was really interesting to get this feedback as it might make me think twice in future.
 
As others have said, you definitely picked the right one.
 
The guitar strings show the tiny range of in-focus area and has shown me why my eyesight is not as good as it was now I'm older. It's not that my focus has changed with age, I'm just using crappier lenses!
 
LC2 said:
Were the strings plucked and thus vibrating to give that effect, or was that a result of the focal plane ?
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Just the result of depth of field. I think 127mm is about 60mm in 35mm field of view terms and with bellows focussing, the RB allows quite close focus. I was at the minimum focus distance so that's why it's so exaggerated I think. I closed it down to f/22 to try and get more depth of field, but I was into 30 second exposures and reciprocity failure. It worked but not as well as the original.
 
A good selection of perspectives in your contact sheet. I rather like the semi-abstract nature of the last one.
 
I really like your pick for smooth, it’s fascinating how the strings appear to narrow then widen according to the depth of field :)
 
Regardless of theme it works well as an image, but I get smooth from the lines too. The inclusion of the contact sheet is a great idea.
 
Nicely done and the right one chosen!
 
Week 12: Alive


Week 12: Alive by Ian, on Flickr

So I had my jab yesterday and I took my camera. Just wanted to record the event really. It's not photographically the best image in the world. I wasn't comfortable taking photos of anything from a bit closer.

Lost two very close friends over the period of the pandemic (not to COVID though) and wasn't able to go to the funerals. Many have died due to this virus, so seeing people getting vaccinated was a positive step.

I'm still alive, and thanks to the vaccination, have a much better survival rate, so I thought it would be fitting.

Leica MP w/28mm Summicron shot on HP5+ at 800 and developed in DD-X. Over exposed I think due to wrong shutter speed selection but over is better than under :)
 
Harlequin565 said:
Week 12: Alive


Week 12: Alive by Ian, on Flickr

So I had my jab yesterday and I took my camera. Just wanted to record the event really. It's not photographically the best image in the world. I wasn't comfortable taking photos of anything from a bit closer.

Lost two very close friends over the period of the pandemic (not to COVID though) and wasn't able to go to the funerals. Many have died due to this virus, so seeing people getting vaccinated was a positive step.

I'm still alive, and thanks to the vaccination, have a much better survival rate, so I thought it would be fitting.

Leica MP w/28mm Summicron shot on HP5+ at 800 and developed in DD-X. Over exposed I think due to wrong shutter speed selection but over is better than under :)
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Nice shot on theme, and wholly topical [emoji106]
 
A good take on the theme.

I hope you don't have too many side effects - but even if you do, it's better than getting the disease.
 
Boots said:
I hope you don't have too many side effects - but even if you do, it's better than getting the disease.
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Thanks Paul. It's odd, quite a few friends at work all felt awful after it. And Mrs H has the (common) significant ache in the injection site.

Me though? Fine (touch wood!)
 
Great looking 52 project Ian. I am impressed that you have chosen film. I had considered a similar approach but not knowing if I would have anything usable to post kept me in the digital domain. I do hope to do some film though - probably for Snapper's choices which I can catch up on maybe.

Nearby is a great start. I like the composition and the weathered detail in the signs.

Fruit is another great use of film. I love the look and the grain.

The cropped version of Dirty is very good and fits the theme perfectly.

Thanks for posting your contact sheet for pair. I really like your chosen shot too. Works well.

The film image works so very well. The mono and grain really portray an uneasiness and a sinister feel...

I love rough. Great composition and lighting.

Similarly with Smooth - excellent PoV and shallow DoF

Alive - Good current image. I thought I had got away with mine until almost exactly 24 hrs later!
 
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