Instax Evil Dead

Lomo-Instant Camera with Close-Up lens Fujifilm Instax Mini Film - Inspired by last night's viewing of the original version of "The Evil Dead" and a general lack of any in my other project coming to fruition any time soon, I thought I would play with some Instax close-ups. When Instax film is extremely over exposed it actual begins to product a negative effect as you can see on the top of the skull. This adds and eery touch to this image.

Scanned with a HP Scanjet G4050 using HP's OEM software.

Instax Berries

Lomo'Instant with Close-Up Lens Fujifilm Instax Mini Film - Shot after a heavy snow in late afternoon sun, I love the contrast between the red berries and the blue tinted shadows.

Scanned with a HP Scant G4050 using HP's OEM software.

Waiting to emerge....

Kiev 60 Arsat Mir 45mm f3.5 20mm extension Tube Fujifilm Pro 400H Arista C41 - Waiting to emerge to join the invaders. Surprisingly the the expected din of this noisy army has not yet reached Lynchburg, being inland and at a higher elevation than coast, I am sure it will come later.
Scanned with an Epson Perfect V500 Photo using Epson OEM Software.

Doll Face Exposure no. 11

Kiev 60 Arsat 80mm f2.8 40mm ext, tube Ilford FP4+ Adonol 1:50 - My first roll of Ilford FP4 Plus,,, ever. I have never shot a lot of Ilford film, besides the a few rolls of HP5, XP1 and XP2, if for now other reason than I was happy with what I was already using. I know several photographers who shoot Ilford exclusively and swear by it, but for me Fujifilm's and Kodak's offerings were getting the job done. I felt it was time to give Ilford a series try. First up FP4 Plus; shot in the studio and developed with Adox Adonol at 1:50, a Rodinal equivalent, this film has nice even tones and somewhat muted contrast. It does an excellent job rendering the subtle tones of this hand painted doll. Grain is what I would expect from anything developed in Rodinal and detail is outstanding. I have more rolls to shot and look forward to seeing how Ilford's Delta films perform.
Scanned with and Epson V500 using Epson's OEM Software.

Demon in an Eyecup

Kiev 60 Arsat 80mm f2.8 40mm extension tube Rollei Digibase CN 200 Pro Arista C-41 - In my previous post Liquidambar Styraciflua Fruit I notice a sinister face peering back on me from the "Gum ball" at the lower far right while I was scanning the film. Such and evil looking character deserved its on portrait, so I present,,,, A Demon in an Eyecup. This is my first roll of  Rollei Digibase CN 200  and I am truly impressed. The film has great sharpness, nice fine grain and tremendous latitude. Digibase scanned beautifully, with my Epson V500 getting very close to accurate color on the prescan. A test on my HP Scanjet G4050 using Hamrick's Vuescan 9  yielded similar results. Contrast is moderate and held well even when the film was over or under exposed. About the only complaint I have about this film is its excessive curl once dry, making it hard to hold flat for scanning.
Processed by hand using an Arista C-41 Kit and Scanned with an Epson Perfection V500 Photo.

Three Lucky Finds

Polaroid Macro 5 SLR Polaroid Spectra Image Film Expired 11/05 - The results of 3 lucky finds.
One: A Polaroid Macro 5 on ebay for next to nothing. I will post on the camera later, but in a nutshell the Macro 5 is a SLR Camera designed specifically for close-up work.
Two: The local camera store, Lynchburg Camera had several packs of expired Spectra Image Film they were willing to part with cheap. After testing one pack to verify the batteries were still good, I could not pass these rare lomo gems up.

Three: Kuroneko, the Kitten of one of the feral cats that rule our neighborhood. Kuroneko wormed her way into the house by managing to hang herself by a rear leg from a fork on a branch in a bush. When my wife found her, Kuroneko had been hanging for several hours and was very weak. The leg from which she was hanging, was injured and appeared to be paralyzed. After a trip to the Vet and several weeks of pampering and rehab, the leg is now fine and and Kuroneko has achieved House resident status.

I am convinced the leg injury was a trick to gain House resident status before winter. Kuroneko has filled the opening left by the passing of our oldest feline resident, Amber, at 14 years old. She has been accepted by our German Shepherds and terrorizes the older cats in the house, like every good kitten should. And as she curls up on a warm bed and licks her once injured leg, I swear I hear her purr, "Mission Accomplished."

Mamiya Press Close-up Tilt/Shift Exposure no. 4

Mamiya 23 Sekkor 100 mm f2.8 Adox Art CHS 100 Arista 76 1:1 - Selective Focus by tilting the back of the Press as seen in example no. 2 here. Focusing on the ground glass can be tricky when tilting the back and it is extremely important to get everything locked down. Swapping the focusing back for the film back is pretty smooth, but makes it easy to move something. A little tweak here or there can ruin the shot. The results are worth it.

Mamiya 23 Close-Up Exposure no. 8

Mamiya 23 Sekkor 100 mm f2.8 Adox Art CHS 100 Arista 76 1:1 - This shot was done the the Press back extended straight back for close focusing, as seen in example no. 1 here. Light source is single 100w Novatron modeling light coming straight from the left. A silver reflector is on the right to provide a little light in the shadows. The Statue is roughly 8 inches tall.

Dangling Robots Adox Art CHS 100 Adonal (Rodinol)

Kiev 60 Arsat 80mm f2.8 Hoya +4 Close-Up Lens Adox Art CHS 100 Adonal (Rodinal) 1:50 - More Robots. The Black and White roll was actually shot first. No backlighting on the circuit board on this one. Same front lighting. I really love the Adox Art CHS 100 Adonal combination. The grain is pronounced, but I have always been a fan of grain.

Fun with Color Exposure 12

Kiev 60 Arsat 80 mm f2.8 FujiFilm NPH 400 Arista C-41 Chemicals -  Just a little fun with color and these little creatures. Working with the Arista 41 Liquid C-41 Kit and a PhotoTherm tempering bath. Processing temperature is 101°F in a standard Paterson System 4 tank. I using constant stirring agitation during Developer step, and during Bleach/Fix constant stirring agitation during the first minute following by 10 seconds every one minute there after. I keep the developing tank in the tempering bath during the developing and Bleach/Fix Steps. I am extremely happy not only with the results, but also with the stability and capacity of the Arista C-41 Chemicals. I am storing chemicals in collapsable "Air-Vac" type containers to ensure the best shelf life,

Happy Holidays. However You Celebrate

Bronica S2A Nikkor 75mm f2.8 Kodak Tri-X 400 HC-110 Dil. B - From the 1980's. Still one of my favorites. I wish I'd never let that Bronica go.

Gargoyle Campfire Exposure 2

Keiv 60 Arsat 80mm f2.8 Rollei Retro 400s Arista 76 Developer Stock - Another from the same series. I like these, but I think I will revisit the shot.

Gargoyle Campfire Exposure 9

Keiv 60 Arsat 80mm f2.8 Rollei Retro 400s Arista 76 Developer Stock - An old Aquarium bulb and some fast film and lead to interesting results. I love the luck of the Retro 400s film, but am struggling with it's tendency to curl, making scanning difficult.

Gargoyle Exposure 1

Kiev 60 Arsat 800mm f2.8 FUJIFILM Acros 100 Arista 76 1:1 - Single tungsten side light. Please with Shadow and Depth of field.

Chess Pieces

Kiev 60 Arsat 80mm f2.8 Kodak T-Max TMY 400 D-76 Stock. A few hours spent with my Grandfather's chest set. My Father taught me to play chess with these.

Scanning Film

Nikon 8008 55mm Micro Nikkor f2.8 AIS FUJI Superia 200 Arista C-41 Kit - Scanning film is an art I am still working to master. This is scanned in a Minolta Dimage Scan Dual III using Silverfast SE plus software. Dust us still the enemy as it is with printing, but even more so for scanning. The Dual Scan III does not have Digital ICE like my Epson V500 does but the dust and scratch removal software in Silverfast seems to be excellent.

Flying Flower

Kiev 60 Arsat 80mm f2.8 Hoya +1 close up lens D-76 Stock - Nothing special, just and attractive shot of a flower. The leaves seem like wings, it almost appears to be flying

Pokeweed

Kiev 60 Arsat 80mm f2.8 Hoya +2 Close Up Lens FUJIILM NPH 400 Arista -C-41 Developing kit. Pretty but poison, more on pokeweed here. These are the ripe berries with their fall steams visible. They Arista C-41 kit seems to be holding up well. Mixes over a month ago. it has processed 2 rolls of 135-36 and 3 rolls of 120 with good results. I have been bumping the developing time by 15 seconds each run to compensate for loss of developer activity. Initial developing time of 3 mins 15 secs. at 100 degree f.

Teacup Roses

Kiev 60 Arsat 80mm f2.8 Hoya +1 Close-Up lens Kodak T-Max TMY 400 D-76 Stock. I love the isolation close up photography provides a subject. Things seem to emerge from the blur.