Tuesday 28 January 2014

Pentax A3 Film Photography #4


Wow!  2 blog posts within  a week!  And both from film cameras!  

The rolls from the Voigtlander and Pentax finished at the same time; hence my almost back to back posting.

I had acquired a 'new' used lens from a work colleague.  When he heard that I had a Pentax, he gave me a few lenses that he had sitting in a box in his garage.  I went on a couple of Photo Safaris to get these shots and to trial the Pentax SMC F 28mm  f2.8-22 prime lens.  So very happy with the results!  Nice sharp photos and the depth of field at f2.8 is wonderful!

Of course, I shot in B&W with Fuji NEOPAN Acros 100, a great film with a fine grain and dynamic range; it doesn't seem to blow out the exposure in bright light (see photo below 'Dappled Light').  I have my film developed by Les Porter Photography and scanned at ProAm Colour Laboratories.

The only digital editing I do is to adjust the contrast slightly and I keep myself to performing edits that are only digital versions of darkroom methods, such as dodge and burn.

If you want to see more of my Film Photography work, click on the Film link located under the cover photo.

Can't believe it is the end of January already!

Hope you & yours are all well.

regards

Jordy

These photos are for sale.  Contact me if you are interested.
All photos on this blog are © Life with Jordy Photography and may not be used without permission.


The Pressure's on in Watt Street, Newcastle, Australia

Hunter Street, Newcastle, Australia

Dappled Light in Bolton Street, Newcastle, Australia.

Hamilton Railway Station, Newcastle, Australia

King Street, Newcastle, Australia

Hamilton Signal Box and Level Crossing, Newcastle, Australia

Light & Shade, King Street, Newcastle, Australia

Please do not sit on the fence!  The Courthouse, Newcastle, Australia.

Reflections of Time, Newcastle, Australia.

Ye Olde Post Office, Newcastle, Australia

Sunday 26 January 2014

Vintage Ventures with Voigtlander!


I am fairly fussy when it comes to taking photos with my Voigtander Bessa 1 folding camera.  It takes medium format 120 film and there are only 8 exposures on a roll, so I try not to waste my shots.

I wanted to try using a faster film this time around.  I figured it would give me a little more grain in the final finish and that also it would be a little faster for some night shots as the camera shutter locks up at about 1/25 and less. (mind you, the Bulb setting works when I am using the extension cable!)

I don't have a light meter as such; I use an iPhone app called Light Meter.  It seems to work well and has not failed me yet!

I shot these using Kodak Tri-X 400 which has worked well.  Thing is, it did not allow me to use a large aperture because the Voigtlanders' fastest shutter speed is only 1/250!  With the night shots of the Cathedral here though, the light meter called for long exposures of 8 and 16 seconds and I used the Bulb setting and the extension cable to stop any movement from depressing the shutter button.  The only adjustment I have really made digitally here is for contrast and a little Dodge and Burn here and there.  I only try to use those Photoshop edits that would be used in a dark room.

I must take the camera to have the internal parts of the lens cleaned.  I looked through it yesterday and there is a slight haze inside which I guess is only natural for a camera of its' age. Still, I am happy that the photos are as sharp as they are!  My dad would be proud!

Avoca Beach, NSW, Australia.  Kodak Tri-X 400 f8 at 1/160

Newcastle Beach.  Kodak Tri-X 400 f11 at 1/250

Newcastle Cathedral. Kodak Tri-X 400  f8 at 8 second exposure.

Newcastle Cathedral.  Kodak Tri-X 400  f8 at 16 second exposure.  

RAAF Memorial, Civic Park, Newcastle.  Kodak Tri-X 400.  I didn't record the settings for this shot.



Wednesday 15 January 2014

Newcastle in Black & White #2


If you are a local Novacastrian, then you will possibly understand me when I rave about wandering around our city admiring the architecture, trees, beaches and, most of all, the character of the place!

I went for a photo safari with my son Lachlan about a week or so ago.  Got some great photos for my Newcastle Rooftops Project (click the link and go visiting!).  It was a cloudy day with the promise of a storm to break the heat we have been experiencing but old Mother Nature was just teasing us about that. 

Still, on a cloudy day I love to shoot black and white.  Mind you, I don't set my camera for black and white.

Rather, I shoot in full colour and then convert in post editing.  There are many more options post edit for black & white rather than relying upon the camera to get it right.

We stuck mostly to the Civic Park & Laman Street areas.  The older style buildings and large Fig Trees really create some great light and shade for monochrome.  There are also small lane ways running off streets for access to garages etc.  Some of these are so quaint and have heaps of character which will form the subject of my next photo safari.

I have also just put in 2 films for development and scanning; a Fuji NEOPAN Acros 100 from my Pentax 35mm SLR and a Kodak Tri-X 400 from the Voigtlander folding camera.  Won't be picking them up til next week so keep your eyes peeled for their stories as well.

Hope you're all well, whatever part of the world you are in!

Regards

Jordy
  
These photos are for sale, contact me if you are interested.

All photos on this blog are © Life with Jordy Photography and may not be used without permission.


St Andrews Church from Civic Park, Newcastle, Australia

City Hall Clock Tower rises above the Fig Trees, Civic Park, Newcastle, Australia.

Captain Cook Memorial Fountain, Civic Park, Newcastle, Australia

Gibson Street, Newcastle, Australia

Hannifords Lane, Newcastle, Australia

Laman Street, Newcastle, Australia

Laman Street Fig, Newcastle, Australia

Love this brick work on Hannifords Lane, Newcastle, Australia.

Lovely Laman Street, Newcastle, Australia.


Monday 6 January 2014

In a Flickr of an Eye.... The Lost Photos... #2


Some months ago now I wrote about the evolution of this blog.  It has turned from a family contact point (which I no longer need thanks to the more immediate response times of Facebook) and, gradually, into a blog about my photography.

As explained in my last blog entry on the subject, I was using Flickr and then sharing the Flickr photos onto this blog.  This did save some time however, a change in my Flickr status has seen those shared photos not show up on the blog.  Although the link to Flickr is still there, I would rather have the photos on here as a one stop Life with Jordy site.

Anyway, here are some more of those lost photos from early on in the life of my blog!  These were taken with my first digital camera a Panasonic Lumix FZ30.  It served me well and was the perfect camera to learn about digital photography.

I hope you enjoy these!  I have a couple of projects up my sleeve coming up as the new year progresses and have just purchased a few films also, so keep an eye out for when they pop on-line!

Hope you have all survived Christmas and the New Year!

regards to all

Jordy

City Hall by night.  Newcastle, Australia

Ocean Baths, Merewether, Australia

The Hunter River & Stockton Bridge, Newcastle, Australia

Dungog, NSW, Australia

Wagstaffe, NSW, Australia

Pulbah Island, Lake Macquarie from Wangi Wangi.  Newcastle, Australia

The Fred Ash Building, Newcastle, Australia.  Since this photo was taken, this old building has been demolished.

Dawn, Newcastle Beach.  Newcastle, Australia

Sunrise on Newcastle Beach.  Newcastle, Australia

Sunrise at the Bogey Hole.   Newcastle, Australia

Thursday 2 January 2014

The right kind of Exposure!


Welcome to the New Year everyone.  I hope you had a safe time over the silly season!  Unfortunately, my paying job put a hole in my celebrations but still, I had a good time and enjoyed the company of my family at home and my good humored work colleagues on the coal face!

I went to Redhead Beach a few days ago.  Originally wanting to catch a sunset from atop the bluff looking down onto the beach and Surf Life Saving Club and across to the dunes.  I did the recon and sorted out angles etc. so I wouldn't lose any precious time setting up later on.  There wasn't many people on the beach given that it was very hot and it was also school holidays.  The beach had been closed due to the heavy swells and a few wicked little rips running with a strong undertow back out to sea.  The rips were easy enough to see from on high on the bluff but would have been difficult to spot from beach level.  

Redhead Beach has some great rock formations scattered in spots along its' length.  The waves come crashing in and flow and splash up through the small fissures and gaps in the rocks.  This is where I got the idea from to get a few long exposure shots in for the afternoon as well.  The swirling movement and, the angles of the splashing water as it pounded in through the rocks and the resultant patterns in the sand made for some great photos against the backdrop of the steadfast rocks.

I never actually got the sunset photos that I wanted!  Heh heh, by the time I had busied myself getting the long exposure shots, it was dinner time and still 2 hours to go until sunset!  I was getting a bit hungry and decided that dinner was a good option!  I consoled myself that I had still got some wonderful photos and that I could come back anytime to get the sunset photos that I wanted; it may be the new year now but, the sun still rises and sets each day!

For these photos I used my Canon 600D & 18-55 mm lens. For some I used only a single ND8 screw on Marumi filter and for others I stacked a Cokin ND8 filter on top of that.  

Wishing you all a safe and happy 2014!

Jordy

These photos are for sale.  Contact me if you are interested.

All photos on this blog are © Life with Jordy Photography and may not be used without permission.











Catching up.

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