The 52 Project, Week 26: Visiting My Sister

Westpoint Academy overlooking the river. This week's post will be short and sweet, pretty much like my mini-trip to Poughkeepsie, NY to visit my sister. The few days I spent with her I managed to snag some cool images both in medium and large format. But while scanning remains on hold, the Hasselblad negatives will have to do for now.

The only day I managed to shoot anything was the afternoon my sister used her military access, marine wife (^_^), to get us a fun little tour/hike around Westpoint. It was a very classy place with a very "Ivy League" feel around some of its older buildings. And considering my only previous knowledge of Westpoint came from watching Patrick Swayze in "North and South", I really had no idea what to expect.

I now present to you some pretty basic scenics, most of which were taken while waiting for the light to shape up a little bit more for the 8x10.

A pretty cool inscription, click for larger size.

There was a suprising amount of traffic on the river!

My sister (right) running 8x10 guard duty. ^__^

Just something about gnarly trees over the water.

Something Good: Well, Portra VC films are supposed to be "vivid", and even Portra that's 10+ years old managed to come out as saturated as ever.

Something Bad: I'm by no means wow'ed by any of these shots. I'm not sure if it's the very odd grain structure apparent in 160 speed film, or just the lack of a favorable subject matter.

Something Learned: Color negative film grows unpredictable each year it goes beyond its expiration date. This roll was a shining example, filled with unexpected grain and "wonky" shadows.

Next Week: Taking a look at the grainier side of life, Ilford Delta 3200 style. ^__^

The 52 Project, Weeks 17 & 18: Odds & Ends

Little explanation needed here. Ever since the beginning of summer when I started cranking through roll after roll of film, this set of photos has been slowly building up. I’ll do my best to explain them as I go.

I wonder how the meter-man read these?

Scan 1: Urban Decay

I love the juxstaposition between man-made and nature, and how natue almost always seems to overcome and take back what we've taken from it.

Posing is easy when they're passed out.  

Scan 2: Lazy Exchange Student

In this Japanese girl's defense, the KAKE trip is a very tiring month long exchange program which has you running place to place about twelve hours per day. I know, I went on the opposite version of the trip.

Film + Heat + Time = Old Look 

Scan 3: Hancock County Fair 2010

No, this picture wasn't taken before I was born, but now I know how to get expired film to shoot like this. ^__^

The Aflac duck is very, very jealous. 

Scan 4: County Fair Duck

Just check out that killer "hairdo". This duck is awesome, period.

Corgis get pageviews, enough said. 

Scan 5: Corgi and Boy Closeup

While making a trip on Cleveland along I80/90, the Exit 135 rest stop had a surprise in store for me, and adorable fluffy corgi! Now EVERY time I see a corgi, I must have their picture.

Yeah, she's just a little patriotic. 

Scan 6: Lauren and Mom with Quilt

My mother is a crazy quilting lady. Since I was born, my mom has made over 175 quilts and continues week in and week out to churn out even more quilts. She's on track to break 200 before Xmas 2010.

Usually he runs and hides from the camera. 

Scan 7: Reluctant Coy

Probably the best shot I'll end up with of my own father, Coy, the hardass farmer. In other news, Fuji Pro400H plus barndoor/window light is always a winning combination. See Weeks 4&5. ^__^

Something Good: There was a whole lot more than two rolls of film to choose from for this segment

Something Bad: I can’t use leftover shots as an excuse anymore during the project.

Something Learned: That stray frame from every set/roll/shoot may come in handy some day. And since it’s not like there’s a million of them, *cough* digital *cough*, feel to keep these stray frames around.

Next Week: A BIG upgrade.

The 52 Project, Week 13: Little Miss Japan

Life really has a way of getting in the way sometimes...

A slew of incredibly cool things have been happening lately, and as soon as I've finished processing them, this blog might start to get back on track. >__>

Leaving this stagnate for over a month has been awful. A six week hiatus while in the midst of catching up an already behind project is a formula for disaster. This blog was established for BOTH the reader and for myself to reflect upon the week by week trials of shooting film. Hopefully busting my ass this month will get me back to such a point. To readers who've stuck by and checked up occasionally through this dead period (you know who you are), Thank You.

*Now back to our irregularly scheduled programming*

Back in August (<__< I know), a very long time friend, near and dear to my heart, came back from her studies in Okayama, Japan to visit friends and family. Though my time with her was short, we certainly made the best of it. There are a couple more rolls and scans waiting in the wings, but Laura's just such an expressive, wonderful girl that the four scans from this one roll should tell you everything you need to know about her.

Yeah, I can't believe this dog is 12 either. Scan 1: Laura and Nick, the Happy Mutt

Laura LOVES dogs, period. Old dogs, inbred dogs, ugly dogs, slobbery dogs, and of course, the cutest of cute puppies; they all manage to make her day. If you start to see an unusually high number of random dog photos on this blog, part of the reason was I shot them for her. ^__^ This particular dog is her old pal, Nick. And although at 12 he's not moving as well as he used to, taking a walk down the street with Laura seems to turn him into a puppy again.

Ah window light, you always go down smooth.Scan 2: Laura at Squire's Castle

Squire's castle, just outside of Cleveland's eastern suburbs, is a great place for anyone to take a photo. During the summer you've got temperate weather, boat loads of window light, and a ton of windows with which to pose pretty girls. So I decided to follow through with all the hype and give it a go.

An imcomparably genuine smile. Scan 3: Happy Laura

The following two scans were both an exercise in Laura's expressions and a testament to the dynamic range found in color negative film. Completely unlike digital, I didn't have to horribly underexpose my subject just to obtain a desirable background. I just metered my shadows, pointed, and shot. Voila! For you hardcore tech geeks, my SBR (subject brightness range) was about 10-12 stops. And considering only a little sky is blow out on this not-so-cold-stored 8 year old film, I'll take it.

Could you tell we were having fun with this?Scan 4: Laura Peace Sign

If Laura's somehow talking with somebody without smiling, it's more than likely because she's in the middle of flashing one of these. Yeah, it's definitely a Japan thing that she's picked up along the way, but we'll forgive her for that. ;)

 Something Good: This old Portra comes to life in the shadows! Just make sure to limit over-exposure of your shadows to no more than two stops; otherwise, we're talking Chernobl-esque highlights.

Something Bad: Like any old, medium to high speed film (yeah, 100 was FAST film back in the glory days of Tri-X and Tech Pan) flare is something that needs to be unscrupulously controlled. Scan 2 was acceptable to myself, but others will argue.

Something Learned: So long as this old Portra 160VC is shot in overcast to shady conditions, the skin tones and saturated landscapes it produces are magical. Try it in direct sunlight or flare, and it becomes just another color film.

Next Week: I plan on catching up, but in no particular order. These updates can be expected to occur at a rate of two to three posts per week, not necessarily all including photographs. We'll see. ^__^