Minolta X-300 - Kentmere 200

 Back in 2025 I had my first taste of Kentmere 200, the latest addition to the Kentmere range of black and white film from Harman Technology, the home of Ilford and Kentmere b&w film and Phoenix colour film. I really enjoyed using this new film for the first time and it was high time I got stuck into it. I loaded a roll into my Minolta X-300 fitted my Tamron Adaptall 2 28mm f/2.5 and headed out to see what I could find at Crooke Village on the Leeds & Liverpool canal 

Crooke has a lot of history, the name can be traced back to the 14th century. It is thought to be derived from the old Norse and French words for a bend in a river, Krokr, and Le Croke. It makes sense as the Normans who settled here after the Conquest in 1066 descended from the Norse that settled in Normandy. There was already a population of Viking settlers in the area at that time as well as the local tribe called the Brigantes that stuck around either side of the Roman occupation. The River Douglas winds it's way along its valley to the south of Crooke Village and was once navigable. 

Crooke was a busy Pit Village that housed local miners who worked in several mines nearby and a coal tipper transferred coal from those mines onto barges that took the coal to the Mills in Wigan and the docks at Liverpool and beyond. There are remnants of that industry still to be found in the village, but the mines have all gone and been replaced by nature trails through woodland and landscaped public green spaces.
 
Crooke also has a lovely marina with plenty of moorings for canal boats inside the Marina and along the canal, both private and for visitors. There's also a decent pub, the Crooke Hall Inn, named after the manor house that once stood nearby, but has long since been demolished. I started at the head of the only road in and out of the village, photographing interesting stuff along the way. There's a nice Methodist Chapel and the old Primary School, which is now a Nursery. It's good to see the fabric of the village still in use. 

When the Leeds Liverpool Canal was built, it's route through Crooke was beneficial to the coal mines in the area that used the canal to transport their coal to Wigan and Liverpool. The last of the mines was closed in 1961 and the village transitioned from a pit village to a more sedate pace of life as a quiet little corner of Wigan that's popular with the canal boat community. I will post a link below where you can find a more in depth history of the village, from the earliest records, through it's mining hey day and up to the 21st century.

I was glad to see a couple of familiar boats, Viktoria and Ambush, the last working Coal Barge in Wigan that retired in 1972. The owner sells vital supplies from them to Boaters to help pay the bills. There was also a few boats I haven't seen before and it's good to document their presence at Crooke. Some were visitors and others had begun to use some recently added private moorings further towards Wigan. The canals have become increasingly popular with people looking to shake off the chains of rising utility bills and mortgages and I think the new moorings reflect that shift towards a more relaxed way of life.

I was having so much fun I went through 2 24 shot rolls of Kentmere 200 as I photographed the boats on the canal. Narrowboats, wide-beams and a few more conventional leisure craft were all on display, it felt like a boat show that's open 24/7. There was plenty of reasonably calm water to get a few half decent reflections into my shots and, although it wasn't mirror calm, there was enough movement to make it more to my liking. It wasn't long before I had finished both films and put my camera away, content with an enjoyable couple of hours by the canal.

I developed my film later that week using Bellini Euro HC 1+31 dilution B for 6 minutes at 20 celcius and soon had it hanging to dry in my bathroom. I digitised my film with my Nikon D700, Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2.5 macro lens, Valoi 35mm film holder, Pixl-Latr and A5 size led light pad. I processed the RAW files with Affinity Photo 2.

I knew I had good exposures as soon as I hung my film to dry and that belief was reinforced when I started to process my RAW files. It's been a while since I used my Minolta X-300 and I'm happy to say the light meter it has is still in fine fettle. I fitted new batteries before I went out and used the camera in Aperture Priority mode. It's one of the few auto features I actually like and use regularly on my electronic cameras.

I also like the combination of the camera with my Tamron Adaptall 2 28mm f/2.5 wide angle lens and yellow filter. The lens is one of the Tamron AD2 Trinity lenses you really should try and are cheap to buy at the moment. I got sharp, well exposed photos and Kentmere 200 shines in the conditions I encountered on the day, Sunshine and clouds photographed through a yellow filter gave me a great look to my photos and I will happily go for the same combination of gear and film again before the summer is over.

Here's a few favourites from my 2 rolls of Kentmere 200 shot with my Minolta X-300 fitted with Tamron Adaptall 2 28mm f/2.5 and yellow filter. I have placed them and more in my Kentmere 200 album on Flickr that you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Crooke Village - History   
Kentmere 200 - Minolta X-300

Frugal Film Project 2026 - Compact - June

 I went for a wander into Wigan town centre for Armed Forces Day at the end of the June, it was the perfect opportunity to continue my Frugal Film Project quest to document the daily life in town with my June roll of Kentmere 400 in my Hanimex 35RAS. Armed Forces day is a chance for everyone to appreciate the work our Armed Forces do and also raise a few quid for Veterans Charities. 

Our local unit of the Army Reserve, the Queen's Own Yeomanry were recruiting as were the Cadets of the Navy, Army and Royal Air Force and there were stalls set out for various charities. A friend of mine Jim, a proud Royal Navy veteran, was helping out at the Royal British Legion and Veteran's Association stalls. It was good to catch up with him as I hadn't seen him for a while. I had to get a portrait shot of him before I wandered off to look at the various displays.

A re-enactment group was displaying their collection of WW2 Jeeps and a WW2 British Army Ambulance alongside the various items they use including genuine WW2 rifles, de-activated of course. Kids loved it. They were allowed to sit in the Jeeps and wear the army helmets for photos. Older kids were allowed to handle the rifles, with supervision, for photos too and it was good to see so many families having an afternoon outing together.

This was one day when I wish I had loaded a 36 shot roll of Kentmere 400 as it didn't take me long to finish a 24 shot roll. I spent the rest of my time there chatting to Jim for a bit before heading home for a well earned brew.

I developed my June roll of Kentmere 400 B&W film using Bellini Euro HC, 1+31 dilution B, for 6 minutes at 20 celcius and soon had it hanging to dry, which to be honest didn't take long at all in the heatwave we had that week. I digitised my film with my Nikon D700, Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2.5 macro lens, Valoi 35mm film holder, Pixl-Latr and A5 size led light pad. I processed the RAW files with Affinity Studio.

This Hanimex 35RAS keeps making me look stupid for flapping back in January. Yet again it performed flawlessly, much better than I did in fact. There's a couple of shots where I got a stray finger in the frame, but they were very much the minority. I am thankful it was a sunny afternoon for Armed Forces Day and our Veterans, and the kind of conditions my Hanimex 35RAS compact camera thrives in. 

I didn't have to do much with my photos to make them presentable and I really like the portrait of Jim. For a holiday snaps camera to produce a decent quality portrait, it shows you don't need to spend a small fortune to get good photos. Some basic knowledge and a steady hand goes a long way on a sunny day. 

Here's a few favourites from my June roll of Kentmere 400 shot with my Hanimex 35RAS compact camera for the Frugal Film Project 2026. I have placed them and more in my Frugal Film Project 2026 - Compact album on Flickr that you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Frugal Film Project 2026 - Compact 

Frugal Film Project 2026 - Donkey - June

 As I had left it late to shoot my May rolls of Kentmere 400 for the Frugal Film Project 2026, thus it was that I also left my June contributions until the second half of the month too. I decided to combine two things for this walk, my roll of Kentmere 400 for the Frugal Film Project and a roll of GP3 100 for #620Day. I loaded up Donkey and headed out to see what I could find. 

My main focus of this walk was to shoot a roll of film for #620Day, but I can't just take one camera out with me. It's good to have a Plan B in case Plan A ends prematurely. I was documenting my day and also trying to find unique compositions to shoot for this blog. Solstice Weekend was hot with bright sunshine and wispy clouds and I hoped my yellow filter would bring some of that definition out in my photos. 

I tried to incorporate my Kodak Sterling II in a few shots, but with only 8 shots on my Kodak, I was free to expend a few with Donkey as I hunted for compositions. I enjoyed visiting the Horses, but they were too busy grazing to be bothered with this old fart and his clicky box thing. That's fine by me as I get a photo and they don't get disturbed. 

I headed onto the old spoil heap and visited the derelict car again and my favourite tree on there. I was heading to the new footpath and grabbed my final two shots with my Kodak 620 camera and carried on with Donkey. I found some foxgloves, some dappled pools of light and shadows of railings to keep me entertained as I made my way back towards home. It was when I got back to the horses that I took my final shot and could make my way home for a well earned brew.

I developed my roll of Kentmere 400 with Bellini Euro HC 1+31 dilution B, for 6 minutes at 20 celcius and soon had it hanging to dry in my bathroom. I digitised it with my Nikon D700, Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2.5 macro lens, Valoi 35mm film holder, Pixl-Latr and A5 size led light pad. I processed the RAW files with Affinity Studio. 

The more I use this camera, the more I appreciate it. I enjoy giving my brain a good work out with my manual cameras, but for easy photography, you can't beat an Auto Focus, plastic fantastic SLR from the turn of the 21st century. It was the hey day of film and these things are what all the big manufacturers based their DSLR's on. 

I'm very happy with the photos I shot this month and need to keep exploring it's features and maybe ditch the yellow filter to let this camera shine brighter. Remember the price I paid for it? £10 and the filter cost me £6.99. I'm 6 months in. Donkey has more than paid for itself and will keep going for years to come. That's what I call Frugal. 

Here's a few favourites from my June roll of Kentmere 400 shot with Donkey, my Minolta Dynax 4 for the Frugal Film Project 2026. I have placed them and more in my Frugal Film Project 2026 SLR album on Flickr that you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Frugal Film Project 2026 - SLR - June

Back To Basics

 There comes a time in everyone's life when we have to take a step back and think about how we got to that point in our lives. Mine happened recently with the passing of my Mum on May 2nd aged 86 and I wasn't sure if I wanted to write about it. Then I looked back at my humble beginning as a Photographer and it was all thanks to my Mum.

I would not have my love of photography if Mum hadn't let me take one photo in the disgracefully early 1970's, of my brothers and sister, with her Kodak Instamatic that had a cube flash on top. Mum loved to take photos of us as we grew up, all proud parents are the same. We love to capture special memories like birthdays, christmas, summer in the garden and so on. 

We had moved into our home in Skelmersdale and Mum wanted a photo of us all together. I asked mum if I could take a photo and she was reluctant at first, but I persisted and she let me take the photo. Mum really wanted a special photo of all of us, but I remember saying to Mum "it's special because you let me take it." I still have that photo as I was entrusted with looking after our family photo archive when my Dad passed away. Now they are together again and I miss them both dearly.

Looking back, I didn't like being opposite the camera, but little did I know at that time that I would be very comfortable behind the viewfinder. In 2017 when I came back to film I bought a cheap Pentax SP500 with Helios 44m-4 58mm f/2 lens and I haven't regretted it. It was with my Mum in mind when I went for a walk a week after her passing and I loaded a roll of Ilford FP4+ 125 into my Pentax SP500, fitted my Industar 50-2 lens, which to be fair I haven't used for a long time, and went for a wander along the farm roads and nature trails.

It turned out to be a very cloudy day and I knew I had picked the wrong film and made an even worse decision by fitting a yellow filter, but I didn't care. I was thinking about my Mum as I walked and wasn't expecting to take any photos at all. I had also taken my Agfa Isolette as I hadn't finished my #FolderWeek film in it. I didn't get far when I saw the first mahoosive Tractor towing a big trailer loaded with freshly cut grass. I had to get to the fields and see if I could get some photos after all.

Every year I miss the harvest in Autumn, be it cereal crops or corn. This is the first time I have seen a silage harvest as it happened and I really enjoyed photographing the Tractors as they whizzed around the fields. Silage is grass that is cut and used to feed livestock. As we have seen over the last few years, a drought will stop grass from growing and grass is a much needed resource. 

I got through two thirds of my roll of FP4 in my Pentax before getting past the fields and headed on my way. It has been working beautifully since I invested in having it cleaned, lubricated and adjusted a couple of years ago. It had one test left and it came when it started to rain as I got to the paths that were resurfaced in 2024. 

I haven't used this camera in the rain and I was able to give the light meter a good work out as the sky darkened and I got under cover of the trees. I took the yellow filter off and was shooting with the lens at f/5.6 and the shutter speed as low as I dared to go hand held during the last part of my walk. It was a lesson in breathing like a sniper as I held still before releasing the shutter each time. 

I soon finished my roll of film and was able to put my camera in my hoodie pocket and zip up my leather jacket before the rain really started to come down harder and headed home. I needed this walk as it helped me gather my thoughts and think about my Mum. I also swear the rain made my jacket 10 pounds heavier.

I developed my roll of Ilford FP4+ 125 in Bellini Euro HC, 1+31 dilution B for 6 minutes at 20 celcius and soon had it hanging to dry in my bathroom. Once dry I digitised my film with my Nikon D700, Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2.5 macro lens, Valoi 35mm film holder, Pixl-Latr and A5 sized led light pad. I processed the RAW files with Affinity Studio.

First impressions of my efforts on the day were better than expected. Yes, the yellow filter boosted the contrast when I really didn't need it, but I managed to get some half decent photos. I really didn't expect a slow film to produce the goods on a grotty day, but I underestimated the performance of my Pentax SP500 and Ilford's finest FP4+ 125. For the last half of my walk the setting I used was f/5.6 at 1/60th of a second and it worked! 

The lesson from this walk is have faith and trust in your skills. A few years ago I would have made a right mess of this roll of film. Now I am almost a decade more experienced and wiser, I had the confidence to go with it and just see what I could get. Here's a few favourites from my wander with a roll of Ilford FP4 in my Pentax SP500 on a grotty day in early May. I have placed them and more in a album on Flickr you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them

Ilford FP4 - Pentax SP500 

 

Folder Week 2026

Tom Northenscold put out a call on social media to see if anyone was interested in participating in #FolderWeek, a celebration of vintage folding cameras and an excuse for film photographers to dust off their bellows, load a roll of their favourite film and take some photos to share with like minded photographers. Of course I jumped on board. I loaded a roll of Kodak TMax 400 into Baldy The Baldax, a roll of Ilford FP4+ 125 into my Agfa Isolette and went for a walk.

I used Baldy first as I seem to always reach for it out of habit these days. Not that my Agfa Isolette is inferior, far from it, it is a superb, simple to use camera, as is Baldy. I don't use Kodak TMax 400 often, I'm an Ilford guy and had decided to get a pack of TMax 400 in medium format to continue my exploration of the various black and white film available. (read this as Analogue Wonderland had it on a sale at a decent discount.) The last week of April was great for dry sunny weather and I was able to get out with Baldy whilst pulling double duty with my Frugal Film Project commitment. 

I have to make the most of the good weather here in Wigan before the inevitable return to overcast skies and rain showers. I wandered around town, happy snapping in the sunshine and generally having a wonderful time. Baldy The Baldax was, as ever, a joy to use and I soon got through my roll of Kodak TMax 400 and continued with my Frugal Film Project before heading home.

A couple of days later I set about using my Agfa Isolette and again doubled up with my Frugal Film Project commitment. I had a wander in the Park and tried to get photos for another project that my friends and I have on the go at the Photozine Collective. The chosen film for the next Zine is Ilford FP4+ 125 and I figured if my photos didn't fit the theme, I would have a dozen to choose from for #FolderWeek. At least, that was my plan. 

Sadly I didn't get my roll of FP4+ 125 finished before the end of #FolderWeek for deeply personal reasons. My Mum passed away and I was in no condition to concentrate on anything but fond memories and bawling my eyes out. My Mum gave me my start in photography way back in the early 1970's by letting me take a photo of my brothers and sister with her Kodak Instamatic. The excitement of waiting for the developed film and prints to come back from the lab has never left me. Thank you, Mum xxx

I took my final four photos and finished my roll of Ilford FP4+ 125 during the second weekend of May. I hope nobody minds me being late to the show and tell part of #FolderWeek, I am an advocate of these wonderful vintage cameras and wanted to get  my film finished in my Agfa Isolette before developing both rolls and seeing how my shots turned out.

I developed  my roll of TMax 400 and my roll of Ilford FP4+ 125 in separate tanks using Bellini Euro HC, 1+31 dilution B for 6 minutes each at 20 celcius and soon had them hanging to dry. If I had a bigger tank I could have done both in the same one. It gives me something to think about for the future. Once dry I digitised my film with my Nikon D700, Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2.5 macro lens, Valoi medium format film holder, Pixl-Latr and A5 sized led light pad. I processed the RAW files with Affinity Studio.

The photos I took with Baldy are up to Baldy's usual standard. There was a couple with light leaks, but I got quite a few decent photos from this roll of TMax 400 as I wandered in my local countryside. I still have a few rolls left and summer is still young, so you can expect a few more blogs about Kodak TMax 400 medium format film.

My photos with my Agfa Isolette started ok, but then a mistake I made on the day I started this film reared it's head and basically mullered half the roll of FP4. I had forgotten my lens hood. It was a glorious sunny afternoon when I took my Agfa Isolette out and, on such occasions, I would normally use my lens hood. Sadly, it wasn't in my bag, I had left it at home. 

I did try to mitigate this mistake on the day, but, as I discovered upon developing and scanning the film, no matter how much I used a hand to shield the front of the lens from the bright sunlight, I still got horrendous hot spots. Arse! Lesson learned for next time, but I know I'm going to make the same mistake again at some point. C'est la vie!

Here's a few favourites from my two rolls of film shot for #FolderWeek with Baldy the Baldax and my Agfa Isolette. I have placed them and a few more in an album on Flickr you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

#FolderWeek - Spring 2026 

Frugal Film Project 2026 - Donkey - May

 Having had a good walk with my compact camera I needed to rest for a day or three which gave me a chance to recover some energy and maybe find my mojo again. As it turned out it was the final day of May 2026 when I went for a walk along the nature trails and farm tracks to shoot my May roll of Kentmere 400 for the SLR section of my Frugal Film Project 2026 contribution. 

To be honest, I'm glad I waited as it has been oppressively hot here in not so darkest Wigan. The UK and Europe got hit by a heatwave in the second half of May and, besides one thunderstorm, it has been drier than a dry thing in a tumble dryer. It's also grass pollen season.... 

I wasn't looking for anything special on my walk on a cloudy Sunday afternoon, just seeing what I could find just to get this month over and done with. The Hawthorne blossom has fallen and berries are now growing, ready to feed the local wildlife come autumn. 

The Horses at the farm are enjoying being outdoors with plenty of grass to munch on and one of my favourite trees is providing some respite for them from the sun on the odd occasions it actually peeked from behind the clouds. All the living trees are in full foliage and gathering as much energy by day and releasing oxygen once they store the carbon they need to grow.

This year is definitely fallow year at the arable farm. The silage harvest I spotted early in the month made room for fresh grass to grow and it wouldn't surprise me if the farm gets one or two more crops of Silage before the year is over. It is used to feed livestock. What seems like a field of grass that wont make money is actually quite a useful crop. 

I only did a short loop of the farm roads and footpaths this time around as I am still not feeling too clever after the events of the month. The sight of berries staring to show and another crop of grass growing for silage reminds me that the cycle of life continues, the sun will rise tomorrow and my grandchildren will always make me smile. With my roll of Kentmere 400 finished, I headed home for a cuppa.

I developed my film later that evening in Bellini Euro HC, 1+31 dilution B, for 6 minutes at 20 celcius and soon had it hanging to dry. I digitised it with my Nikon D700, Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2.5 macro lens, Valoi 35mm film holder, Pixl-Latr and A5 size led light pad. I processed the RAW files with Affinity Studio.

I'm happy with my May roll of Kentmere 400 as I was able to get through it on the last day of the month without melting or getting soaked. May was a strange one, personal grief accompanied by either rain or a heatwave mirrored my state of mind. I was a little bit all over the place and I'm just glad I got through the month. Onwards to the next one!

Here's a few favourites from my May roll of Kentmere 400 shot with Donkey, my Minolta Dynax 4 with AF 28-80mm lens and a yellow filter. I have placed them and more in my Frugal Film Project 2026 - SLR album that you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Frugal Film Project 2026 - SLR 

Frugal Film Project 2026 - Compact - May

I left my May roll of Kentmere 400, shot with my Hanimex 35RAS, to the end of May bank holiday weekend when I hoped the weather would be a bit nicer. April was better, but mother nature perked up for the last week of May and I was able to wander around Wigan and get some snapshots for the Frugal Film Project 2026. A bright, sunny, Saturday afternoon had people out and about, shopping, having a drink at one of the bars or coffee shops and generally enjoying the nice weather. 

I took a wander past the new development rising up steadily where The Galleries once stood. The new Market Hall is on schedule for opening at Christmas time. The roof and sides are done and the work is mainly on the interior now. I hope there are no delays as we get closer to the grand opening. I also took a wander down to Trencherfield Mill and the Leeds & Liverpool Canal for a few snaps and to see if there were any narrowboats at Wigan Pier. There wasn't much happening there so I headed back into the town centre to finish my film. 

Wigan Town Centre was pretty busy with folk doing their shopping and generally enjoying the sunshine. There was a couple of buskers, one guy with a guitar doing pop covers and my favourite busker, the Pan Pipe player from Ecuador. It's always a pleasure to hear music from the Andes Mountains of South America in Wigan. Wigan might be an old mining town, but the place is quite cosmopolitan at times. I said hello, had a chat with the lady looking after their stall and dropped a couple of quid in the hat. 

I headed up to Believe Square to finish my film. I grabbed a couple of snaps of the Face Of Wigan and finished my roll with a photo of the new Star recently installed on the Walk Of Fame to recognise Sir Billy Boston's status as a Knight of the Realm. He's not done bad for a chap who came north from Tiger Bay in Cardiff to play Rugby League for Wigan. He won every trophy the sport had to offer during his playing days and earned the love and respect of the townsfolk. With that last photo, my roll of Kentmere 400 was done and I headed home.

It was a few days later when I developed my May roll of Kentmere 400 in Bellini Euro HC, 1+31 dilution B, for 6 minutes at 20 celcius and soon had it hanging to dry. I digitised it with my Nikon D700, Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2.5 macro lens, Valoi 35mm film holder, Pixl-Latr and A5 size led light pad. I processed the RAW files with Affinity Studio.

My photos this month are nothing special, but they aren't going to be with this camera. It's a happy snapper and that is its strength. It performed flawlessly again and, frankly, it's making me feel stupid for doubting it back in January. It's still on the same batteries too. This is what I love about trying old cameras, they can surprise you if you persevere with them. My Hanimex 35RAS really comes alive in the sunshine, which is exactly what this camera was designed for. Holiday Snaps on long summer days Maybe I should head to the beach in the summer?

Here's a few favourites from my May roll of Kentmere 400 shot with my Hanimex 35RAS compact 35mm film camera. I have placed them and more in my Frugal Film Project 2026 - Compact album on Flickr that you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Frugal Film Project 2026 - Compact - May