My Journey Into Photography: FP4 Party 2021

It's the time of year for the FP4 party, a celebration of Ilford FP4 125 film designed to get people out and about shooting the same film stock in whatever camera they choose. Last year I just managed to get a few rolls of film shot for the FP4 party before the pandemic shut the UK and most of the world down for months. I said in my blog about it back then that I would definitely take part again and this years edition saw me take a walk around Wigan with 2 rolls of FP4 and my Olympus OM-2. Sadly I couldn't use my OM-1 as it needed a little fettling, but when you have an OM-2 as well it's a win win situation. I also took my Zuiko 50mm f/1.4 and 28mm f/3.5 lenses and switched between them frequently.

I really enjoy taking photo's around Wigan, it is my home and I try to show it in a positive manner. The town was once at the heart of Industrial Lancashire, in the 19th century you were never more than half a mile from a coal mine. It hosted one of the biggest Iron Works in the region and it's Mills wove the cloth that clothed the world. That history can be seen at the Wigan Pier complex that is currently undergoing a refurbishment after a few years of standing empty and I decided to shoot my first roll there.

Once the butt of a music hall joke, Wigan Pier gained fame through the literary social commentary by George Orwell, The Road To Wigan Pier. George was a little disappointed to find the oriiginal pier had long been demolished when he came to stay in Wigan, but still walked the towpath along which I and many other Wigan residents still use to this day. Wigan Pier is represented by two rails that stick out on the bank of the Leeds Liverpool Canal. The buildings that make up the Wigan Pier complex were once a thriving port unloading raw materials and loading finished goods onto barges for transport to Liverpool to be shipped around the world.

Having been empty for several years, Property developers Step Places in conjunction with local Arts Hub The Old Courts, Wigan Council and the Canal and River Trust began regenerating the Pier Quarter, as it has become known, to turn the complex into a thriving hub for local small businesses to create and sell their goods, house an Events Venue and Pub for concerts, weddings and conferences and also house a Gin Distillery. Refurbishment has been delayed by the pandemic, but the folks delivering the project have pledged to finish it within budget although a little later than planned.

I shot that first roll at box speed and would have quite happily stayed with box speed for roll number 2, but Jess Hobbs, a great film photographer from Montreal, said she would shoot and develop a roll as a 400 speed film. This intrigued me enough to give it a try as pushing film is not something I have done on purpose yet. I knew I would have one roll to contribute to this years FP4 party so a little experimenting was definitely going to stretch my skills a tad and add a little variation into my photography.

I set off for Wigan town centre with a fresh roll of FP4 set to shoot at 400 and picked out a few landmarks along the way. Trencherfield Mill opposite Wigan Pier was the last working Mill in the town and has been repurposed as a residential area and an Academy for Live and Recording Arts. It also has a few large items saved from the demolition of the coal mines and Iron Works that have been put on permanent display as a reminder of the town's Industrial heritage. Of note there is a huge Ventilation Fan that once drove massive volumes of fresh air into a coal mine to push stale air rich in CO2 and Firedamp out of the shafts and provide the Miners below ground with air fit to breathe. Well, as fit to breathe as possible in the dusty envirnment underground. There is also a huge steam driven hammer that was used to make parts for all manner of machinery that was assembled in factories in Wigan.

I also took a couple of photo's of Wigan Wallgate Railway Station, one of two in the town the other being Wigan North Western on the West Coast mainline. Wallgate serves the local branch lines and has taken many a Wigan resident off to the seaside town of Southport for a well earned day out or a trip to Manchester or Liverpool for a shopping trip. Wigan also has a few mock Tudor style buildings that harken back to the towns long existence as a small market town before the industrial revolution grew Wigan into one of the biggest towns in the area.

Sadly, my aching bones told me to go home and I finished my roll off by chasing the dog in my back yard. Wel, he did the running, I just had to throw things for him. I just wish he would give them back without an argument. I am still undecided about my roll shot and developed at 400. I can see the difference, but maybe it's a method for a dull day when more light is required. It was a bit to bright on the day I chose to go out and it gave me a lot of contrast.

So, that's my contribution to thie Spring 2021 FP4 Party. Here's a few images I shot and as always I have placed both rolls in albums on Flickr for you to see them in full resolution. I had a lot of fun taking part and can't wait for the next one and you can see a lot more images from others who took party by following the #FP4Party hastag on Twitter. Also check out Jess Hobbs you tube channel. Click the links below.

#fp4party

FP4 Party roll 1 at box speed

FP4 Party roll 2 at 400

Jess Hobbs You Tube Channel