Frugal Film Project 2023 - September

This month I headed across the Pennines to visit my daughter in "that yorkshire" to shoot my September roll of Kentmere 400 for the Frugal Film Project 2023. We had a nice walk around a location I have visited before, the Brickyard Ponds at Bolton Upon Dearne. It's often said you dont need to go far to enjoy a little bit of countryside or a little bit of parkland and Bolton Brickies, as the locals call it, is an oasis in what was once the heart of the Yorkshire Coal Fields.

Bolton Upon Dearne is a former mining community that has had a hard time since the closure of the local mines. The old brickworks where the ponds are was landscaped by the local council many years ago. The clay pits were filled with water and fish and it has been a popular place for anglers and dog walkers in the town ever since.

I had pre-loaded my Balda Baldax 6x4.5 medium format folding camera before setting off so I was ready to go when my daughter and I arrived. My daughter was suitably impresssed that a 90 year old camera could still be used to take photos and I set about finding compositions to see what changes had occurred since my last visit to the Brickies.

The changes were small, but overall nothing much had changed. One pond is in the process of being fenced off as a fishing club has acquired exclusive use of it. My grandson is a member and he really enjoys fishing there.

The main pond and land around both ponds is still accessible to the public for fishing, walking the dog and folks like me who enjoy taking photos. It's nice to have a green space where people can enjoy an hour or two of fresh air and a bit of peace and quiet.

My daughter and I really appreciated our walk and it seemed like all too soon we had to go home ready for the kids coming home from school. Sadly I had to come home later that day, but it wont be long until I am paying her another visit. It's a four hour journey home by train and I left my developing until the following afternoon.

I used Zone Imaging 510 Pyro to develop my film for 11 minutes in a dilution of 1+100 at 20 celcius. I stopped the developing with filtered water before fixing my film with Fotospeed FX30 for 6 minutes. When I hung my film to dry in my bathroom I could see I had some decently exposed photos and I left it to dry for a few hours.

 I scanned my film with my Nokia phone and Pixl-latr to hold it and my led light pad to illuminate my film. Once digitised and on my PC I processed the images with Affinity Photo 2 to bring them to life and remove dust spots and scratches. To be honest I just needed to adjust the levels a bit and only a few had scratches on them, which didn't take me long.

Scanning my film is something I have wanted to improve upon and I ordered a Valoi 120 medium format film mask for my Pix-Llatr. Kentmere 400 dries reasonably flat, but other films do have a little curl to them that has caused me problems in the past. It's time to sort it and hopefully next month I shall have the Valoi mask.

Here's a few of my favourite images from my September roll of Kentmere 400 medium format film for the Frugal Film Project 2023. The more I use Baldy the Baldax, the more I like it. For a camera built in the 1930's with an unknown service history, it aint doin' too bad. As always I have placed them and more in my Frugal Film Project 2023 album on Flickr that you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Frugal Film Project 2023 

Autumn Colour

 I haven't been out for a bit, it's the anniversary of my Dad passing away and it's been hitting me hard. I always try to have a plan B when my mental health takes a hit and this time it's some basic phone camera shots of Autumn Colour I have seen on my walks around my local countryside.

Never let anyone convince you a phone camera isn't good enough for snap shots, it's perfect for them. I am a self confessed happy snapper and I couldn't resist these colours as I wandered about with my film cameras that were loaded with my favourite black and white films. I wouldn't be comfy printing a high quality large print above A4 size of my phone cam shots, but for 6x4 and 7x5 size photos, it's ideal.

This selection of autumn berries was shot with my Nokia 5.3 and although it does produce a decent shot, it's on full auto with only a few changes you can make. It's literally a point and shoot and it is very good at it. It also shows why the humble point and shoot digital camera market was mullered by the Phone Camera.

Everyone has a camera with them now, which is what the camera manufacturers have been wishing we would have for just about the entire time they have been in business. The level of control you have is directly influenced by the price point your camera was sold at.

Buy a cheap phone, you get a cheap camera. Spend the equivalent of a third world country's national debt and you get a fully featured, fully adjustable and potent camera that many folks make a living from on social media etc.

Whatever phone you have, you have a camera that will give you splendid snapshots and as we are well and truly in Autumn now, it's the perfect time for capturing the riot of colour that has begun. Keep your eyes on the trees as they have their annual flourish before their winter slumber.

As always I have placed these photos in an album on my flickr account for you to view in full resolution via the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Autumn Colours

Goodman Zone Z1

My sweet Goodman Zone Z1, how I have missed thee. I have been a busy chap the last few months concentrating on my Grandsons and have neglected my own needs, but that changed when the Summer Holidays ended and my Grandsons went back to school. I was going through my cameras and, as I mentioned last week, I kept coming back to two cameras. My Olympus 35RC and my Goodman Zone Z1. After loading my 35RC with HP5, I loaded my Goodman Zone Z1 with a roll of Ilford Delta 400 and headed out to see what I could find.

What a contrast in size there is between these two cameras. My 35RC fits neatly in my hand and my pocket whilst my Goodman Zone Z1 fits nicely in both hands and you can forget about putting it in a pocket! It's a big camera courtesy of the already existing Schneider-Kreuznach lens and Mamiya film back it was designed to use, but it's nicely balanced.

When Dora Goodman designed the 3D printed Goodman Zone Z1, she wanted to use items that were already widely available on the used market. Dora wanted the camera to be a true system camera where we, the photographers, could choose from a range of lenses to suit our needs. My Goodman Zone Z1 came with a large format Schneider-Kreuznach 90mm f/8 lens with a Copal shutter.

The film back Dora chose was originally made for the Mamiya RB67 medium format camera. This was a camera designed to shoot 120 medium format film with a photo size of 6cm x 7cm. I also have a 3D Printed 6x6 film back for my Goodman Zone Z1 that does the job very well indeed.

It took me a little while to get used to the slow and measured approach I needed to use my Goodman Zone Z1, but once I got used to the fact I had to take a Dark Slide out before taking my shot, I began making great progress with it. How would I fare after not using the camera for a few months?

The answer to that came very quickly as I took my time remembering the order I needed to follow to make the best use of my camera and renew my skills. It came back to me as I got started and my memory, despite being a little shakey, soon had me back into the swing of it.

For this roll I tended to stay with familiar compositions and the trees on the spoil heap were always in my thoughts. The bright sunshine also had me reaching for my orange filter to tame the highlights and bring some definition into the few clouds that were overhead on my walk around the local countryside. I even remembered to shield my lens with my cap in case I got hot spots in my photos and was pretty sure I had counted ten shots and not eleven.

It seemed like all too soon I was finished, I headed back home and began to give some thought to how I was going to develop my roll of Ilford Delta 400. I decided to go for 510 Pyro from Zone Imaging. I like the look of the films I have developed in it so far and wondered how Ilford's professional grade film would fare in the hands of a hobbyist.

I checked the developing times listed on the Zone Imaging website and developed my roll of Ilford Delta 100 in a dilution of 1+100 for 11 minutes at 20 celcius. I was a good lad and didn't use my stop bath, I washed the film with cold water until it ran clear and then fixed it with Fotospeed FX30 for 6 minutes.

When I took my film out of my tank to hang it to dry I was pleasantly surprised to find 10 decently exposed images with no double exposures! I left it for a few hours to dry whilst I basked in my stunned disbelief that I had ten single exposures. For a quick look once it had dried I digitised my film with my Nokia 5.3 phone camera, Pixl-Latr and led light pad.

It was when I started to process my photos with Affinity Photo 2 that my good day out started to unravel a little as my shots were not all good. I noticed a few things with coming back to using my Goodman Zone Z1 after a few months away from it. I need to work on my compositions skills and I also need to work on my digitising/scanning/whatever you want to call it.

My composition skills need refining and it's all due to not using my Goodman Zone for a while. I cut the tops of a few trees and missed my focus on a couple of shots. It doesn't seem like much, but it's the difference between a wall hanger and a shot that just doesn't make the grade. I know what caused it and I should have seen it when I did it. I was taking my orange filter from the holder to frame my composition, but managed to move my camera a tad when I put it back. D'Oh! 

My Pixl-Latr doesn't quite hold my film flat, a new addition is required with Valoi scanning kit being top of my list. It's a big expense when you haven't got a lot of cash, but I don't have to buy the whole system, even though it would be a great addition to my kit. I can buy just the film holders to fit onto my Pixl-Latr.

Those two small changes will make a big difference to my work flow and improve my hit rate. Here's a few of my favourite shots from my first ever roll of Ilford Delta 400 shot in my Goodman Zone Z1. I had a lot of fun shooting it and as always you can see them all in an album on Flickr you can visit using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Ilford Delta 400 - Goodman Zone Z1

The Rise of Artificial Intelligence In Blogging

 I have just read an excellent blog post by Alex Luyckx that was inspired by the growing influence of Artificial Intelligence in Blogging. In it he explains how he writes his blog each week and there's not a hint of AI in sight. However, there will always be people who will think,"He's used ChatGPT to write that!" which is about as far from the truth as you can get. You can read Alex's blog post by visiting The Process of Writing Camera Reviews and dont forget to bookmark his website address as you will definitely be going back to it often if you enjoy Film Photography as much as he does. 

I have enjoyed reading Alex's blogs on all things photography related since I came back to film photography in 2017. His notes and reviews on various camera, film and developer combinations are a constant source of good, honest information. He has guided many a film photographer from beginners to highly experienced professionals with his work and it's easy to see why. 

That's the all important bit, it's "His Work". No Artificial Intelligence is required as Alex is very thorough in his process of creating his blog. This has inspired myself and several other photographers to start their own blogs and you tube channels and share the joy of photography with whomever wants to take a look. This continuous exchange of information from personal experience is a big part of why film photography refused to die when digital cameras rose to prominence at the turn of the 21st century.

Photographers like to show off their photos and speak fondly of their inspiration for taking them, be it in words or on video. I do it every week, it takes discipline and a lot of brain power too. Quite often I will waffle on and have to go back and edit my blog before I publish it as it can get out of control. My English tutor at college used to liken an essay to a Mini Skirt. "Keep it short enough to be interesting yet long enough to cover the subject." Thirty years that little spark of wisdom has stayed with me, despite my noggin wanting to do otherwise.

No amount of Artificial Intelligence can get close to little pearls of wisdom like that no matter how much of the internet it scrapes to plagiarise the work of folks like Alex and myself. That's the important distinction between us. AI doesn't understand emotion, context or intent. It just robs everyone and tries to put it all together. The image of thousands of Chimpanzee's hammering away on a typewriter comes to mind. Eventually they will come up with something resembling the works of William Shakespeare, but will anybody read it?

The ability to write from the heart with Emotion, Context and Integrity is a uniquely Human trait. It doesn't matter what the subject is, it could be about a piece of music you heard for the first time, a book you have read or a roll of rebranded film you gave to your ten year old grandson to help him understand much more easily how pushing film can produce a photo worthy of hanging on your wall. Artificial Intelligence simpy cannot do that. It is emotionless, without context and it is total, blatant plagiarism.

What can we do about it? There's no way the AI genie is going back in its bottle anytime soon. We could sue the creators of the programming, but the only winners there will be the lawyers who will rake in millions leaving both sides utterly exhausted physically, mentally and penniless. We fight back with Intergrity. That is the best weapon in the writer's arsenal and probably all we have against the rise of AI.

Next time you read a blog or even an opinion piece in your local newspaper (if you still have one), think about the three things I have mentioned here. Emotion, Context and Integrity. If it fails all three, it's probably plagiarised from someone like Alex or myself.

Another great blog I read regularly is written by Jim Grey. He has a list of 104 Photography related blogs you should read on his website you can visit using the link below. Both Alex and myself are humbled to be included in that list. I guarantee you will find something that moves your soul and written from the heart by a real person. Someone who will be happy you paid them a visit and connected with them in some way, no matter how deeply or small it may be. I hope you enjoy them.

Film Photography Blogs You Should Follow - Jim Grey 

Olympus 35RC

 September started brightly and I have been going through my cameras to see which one I wanted to use next. I kept coming back to 2 cameras, my Goodman Zone Z1 and my Olympus 35RC. I have neglected both recently and it was time to change that. I loaded a roll of Ilford HP5 into my 35RC, a roll of Delta 400 into my Goodman Zone and toddled off to the corn fields. I will talk about my Goodman Zone next week, this week is all about my Olympus 35RC.

I love my little pocket powerhouse Olympus 35RC. It is without doubt a fantastic little rangefinder camera with a superb quality lens that you would expect to find on a far higher priced camera. I have yet to find a camera that can produce quality photos like the 35RC can in the same price range.

I paid £30 for my 35RC a few years ago and it has a fully functioning light meter. Well, mine was working until the battery ran out and I never replaced the battery. Yes folks, the Olympus 35RC works beautifully in full manual operation. Don't worry if you find one with a non functioning light meter, there's plenty of choices for light meters both new and used. I took my Gossen Trisix with me and, despite its age, the selenium cells are still giving me accurate light readings.

I have been visiting the Corn fields a lot recently as I am hoping to catch the farmer harvesting his crop. I keep missing it each year and I really want to break that duck. For a few years the crop was wheat, but this year and last year the crop has been corn. I think it is grown for cattle feed.

It is good to wander along the footpaths that go through the corn fields, I get to see the way the crop is maximising the land and also the Thistles that have been growing amongst the corn and attracting insects who love to feed on their flowers. It's a smorgasboard for the bugs as they have been feeding on the corn, thistle, blackberry and hawthorne flowers all year.

My walk was a long one and It was as I got back to the Farm where the horses are stabled that I finished my film. I was hoping to see more horses on this day, but they were either out with their humans or keeping their distance. I took a shot of the muck spreading tank and headed home.

I couldn't develop my film that day as the walk in the late summer sunshine wiped out my energy and I waited for cooler temperatures. The weather had other ideas and stayed warm for a few days, which I wasn't complaining about, but it does make getting my developing chemicals down to 20 celcius a bit of a challenge. Thank the Photography Gods for ice packs.

I developed my roll of Ilford HP5 the next evening when it had cooled down a bit in HC110 dilution B for 5 minutes at 20 celcius and soon had it hanging to dry in my bathroom. I scanned it with my Ion Slides2PC 35mm scanner and processed the images with Affinity Photo 2.

I enjoyed my day out wth my cameras and walked a bit further than normal as I went hunting for other compositions on the spoil heap with my Goodman Zone. Having 2 agendas on the same walk made it a bit challenging, but it was a good work out for my brain as well as my legs. Here's a few of my favourite photos I took with my Olympus 35RC and you can see them and more in an album on Flickr by using the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Ilford HP5 - Olympus 35RC

Printing Photos

My grandson Ethan has made good progress with his photography this year, his photos have been getting some very kind and encouraging comments from readers and I decided to take his education an important step forward and show him how to print his photos. I'm not talking about picking a file on my computer and select the print option, I'm talking about digitising his film, editing it before we print and finally framing one of his photos. Grab a drink and get comfy as there's a lot to get through.

Ethan knows I share his photos with you through this blog and my social media. He's happy for me to do that. He knows I am proud of him for his effort and, let's face it, he's annoyingly talented. I have been taking photos for half a century and I know he's blown my efforts into the dust recently with his horse photos. The speed at which he has picked up this wonderful art we share is a joy to behold. It was time to hang one on the wall.

I explained to Ethan how we can take our nicely developed film and "digitise" it. For social media I use my Ion Slides2PC 35mm scanner, which is basically a phone camera in a box with a light at the bottom. It's fine for snap shots and social media, as we all know, compresses the life out of a photo. The reason I store my photos on Flickr is so you can see them all in uncompressed full resolution, but even then they are a bit wanting courtesy of the little scanner I use. For this excerise I got my Nikon D700 out to play and showed Ethan how to digitise his negatives.

For this exercise I needed my Tripod, Nikon D700 DSLR (other digital cameras are also suitable) and my Tamron Adaptall 2 90mm f/2.5 macro lens with extension tube. I explained to Ethan that a macro lens allowed us to get closer to our subject to isolate a single frame of film. The extension tube allowed us to get even closer to fill the screen on the back of the camera. To help us we needed a light to shine through the film and a holder to keep the film nice and flat whilst we photographed it. My A5 led light pad and Pixl-Latr are just the job.

We took our time to get the shot nicely focused and exposed and also bracketed either side of the ideal exposure in case we missed some highlight or shadow detail. Ethan appreciated the care needed to make sure his photo looked its best. Then it was time to transfer the images from my DSLR to my PC so we could edit them using Affinity Photo 2. With Ethan's direction I inverted and adjusted the best negative shot to produce what turned out to be a very well balanced photo. Ethan was very happy with it and our attention turned to printing.

To see if we had our settings right I printed Ethan's photo on plain A4 using my HP Envy 4520 inkjet printer. This was Ethan's first chance to see what his photo would look like at it's full size and we gave it a thorough pixel peep to find any defects we may have missed. Paying attention to the details is very important. Once Ethan was happy, I loaded a couple of sheets of A4 size glossy photo paper and began to print.

The look on Ethan's face when his photo had finished printing was a picture on it's own. His grin was literally from ear to ear and we set about framing it. I showed Ethan how we can use a plain sheet of paper to make a border or "mount" for his photo. After making sure everything was clean we set the glass, mount, photo and backing board into our chosen frame. The moment of truth was upon us.

Ethan is very happy with his framed photo and I had to take a photo of him proudly holding it before he took it home to hang on his wall. This has been a very worthwhile project for both of us, not least for being able to spend quality time together during the summer holidays. Ethan has produced a great photo that he can look at for years to come with fond memories of time well spent with Grandad. Who knows what the future holds, but I hope he can relive this special summer with his Children and Grandchildren should he be lucky enough to become a Dad and Grandad. I might even live long enough to share it with him, wouldn't that be something to be proud of!