Frugal Film Project 2024 - June - 120 medium format

 This month marks one year since I became the proud owner of Baldy the Baldax and I have used this wonderful 1930's folding camera for the Frugal Film Project for 12 consecutive months. We have shared high points and a few low ones during that time, but one thing I do know, Balda made beautiful cameras. I own a few cameras that gave me less grief and have been placed on the "naughty shelf", but not Baldy. A grim determination to succeed has been my motivation for the last 12 months.

For my June roll of Ilford HP5+ 400 black and white film I went for a wander around town re-visiting locations I have photographed many times, but this day was different. I knew Baldy had lasted a whole year and I couldn't be happier. We had some half decent light to play with for a change too and I'm hoping for more as the summer progresses. I really was enjoying my walk and, as is all too often when your'e having fun, time flew by. I finished my roll Ilford HP5+ 400 black and white film and headed home.

I have also made that tough decision of whether or not to bring on super sub. I'm keeping going with Baldy to see if I can make it to a whole calendar year and call 2024 the Year of Baldy the Baldax. I'm having fun, I have accepted that I'm never going to get a full roll of perfect pictures from Baldy the Baldax and I'm fine with that. Baldy is 90 years young and still going strong. I don't want to retire it to the display shelf just yet, we have more adventures ahead of us.

I developed my roll of Ilford HP5+ 400 medium format film in HC110 dilution B 1+31 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 medium format film holder, Pixl-Latr and A5 size led light pad. I processed my RAW files with Affinity Photo 2.

I enjoyed shooting my June roll of Ilford HP5+ 400 with Baldy the Baldax for the Frugal Film Project 2024. I trusted my instincts, eyballed the light, made an educated guess for my settings and it was a lot of fun. They aren't perfect, but that's all part of the charm of using a 90 year old camera. It was £49 well spent at the time and long may it continue. Here's a few of my favourites from the roll. As always, I have posted them and more in my Frugal Film Project 2024 - 120 album on Flickr that you can visit by clicking the link below. I hope you enjoy them.

Frugal Film Project 2024 - June - 120