Frugal Film Project 2026 - Compact - March

 The first week in March has seen a definite upwards trend in the temperature and sunshine. Yes, I said sunshine. The 3rd and 4th March was gloriously sunny here in not very dark, wet, cold, dull and gloomy Wigan. Naturally I had to have a lie down as the shock of a cloudless sky made me overdose on vitamin D, but not before I got a few rolls of film done and dusted, the first being my March roll of Kentmere 400 shot with my Hanimex 35RAS compact point and shoot camera.

In keeping with my aim to document daily life in Wigan town centre I started my walk in Mesnes Park and gradually made my way into the town centre. The Park is always popular, but especially so on a sunny afternoon. People were enjoying their day in the sun, either walking through or spending some time at the Pavillion cafe. The parks and gardens staff were busy planting this years spring blooms and continuing their excellent maintenance of the lawns and flower beds.

I made my way towards the town centre and photographed a few things on my way. The clock tower at the Thomas Linacre Centre, the Garden dedicated to  the NHS who cared for us so professionally during the pandemic is nice at any time of year, but spring is a special time and people can go and sit and remember loved ones who passed away during that time. 

There is also a new seating area where you can go a have a chat to whoever may be there. The benches are close together as a means of bringing people together and talking to aid their personal well being. I know how easily anyone can slide into poor mental health and it's tough to get through without any support. Sunshine and a few friends to chat to can make a big difference.

Construction of the new development continues at pace and the Tower Cranes are constantly busy moving materials around the site as the next stage of that building begins. I wandered around towards Uncle Joe's Mint balls, taking photos as I walked and guided by the smell of freshly made mint balls that lured me with it's unmistakeable aroma. I really enjoyed my walk and got a few rolls of film shot for future blogs, but it was definitely time to go home. I was done in and needed a nice cuppa tea to recover from a very productive afternoon of Film Photography. 

I developed my March 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 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 sized led light pad. I processed the RAW files with Affinity Studio.

First impression was my film was a little undercooked, then I remembered my Dilution B was overdue for changing. Bugger. However, it was easily sorted with Affinity Studio. My absent mindedness gets the better of me at times. I would have sworn at it in three languages in the early days of developing my own film, but my skills are a lot better now and I saved it thanks to having the right tools and knowledge. I just wish it didn't make my brain hurt to remember half of it, but hey, nobody said long term recovery from a brain fart was easy. 

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

Frugal Film Project 2026 - Compact