Lomography Earl Grey 100 Black and White Film

This past summer, I was shooting photos for Small Stage and their #LoveBubble Project. Small Stage features live dancing, music and fun interactions with the public. This is exactly the kind of action I love shooting.

When I was shooting the events that day, the light conditions varied from high contrast bright afternoon sun, to soft, slightly overcast diffused light. I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to try out the Lomography Earl Grey ISO 100 black and white 35mm film, and put it’s capabilities to the test.

From Lomography’s website:

This film produces deep blacks, bright whites and soft shades of grey even under low-light conditions.

When I developed the film and saw the results, I was so impressed! This film has so much range, especially in the mid-tones. It is perfectly versatile for shooting in changing light conditions. It’s got a nice, wide exposure latitude, showing plenty of details in the shadows, and in the highlights, and indeed, it’s got rich looking blacks. There is some noticeable grain, but it’s not unpleasant, it’s quite soft, small and uniform. It reminds me of an older, classic black and white film, but with decent sharpness. Thank you Lomography for producing yet another exceptional black and white film! I’m looking forward to shooting more, and also trying the 120 version of this film.

Lomography Earl Grey ISO 100 film comes in 35mm and 120 formats.

Here are some photos from my recent roll of Lomography Earl Grey 100 35mm film.

Small Stage dancers. The #LoveBubble Project. Lomography Earl Grey 100 black and white film. Canon EOS1 SLR. Developed with Kodak HC-110 (1+31).

Small Stage dancers. The #LoveBubble Project. Lomography Earl Grey 100 black and white film. Canon EOS1 SLR. Developed with Kodak HC-110 (1+31).

Small Stage dancers. The #LoveBubble Project. Lomography Earl Grey 100 black and white film. Canon EOS1 SLR. Developed with Kodak HC-110 (1+31).

Small Stage dancers. The #LoveBubble Project. Lomography Earl Grey 100 black and white film. Canon EOS1 SLR. Developed with Kodak HC-110 (1+31).

And one more photo that I shot that same evening:

Boy with fishing rod at Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver. Lomography Earl Grey 100 black and white film. Canon EOS1 SLR. Developed with Kodak HC-110 (1+31).

All of these photos were shot with my Canon EOS1 SLR and home developed with Kodak HC-110 (1+31) developer. Epson V-850 Scan.

Vibrant Golden Apples on Film

Recently, I was going through some old boxes from my storage room, and I found a bunch of old film negatives. I’d forgotten about these photos that I shot sometime in the early nineties, but as soon as I saw them again, the memory of that moment came back to me.

It was during one of my visits to my parents place in Penticton, probably some time in December. I’d decided to take a drive out to Summerland, where I grew up. It was a very cold and grey, dull kind of afternoon and I was driving my car along a scenic backroad where there was a lot of orchards. I remember feeling rather melancholy because I was there all by myself. Most of the friends I grew up with had moved away.

While I was driving, suddenly, amongst the dull, frozen grey of everything, I spotted this bright, vibrant golden apple, still clinging to the bare tree! And then I spotted more of them! I immediately pulled the car over to the side of the road and parked. I pulled my camera out of the trunk. I think it was my old Canon EF back then, but I can’t remember for sure. Luckily I had colour film loaded in the camera, and I shot a bunch of photos of the beautiful, frozen apples. As I was composing the shots, I remember hoping that the film would pick up this same wonderful vibrance that I was seeing with my own eyes. Finding those apples completely made my day.

When I had the film processed, I remember looking at the prints and thinking that the yellow-gold colour of the apples was relatively vibrant, but not quite how I’d hoped. It wasn’t a limitation of the film, it was the print. Most film processing shops back then would use auto colour/levels balancing resulting in somewhat homogenized looking prints. I didn’t have a darkroom back then, so I would usually get my prints from these common film labs. If I wanted something better, I had to get enlargements from the reputable labs that specialized in professional quality prints.

Today, nearly thirty years later, I’m so happy to have the technology to scan and finally display this photo exactly how I’d intended it to be seen, with all of it’s wonderful vibrance. For the record, these are straight scans, with no adjustments in photoshop. The Fuji Reala film all those years ago, truly did record the beautiful colours accurately, and the film hasn't faded at all.

Frozen golden apple. Summerland, BC.

Frozen Golden Apples. Summerland, BC.

Apple orchard in winter. Summerland, BC.

Dance on the Street

I love shooting dance. All kinds of dance, especially ballet.

Last weekend, I had the privilege of shooting a pop-up performance by Ballet Bloch Canada, at The Polygon Gallery’s outside water feature, in North Vancouver. These were young dancers, probably between 12 - 16 years old, and they were amazing! Their show was called “On the Water”, based on Swan Lake, with some lovely classical music.

I shot with my Hasselblad 500c, Canon EOS 1, and Canon 5Dmk III. Lighting was tricky, because it was around 5:30 pm when they were performing, and there were strong shadows from the gallery, with bright, high-contrast light from the sun, and the dancers were moving in, and out of the light. I shot with Kodak Tri-X 400 film in the Hasselblad, pushed to EI 800, which worked quite nicely, because of the huge exposure latitude with that film. I developed that film at home the same night, and scanned it the next day.

Here are some photos from On the Water, featuring Ballet Bloch Canada:

Ballet dancers. Hasselblad 500c, Kodak Tri-X 400 120 film pushed to EI 800. Developed in Blazinal (Rodinal) 1+25 5:53 at 25°C. Epson V-850 scan.

Ballet dancers. Hasselblad 500c, Kodak Tri-X 400 120 film pushed to EI 800. Developed in Blazinal (Rodinal) 1+25 5:53 at 25°C. Epson V-850 scan.

Ballet dancers. Hasselblad 500c, Kodak Tri-X 400 120 film pushed to EI 800. Developed in Blazinal (Rodinal) 1+25 5:53 at 25°C. Epson V-850 scan.

Ballet dancers. Hasselblad 500c, Kodak Tri-X 400 120 film pushed to EI 800. Developed in Blazinal (Rodinal) 1+25 5:53 at 25°C. Epson V-850 scan.

Ballet dancers. Canon 5Dmk III.

Ballet dancers. Canon 5Dmk III.

Ballet dancers. Canon 5Dmk III.

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See the original photos on Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/markklotz/

The Hasselblad

I’ve wanted a Hasselblad for as long as I can remember. I’ve shot photos with so many different kinds of cameras, but there’s nothing quite like the Hasselblad—It’s a classic, with an incredible history, and reputation. For medium format photography, it simply can’t be beat, especially with those Carl Zeiss lenses.

Well, as luck would have it, back in November, I came across a local ad online for a Hasselblad 500c. The price was very reasonable, and so I went for it. I made arrangements to meet up with the fellow who was selling it, just outside of the Commercial Skytrain station. I’d paid him in advance, something I don’t normally do, but I needed to secure this camera before someone else got their hands on it. It was the right thing to do, because from the moment he placed the ad, at least eight people showed interest.

So I met him in his van, just off Commercial Ave in Vancouver, and he gave me the camera. He also threw in a nice roll of expired Fujichrome Provia 100F Professional RDP-III 120 film, which was the first roll of film I loaded into the Hasselblad.

It has taken some practice getting used to using the Hasselblad 500c, but I absolutely love it. If you want to use a Hasselblad for street photography, you need to work extra hard. Finding your subject, and then focusing just in time, is no simple task, but it’s very rewarding when it’s done right. This particular model, the 500c, has a waist-level finder, which I think is perfect for street photography. It allows you to remain virtually unnoticed while you focus on your subject, because your camera is at your waist—unassuming, and nonthreatening, from your subject’s perspective. It is, of course, a lot easier using an eye level finder (optional for all Hasselblads, including mine) but again, getting a sneaky candid shot can be more difficult when you’re holding a very large camera up to your face.

Hasselblad 500c with Zeiss Planar 80mm f/2.8 lens, at f/11 1/500. Kodak Tri-X 400 film, pushed to 1600. Home developed in Joanne’s Kitchen Sink.

As soon as I got my beautiful new Hasselblad home, I couldn’t wait to show it off to my Honey Bunny Joanne. We give most of our cameras their own special names, and for this Hasselblad, Joanne came up with the name Apollo. A perfect choice for this camera, because this was the model used by the NASA Apollo 8 Lunar mission where they shot those incredible photos from the moon!

I shot some portraits of Joanne, too. She’s not only a great artist and photographer, she’s also a lovely model!

Joanne, beside the Polygon Gallery in North Vancouver. Shot with my Hasselblad 500C (Apollo), on Rollei RPX 400 black and white film, pushed to EI 1600. Developed in Joanne’s kitchen sink.

Joanne on Lonsdale, in North Vancouver. Shot with my Hasselblad 500C (Apollo), on Rollei RPX 400 black and white film, pushed to EI 1600. Developed in Joanne’s kitchen sink.

Lovely Joanne. Shot with my Hasselblad 500c with Foma Holga 400 Black and White Negative Film. Pushed to EI 1600. Developed in Joanne's kitchen sink.

I’m looking forward to shooting some upcoming events with Apollo. Stay tuned!

Hot One Inch Action Button Art Show

My Lovely Joanne and I went to the Hot One Inch Action button art show, a few weeks back on October 20th. What a great time! Such a fun event! Thank you, Hot Art Wet City!

I shot these photos with my cool little Lomography Simple Use Film Camera, loaded with Lomo Lady Grey 400 black and white film, home developed with Kodak HC110(b) 5:30 minutes, in Joanne’s kitchen sink.

Lomography Simple Use Camera (Reloading Your Film)

How to reload film into your Lomography Simple Use Film Camera.

Yes, even though they look like disposable cameras, you can reload these Lomography instant cameras with film, over and over again. They are a lot of fun to use, and fairly inconspicuous too, which makes them great for street photography.

This one is the black and white film version, and comes with a wonderful roll of Lomo Lady Grey 400 black and white film, which I have already shot and processed (see my instagram photos). Last week I finished off a roll of expired Kodak Ultramax 400 color film in this camera, and now I am loading a roll of Kodak Tri-X 400.

Open up the camera (cut the paper seal on the bottom first).

Pop a roll of 35mm film in the film compartment on the right, hold it in place, and pull out a short length of film.

Adhere a small piece of tape to the end of the leader on your film, lay the film flat across the camera and secure the taped end to the film take-up spool on the left.

Advance a bit of the film around the take-up spool using the little crank handle on the bottom left side of the camera.

Be sure to switch the film release switch to the left position, (the switch is on the top right of the camera, just to the left of the film advance winder on the top right of the camera) which will disengage the film advance winder. (This is only temporary, until you have finished loading the film onto the left film spool.

Before you start rolling all of your film onto the film spool, make sure to securely close the camera door, as to not expose your film. Use the little crank handle to gently wind all of the film onto the left film spool. There will be some resistance, but go slowly, and be gentle, so you don’t break off the little crank handle. (If you break off that little handle, you’re screwed). Keep winding until you feel it come to a stop. Your film is now ready to shoot!

Press the shutter release button, and advance your film normally with the winder.

These cameras have a built in flash, and the battery can easily be replaced. It takes a AA size battery.

It’s pretty simple! Have fun, and use your camera until it wears out.

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I Shoot Film

Last March, my Lovely Joanne gave me a whole bunch of wonderful and unique films for my birthday. Needless to say, I was very excited, because we both love shooting film!

These are some very unique films, some of them rare and difficult to find. These films all have distinct and unique characteristics, some of them are entirely in a league of their own. 

Several of these films can be home developed, which is great, because that is something Joanne and I love doing as well. We develop all of our black and white film at home, and we even have the capability of developing our colour C41 film as well, with the Arista C-41 Developing Kit, another great birthday present from Joanne! I know, I'm lucky! 

We have a dark bag (or changing bag) for loading our negatives onto the reels and into the canisters for processing, because we don't currently have a darkroom, but the system works great. We hand develop our film in light-tight developing canisters in Joanne's kitchen sink, (and drink some wine) and after all of the chemical processes are complete, we rinse the negatives and hang them to dry in the bathroom.

We get our negatives scanned at Rocket Repro, in Gastown Vancouver. They are incredibly good at film, and we get amazing results from them, every time.

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The Film

I'd like to start with the experience I've had recently with shooting and developing Film Washi D ISO 500 Panchromatic Black and White Surveillance Film "Sputnik" (Spy Film). First of all, I should mention how excited I was to receive this film, because it's not easy to get, and it's not cheap. But it's SO worth every penny. Before Joanne gave me this film, I had never heard of it before. The company that makes this film is very small and they work very hard researching a developing wonderful, unique films. Have a look at their website.

I’ve got to say, this film is in a category all of its own! It’s incredible with rich and unique characteristics that I’ve never seen before in film. High contrast with very rich details, even in the darkest darks. That sounds impossible, right? High contrast with high detail? That's what I thought too, until I saw it myself. So much detail, that this 35mm film looks like medium format. 

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 Salvador Dali's Woman Aflame ©2018 Mark Klotz Film Washi D 500 Sputnik Panchromatic black and white film.

This film was really quite tricky to load onto the developing reel in the dark bag, because it's a very soft film. It doesn't quite have the rigidity that most film has, and so it doesn't readily catch in the bearings on my reel. It took several attempts, and then it finally slipped on. There are a few workarounds for this though, that are worth mentioning here. From their website:

"Being a very thin film, "D" can be delicate to load
 in processing tanks: you can tape a piece of thicker
   leader film onto it to make it easier to introduce
                                         in the reel.
                 Tested with JOBO and PATERSON reels."

For the developing, we chose to develop the film with Blazinal (Rodinal) 1+25 developer, which worked very nicely with this film.

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Joanne with her rangefinder camera. Film Washi D 500 Sputnik Panchromatic black and white film. ©2018 Mark Klotz

Look at those rich, dark tones and details!

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Joanne with her rangefinder camera. Freelensing version. Film Washi D 500 Sputnik Panchromatic black and white film. ©2018 Mark Klotz

We have some more of this film, and Joanne has just loaded some into her Canon EOS 1N RS SLR camera. I'm very much looking forward to the results!

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The big Q at Lonsdale Quay, North Vancouver. Freelensing version. Film Washi D 500 Sputnik Panchromatic black and white film. ©2018 Mark Klotz

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