Well, I’ve scanned some of the 35mm film that I processed in Caffenol-C and I’ve posted a few shots to my Flickr site at http://www.flickr.com/photos/peterhovestad/ . As you’ll see on the image posted here and some of the ones on Flickr as well, there is some major sprocket action going on and I can’t say as I know why. Not that I mind when the “Angel of Uncertainty” strikes this way but I’d still like to know what caused this. The film is old Kodak Max400 C-41 process colour film. I had 2 rolls sitting in a dresser for 5 years or so. The roll that this image is from had been in a camera once before, had 2 exposures taken, then rolled back into the cartridge for future use. Both rolls were processed simultaneously in stainless reels in the same 2 reel stainless tank. Caff-C was a 1/2/4/8 solution @ 68 for 18 minutes
I also did a roll of FP4 with a roll of home rolled TMax 400 as above in a double reel tank. Both rolls were of indeterminate age and history. The Ilford was totally botched, probably due to some misfortune in it’s past, and the TMax had it’s own issues which I’ll credit to the learning process, although for the most it part turned out okay.
2 @ rolls of Tri-X and 4 sheets of 4x5 Tri-x in HC-110 turned out pretty much as expected. That is to say predictably good.
The Bessa that I got myself for X-Mas has been a delight to use so far. It’s taken a little getting used to shooting with a rangefinder i.e, remembering to take the lens cap off. It’s amazing though how quickly you fall back into the film shooting mode once you start. Without all of the distractions afforded by a digital camera you can focus on taking the picture.
“Please don’t let me screw it up but screw it just a little bit; just enough to make it interesting” — Sally Mann’s prayer to the Angel of Uncertainty
Well, that was interesting. I’ve spent the evening souping 4x5 Tri-X 320 and 35mm Tri-X in HC-110 - Results pretty much as expected.
Then, in Cafenol, I steeped 2 rolls of old MAX400 C-41, a home rolled T-Max 400 and a roll of Ilford FP4.
The Ilford was an exposed roll that I found in a dresser and I’ve no idea what was on it - looks like I’ll never know. Heat / Light / Fate have made it a mash of light and dark in the classic messed up film looking way.
The T-max turned out pretty good. I steeped it in the same 2-roll can as the doomed Ilford and for the most part it looks pretty good. A surprise given that when I poppped open the back of the Bessa to pull it out earlier today I saw that one end of the home rolled film cartidge was ajar. I promptly stuffed it under my jacket to hide it from the light until I got it into a cannister and popped a lid on to minimize the damage.
The 2 rolls of MAX400 colour C-41 film were processed together in cafenol-c and look very interesting. I did those 2 rolls first in the classic 1/2/4/8/ solution for 18 minutes at 68F and the negatives came out of the can very dark. We’ll see how they scan tomorrow. Based on how dark these turned out I did the FP / T-Max rolls for 16 minutes.
So, tomorrow we’ll drop these dried negs on the scanner and see what we have.
Oh, and the IPA is Phillips Original IPA from Victoria, B.C.
Latest eBay score arrived yesterday - caffenol-c experience starts later today.
On the Knowledge Network tonight - Annie Leibowitz: Life Through a Lens
Well, December wasn’t the most productive month artistically speaking even though it was a fairly busy month photographically speaking. Assuming a volunteer position as photographer for the Prince George Symphony Orchestra as they enter their 40th year I had several events to document on their behalf. With thousands of images to sort through for keepers and tweak then post for the orchestra’s use combined with pretty consistent -10C to -20C temperatures there wasn’t much motivation or energy for more shooting. I did shoot a bunch of 35mm film which I have yet to process and some of that will hopefully show up in January’s uploads. Happy New Year, everyone.
DVD Review: What Remains | photography24seven.com -
Great review of a great film. This sometimes shows up on television, usually on the Knowledge Network, and is well worth watching whether you catch it on TV or buy the DVD. I’ve watched my recording from a TV broadcast several times now and I have the DVD in my Amazon shopping cart now, knowing there’s additional features there to see.
my photo gallery is this way > > > -
Digital capture and scanned film.
Love him or hate him, sometimes K.R. can make a lot of sense.
Always Carry A Camera | photography24seven.com -
Until I get organized to start writing my own blog entries I’ll continue to post things like this link.