Indiana Diary II

February 02, 2018 in journal

Long exposure #FAIL, Chicago, January 2018

February 01, 2018 in journal

Last week, I got to spend a few days in Chicago. And of course, I brought my film camera gear with me. The hotel we stayed at had a very sweet view, so before going to bed to take a well deserved nap I set up my camera and left it taking a 40-minute long exposure. But it was a fail.

Long exposures at sunrise or sunset times are very tricky.

Sunset Tree, Salt Point State Park, November 2017

February 01, 2018 in photographs

Camera and Lens: Bronica SQ-Ai, Zenzanon PS 80mm f/2.8
Film stock: Ilford HP5+
Exposure: 800
Developer: Ilfotec HC

I saw this tree earlier that day, and I knew I had to take some photographs at sunset or near sunset time. I did take a few shots from the sides, but I wasn't fully happy with those compositions.

I kept walking around the tree, looking for new angles, when I came across a picnic table that had the best perspective of it. Sitting down on one of the benches, I made this image of the silhouette of the tree.

7 Bronica SQ-Ai Shooting Tips

January 31, 2018 in journal

I've been shooting quite a lot with my Bronica since I got it last year. I brought it with me to the mountains, to the desert and to the shores of oceans and lakes all across the country (see my [American Road Trip series on YouTube).

I sat down and I thought about some tips I would've loved to know about when I started shooting it. Hoping they help someone, here they go in no particular order.

American Road Trip Journal #15: Salt Point State Park

January 29, 2018 in journal

New episode of the American Road Trip, number 15!

This time we car camp in Salt Point State Park. This spot is some 2 hours south of Mendocino and 2.5 hours north of the Bay Area.

We went back to Point Arena from there: the weather was much nicer than last time and also Rachel didn't get to visit it last time. Walking on the headlands of this place was one of the most relaxing things we did during the whole road trip.

Salt Point is not very big, but it's still beautiful and perfect to catch a sunset, which is what we did.

We also visited the coast of Sonoma County so I checked a few extra places I'd never been to.

Next episode, San Francisco! My favorite city in the United States.

Shooting film in Notre Dame, South Bend

January 26, 2018 in journal

If you follow college football, you know Notre Dame. Their team is very popular nationwide, or at least that's what I've been told (I'm not a huge football fan, although I do watch games from time to time and I have my favorites - the Seahawks and the Ducks, of course!).

ND game in Fenway Park, Boston. The only football game I've been to so far. It was fun!

Even though we are now very close to South Bend, I'd never been to the actual campus. So taking advantage of a trip I had to make there, and given that the hotel where I was staying was literally next door to the university, I finally paid a visit to the place.

I only had one hour at the one parking lot I could find that didn't require a permit, and it was very, very cold (as usual). So the photos are nothing amazing - they could've been much better if I got there just 5-10 minutes earlier though, while the snowstorm was still strong.

I'll have to go back and spend some more time there.

"Snowstorm", Indiana, January 2018

January 24, 2018 in photographs

Camera and Lens: Bronica SQ-Ai, Zenzanon PS 150mm f/4
Film stock: Ilford HP5+
Exposure: 800
Developer: Kodak D76
Others: Orange Filter

On my way back from New Buffalo, I took some secondary roads looking for some farms and farm equipment that would look good in that weather: snow and heavy, dense fog.

I found a few scenes but it's hard to find a place to stop on those roads, and they can be dangerous when the visibility is so low. So I couldn't spend much time there nor shoot all the images I wanted to. But I still managed to come back with a couple I really like, this being one of them.

See more photos of Indiana.

How I found time for landscape photography while having a day job

January 24, 2018 in journal

Time is precious. Being a landscape photographer requires a lot of exclusive time but most people don't seem to have it. These are some things I used to do that helped me find that time.

"Island in time", Point Arena, November 2017

January 23, 2018 in photographs

Camera and Lens: Bronica SQ-Ai, Zenzanon PS 80mm f/2.8
Film stock: Ilford HP5+
Exposure: 800
Developer: Ilfotec HC

I can't say enough good things about Point Arena, one of my favorite spots in the whole coast of California.

On my second day there I found a mostly sunny day, very different to what I'd had a couple days before that. This weather and the beautiful landscape were calling for some long exposures, so that's what I did here.

See more photos of Northern California.

America Road Trip Journal #14: Mendocino County

January 22, 2018 in journal

Mendocino was the first "new" place to us on this road trip. It was an entirely new landscape for me to explore, and I finally had the time to do so.

Based in Fort Bragg, I spent some 2 and half to 3 full days driving and hiking around the cute small towns and beautiful coastal line that this part of California has to offer.

You can't really go wrong here: not only you have the southern part of the Lost Coast very close, but also places like Glass Beach or Mendocino Headlands.

And further south, my favorite of them all: Point Arena. I took some long exposures there that are some of my favorite photos of this road trip so far.

"Frozen rocks from a frozen world", Lake Michigan, January 2018

January 19, 2018 in photographs

Camera and Lens: Bronica SQ-Ai, Zenzanon PS 80mm f/2.8
Film stock: Ilford HP5+
Exposure: 800
Developer: Kodak D76
Notes: Orange Filter

These big, frozen rocks were the first thing that caught my eye once I got to New Buffalo, Michigan. An inch of ice was wrapping them, like big ice cubes. They were smooth, very slippery.

I knew I wanted to photograph them, but I couldn't find a good angle / composition so I gave up and headed towards the beach.

On my way back, I looked for more images near the jetty and saw those rocks again. It was by far the most interesting thing in that place, and I still didn't have an image of it!

I finally found what I was looking for, just when I was ready to give up again due to the freezing wind chills. I saw this space in between four of those rocks, filled with snow, and I decided to compose it. I took two exposures but this is the best one.

Probably not a shot that will speak to many, but it reminds me of that day, brings back feelings of the cold, ice and snow. Frozen rocks from a frozen world.

"Windmill", Bonneyville Mills, Indiana, January 2018

January 19, 2018 in photographs

Camera and Lens: Bronica SQ-Ai, Zenzanon PS 80mm f/2.8
Film stock: Ilford FP4+
Exposure: 125
Developer: Kodak D76

There aren't many places to explore around here in Northern Indiana, so I'm trying to take full advantage of those few I've found so far. One of them is Bonneyville Mills.

I wasn't alone that day so I didn't have as much time as I would've loved but I still managed to take a few shots, some -like this one- will be part of #fp4party!

See more photos of Indiana.

no filters

orange filter

Orange Filter example: Monument Valley, Arizona

January 19, 2018 in journal

I've had color filters for quite a while now, but only recently I started using them to my advantage. In fact, the orange filter lives -almost- permanently on my lens now.

Shooting film in New Buffalo, Michigan

January 18, 2018 in journal

Last week, I headed just over the Michigan border to photograph a beach I visited 4 years ago in New Buffalo. But it's been so cold that the place doesn't look like a beach at all. It's a frozen world.

"Redwood", Avenue of the Giants, November 2017

January 17, 2018 in photographs

Camera and Lens: Bronica SQ-Ai, Zenzanon PS 50mm f/3.5
Film stock: Ilford HP5+
Exposure: 800
Developer: Kodak D76

This is my favorite shot from our last trip to the Redwoods. It was a quick drive through the Avenue of the Giants so I didn't have too much time, but I did get to enjoy these magnificient trees again.

Watch the video about the Redwoods.
More photos from Northern California.

American Road Trip Journal #13: Redwoods

January 16, 2018 in journal

Episode 13 of the American Road Trip Journal.

The Redwoods! The talles trees on Earth.

We drive through the Avenue of the Giants, where some of these huge trees have had their home for hundreds of years.

It's a very short video because this was just a stop on our way to Mendocino, where we'd stay for a few days after this.

I took a few shots but I don't talk about them this time. They were mostly snapshots so I'm not going to pretend that I gave them much thought. I still hope you enjoy the episode!

Grand Canyon, December 2017

January 15, 2018 in photographs

Camera and Lens: Bronica SQ-Ai, Zenzanon PS 150mm f/4
Film stock: Ilford HP5+
Exposure: 800
Developer: Ilfotec HC

No matter how many photos of the Grand Canyon you'd seen, or heard about it, or read about it, it will happen: your first glimpse of the canyon will take your breath away.

I got that glimpse little by little. I got to the Canyon almost an hour before sunrise in a very cold morning (4 layers of clothing under my coat wasn't enough for the wind chills) and I promptly headed to the nearest viewpoint.

There was enough light to realize I was in front of something big, very big. But the deepest parts of the canyon were still in darkness so I couldn't grasp the full scale of it.

I took this photo well before the Sun rose just behind me. I needed to do something to fight the cold, and thinking about exposing some film helped me in that battle.

I wasn't expecting much of the photo though. Not only was it dark, but also very hazy.

But I love the result. This image looks almost like a painting, and it's my favorite from that morning, against all odds.

See more images of the Grand Canyon.

Of scanning, writing and reading

January 15, 2018 in journal

This weekend I took some "time off" from the blog and the YouTube channel to work on some things that needed my attention.

Scanning

I scanned 14 rolls of film: 8 from the road trip and 6 of my most recent shot rolls. I'm still working on this as we speak, I have another 18 from last year.

Writing

I also worked on my upcoming free ebook, "Examples of the PNW". It's finally coming together and I hope to have it out very soon. Consider subscribing to my newsletter to get it as soon as it becomes available.

Reading

Finally, I did some reading as it's one of my new year's resolutions. I've finished 3 books this year so far: Purple Cow by Seth Godin, How to sell your art online by Cory Huff and Astrophysics for people in a hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson. The topics couldn't be more different! I might talk about them in the future, I'm not sure yet.

Photography-wise, I'm still working on Ansel Adam's The Negative. A book that has proven to be a bit too dense for me, although packed with very useful information. I recently started Why people photograph by Robert Adams, book I'm enjoying a lot, and I have some more coming in the mail soon.

And now, back to our regular programming.

"The Elkhart Truth", Goshen, January 2018

January 12, 2018 in photographs

Camera and Lens: Bronica SQ-Ai, Zenzanon PS 80mm f/2.8
Film stock: Ilford FP4+
Exposure: 125
Developer: Kodak D76

Walking around downtown Goshen, I stumbled upon this scene: a frozen newspaper in the snow.

I shot this image handheld and using a relatively slow ASA (FP4 box speed is 125), so I used a wide aperture. Focusing wasn't easy but I got the paper in focus - although it might not look like it on some parts because it was covered in ice.

I took a couple exposures because I really liked the scene, and it turned out as I was hoping.

Watch the video Shooting film in Goshen, Indiana.

See more photos from Indiana in the archive.

Yesterday, I had the most fun time shooting in a long time

January 12, 2018 in journal

We've been in Indiana for two weeks already, and besides a couple of quick outings, I haven't been shooting much. Yesterday, I decided to stop being lazy about it and just get out. My destination: the Indiana Dunes, some one hour and a half away.