American Road Trip Journal #17: Salton Sea

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After a month on the road and a week of heavy eating in San Francisco, we were a bit tired when we got to Southern California. Hot temperatures (for December) didn't help either.

We tried to visit LA but the smog was so thick that we decided to skip it. Palm Springs, a small town farther inland, was a nice place where I recharged batteries before the second half of our trip.

One of those days, I drove to the Salton Sea. It was the most surreal place of the whole trip and an experience that will not be easy to forget.

I found incredible post-apocalyptic, decaying landscapes, but the mud and the putrid, fetid smell I found once I got out of the car weren't things I was hoping to find there.

That night's sunset was one for the books. It was quite spectacular and it helped to make me feel like I was in some other planet, in a decaying, abandoned, fallen planet in a Star Wars universe.

Not the best photos of the trip by any means, but what an evening I had there.

Shooting Film: Indiana Dunes

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The Indiana Dunes is one of the very few places I have here (within driving distance for a one-day trip) where I can take somewhat outdoors photos.

I'd never been to the place before, so I'm not sure what's going to look like when the snow melts. I've seen photos and to be honest, it's a bit "blah".

But now, in winter, it's a landscape I'd never seen before. This video is the first of my already multiple trips up there, and probably not the last one to come (last time I was there, the lake was frozen as far as I could see - truly an amazing view).

American Road Trip Journal #16: San Francisco

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This was my 6th or 7th visit to the city of San Francisco, and after trying and failing all of those times, I was determined to get the shot I always wanted: the San Francisco fog, at the Golden Gate, at sunrise. It took me a few days and a few toll payments, but I finally got it.

Some more things in the video, along with some random comments about some of the photos.

See more photos of San Francisco.

Developing HP5+ at 1600 using D-76 and TF-4

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Short video about developing Ilford HP5, shot at 1600 ASA, using Kodak D-76 and Photographer's Formulary TF-4 as the developer and fixer respectively.

Recipe is as follows:

film stock: Ilford HP5+, 120 film
temperature: 70F - 21C
developer: Kodak D-76, 1+1
...notes: 18 minutes, agitation / inversion of 10 seconds
stop bath: water
...notes: 3 rinses, 1 minute agitation
fixer: Photographer's Formulary TF-4
...notes: 6 minutes, agitation / inversion of 30 seconds
wet agent: Kodak Photo-Flo

Shooting film in Chain O Lakes, Indiana

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There aren't many places where you can go out and enjoy nature here in Northern Indiana, and they require some driving to get to. But they are going to be my playground for a couple more months, so I'm spending some time getting to know them.

The first one, Chain O Lakes, is 40 minutes away from where we live. It's far from being "wilderness", but it does offer some nature that you can enjoy mostly by yourself at this time of the year, as long as you avoid the smaller lakes, crowded with people ice fishing.

As usual, I shot Ilford HP5+ with my Bronica SQ-Ai, although I also loaded Fuji Acros 100 for the first time. I only got to get one shot with this new film (for me) over there, and it's at the very end of the video.

7 Bronica SQ-Ai Shooting Tips

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7 Bronica SQ-Ai Shooting Tips

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.

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