I had the house to myself today, so I set up a backdrop and pulled out the strobes for a few large format film self-portraits using the Linhof. These were all shot with the Linhof Master Technika on HP5 Plus, developed in HC-110 for 5 min (Dilution B) and scanned on the V750. I triggered the shutter by biting the bulb. Try that with an iPhone ???? [ Self-portrait (2021) I can’t explain it

The Leica M3 is The One, when it comes to the Leica M line. I love it so. The higher-magnification viewfinder makes it easier to focus longer lenses, so I sometimes mount the Elmarit 90mm and it’s a fine combination. A few here are using the 90mm. The others are using the Summicron-M 50mm (v4). P The roll of HP5 Plus was processed in HC-110 (Dilution B) and scanned with SilverFast on the V750. ...

A friend of mine mocked me for carrying a camera around my neck and I said, “I like to always have a camera with me.” and he held up his phone and said, “I always have a camera with me, too, see?” and I asked, “Does it take film?” and he laughed and said, “No, of course not.” and I said, “Then you don’t have a camera with you. You have a computer that can record images.” and I’m kind of a dick I guess. ...

My Leica Elmar 9cm collapsible lens was made in 1957, making it nearly 70 years old, and it shows. The front element is hazy, causing images to be very low-contrast. Here’s an example (mounted on the SL2-S)… Hazy self-portrait with Leica 9cm f/4 collapsible It’s like a real-world Instagram filter and I don’t care for it. If it were in better condition, I might like the overall softer look for portraits. ...

  Jonathan Slack: But this is not just about Chromatic aberration, as Peter Karbe explained to me, the lack of aberrations results in much more contrast at the point of focus than in an ordinary lens, and that this contrast falls off very quickly in front and behind the point of focus. This means that an f/2 lens can appear to have the same depth of field as an f/1.4 lens (or even less in the case of the 75 f/1.4 compared to the 75 f/2 M lens). ...

I was surprised to find that I had 55 rolls of various 35mm and 23 rolls of 120 negative film stocks just wasting away in my fridge. I mean, look at this treasure trove! Rolls of 35mm film from my fridge I’ve standardized on Ilford HP5 Plus for black and white film and Kodak Portra 400 for color. This doesn’t mean I won’t try something different occasionally, but those are my go-to films. ...

I’m trying to use up the rolls of expired TMAX 100 that have been taking up room in my fridge for a few years. I pulled the Nikon F3 out of a drawer, loaded batteries in the motor drive, and shot a roll. As usual, it was mostly photos of Alice and I around the house. The film was processed in HC-110 (Dilution B) for six minutes and scanned on the V750. The first couple were shot using the vaunted Nikkor 105mm f/2.5 AI-s lens, for what that’s worth. The others were taken with the Nikkor 28mm f2.8 AI-s. ...

I love the way the Zeiss lenses for Hasselblad render. The 80mm Planar has been my standard and favorite for years. I put a roll of Tri-X through it today, just for fun. Of course it was mostly shots of Alice, who poses patiently for me whenever I ask. Alice (2021). Hasselblad 500C/M. Zeiss Planar 80mm f2.8. Tri-X Big Linhof and the little Leica IIIf. ...

The gentleman who sold me the Linhof later sent me (at no charge!) a Grafmatic sheet film holder. The Grafmatic will hold up to 6 sheets of film at once and allows one to “rapidly” expose them. Here are some instructions. I loaded four sheets and went out on the deck with Alice to practice. As you can see, it didn’t go all that well. Loading film into the septums was easy enough. And racking the guts of it in and out to “advance” to the next sheet is something I’ll get used to. My problem was that I never advanced past the last frame I shot and then opened the dark slide, exposing and completely wasting one sheet and fogging the next couple. Other than the frontmost sheet, which was totally ruined, this was the worst of them. ...

Take a look at this list from my notes about how I manage my photos: 2019-01-01 I’ve decided I’ll be using Lightroom CC. 2021-05-15 Don’t listen to 2019 me, I’m using Lightroom Classic 2021-06-03 Don’t listen to May 2021 me, I’m using Capture One now. 2021-08-12 Don’t listen to June 2021 me, I’m using Lightroom Classic again. 2021-08-15 Don’t listen to last week’s me, I’m using Capture One. Obviously, I struggle with which tool to use. I was certain I’d “permanently” settled on Lightroom Classic just a week ago. In my comparisons, Lightroom wins nearly every category. But there was this entry: ...

For example, currently, we don’t have likes. If and when we launch a feature in that vein, it’ll be private. We’ve intentionally avoided any public counts. We don’t want Glass ever to become a popularity contest. We’re not home for influencers. We are a home for photographers. Tom Watson – On my Om Wouldn’t it be nice to have a reasonable alternative to Instagram? I wish it could be Flickr, but I doubt that’ll ever happen. ...

There are too many things that can go wrong when shooting large format (4×5) film. I made four exposures of my friends Steve and Bryan this afternoon. Two of the four were ruined right off the bat: The first, because I’d left the shutter open when pulling the dark slide. The second because I didn’t expose it at all and processed as though I had. Large format is hard. There are so many opportunities to fail that making a successful image is really quite rewarding. Today wasn’t a rewarding day. Both of the photos that weren’t completely ruined were spoiled in other ways. ...

Mostly snapshots from our family reunion. Leica MP, HP5+.

Anyone who’s dabbled in large format photography knows the name “Linhof”. It’s one of those companies with a long history and a reputation for building some of the best 4×5 field cameras available. I’ve always been curious about them. Are they really “the Leica of large format”? My first 4×5 camera was a beat up Burke & James press camera. Then a beat up Crown Graphic. Then a Speed Graphic, and finally a Wista Field Camera. The first three were super cheap. The Wista was bit more serious, but it was such a beautiful wooden camera. ...

First, I have to admit that I’m not a fan of Instagram. Viewing tiny little photos on tiny little phones fed to us between advertisements in an order defined by a giant anti-privacy, disinformation-spreading corporation is the worst way to enjoy photography. But, Instagram is where photographers are and I kind of want to be there, too. I want to focus on only photography (rather than socializing with friends and family) so I’ve created a new account to do just that: JackBatyPhoto. So, go ahead and “smash that Follow button” or whatever it is we’re doing now. ...

After a year of buying really nice cameras and lenses, I’ve gotten to a point where I’m feeling the weight of having so much money tied up on photography gear. Some of it has to go. This post is me thinking it through. I hate selling gear. Dealing with buyers and potential buyers isn’t fun. Shipping is a pain. There’s always a risk of damage, loss, or dissatisfaction. But mostly, the problem with selling is that I no longer have the things I’ve sold. Regret sucks. ...

I’m either going to have to shoot this faster or stop drinking Diet Coke.