Black and White

Barcelona Dark III

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A short set of new images in the Barcelona Dark series. I am gradually managing to tame the processing and also gradually migrating away from 50mm to 35mm for the shots – largely because the 35mm is noticeably easier to focus and hand-hold. Some of this might just be psychological, but fear of failing to get rapid and accurate focus with a 50mm means that I seem to have more close-up images of subjects with the wider lens. These are also somewhat more randomly framed than usual. Not sure if […]

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Black and White

Back to film?

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The M7 is now back from its latest repair attempt in Leica, and I have shot a couple of test films to re-check the focus calibration and metering. So far, it looks promising. The metering is now usable at ISO 400, and ISO 1600 looks ok down to about 1/8th second (a huge improvement from before, where it was failing at 1/125th). But…

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Black and White

State of Disrepair

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I have not shot much film this year because my main 35mm film camera, the M7, has been at Leica for a shutter curtain replacement. The camera came back at the start of March, but to my dismay the first films showed a substantial front-focus that was obvious even with subjects many meters away. Rather than endure the six week round trip to Wetlar again, I opted to recalibrate the focus myself. Three test films later and with everything seemingly ok, I then set out to run some tests for […]

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Black and White

Day Shine

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A short set of street images, this time exploring the use of a diffusion filter in bright sunlight. This is a slightly weaker filter than was used for Night Mist, and I prefer the results better. When shot in diffuse daylight the effect is an almost imperceptible loss of contrast, so these shots were specifically shot with as much light and contrast as possible…

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Black and White

Sun and Rain

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A short set of recent street images shot on black and white film with the M7 in Barcelona. It has been a very unsettled spring, with alternating spells of torrential rain and blazing sun. Somehow these are coordinating with the calendar to land all the worst weather at the weekend! Shot on the Leica M7 with a mix of 35mm and 50mm lenses on Ilford Delta 400.

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Architecture

Man Made

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Trying something different this week, with a set of five (quasi) architectural images, again shot with the M7 and Ilford Delta 400. While the grain tends to add character to the street images, I am not sure that it works so well for these kinds of shots.

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Black and White

City Life II

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Scenes from summer in Barcelona, shot on Ilford Delta 400 film with the M7 and 50mm C-Sonnar. The temperature and humidity here at the moment are completely unbearable – and half of the fridge has been taken over by film and chemicals to stop the heat spoiling them. Who needs food :-)

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Black and White

City Life

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A selection of ordinary street scenes in Barcelona. It would be tempting to post about last week’s apalling terrorist attacks and subsequent far-right clashes. But the city will go on unperturbed, and ultimately that is the only riposte that matters. Lastly, for anyone interested in potential solutions to the problem of ISIS and similar groups (in which I include extremists such as the so-called alt-right movement), this New Scientist article on radicalisation is an excellent starting point. All images taken with the Leica M7 and Zeiss 50mm C-Sonnar on Ilford […]

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Black and White

Market

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People at Encants market, Barcelona. These are from the last (ever?) roll of Delta 3200, exposed at box speed and processed in ID-11 stock. A number of these were hip (well, chest…) shots taken while moving through the crowds – something that is only possible with a 50mm lens thanks to the high ISO which allows a fast shutter speed while stopped down.

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Black and White

Barcelona Nights I

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The first of two sets of night-time street images taken in Barcelona shot on high-ISO film. The intention was to capture something of the night-time in Barcelona with a vintage-look. Away from the main streets it can be very dark in Barcelona.      All images taken with the Leica M7 and Zeiss ZM 1,5/50 with Ilford Delta 3200 metered at EI1600 and processed in ID-11. The lens was shot wide-open, partly because shutter speed was a problem even at EI1600, but mostly because I really like the glow around […]

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Photography

Four Doors

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    Four doors. Four futures. Which will you choose?     Street art and sealed doorways, shot around Sant Martí (Glòries and the warehouse district), and in the Raval, Barcelona. The images are a mix of Leica M 262 with Zeiss ZM 1,5/50 and the Ricoh GR. And almost, but not quite, entirely unconnected with the events of last week in any way whatsoever.

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