Cine lens on Leica M3, new film stock from Santa, creative photo competition winners, multiple videos about truth, and how to convey it in photographs, the ISS in front of the moon, Hasseblad ketchup, a 200mp cellphone in the making, La Gacilly, clarity vs texture, DIY digital camera, DIY film camera, the definitive recipe for fame and fortune, my “new” obsession, the history of Zeiss, war photography, Magnum NFTs, Warhol being naughty, and more.
Still no rain (Ansel – not Robert – Adams style)
Clouds but no rain. And not that far away, hailstorms so powerful that houses need new roofs. It’s strange, but that feels like low entropy to me. Greater separation rather than uniformity. So it can’t be the end, right ? 😉
Anywayyyy, I have good news.
Particularly for those who got tired of me talking about film all the time. Not that anything cured me. Surely you weren’t expecting sane news from me, good will have to do 😉 But the HiFi bug is beginning to hit me hard again, so one obsession is quite likely to chase another. It’ll come back of course, in a cyclical mad house manner, but it’s still a rest for digi-lovers (and no, turntables aren’t going to replace film in my mad ramblings. But you may see more photographs like this one, in the near future 😉 )
Fraenkel is one of the most interesting galleries out there. And Robert Adams one of the most brilliant b&w photographers. I’ll break my no-film vows briefly to wonder aloud how many of the photographs in those books would be possible to day with digital and its harsh highlights, firmly believing the answer is “not many”. Any, pretend it’s your birthday and get yourself one of those books. Or three. You will not regret it.
The title says it all. But this photograph goes for creative rather than purely scientific. Here’s how it was made (a gentle nudge for telescope owners among us 😉 ) And here’s where you can buy a print of it.
If you’ve not been to La Gacilly, do consider it. Lovely scenery (Brittany) lovely little village, lovely food, and a great open air photo exhibition that never disappoints. This year appears to include a retrospective of Abbas’ work.
Work by photographers such as Peter Turnley or, here, Robert Gumpert, blur the lines between strict documentary and fine art. Post processing is exquisite and necessarily asks the question of whether an image depicting sadness or cruelty can also be a pretty object. Does this detract from the message being conveyed or does it help it. I think it helps.
Similar questions are raised here. What gets the message across? Is documentary about truth of ethical fiction? How do you convey a particular experience without making a spectacle of it? How do you juxtapose images to create layers of meaning (yes, again 😉 ) Warning: quite graphic at times.
The title says it all. Top results from a creative photography competition. Not all appeal to me but some are brilliant, in particular the winning entry.
You know the channel, you know the style of the photographer. Now, see it in infrared. What I find the most interesting is that – to my eyes – the photo made in overcast conditions, is by far the best. Can too dark a sky be a bad thing, I wonder 😉
Oh, the French and their weird obsession with film and cinema … what a pain 😉 Gotta give it to him, the result is superb. So why does he have only 237 followers ???? Aaah, Instagram does love photographers. Here’s his, if you feel like raising that number.
Is playing catch-up to the GFX100, for more money, such a big update, though? Hassy never had the bigger film format, the fastest bodies. Hassy thrived on quality and prestige. Is this where the X2D is going? I sure hope so, there might be unannounced surprises. But the rumour, as such, is a bit of a let down to me. Plus the representative at the source of the rumour also announced the brand is closing its French bureau. So, not that positive, really.
Yes, film. But please bear with me. One the video is hilarious as usual. Two, it’s about a “new” film that’s being crowdfunded as we speak. So the team needs every help it can get. If you are at all interested in film or know people who are, please buy/share. Not everything needs to be analog in this world, but we need alternatives! Freedom relies on choice. You can fund photographic freedom, right here.
Noone said you would get trained 😉 You, however, can train Google’s AI to recognise doodles. And it’s strangely addictive, like playing a game of pictionary against your computer. Of course, you can also be a bad boy and draw counter examples 😉 😉 But training to draw is actually super useful for composition. Give it a go 🙂
Fascinating, in-depth history of Carl Zeiss. Mostly about the scientific aspect of their contribution. Now, if we organised a collective prayer, would they cater again to photographers ? Please ?
Anthropocene
… continued from the top.
Back to madness. The watch photographed towards the top of this page is wonderful. It’s my “adventure” watch and bears the scratches that go with the job proudly. Although the photograph masks it, the watch is bright blue, like a smurf timekeeper. I love love love love love watches.
But that’s one madness that’s not for me anymore. As much as falling for HiFi kit is still (possibly) still in my future, more watches probably aren’t. Watches require maintenance. Costly maintenance. Get enough of those pretty monsters in your collection, and you’re looking at a decent monthly salary, just for maintenance. I kid you not. And whether I can afford that or not is irrelevant to the matter. There is a vibe that goes with the idea that doesn’t sit well with me. A bit like buying cameras that lose value and require permanent FOMO replacement. The idea of self sufficiency that comes with a mechanical watch is betrayed by the heavy reliance on frequent TLC.
As I grow older, my tastes migrate towards low-tech simplicity, low-maintenance relaxation. Others might say Zen, but I’m too scruffy for that. Hence my being drawn to film. Although, on second thought, a laptop on my knees feels a lot more low-maintenance than running to a lab and spending days scanning. So, yeah, maybe I’ll yet spring for a spring-drive or adore a Dora Goodman (hmm, that 6×12, yum.) But that will be the exception, not the rule. Digital is, and does.
Old, me?
Challenge reminder 🙂
Last orders please. The challenge closes its doors in a week’s time.
For those discovering it, the idea is to submit pairs of photographs that create a special meaning to you, that is not present in either pic taken in isolation. Please send to pascal dot jappy at gmail to com, with your name and “overtone challenge” in the tile. Each photograph should be about 1500px long side and in jpeg, labelled clearly so that I won’t make a mistake assembling the pairs.
As usual, what did you think of the news, the photos and what would you like to read about in the future? Leave a comment 🙂 And have a great week-end.
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Gumpert’s work really resonates with me. Over many years, I have developed very strong views about issues like poverty and homelessness. Too many times I’ve heard the “opinions” of the sneerers, absolute rubbish like “it’s their own fault – they should get a [better] job”. And absolute rubbish like “trickle down economics”.
Seeing those images has kind of derailed any thoughts on the other topics, Pascal. I’ll move over, and leave it to the others.
Gumpert’s work really resonates with me. Over many years, I have developed very strong views about issues like poverty and homelessness. Too many times I’ve heard the “opinions” of the sneerers, absolute rubbish like “it’s their own fault – they should get a [better] job”. And absolute rubbish like “trickle down economics”.
Seeing those images has kind of derailed any thoughts on the other topics, Pascal. I’ll move over, and leave it to the others.
Thanks, Pete. And I agree.