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Category: Photography

  • First attempts at color film processing with CineStill Cs41

    First attempts at color film processing with CineStill Cs41

    Up to this point, every image I had developed was processed by The Darkroom photo lab. They do fantastic work! I wanted to start processing my own film, though, and after a brief discussion with the folks at Bernie’s Photo Center in Pittsburgh, PA I learned that the color process had recently been simplified into a two-step process. Temperature control was still just as important as ever, but the timing was easier to handle. I figured, why not?

    I quickly learned that just because you can still find Fujifilm 400 at your local WalMart or CVS doesn’t mean it’s worth buying. Chances are if you live in a small town like me, that film has been there for nearly a decade and is expired. That was certainly the case with my first few rolls, but I also cannot rule out the fact that there is a learning curve to developing film – especially in color – so the quality on these first images is sketchy. By the third or fourth roll, I feel like I was getting the hang of it, even if my color correction of the negatives still left a lot to be desired.

    I also switched from scanning on a lithe table with a mid-range DLSR, to using a dedicated 35mm scanner, which helped to bolster my confidence in the process immensely.

  • Surf City 2025

    Surf City 2025

    Probably my first attempt at earnestly taking good photos with film, I brought the Minolta X-370 (and several other cameras) with me to Top Sail / Surf City, NC for vacation. Still very green, I made a lot of mistakes, but it was during this trip that I caught the bug and decided film photography something into which I wanted to dive deeper.

    Looking back at these photos now, I can start to see some potential. My issue then, as it is now, is that I’d grown so accustomed to quickly snapping a pic and moving on. Film honestly demands more from you, and it starts with slowing down and paying attention. Sure, you need to consider light and composition, but you cannot ignore that each shot comes at a literal cost. Is this image worth taking? Developing? Printing? Displaying?

    For the majority of these photographs, no. They are snapshots of my vacation. In that sense, they are special to me, but they are not portfolio-worthy. Not every photo needs to be.

  • Surf City Sunrise

    Surf City Sunrise

    Clearly having not learned my lesson about lugging the C33 around when I still didn’t have a real good handle on using it, I took it with me on vacation at Surf City, NC, and once again attempted to capture a sunrise. At this point, I didn’t actually have the Bear Rocks photos back yet, so I still didn’t know what to expect.

    It’s not that these photos are bad. They’re fine. It’s that I wasted six (SIX!) rolls of 120 Portra 400 for seven mediocre images. That hurts, but it’s part of the learning process. I ran when I should have walked, and I paid for it.

    At least some of the clouds look lovely, and I do like the shot of the man with his dog.

  • Polaroid SX-70

    Polaroid SX-70

    I sort of regret selling my old SX-70. It was the “Sonar” version, with autofocus. It was in great shape, but the scarcity and cost of SX-70 film meant it sat on the shelf gathering dust. I experimented with some of the filter and flash options available at the time, but it was never as good as it should have been. I also stand on the fact that modern Polaroid film is only acceptable to those who never experienced the original.

  • Shaking out the cobwebs

    Shaking out the cobwebs

    With a week-long beach adventure fast approaching on the calendar, I decided to break out the Minolta X-370 again and put a roll through it. I planned on taking it and a number of other as-yet-untested cameras with me to decide which I was going to keep and which I was going to part with (Spoiler alert: I only parted with one, and I regret it).

    I took the camera with me to go hang out with some friends, and while I’d like to blame the soft focus on my poor vision, there may or may not have been some other factors involved.

    The thing is, though, I like these shots. They are as blurry and chaotic as the evening turned out to be. Not every photo was worth sharing, but they all represent the moment perfectly, and I think that’s more important than perfect lighting and tack-sharp focus.

  • Fuji FP-100c and FP-3000b

    Fuji FP-100c and FP-3000b

    Oh god, I miss peel-apart instant film. Damn Fuji for ending it and refusing to let another company take over production. When these photos were taken, it was about $11 for a pack containing 10 shots. Now a well-expired pack goes for over $200, with no guarantee that it will expose correctly.

    I loved the way colors would render with FP-100c as it gave everything a dreamy, instagram-filter feel but you know… authentic. The black and white photos had a lovely curve in the tonality that I found lovely, and of course the magic of instant photography never really fades. I experimented with recovering negatives by bleaching the part of the film you’d normally throw away, with mixed results. I mostly shot on a Polaroid Land Camera, and on a few occasions a Polaroid Big Shot – for the times I wanted to pretend I was Andy Warhol.

  • First shots with the Minolta X-370

    First shots with the Minolta X-370

    Like a true child of the 80’s, I took a photography class in high school. I absolutely fell in love with the process of developing film and making prints, but once the class ended, I no longer had access to continue experimenting. A few of those old photos survive, but aren’t worth sharing, as I had no clue at all what I was doing.

    Some time around Christmas 2017, I obtained a Minolta X-370 and a pair of lenses. The camera had belonged to my wife’s uncle, who had passed away. Having just had a few rolls from the Mamiya C33 developed, I was interested in getting back to shooting 35mm and reliving that classic experience.

    The X-370 sports an aperture priority mode, so it was a much simpler experience than the C-33, but it was still a manual focus camera, and even in my 30’s I refused to wear corrective lenses, hence a lot of soft focus. I really didn’t understand how aperture affected the depth of field yet either, so combine that with shooting mostly indoors on Christmas and it makes sense that these images are less than stellar. Still, they invoke a sense of nostalgia, and I smile whenever I look at them – but a lot of that has to do with my son’s Christmas morning hair.

  • Sunrise at Bear Rocks

    Sunrise at Bear Rocks

    In November of 2025, I joined my wife and father-in-law on a hike in Davis, WV to see the sunrise from Bear Rock near Dolly Sods. I thought I could handle lugging the Mamiya C33 up the hill and dealing with the low light levels without a tripod. I could not. At least if I was smarter, I would have sprung for Portra 800 instead of 400, but alas – I was still learning.

    I wouldn’t actually get these photos developed until much later, but I was satisfied with a few shots. Specifically, the last two here are personal favorites from this day. They were underexposed, but I like how they look with the blacks lifted.

  • First shots with the Mamiya C33

    First shots with the Mamiya C33

    I was gifted a Mamyia C33 TLR camera by my sister Audra back in 2016. It was in great shape, and I had no idea how to use it at all. It was my first exposure to medium format film and my first fully manual camera.

    Thankfully, we live in modern times, and I was able to locate a manual and a few YouTube videos online. Thanks to eBay, I was able to snag a light meter for a few bucks as well (not so easy to do these days) and ran a few rolls through it.

    I enjoy using the C33, but due to its size, weight, and being fully manual, it’s most often found on the display shelf. I do get it out every once in a while, however, and am almost always pleased with the results.