What is this blog?
Friday, December 31, 2500
So why the name? What does the name of the blog mean?
I started this project on February 18, 2017. The project takes place over the course ofa year (two years), I will photograph 52 people. One 10 exposure roll of medium format film per person with a ten-minute time limit to make those ten shots. So basically 520 exposures over the course of a year will be made.
What do I want to accomplish with this project?
I want to accomplish a number of things. I enjoy photographing people. I've slowed down in the number of portraits I've made in the past few years. I miss working with some aspects of shooting film. (Note: I said some aspects.) I miss working with the awesome film cameras that I used to work with. Most of the digital cameras today lack something. The digital camera is an amazing and efficient tool, they are fast, precise tools. Film often forces a photographer to slow down, slow wayy down. The process is slower - even being required to wait to see the images is a slowed down process, digital seems to be about speed.
How will I find subjects to photograph?
I will ask folks to sit for me. But if someone sees this blog and wants to sit for me I will definitely try to accommodate them. I am limiting the project to 52 people - I would like at least half of those people to be strangers or folks I don't know very well.
What film and cameras am I using?
I use a Mamiya RZ 6x7cm medium format camera. It uses 120 (medium format) film - giving ten exposures per roll. I will not be using Polaroid type films to check exposures. I will be using a handheld light meter to determine exposures. I will not use a digital camera to pre-check exposures or compositions. I started using Ilford's XP2 black and white (chromogenic) film at first - because of its forgiving nature and ease of use - but after determining that the lab I want to use is a 50 mile roundtrip, is expensive, and even more time consuming than I desire - I'm going to shoot black and white film and process it by hand myself. It will be more economical and efficient if I process the film myself. I like Ilford's HP5 film. But I've settled on the Kodak T-Max 400 and 100 films and use the T-Max developer. With traditional non-T-grain 400 films, I was getting too much grain. I LOVE the Kodak T-Max films, I've found that they seem to work best with the T-Max developer. T-Max 400 produces excellent results.
What do your subjects get from participating?
I hope that they enjoy being photographed - I will give each subject a print of their choosing from their shoot.
Why did you ditch the ten-minute time limit?
Often during editorial portrait assignments, I would have a very limited time to photograph some of the subjects I was assigned to make images. I once photographed a woman in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, DC. I had the shot all set up and tested beforehand - she arrived and was on set for a total of 43 seconds! I made about 20 frames of her. I don't know if she was seriously THAT busy that she couldn't be photographed any longer than that, or just hated being photographed. I did get the photo that was needed. I set the ten-minute rule as a challenge - but I found that I was cheating myself and the subject out of making better photos. I was also making big mistakes under the ten minute time frame. So I ditched it. Now I just attempt to make ten good photos.
So what happened to the goal of finishing this project withing one year?
52 portraits in one year is a lot of work. I accomplished half of the goal in one year and I'm really happy about that. See this post to read more about making and not making goals.
How can folks who want to participate reach you?
Send me a message here or at filmproject520 at yahoo dot com
I started this project on February 18, 2017. The project takes place over the course of
What do I want to accomplish with this project?
I want to accomplish a number of things. I enjoy photographing people. I've slowed down in the number of portraits I've made in the past few years. I miss working with some aspects of shooting film. (Note: I said some aspects.) I miss working with the awesome film cameras that I used to work with. Most of the digital cameras today lack something. The digital camera is an amazing and efficient tool, they are fast, precise tools. Film often forces a photographer to slow down, slow wayy down. The process is slower - even being required to wait to see the images is a slowed down process, digital seems to be about speed.
How will I find subjects to photograph?
I will ask folks to sit for me. But if someone sees this blog and wants to sit for me I will definitely try to accommodate them. I am limiting the project to 52 people - I would like at least half of those people to be strangers or folks I don't know very well.
What film and cameras am I using?
I use a Mamiya RZ 6x7cm medium format camera. It uses 120 (medium format) film - giving ten exposures per roll. I will not be using Polaroid type films to check exposures. I will be using a handheld light meter to determine exposures. I will not use a digital camera to pre-check exposures or compositions. I started using Ilford's XP2 black and white (chromogenic) film at first - because of its forgiving nature and ease of use - but after determining that the lab I want to use is a 50 mile roundtrip, is expensive, and even more time consuming than I desire - I'm going to shoot black and white film and process it by hand myself. It will be more economical and efficient if I process the film myself. I like Ilford's HP5 film. But I've settled on the Kodak T-Max 400 and 100 films and use the T-Max developer. With traditional non-T-grain 400 films, I was getting too much grain. I LOVE the Kodak T-Max films, I've found that they seem to work best with the T-Max developer. T-Max 400 produces excellent results.
What do your subjects get from participating?
I hope that they enjoy being photographed - I will give each subject a print of their choosing from their shoot.
Why did you ditch the ten-minute time limit?
Often during editorial portrait assignments, I would have a very limited time to photograph some of the subjects I was assigned to make images. I once photographed a woman in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, DC. I had the shot all set up and tested beforehand - she arrived and was on set for a total of 43 seconds! I made about 20 frames of her. I don't know if she was seriously THAT busy that she couldn't be photographed any longer than that, or just hated being photographed. I did get the photo that was needed. I set the ten-minute rule as a challenge - but I found that I was cheating myself and the subject out of making better photos. I was also making big mistakes under the ten minute time frame. So I ditched it. Now I just attempt to make ten good photos.
So what happened to the goal of finishing this project withing one year?
52 portraits in one year is a lot of work. I accomplished half of the goal in one year and I'm really happy about that. See this post to read more about making and not making goals.
How can folks who want to participate reach you?
Send me a message here or at filmproject520 at yahoo dot com
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