DIGITAL

Summer Journal 2021

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One photo a day through out the summer. One camera, one lens, all in black and white. Those were the premises I sat for myself. I have been inspired in the past by photographers that do a 365, meaning one photo a day for an entire year. I couldn’t commit to such a large project right now, but thought I would do something similar over the summer. Both to spark my creativity and to make memories for me and my family. I focused on different things. Sometimes a light, a shadow or something else that caught my attention that day. It could also just be something random och something we or I would do on that particular day. I really enjoyed this process and I felt it gave more than it took. I like having a camera around and to try and catch the moment. I have done this one time before on Tri-X film but this time I wanted to try digital.

I like the instant gratification with digital and also the workflow, using Mastin Labs preset for Kodak Tri-X. I think it comes fairly close but lacks the extra bit of grain you get with film. The camera I chose to use was the Fujifilm X-PRO2. Both for the image quality it gives and for it’s form factor (close to my Leica M7). The lens was the Mitakon 35mm 0.95. I love that lens for several reasons. First it’s a true manual focus lens. Meaning that it resembles the focusing I have on my Leica lenses. It’s also heavy and made of metal. Just a feeling that I’ve come to like over the years. I tend to shoot a lot wide open. Both for that 3D effect I often get on medium format cameras. But also to bring out the character of the lens. I’m not after perfection and extreme sharpness in a lens. More the look it gives. And lastly it’s a 50mm equivalent in 35mm terms, and that is my favourite focal length. I use it primarily on all my cameras systems.

Many of these images are maybe only relevant to me but maybe someone will get inspired by what I’ve done here. I will probably make a photo book out of these projects for my kids to keep. Thanks for looking :)

 

Rural decay - A 60's bar fading away

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This restaurant and motel opened up in 1962 in the small town of Brännebrona, along the road to Stockholm. In Brännebrona were only a few farms at this time. Ernst Skarp was a man with visions, who grew up on one of these farms. First he had a few houses built and then this restaurant/motel. It soon attracted people around the area for dining and dancing. The Rolling Stones stopped here for a Swedish fika in 1963 during their tour around Sweden. At first the building had a different design then we see today. But in 1972 it got this spectacular look, designed to attract people travelling on the road in their car. Inspired by American roadside architecture, or Googie architecture, that spread around Los Angeles at the time.

I shot mostly my Hasselblad with Kodak Portra 400. But in time for the scans I have these digital images. The back side of this restaurant/motel reminded me of rural America with tones well suited for black and white.

All shoot on Fujifilm X-PRO2 and the Mitakon 35mm 0.95. Edited with Rebecca Lily Presets.

 

My summer journal 2021

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Inspired by those of you that manage to do an entire 365, meaning one photo a day for a year, I’m now doing a similar project over the summer. I have done this once before. That time it was one camera, one lens, one film (Leica M7, 50 summicron, Tri-X). This time it’s a mix of both film and digital but still in black & white. It’s something poetic about that with suits my style for this project. What do I photograph? It could be just a certain light, a detail in my surroundings or something else that summons up the day I had.

The gear I’m using this summer is still the Leica M7, 50mm summicron V4, Tri-X metered for the shadows and pushed one stop in development. Scanned by Carmencita Film Lab on the Fuji Frontier 3000. On the digital side I’m using the Fujifilm X-pro2. A camera I just got and that really helps me in getting the imagery I want. It’s almost as simple to use as the M7. I turn off the LCD screen and focus manually. Initially I used the X-pro1. A lighter camera, which I like, but with inferior evf. So that made me upgrade. But still the pro1 is a great camera in many ways. The lens is the phenomenal Mitakon speedmaster 35mm 0.95. About a 50 1.4 in 35mm terms and has a really nice micro contrast and 3D separation. Bokeh? Melting :)

For post processing I use Mastin Labs Kodak Everyday Original and the Tri-X preset. Just two clicks, one for the preset and one for “All soft”. Then maybe adjust the exposure a bit. That’s it. Another favourite among presets are Rebecca Lily presets. I use her SET V for b&w.

Working like this gets me the consistency I’m after with my photography. I can work seamless between film and digital and enjoy both worlds. I will do the entire post after the summer when all is developed. But I will update images to this post as we go along.