Morning folks - well, after the doom and gloom of the last post, I've only gone and done it!
Whit? Biled Yer heid at last Y'big lummock?
Er, no, not quite, and forgive the above local parlance.
Y'see, I live (according to the BBC) in one of the newest, most urgent, creative cities in the world - yes, it's Dundee . . .
As a creative icon (sic) of said city, I can write what I want, so get it up ye!
WTF Sheepy? WTF??
Well, the V&A Dundee has opened to 'worldwide' acclaim, and though I am not from here (just entrenched as it were) I can say that my heart has swollen with civic pride at the thought of all that Scottish-Central-Belt-Bias being coughed out in surprise, that the Wee Hard Toon has such an iconic, beautiful and, I believe, game-changing building. A lot of people in Glasgow and Edinburgh will now be asking:
"Why Haven't We Got One Of Those?"
No pretensions though - this town will bring you down to earth with a bump if you get too Up Yersel'.
Anyway, back to what I only went and done:
I travelled . . . to foreign climes . . . well, the eye of The Storm actually . . . Brussels . . . with film and a film camera!
Actually, this is the second time we've been there, having fallen in love with the mad place a few years back. I know it sounds boring, everyone thinks it is a boring place filled with dull Belgians, wittering on about complex things . . and you know what . . no way is that true.
Anywhere that can give you a statue of a giant Smurf (and I HATE Smurfs) that makes you laugh, or a museum dedicated to the most wonderful Magritte, or one dedicated to Sewers, or a totally bonkers cafe with over 2500 Belgian beers in stock, should be praised. Anywhere that can cover the link between the mess of the 21st Century and the hard idyll of medieval times with such panache and downright individuality is alright with me.
Brussels is a 24/7/365 sort of place - there's something happening all the time. It is also achingly photogenic from beautiful buildings to parks, to dogs, to rough bars, to traffic, to the pantheon of all races lumped together in one place - a real city of mankind. We felt sad to leave actually - it felt to me like a place I could live and I am not a city person.
Anyway, X-Rays, film and travelling:
Well, y'know there's a lot of conflicting info out there, so take it from me, a confirmed film nut:
Up to a certain point, travelling normally and passing hand luggage through a few scanners, you are more than likely fine.
Mine was Ray-Gunned 3 times in total in my hand luggage and it has lived to tell the tale. In fact the bag inspector looked at my Tri-X and said:
"Och that's only 400, not 3200 . . . it'll be fine!"
And sure enough. Even taking it through the scanners in the European Parliament, it was fine, so, please take it from me:
It'll be fine!
So, on that note, why did I take a 35mm camera after making my avowed stance on the last FB?
Well, convenience actually and also reliability. I nearly freaked out and fell back on the Sony A6300, but was firm with myself, had a good chat behind closed doors, steeled my will and packed the Nikon F3 with the Ai-s 28mm f2.8 Nikkor.
I had wanted to take the Rollei T, but the last film I had through it showed some serious frame spacing issues, and I also felt that should I encounter problems with taking a few rolls of Tri-X through scanning, how would that be exacerbated with 120 film?
So, good ol' reliable Nikon. Not the M2 with Summaron - I often think you can look like a 'target' with a Leica - though to be fair it is very unusual to see ANYONE with a film camera these days. Even the mega giant Nikon and Canon SLR's and holiday compacts seem to have been supplanted entirely by phones - how fecking sad . . . whilst a phone is convenient, I laughed aloud when I saw what an iPhone did to direct sunlight on someone's holiday photos (Is that a lump of ectoplasm or an amorphous blob worthy of Ghostbusters? Nope, it's the sun!).
It takes a fine photo in the right circumstances, but it is not a camera.
Anyway, gripes aside, I had fun with the F3 - sure it is loud and clacky, but it has a damn good metering system and with an Ai-s lens is convenience in itself.
Here's some pics - mostly phun with rephlections.
The first 5 are prints made on some very old Tetenal RC, developed in Kodak Polymax (liquid Dektol).
Can a litre of paper developer last a year in a bottle? . . . in the case of Polymax . . yes.
It is genius stuff.
The last two are shitty scans from the negative - I much prefer handling a print.
 |
| Tickets Please Nikon F3, Nikon 28mm f2.8 Nikkor, Kodak Tri-X, Pyrocat-HD, Wet Print - Tetenal RC |
 |
| Who Is That Weirdo, And Why Is He Taking My Picture? Nikon F3, Nikon 28mm f2.8 Nikkor, Kodak Tri-X, Pyrocat-HD, Wet Print - Tetenal RC |
 |
| Hmmmmmm, Sheephouse? Nikon F3, Nikon 28mm f2.8 Nikkor, Kodak Tri-X, Pyrocat-HD, Wet Print - Tetenal RC |
 |
| Not Him Again . . . Nikon F3, Nikon 28mm f2.8 Nikkor, Kodak Tri-X, Pyrocat-HD, Wet Print - Tetenal RC |
 |
| WTF? Nikon F3, Nikon 28mm f2.8 Nikkor, Kodak Tri-X, Pyrocat-HD, Wet Print - Tetenal RC |
 |
| The Correct Use Of A Smurf Nikon F3, Nikon 28mm f2.8 Nikkor, Kodak Tri-X, Pyrocat-HD, Wet Print - Tetenal RC. |
 |
| Atoms Dream Of Atoms Nikon F3, Nikon 28mm f2.8 Nikkor, Kodak Tri-X, Pyrocat-HD, Scan. |
 |
| Crumhorn Mania Nikon F3, Nikon 28mm f2.8 Nikkor, Kodak Tri-X, Pyrocat-HD, Scan. |
And that is it really - more 'serious' photography will commence shortly, though I have lost a whole Summer of morning light again - never mind, Mushn't Grumble . . .
TTFN and remember:
How can I take care of yours if you've not taken care of it yourself?
PS:
Le Grand Schtroumpf is your man!
