The Last Shot

  I seriously don't know how people can shoot 35mm film.  Not the format, that doesn't bother me - it's the fact that you've got to shoot either 24 or 36 frames!  I honestly can't go out and shoot that many frames!  I shoot mainly 6x6 which means i get 12 shots to play with.  Even so, i still often find myself shooting randomly just to finish up the last shot or two on the roll so i can go home and develop the film straight away.  I'm not the kind of person who can spread a roll of film out over a week or so, it preys on my mind and i picture all manner of light leaking through my camera onto my film.

  That being said, when it comes to taking holiday snaps 35mm is the way!  Jess and I recently went to Greenman festival in Wales as we do every August, and this year we took along our Yashica FR-1 and some rolls of Provia 100F.  We went a bit trigger happy but still only shot 3/4 of a roll (the curse of also having cameras on phones).

  The next weekend, however, we were off to Maryport in the Lake District to visit some friends of ours.  We took the Yashica along, of course, in anticipation of good times.  Good times were had, but mostly indoors in the dim light - not suitable for 100iso.

  Our friends have horses though.  Really nice horses.  I'm not really a horse fan but these horses are lovely.  I decided to finish off the last few frames on the roll taking photos of the horses because the light was nice and soft and one horse in particular had a lovely grey coat.

  The weekend ended (as it always does alas) and we headed home.  I posted the film off the next day (i don't yet develop my own E6) and then counted the days until it would come back to me in the post.  Back it came and i'm sat at my computer flicking through my holiday shots.  To my surprise the most stand out picture on the whole roll is one of the horse ones:

  I know it wont be everyone's cup of tea and it's not going to win any awards, but I like it because it is nice and soft and just has lovely detail.  And here we get to the point of this blog post - sometimes the shot you take to finish off your roll is the best thing you'll shoot all day.  It has happened to me many times, just taking a quick snap to complete the film and then that picture turning out to be the one you spend your time printing and framing.  It's strange how you can spend ages metering, filtering and exposing one frame and getting a very bland result, yet use guesswork and quick focusing on another and get the best shot of the roll.

  But this is photography and this is what we do.  Never be afraid of the final few frames on your roll, and never underestimate the power of a quick snap!

Borrowdale Camping

  A month or so ago i went camping with a small group of friends up near Keswick in the lake District.  Despite the flies and the dodgy weather we had a great time (especially since Jess had taken it upon herself to buy more meat than any couple could ever require).  Camping in the Borrowdale Valley is very peaceful as its basically a massive cul-de-sac bounded on all sides by hills and mountains.

  I had decided to take my Bronica SQ-A kit with me as i love it and Jess had bought me a huge Tamrac bag to keep it all in for our anniversary and i wanted to put it through its paces.  I really wanted to get some good mountain shots using some black and white but i brought a few colour rolls too for some general shooting.  Saturday morning was spent relaxing at the (very midgie'd) campsite.  The sun was shining and the bacon was tasty so i decided to load up some Fuji 64T II which i haD won on Ebay some time ago but never shot.  I got 15 rolls for an absolute bargain price and now seemed like a good time to use one.

  Later on we decided to go on a nice walk up the mountains (i forget the name of the one we went up).  Let me tell you now, medium format kits are heavy.  Especially when on a long hike up a big hill.  But i persevered, stopping to take a few shots when the light was right and the composition seemed good.  It was nice to just stop and take my time setting up the shot, choose what settings i wanted to use and think about how i wanted the final print to look.  We stopped just short of the summit as some were getting tired.  On the way back down my friend Keir and i lagged behind to shoot some photos of the river we were passing.  We found a really interestingly-shaped tree and fallen log that we spent some time shooting (im still working on the tree print-it is proving to be difficult to get it to look how i want it to) before re-joining our group shortly thereafter.

  All in all it was a really nice weekend and i had great fun shooting these 2 rolls.  I find it very peaceful to be on my own sometimes, taking my time and just shooting photos.

  I havent finished printg all my landscapes yet but here's my cross processed 64T II photos for you to look at.  I'm pretty chuffed with how they came out as a little research before-hand showed they tend to go very green/blue indeed but i think the colour cast on these is quite nice.  What do you reckon?

Parklife

  I am very fortunate in that I live about ten minutes walk from a park bound by a large river which leads directly to the city centre.  This is my route to work (when its dry enough to walk) and a convenient shortcut to the town shops. But on the hot humid days we have been experiencing lately its also a great place to take an evening stroll with a mandolin, a wife, some cider and a camera...

  Now go find a park near you and get snapping...

Fairy Steps

  About a year ago i went to Fairy Steps which is just north of Lancaster in Northern England.  It is a strange and ethereal place, especially if you go in the height of spring.  It is often referred to as the Bluebell Woods as, in season, bluebells blanket the forest floor.  Numerous large boulders and outcrops of limestone are dotted throughout the widely spaced trees and on a sunny day light seeps through the canopy, spreading slithers of warm sunshine through the air.  In one area steps have been hewn into the rock to form a narrow passageway.  It is said that if you can pass down the steps without touching the side walls then your wishes will be granted.  It almost seems like a location from The Lord of the Rings.  You're half expecting fairies to fly out from behind a tree and take you by surprise!

 I originially went to Fairy Steps with some friends on a rock climbing trip and was instantly taken with the peaceful and serene atmosphere of the place.  I soon returned with my girlfriend (now wife) for a photography trip.  We decided to go in costume and take a picnic to make a day of it.  It seemed to go well and i got one of my favourite photos out of it.  She didnt fare to well as we couldnt work ot how to load the film into her recently acquired Zenit E.  But that didn't stop us both from having a great day out and taking some lovely pics.

  If you're ever in the area i recommend it is well worth the detour to visit.  Maybe the fairy magic will rub off on your camera.