2022, December
27 December 2022
You can easily adopt a new habit as long as you link it to an existing routine. So from today I will pair my morning coffee with both reading a book and studying a photo book.
25 December 2022
The most annoying thing about Boxing Day is always this suddenly obligatory family walk.
But if you can grab any time for some footage. Why not.
24 December 2022
An ideal end to Christmas Eve. The girls watch the TV show "All You Need is Love". Me and my son want to develop the fully shot roll from earlier in the evening. All shot with my new Kodak Ektar H35. We will let it dry and scan it tomorrow morning.
I had some issues with scanning. I expect it's because of the half frame. When you do portrait and landscape modes mixed, the scanner don't always recognize where to cut the image. It shouldn't be a problem I guess when you put a bit more effort in the scanning itself.
I've used the Lomography Earl Grey B&W ISO 400 and Flash for both the first two photos. Don't mind my the finger. It's just my kid's current phase. I get these all the time and don't take it personal.
What I like is this lomography style of shooting again. Only thing to keep in mind that the photos from these cameras are dark inside. With the flash light the subject will be okay but anything behind it is almost unrecognisable.
The other photo is from Amsterdam Noord. Cloudy day, shot without flash. The painting style is what I like. Again to realise you will not see a lot of details from such a distance.
23 December 2022
When I walked out of the doctor's practise this morning I saw this image. So many doors, both inside and outside. What seemed like so many choices to me and at the time a lot of chaos. But behind every door lies a different answer.
I haven't make any photo's with my phone for a long time. But when I made this photo with my phone too quickly with the kids in the cinema this afternoon, I was happy with this unconsciously taken picture.
22 December 2022
Oops... I did it again. After buying the Reto UWS I have now bought the Kodak Ektar H35.
For my type of images, half frame can work. And shooting double the amount of film will motivate me more to shoot.
I've decided to buy it for the first time from a dutch one person store called BuyMoreFilm.
Support your small local and online stores. Just like BuyMoreFilm they make it personal. A short personal hello note makes it a pleasure. I'm happy to buy more film from this store!
18 December 2022
Last week when I walked through the Flevopark I already saw this tree in the asphalt. At that time I already made a photo with the Reto UWS, but the photo that came out was a bit too dark. Not clearly visible that the tree was in the asphalt. Today we walked through the park with the whole family and I made the photo (digital) again.
Although I could have made the picture better by not including the garbage can. I find this very funny in combination with people who are half in the picture in the background and my son who leans against the tree in the front left with his football.
16 December 2022
Earlier this month I've bought a €30 Reto UWS camera and a week later GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome) tricked me to buy the Ricoh GV-3 OVF.
And to justify the purchase, I was already hesitant to buy this one anyway. The pleasure of the viewfinder in the Reto UWS confirmed me to look at it again.
Still can't believe the €299 pricetag for this. However, I found an occasion at the store for € 229. Still too much but I trusted it. Think that many people buy this GV-3 and then don't need it.
You have to be sure that it will work for you. Even though the viewfinder itself is small, I have no problem putting it right to my eye right away.
For example, in contrast to my Olympus MJU II, which also has a viewfinder, I never automatically place it against my eye correctly the first time. With the GV-3 attached I can still put it in my pocket. So the ergonomics and convenience of this GV-3 are good.
Because the GV-3 is not an EVF you are still dependent on your screen for the settings.
Since I shoot snap focus, not seeing a focus point and focusing in the viewfinder is not necessary. But when you use the autofocus and focus point it is annoying not being able to see this in the viewfinder.
For street photography it can be an advantage that you look through a viewfinder.
You can hide behind your camera, you look through the viewfinder at someone and when they look at you you can act more like you're focusing on something else. This works better than trying to look closely at the screen. At least for me.
Another undercover tactic - you look through the viewfinder and if you take your eye away, you still continue shooting. Someone no longer notices or thinks you don't make photos.
But honestly the reason you want to buy this is to have the pleasure of connecting and engaging with your subject when looking through a viewfinder.
15 December 2022
I was a little impatient to also fill up my second roll into my new Reto UWS. The first film roll was mainly from Flevopark, and that's exactly what I was going to do again today. Kind of lazy, I think I should have done something else. But hey, it's still about testing too.
I thought I could replicate the same one as I did on December 9 (see below at 09 December, the second photo). I had three shots but they didn't came out like that one.
In general I just need to realize that the photos are very dark and more of a painting look. Also with ISO 400. That's all fine if I want to capture this mood.
From these first two photos I had an issue with scanning.
The first one came out as a quarter of the full frame and on the second one there are a lot of scratches. I can repair this but I also think it has something interesting.
I would love to test out a roll with ISO 100 but the light is not that bright at the moment. I will load another ISO 400 and try some more downtown.
14 December 2022
Normally my son doesn't feel like playing soccer. But today in the freezing cold he thought it would be a nice idea. So we go to the court in our street. At the student resident I saw a sad little Christmas tree in the window. I didn't necessarily want to make the picture right in front of the window. And just did a quit shot. However, maybe I should do it more precise again. The reflection of the real tree and the sad Christmas tree in the window has something interesting.
Just two more images in the evening for my being afraid of the dark section.
13 December 2022
I was so impressed by the shots from the Reto UWS. Therefore I went again to the Flevopark.
Shooting both with the Reto UWS and Ricoh GR. I used the same settings ISO 400, F8 and 1/125.
I have three shots left on the film. So for now just three digital ones.
09 December 2022
I have developed the film from my new Reto UWS.
More photos and my experience on this first roll here.
During the same walk I also had two digital ones from my Ricoh GR IIIX.
Lately I'm only shooting snap focus. Both shots snap on ∞ and F8 (SS 1/160 and 1/125).
07 December 2022
I don't often go downtown Amsterdam. But today I had to pick up something from a photographer who lives in the Jordaan, close to the center. A perfect opportunity to shoot with my new €35,00 Reto Ultra Wide camera. Focus Free, 22mm, F11, 1/125. This needs to slow me down in the way I'm shooting, which is a good thing. I've loaded some B&W ISO 400 Earl Grey Lomography film.
On my way back home the sun fell nicely on all parked scooters at Amsterdam Central Station. The two photos below are not made with the Reto but with my GR. And what really worked, instead of shooting too fast, I also slowed down digitally. And took the time to shoot.
Another thing I've tried for the first time later in the afternoon is the RAW Development in camera (Ricoh GR IIIX).
I had to wait for my son's guitar band rehearsal. It gave me some time to walk around outside shooting and trying out this workflow.
I like the fast way of developing in camera and I prefer the processed JPG outcome compared to the one I did in On1 later. I also think reducing highlights looks much better this way.
I need to experiment more if I prefer doing this.
Raw file edited in On1
Just basic exposure / tone adjustments
Edit in Camera
Changed Image Control to Hard BW and some minor exposure adjustments
On1 settings:
Another example. Here it looks a bit different. Not sure if I just did the same raw development settings. In this particular case I prefer the contrast more in the On1 edit. But I like the overall look from the in camera development too.
Raw file edited in On1
Just basic exposure / tone adjustments
Edit in Camera
Changed Image Control to Hard BW and some minor exposure adjustments
06 December 2022
Although I have always this love hate relationship with social media. There are positive things to it as well. Ofcourse you need to ask yourself how much worth a comment, DM, like or a follower really is.
Also ask yourself what it is that you bring in? Why is it worth people watching you? If you don't like or comment (in other words, give real feedback instead of clicking), why would anyone else put time into your stuff?
You can only expect something if you also contribute.
To give you some positive examples.
@MarcelBorgstijn asked me a couple of weeks ago if I wanted to submit my story for his new Un/Taken Episodes at Darkrooms on Substack. Read the episode here.
@Bas.Gevers asked me last week if everything still was okay with me. He noticed that all my posts on Instagram were removed and there were no new contributions on my site. We had a friendly DM and he actually triggered me to continue writing here and put all my old posts back again.
@William.and.camera makes beautiful photos and also shares a lot of stories (and fieldnotes). When I comment or he comments on my photos it always feels like a friendly chat.
@MaartenSteunenberg always gave useful feedback on my posts when I just started in 2020. We had a DM and talked about the local Amsterdam photoclub NAFVA he was a member of. A couple of months later I joined this (offline) photoclub as well.
05 December 2022
I enjoyed photographing Weesp and showing the area in just 10 images. It's something you can do for any neighborhood or place. Getting some groceries today. Very lazy I took the car. On the parking roof of the Albert Heijn Supermarket I saw the "skyline" of my own SciencePark. Good starting point to make a series about my own neighbourhood.
Later that day I took the bike to pickup my kids from school. When I drove out of the parking garage I saw the sad playground between our buildings. This horizontal bar has been installed by the municipality of Amsterdam. Typically a tick on the list that there is a playground for the children in this neighbourhood. Just too pathetic.
02 December 2022
I've received a new assignment for the workshop which I'm currently taking. We have to make photos of unknown terrain in Amsterdam. So I decided to go to Weesp. Since March 2022 a so-called urban area within Amsterdam. I cycled from Amsterdam East to Weesp in the morning and ended up at the industrial area. Drove around for an hour and this is my selection.
01 December 2022
Yesterday I made a photo from the dead mouse at front of the supermarket. Somehow I was just drawn to it. Today I saw it again however the truck supplying the supermarket had driven over it. I don't think the supermarket is going to clean it up. We all think it will go away on its own.
Is it lurid to make photos of this? Or is it just everyday life and dead, and shows how the city and nature are connected or not connected.
In my believe you don't close your eyes when you see this. If you don't look at it, does it not exist? Honestly I close my eyes and hearing often enough. Unimportant things that we often find too important. You're better off shutting those down.
