All posts by dcphotoartist

Cameras, Color, DC Cityscapes, Medium Format Cameras, Night-time, Photography, Washington DC

Nighttime in the fog

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A few nighttime photos in the fog. I think these really captured the atmosphere of the evening. It had been warm in the daytime, then rained, and when the rain stopped, it was already dark, so we ended up with this cool fog. I wanted to capture that feel of the streets at night in the fog, and since I live somewhere very residential, I figured this was a pretty safe place to do it as there wouldn’t be much traffic to worry about if I stepped into the street for a four second exposure. All these were taken with my Rolleiflex, on expired Fuji NPH 400 film. The reason why I’m shooting all this expired film is not that I’ve got some kind of outdated film fetish, or that I’m a cheap-ass bastard and refuse to buy fresh film, but rather I’m just having fun experimenting and I don’t want to use “good” film on experimental stuff if I have some old film that nowadays is for all intents and purposes free but for the processing cost.

But what about the square, you say? Aren’t all Rollei photos square? Well, I do love square photos, and that’s one of the reasons why I love the Rollei so much. But there does come a time when you have to look at the photo and decide if a crop makes the image stronger. In all of these cases, the original square composition had too much something – too much sky, too much foreground, etc. So I cropped for more dynamic compositions that didn’t have so much dead space in them. I think these are much better.

Red Light, Green Light, Fog, 11th & Euclid
Red Light, Green Light, Fog, 11th & Euclid
Daring Cyclist, Fog, 11th & Euclid
Daring Cyclist, Fog, 11th & Euclid
Fog, 11th & Euclid, #1
Fog, 11th & Euclid, #1
Fog, 11th & Euclid, #2
Fog, 11th & Euclid, #2
Cameras, Color, Large Format Cameras, Medium Format Cameras, Photography

Glen Echo Recap – in color

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Just thought I’d do a re-visit of all my Glen Echo color work, to put them in one place. When I get a bit more organized, I’ll put my platinum/palladium Glen Echo photos together and do another mini-gallery. This has all been shot with a mixed bag of films and cameras. Mostly my Rolleiflex 2.8E, with one nod to my Canham 5×7 (the Glen Echo sign at night – it’s special enough it gets its own row). The films have been Kodak Portra 160NC, Kodak Ektar 100, Fuji NPS 160, and Fuji NPH 400. With the exception of the Ektar 100, most of the film used has been anywhere from a couple years out of date to almost a dozen years expired. Which says a lot about the quality of modern color film emulsions.

Part of the purpose of this exercise was in response to a discussion recently on an online photography forum I read where someone was complaining about how hard it was to take good photos in places you are familiar with. While I love travel photography (I’m getting ready to indulge in some serious travel photography early next year, probably one of those once-in-a-lifetime trips – I’ll keep you updated as the time approaches), I think it’s absolute baloney that you can’t take interesting photos of places you know and see every day. If anything, the opposite is true. But each type of photography requires a different mindset. Photographing on the road requires you to be able to filter out the extraneous detail because it’s ALL wondrous and new. Photographing at home requires you to turn off the detail filter so you start finding the interesting stuff you ignore because it’s what you see every day.

Photographing my own neighborhood is about recording and observing change – it’s like doing a series of portraits of the same person – this week in a suit, next week in a sundress, then later in an anorak, this year a little taller, next year a beard, the year after with a tan and a buzz cut. The Glen Echo photos are another form of portraiture, portraiture of a place. Places can have spirits and identities, and their face changes over time, just like a person’s.

Glen Echo Sign, Morning
Glen Echo Sign, Morning
Glen Echo Park Sign, Evening
Glen Echo Park Sign, Evening
Glen Echo Sign
Glen Echo Sign
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #1
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #1
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #2
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #2
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #3
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #3
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #4
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #4
Glen Echo Carousel, Midway, Twilight
Glen Echo Carousel, Midway, Twilight
Dentzel Carousel, Glen Echo, Sunset
Dentzel Carousel, Glen Echo, Sunset
Glen Echo Arcade, Twilight
Glen Echo Arcade, Twilight
Glen Echo Arcade,Puppet Company, Twilight
Glen Echo Arcade,Puppet Company, Twilight
Mirror and roof vaulting, Glen Echo Dentzel Carousel
Mirror and roof vaulting, Glen Echo Dentzel Carousel
Dentzel Carousel Horse
Dentzel Carousel Horse
Faces of the Dentzel Carousel
Faces of the Dentzel Carousel
The Dentzel Carousel in motion
The Dentzel Carousel in motion
James, Glen Echo Park #1
James, Glen Echo Park #1
James, Glen Echo Park #2
James, Glen Echo Park #2
Cameras, Color, Medium Format Cameras, Photography, Portraits

More Environmental Portraiture

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Two more photos of my friend, Charles, in his friend Henry’s garden.

Charles, in the Garden
Charles, in the Garden
Charles, at the Garden Gate
Charles, at the Garden Gate

Sometimes a portrait doesn’t even have to include the person it’s about. In this case, the design of the garden, including the whimsies and follies, speak volumes about the garden’s designer.

Iron Gate, Henry's Garden
Iron Gate, Henry’s Garden
Rusted Toy, Henry's Garden
Rusted Toy, Henry’s Garden

All taken with my Rolleiflex 2.8E, on Fuji Reala film. The film is easily 11 years out of date, but still produces excellent results. I wish I had a couple of bricks more of it in cold storage, but Fuji discontinued the emulsion in all but 35mm size a couple years ago.

Cameras, Color, Medium Format Cameras, Photography, Portraits

Environmental Portraiture

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Here are a few portraits of a friend of mine in his natural element. Charles is extremely fond of gardens and gardening, and this is one of his favorite gardens that belongs to a friend of his. I hadn’t seen him in several years, and so the other weekend I drove up to Baltimore to visit, and brought along the Rollei to shoot his portrait. I’m so glad I used some of my last remaining rolls of Fuji Reala – they did him justice. It was the least I could do to honor him as he’s been such a good and devoted friend over the years.

Charles, In Henry's Garden, #1
Charles, In Henry’s Garden, #1
Charles, In Henry's Garden, #2
Charles, In Henry’s Garden, #2
Charles, Rule Britannia, Henry's Garden, #3
Charles, Rule Britannia, Henry’s Garden, #3
Charles, Architectural Element, Henry's Garden, #4
Charles, Architectural Element, Henry’s Garden, #4

Here are a couple from my ongoing Food Truck series – the cashier and the head chef of Pepe, the Jose Andrés-helmed gourmet food truck here in DC. I THINK the young man giving the interview in the second photo may be Jose Andrés’ son.

Cashier, Pepe Spanish Cuisine Food Truck
Cashier, Pepe Spanish Cuisine Food Truck
Pepe Food Truck Chef Interview, Franklin Square Park
Pepe Food Truck Chef Interview, Franklin Square Park

The following two are shots of a friend of mine who is thinking of getting into modeling, so we did a couple test portfolio pieces out at Glen Echo a month ago. I think he’s got the face for it, for certain. The trick will be to figure out if he can move and pose, and if he can get his body conformed to modeling industry standards.

James, Glen Echo Park #1
James, Glen Echo Park #1
James, Glen Echo Park #2
James, Glen Echo Park #2

And last but not least, here’s one from the vaults of another very dear friend from Singapore. We went to Fort Canning and went up on the roof of the remnants of the fortifications to shoot some photos of him and some of his friends, and I grabbed this one between poses. It captures his personality absolutely, although he foreswears this photo now because he has quit smoking. But it still reflects his inner sparkle and cheek.

Mirza, Fort Canning, Singapore
Mirza, Fort Canning, Singapore

I’m trying to get better at photographing strangers, and photographing unposed portraits. I find it incredibly easy to photograph people I know well because I can perceive little gestures and nuances that reflect their personality. The trick will be to get better at that kind of perception with total strangers, without imposing preconceived notions of what I THINK they are on them. Perhaps it’s an impossible chase, but it’s one I’m going to hazard.

Cameras, Color, Medium Format Cameras, Photography, Washington DC

Glen Echo Carousel Motion Study

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Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #1
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #1
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #2
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #2
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #3
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #3
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #4
Glen Echo Carousel in Motion, #4

Just some more playing with movement studies using the Rolleiflex. This was shot with 11 year old expired film – Fuji NPS 160. It has held up remarkably well. Otherwise I don’t have a lot to say, as the pictures speak for themselves I think.

Automobiles, Collecting, Photography

Ca. 1916 Hunting Party

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1916 Hunting Party in car, by John D. Isaac, Batavia, NY
1916 Hunting Party in car, by John D. Isaac, Batavia, NY
1916 Hunting Party, by John D. Isaac, Batavia, NY
1916 Hunting Party, by John D. Isaac, Batavia, NY

These are 8×10″ prints mounted to 11×14 inch boards. The reverse of each is stamped “John D. Isaac, Batavia, New York”. These gentlemen all appear to be a family – there’s way too much resemblance between three of the four to be anything other than brothers/father and sons. And I love the dog being included in the photo, and hopping up in the back seat like just another passenger. Just goes to show dogs have always loved cars.

The big mystery is the car – what make is it. I initially thought it was a Dodge, from the shape of the fender and the headlamps, but the grille is not quite right, and neither is the maker’s enamel plaque on the grille, or the hood vents, the door opening pattern (suicide door on the front, standard in the rear) or the contour of the cowl where the hood fairs into the body. This is a larger, more luxurious car than a Dodge, but the common (and not-so-common) marques I can think of to look up don’t seem to match either. It’s not an Essex, Hudson, Hupmobile, Locomobile, Plymouth, Haynes, Mercer, Peerless, Pierce Arrow, Buick, Cadillac, or Overland, that I can tell. It could be as late as the early 1920s, but it’s definitely not past 1930.

EDIT: Doing some more digging, I think I found what it is. It’s a ca. 1916-1918 Studebaker, most likely a Light Six touring car.

Cameras, Color, DC Cityscapes, Medium Format Cameras, Photography, Washington DC

Neighborhood Scenery

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Mural, 11th Street, Sunset
Mural, 11th Street, Sunset

A street scene in my neighborhood. This mural was created on the side of an art gallery/community center/performance space a few blocks from my home. I was on my way to meet a friend for dinner when I spotted it, and the way the light angled across the surface just begged to be photographed. Shot with my Rolleiflex 2.8E, Fuji NPH 400.

Futbol, Sunset, 11th Street
Futbol, Sunset, 11th Street

Why Futbol and not soccer? Well, there is a very large hispanic population in my neighborhood, and as such, it deserves to be called by its proper name, futbol! Y Hernandez está corriendo…y tire…GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL! This is the neighborhood elementary school where many amateur teams play league games or just get together for a little pick-up round or two. I was inspired by the setting sun and the long shadows being cast by the players on the field. Still the same camera, same film.

11th Street Cyclist, Dusk
11th Street Cyclist, Dusk

Actually, the caption for this is somewhat misleading, as the original thought was as much about the red emergency call box post as it was about anything else going on in the scene. But as I was composing, the cyclist came along and I waited until they presented an ideal composition.

Juggler, Bethesda, Barnes & Noble window
Juggler, Bethesda, Barnes & Noble window

This doesn’t quite fit the neighborhood theme as it isn’t in my current neighborhood. But downtown Bethesda USED to be my ‘hood when I was a teenager. This was a “freeze the action” test for the Rollei. It worked remarkably well, wouldn’t you say?

Architecture, CDVs, Collecting, Photography

Pacific Insurance Company building, San Francisco

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Pacific Insurance Company, San Franciscoq
Pacific Insurance Company, San Francisco

Another neat architectural CDV. From the earlier 1870s most likely. Almost certainly the building does not stand today as it would have been destroyed in the 1906 earthquake.

About Art, Antique Processes, Classes, Other People's Work, Paper, Photography, Platinum/Palladium

More student work from Advanced Topics in Platinum/Palladium

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Trolley Stairs, Glen Echo Park
Trolley Stairs, Glen Echo Park

This is a blended platinum/palladium print (60% platinum, 40% palladium) print, on Bergger COT320 paper. This was by a student from my Intro class, but I reprinted it for this session (the student left the negative behind after the Intro class, and I happened to really like the shot anyway). This one was coated using a glass rod as opposed to a brush, to demonstrate the difference in the coating technique, and the final appearance of the print.

Crystal Pool, by Patrick Brown
Crystal Pool, by Patrick Brown

This is a palladium print on light Kozo paper, by Patrick Brown, one of my students in Advanced Topics. He was also in my Intro class. It’s so nice to get follow-on students so you can see their progress!

Kozo paper is a Japanese paper made from tree bark, and it is surprisingly strong for as delicate as it is – this is perhaps a 90 lb paper. It does have a tendency to dissolve in aqueous solutions, but if properly masked when developing, the image area can be preserved, even if the edges do get fringed a bit. This is a perfect example. I included the paper margins to show more clearly what the paper texture looks like.

We had some challenges this class session – the original idea was to try out some different paper types, and I had obtained a sampler of several kinds. We started the morning with Stonehenge, which was supposed to be a good paper, but something was dramatically wrong with the batch we got, as we were making 30 minute exposures and still coming up weak and flat. After this is over, I’ll get a little more for myself and try pre-acidifying it to see if that helps, but no mention of acidification was made in the sample kit and I couldn’t find any reference to acidifying it online. Fortunately we didn’t waste too much time before figuring out it was the paper at fault and not the chemistry, and life moved on.

About Art, Antique Processes, Classes, News/Announcements, Photography, Platinum/Palladium

Student work – from my Advanced Platinum Printing course

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Just wanted to post a print made by one of my students, from my Advanced Topics in Platinum/Palladium printing. The advanced topics class covers contrast control techniques, working with different papers, making digital negatives, and gum-over-platinum prints. This was made from a digital negative we created in class from a medium-resolution JPEG! I’m impressed. Patrick will have a print to be proud of as a result of this class.

Orthodox Cathedral, by Patrick Brown
Orthodox Cathedral, by Patrick Brown

By the way, I will be re-running my Intro to Platinum/Palladium course at Photoworks, October 20-21. If you are interested, please sign up now, while there’s still room!