Scraper Dreams

*Scraper Dreams*
Fuji TX2 + Ilford PanF
Model : Lia

My initial intent with this series was to break away from my flora texture technique and have the buildings extrude from the back of the models’ head. In order to achieve that I strongly lit the background on the side of the face and didn’t on the side of the back of the head. It did not work as intended however. The spill light from the face side spotlight lit the back of the head side too much and I didn’t get what I wanted. But the results are far from uninteresting, so I ran with the shots I had when I edited to bring them back to something closer to my initial technique.

Urban Excrescence

*Urban Excrescence*
Fuji TX2 + Ilford Pan F

The series I’ll be posting this week is the result of very early experimentation. The results delivered were not what I was going for, but quite interesting nonetheless. Definitely a direction I’ll keep exploring in the future.

Monks in the Headlights

*Monks in the Headlights*
Fuji XT3

Every morning in Luang Prabang around 5:30 AM, processions of monks walk down the streets as locals give them sticky rice for their day’s meals. It’s quite a sight, and of course in the summer it happens at dawn. But in December, it’s still night, which meant I had to expand my bag of tricks to get some interesting shots. I didn’t want to disrupt the scene, so I used a zoom lens. I cranked up the ISO to a whopping 25600, first time ever. I’m surprised at how good and usable the results are. This silhouette shot of a young monk backlit by the headlight of a motorcycle is my favourite.

Luang Prabang


*Luang Prabang*
Fuji TX2 + Fuji Provia 100

There are many charming things about Luang Prabang in Laos, but one of the most exciting ones for me as a photographer was the prevalence of monks. They are everywhere, especially early in the morning and late afternoon, and I took many photos of the monks. This was one of the first ones, and I really like it because it shows many of the aspects I loved beyond the monks themselves : the colonial architecture, the omnipresent mopeds, and the harsh sun.

The Smirk

*The Smirk*
Canon A2 + Lensbaby + Rollei RPX100
Model: Lilly

The thing I really love about film shot with a Lensbaby is the way the grain breaks down the more blurry the picture gets. This one is a really good example of that, with the edges of the shoulders not only blurred, but fuzzy. Also, Lilly’s smirk is priceless.

Is it rain?

*Is it rain?*
Canon A2 + Lensbaby + Rollei RPX100
Model: Lia

Lia’s hat made me think of rain, so we had the idea for this composition. I love the way her eyes look at the « sky » or rather the ceiling of the studio.

 

Mrs. P.I.

*Mrs P.I.*
Canon A2 + Lensbaby + Rollei RPX100
Model: Patricia

This series of shot was largely unplanned, I just told the models to bring whatever accessories they liked. Patricia’s hat gave her a very « noir » look, hence the title. I like how one eye is in shadow and one in light on this one although to be fair I had a ton of spill light from the background lights, so luck rather than design.

Out of Cinecitta

*Out of Cinecittà*
Canon A2 + Lensbaby + Rollei RPX100
Model: Lia

Lia is Italian, but when I took this shot I was not particularly aiming for something Italian looking. And yet when I saw the results, it struck me how this evokes Italy in the 60s to me. Maybe Lia’s inherent Italianness just shines through!

Wistful

*Wistful*
Canon A2 + Lensbaby + Rollei RPX 100
Model : Lilly

I did a studio session last week. The primary goal was to experiment with more silly double exposure ideas, but while I had these beautiful models along I thought I might as well do something fun as well, so I got out the old Lensbaby and shot a roll of portraits on Rollei RPX 100, a film I hadn’t tried before. It was rather less contrasty than expected, but that’s easily fixed in post. I love the delicate side of this particular shot, so that’s what we’re opening the week with.

The Lower Pool

*The Lower Pool*
Fuji TX2 + Fuji Velvia 100

With the film camera of course, I did not have stabilization, and I didn’t have time and inclination to set up a tripod. So it was handheld, but on this shot, I think, the wide vista works well. Of course, there are tourists in the shot, but who am I to begrudge tourists? I am one myself…