Same Scene - Four Cameras, Four Films

On my (now not too) recent trip westward to Oregon, I made it a point that I would ensure that I would aim to have one scene that I would shoot with every color film camera at my disposal at the time.  As it was, I wound up holding off using my last shot on two of these cameras to ensure that I could perform such an experiment.

Finally, on the afternoon of June 20, at a stop called Corbett's View, overlooking the Columbia River Gorge, I took the opportunity to snap away to get results that I could compare.  The samples, already featured in several of the Film Folio features, are shown below

Zeiss Ikonta A 521, Agfa Rollei Crossbird 200 Film

Agfa Billy Record I, Expired Kodak Ektachrome 200 scanned with Color Restoration. 

Welta/Rodenstock Citonette, Provia 100F.

Balda Lisette, Velvia 50.

Overall, light leaks aside, there is a lot of differences in how this same scene was rendered on four different cameras and films.  I thought I'd have a clear "winner" in the batch, but I can't say that I do.  Nor can I say that one of these completely fails in its rendering.  It is a very interesting example of how the same scene can be given a remarkably differing appearance based largely on the film.  

And as we head into colder weather, I'm certainly glad to have these vestiges of a trip west in warmer temperatures! 

Film Fun Folio #4: Zeiss Ikonta A 521 and Agfa Crossbird 200

Periodically, I'll be posting scans of some complete rolls of film on here, showing both the good and the bad, and giving some basic information as well a little write up of the shoot as well as the reasons why I selected each camera and film.  Enjoy the trip! 

Feature #4:
Camera: ca. 1946 Zeiss Ikonta A 521 645 120 folding camera
Film: Agfa Crossbird 200 (processed in traditional E6)
Locale: Oregon
June of 2015

I had one more trip to Oregon to make following my trip there in mid-March.  This time, I would be likely to journey farther afield than Portland, and I would have much more of an opportunity to shoot during daylight hours.  Thus, I could focus on far more than simply the lovely scenes of Neon present in my Portland After Dark feature.  One thing I knew for certain was that in a retro-savvy town like Portland as well as its neighboring environs, I wanted to bring a roll of Agfa's CR-200, also marketed as Agfa Crossbird.  I figured that the warmly nostalgic hues of this film would be ideal to have at my disposal for some scenes on this trip, and elected to use the smaller Zeiss folder for this purpose so as to enable more images to be captured.  My last experiences with this camera were underwhelming at wider apertures, but I figured that most of the scenes I would shoot would be done at f/8 or smaller.  

1 - Camas, WA - f/8 1/50 - I made one small diversion just to be able to say I walked in Washington State, and these few photos serve as my proof.  While the mill in the small town of Camas gives it an odor, the downtown and Liberty Theater look quite nice, and made a fitting retro subject for this film.

Film Rewind - A second take on some Film Cameras

If a look through the chronology of my posts is to be believed, I'm a "camera whore."  I get a camera, shoot a roll or two through it, and then stow it away as my fascination turns to the next novel project or acquisition in my repertoire.  

I am very proud to say that is not the case.

The story and interest in the machines does not end with the publishing of the article.  In fact, the article often sets about to be the springboard for even more new and novel fun with the camera once I have gotten a taste of its strengths and limitations.  As such, I thought it would be a nice idea to publish this follow up as a sort of "where are they now" feature. Enjoy! 

Seagull 4A-103

It's the very camera that got me interested in film photography once again, and after a little bit of trial and error, I got it working once again.  Since discovering the portability and fun of the folding cameras, I've used the Seagull less, but it is still a wonderful camera to use, though often maligned by "serious" photographers. Ironically, it is the medium format camera I've had the longest, and yet it is the newest in my collection, as every other 120 camera I own was somewhere in the world on the day I was born.  Below is a Provia 100F image taken with the Seagull.  I had to secure the camera on the rear of my car, causing the light bleed in the lower corner. 

Ikonography: The World of Zeiss Folders

After decades of shooting with cameras like Minolta and Canon, I have finally taken some photos with a certain well regarded camera whose name ends in "ikon" and thus far, it has been a really wonderful experience.

From the shooting ergonomics to the actual looks of the camera, I am definitely liking this new acquisition of mine.  Have a look!

Okay, maybe you were thinking of a different camera line with a name ending in "ikon." While I certainly have not a thing against the certain highly regarded manufacturer of 35mm and digital cameras, my esoteric tastes as of late have been to that of medium format film, and of the durable beasts of decades past that are still very capable in capturing images on that film stock.  And this is definitely one of them.