Over the month of April, I took a few trips to Smith Rock and Leavenworth, WA for various climbing exploits, as well as to escape to the woods be out of my awkward living situation. These are also the rolls where I began to user ColorPerfect to set the film base. I will try to have a post dedicated to this awesome software. I haven't been to Smith Rock in quite some time and revisiting this area was an eye-opening experience. I only got on two routes this weekend, but still had an amazing time with some fun people. Leavenworth is like a 2nd home. Spring climbing there is a blast. From the pictures on this roll, I was apparently more focused on photographing people. But rather than bore you with my banter, here are pictures!
Read MoreThe People Roll (or the Law of Film Usage) /
Ever since before the New Year, I have had the same roll of film stuck in my Leica. It was a lovely, fresh roll of Kodak Portra 400. I finished shooting it last week. Why has it taken me so long (over 5 months!) to finish out this roll of film? It's a frustrating feeling, a heavy burden. I would carry around this camera everywhere, hoping to get some shots in during my commute to work, on lunch breaks, at bar outtings, etc. Throughout this time, I thought a lot about the reasoning behind this inaction, for this is unlike the person I want to be. Doesn't one want to be a doer? Someone who accepts the challenge, takes the risk, faces the foe head on.
Read MoreAnsco Agfa 5x7 Restoration Project - Part 1 /
I like working with my hands. To tinker. Perhaps it can be attributed to a primal instinct to build and create. Or maybe because I had quite an elaborate set of Legos growing up. Or maybe it's a trait I get from my mom, the most inspirational tinkerer I know. While it's sometimes a fun trait, it often times leads me to break things, or to make things even more broken than they already are. But luckily, instead of breaking the nice things that I have, I found a nice woodworking project to work on this winter to keep my hands and mind busy as I wait for longer days and drier weather.
Read MoreBishop Bouldering Excursion - 3/22 - 3/29/2014 /
Winter has been long. Though my heart will always belong in the Northwest, the seemingly relentless gray skies and rain starts to wear both on my sense of adventure and my photographic inspiration. Many months ago, I began tossing around the idea of a spring climbing trip in Bishop, CA. It had been at least a year and a half since I last made the journey to Bishop - that was just unacceptable. After consulting with the Erik's, we finally marked some dates on the calendar. And through several long weeks, it finally arrived - an 8 day vacation of sun, climbing, photography, camping, and friends.
Read MoreLinhof Photo Samples /
After getting my Linhof Technika III up and running, I was anxious to get ahold of some 4x5 sheet film to try it out. Luckily, my good old buddy Adam (check him and his work out at http://www.contentunknown.com) had an old, and mostly full, box of Arista sheet film. Adam claimed that this film was left in a desk drawer inside a sweltering warehouse for a couple of summers. Then lived in the back of his truck for quite sometime. "Use it at your own risk," he warned.
Read More