Förlorad och återfunnen kärlek

Efter några år med Canon och Fuji är jag tillbaka med Nikon och det känns helt rätt. Då menar jag inte nödvändigtvis tekniska specifikationer och hur bilderna slutligen blir. Det går att ta alldeles fantastiska bilder med i princip vilken kamera som helst och det som alla märken levererar idag är fantastiska maskiner! Det som framför allt känns rätt med Nikon är hur kameran ligger i handen, hur layout och funktioner är placerade och inte minst på vilken håll man skruvar på objektivet. ;)

Nikon D750 - Mauritius

I den digitala världen är det framförallt två Nikon-kameror som jag använt flitigt. Den första på listan är Nikon D750, en fantastisk kamera som lanserades i september 2014. Kameran blev känd för sin exceptionella bildkvalitet och mångsidighet, vilket gjorde den populär bland både professionella fotografer och avancerade amatörer.

“Nikon D850 är inte bara en kamera för mig; det är en symbol för äventyr, upptäckter och oförglömliga minnen. Jag har utsett den till min absoluta favoritkamera genom tiderna, inte enbart på grund av dess tekniska briljans, utan också för de extraordinära upplevelser vi delat.”

— Me

I den digitala världen är det framförallt två Nikon-kameror som jag använt flitigt. Den första på listan är Nikon D750, en fantastisk kamera som lanserades i september 2014. Kameran blev känd för sin exceptionella bildkvalitet och mångsidighet, vilket gjorde den populär bland både professionella fotografer och avancerade amatörer.

Nikon D750 - Stångby

Kamera nummer två, släppt i juli 2017, står ut som en favorit bland många. Tack vare sin mångsidighet och prestanda var Nikon D850 en väldigt populär kamera. Denna digitala systemkamera var utrustad med en imponerande 45.7-megapixel fullformatsensor som gav bilder av hög kvalitet med enastående detaljrikedom och skärpa. Dessutom bidrog frånvaron av ett optiskt lågpassfilter till den övergripande bildkvaliteten.

Nikon D850 är inte bara en kamera för mig; det är en symbol för äventyr, upptäckter och oförglömliga minnen. Jag har utsett den till min absoluta favoritkamera genom tiderna, inte enbart på grund av dess tekniska briljans, utan också för de extraordinära upplevelser vi delat. Kamerans perfekta ergonomi och en bildkvalitet som fortfarande konkurrerar med de bästa, gjorde varje fotograferingstillfälle till en ren njutning.

Nikon D850 - North of Sweden

Nikon D850 är inte bara en kamera för mig; det är en symbol för äventyr, upptäckter och oförglömliga minnen. Jag har utsett den till min absoluta favoritkamera genom tiderna, inte enbart på grund av dess tekniska briljans, utan också för de extraordinära upplevelser vi delat. Kamerans perfekta ergonomi och en bildkvalitet som fortfarande konkurrerar med de bästa, gjorde varje fotograferingstillfälle till en ren njutning.

Vad som verkligen gör D850 speciell för mig är alla de otroliga stunder vi delat tillsammans runt om i världen. Tänker på vågsurfande under Sydafrikas strålande sol, där kamerans snabbhet och precision fångade varje ögonblick av adrenalin och glädje. Minnena från Svalbard är lika levande, med bilder av majestätiska renar i den arktiska vildmarken, fångade i perfekt detalj trots de utmanande ljusförhållandena.

Nikon D850 - Cape Town

Närmare hemmet har Nikon D850 varit en trogen följeslagare i Skånes lantliga landskap, där enkelheten hos en maskros förvandlades till en konstnärlig bild som fångar naturens skönhet. Och vem kan glömma de fantastiska upplevelserna vid ishotellet i Jukkasjärvi?

Nikon D850 - Jukkasjärvi

För mig är Nikon D850 mer än bara en kamera. Det är en reskamrat som hjälpt mig att dokumentera livets största äventyr och skönheten i vardagliga ögonblick. Det är den kamera jag har varit mest förälskad i, och varje bild är en påminnelse om de fantastiska upplevelser vi haft tillsammans.

“Men som ofta händer i historier om förlorad och återfunnen kärlek, har jag återvänt till Nikon. Den här gången är det Nikon Z8 som har förnyat min passion.”

— Me

Min relation med Nikon D850 har varit en resa av passion och upptäckt, men som med alla berättelser, kom en tid för förändring. Det som förändrade allt var inte en sviktande kärlek till D850, utan snarare en oväntad förälskelse i ett annat objektiv och kamerateknik. Det var Canon RF 28-70 mm f/2 som stal mitt hjärta. Denna upplevelse introducerade mig för världen av spegellösa fullformatskameror, en värld som visade sig vara lika spännande och innovativ, och ledde mig till att lämna Nikon - åtminstone för en tid.

Nikon D850 - Cape Town

Denna förändring var inte enkel. Att lämna Nikon D850, en kamera som varit så central i mitt fotografiska uttryck och så nära kopplad till många av mina äventyr och upplevelser, var en känslomässig process. Men utforskandet av nya tekniker och objektiv var en resa jag kände att jag behövde ta.

Nikon D850 - Norway

Men som ofta händer i historier om förlorad och återfunnen kärlek, har jag återvänt till Nikon. Den här gången är det Nikon Z8 som har förnyat min passion. Den kombinerar den älskade ergonomin jag alltid uppskattat hos Nikon med den senaste tekniken inom spegellösa kameror. Dessutom tände Nikkor 135 mm f/1.8 Plena objektivet återigen gnistan i mig, en gnista som påminner om den jag först kände med D850.

Nikon D850 - Skåne

Denna återförening med Nikon, genom Z8 och dess fantastiska objektiv, har återställt en relation jag trodde var förlorad. Det påminner mig om att fotografiska verktyg är mer än bara teknik; de är förlängningar av våra kreativa själar och partners i vår konstnärliga resa. Nikon Z8 har inte bara fört mig tillbaka till Nikon-familjen, utan också påmint mig om kärleken till fotografi och det eviga sökandet efter det perfekta ögonblicket att fånga.

Nikon Z8 - Lomma

Create videos alone

I often train alone and then it can be difficult to see or feel how, for example, the positions are. Sometimes you have access to mirrors, but not always. Therefore, I film my sessions and 99% of the material is only for my own part, or for my and Exor's part rather. When I get home, I skim through the material and take what needs to be worked at with me to the next training and then I discard the videos. Sometimes, the material can be used in more ways and perhaps be published for more people to see.

One camera filmed at 4K and moved in post-production.

You can film yourself in several ways, of course, and the purpose can vary. For my own part, I like moving pictures. I think it's fun to watch videos where others share, for example, training. Although many videos only show the best, or funniest, or worst, they often provide inspiration. It is also fun to follow friends and their dogs and see their development and milestones on the way to their goals.

Here are some tips on how you can both follow up your training and create video clips for a larger audience at the same time.

• Keep your video sequences short. Kill your darlings!

• Film at high resolution so you can "move" the camera afterward.

• Adjust your video to the channel it is to be shown on.

Re-positioned the camera during training and added some sound effects in post-production.

Edit your movies

I know what it's like when you come home and look through your material. There is so much that is good, so much you want to show, leading to the video soon becoming very long. The risk is then that you lose the interest of your viewers. Many do not see the video to the end. So if you do not put so much energy into your editing, you should at least cut your video to make it shorter. Set a limit and stick to it. Some good benchmarks can be Instagram and their limitations for videos in streams of 60 seconds or 15 seconds when it comes to Stories. Although you can add more in a row, be careful to add too many because you risk losing the viewers. This editing is relatively easy to do. It can either be done directly on the mobile or in a program on the computer or iPad. Keep in mind that viewers quickly understand and quickly lose interest. If you show heelwork, 3-5 seconds is enough to get the message across. Few find it exciting to see lap after lap of heelwork. Even if you are thrilled with the dog's endurance in several minutes. Tell it instead, in words or text, if it feels important to convey.

How to edit a video is a big subject and I can not cover everything in this text. There are lots of programs and apps that all work a little differently. But in almost everyone, there is a pair of scissors!

Resolution and rotating camera tripod

When we watch a video clip, we quickly get bored if the material is too static. That is often the case if you place a camera next to the training field, film and then publish it. Often you need to use wide-angle mode on your camera and set the camera quite far from what you are going to film. The reason is that you want to include the whole area and in some training, you move over a larger area.

To create a little more dynamic and get closer to what we want to see, the dog and its owner, we can use different aids. I have met several, often horse people who use camera tripods that can rotate. With an app on the phone, the camera can follow what you set it to track. The result is a more dynamic video. You get closer and see more details and expressions. The disadvantages can be that the apps sometimes lose focus on what they are supposed to follow.

What I usually do is to shot in as high a resolution as possible. Resolution in this case means FHD 1920x1080, 4K 3840x2160 and 8K 7680x4320 pixels. We do not need to know exactly what all this means except that most social channels such as Instagram and Facebook show videos in relatively low resolution. Common is 1920x1080 or lower.

If I then film in 4K, I can zoom into the image 100% and end up at the 1920x1080 that social channels use without losing quality. So I can film with a wide-angle and afterward get closer to what I am filming. Since I then have more film than what is shown, I can "move" the camera vertically and sideways to create the feeling that the camera moves and thus generate more important dynamics.

To use moving platforms is not wrong. It adds complexity but can make the video more dynamic.

View the material

It is enough to have the video on my mobile or on my computer for my own training. But if I want more people to see it, it usually needs to be uploaded to some kind of services such as Instagram, Facebook or YouTube. There are many more, but these are probably the most common in video and still images. Here are some things to keep in mind. The first is whether the image is portrait or landscape. If you will post your video as a Story on Instagram, it is best if the video is standing in portrait mode, in feeds, landscape mode is best.

You can, to some extent, edit this afterward, but it is best if you think about it when you film. Many people choose to only upload moving material as Stories, but it workes just as well in the flow. Just remember to click on the small expand/minimize button in the bottom left corner, so the entire video is visible in the feed.

Good luck!

Take better photos

What is a good picture can be discussed. The taste is known to be divided. What I like is not necessarily the same as you like. But we humans have a tendency to prefer certain images more than others, even as a group. If you follow some rules, the chances are greater that more people will like the pictures. I have received many positive comments on my photos and videos. I thank you most humbly for them! Therefore, I thought I would share 7 simple tips you can try yourself to take even better pictures.

• Photograph in bright light. Strong sunshine is good!

• Try to have as short a shutter speed as possible.

• Hold the camera at eye level with the subject you are shooting.

• Enhance the image on your computer or mobile phone.

• Turn off the automatic mode and try to shoot RAW.

• Practice, practice, practice!

• Break the rules! :)

Thanks to Madlen Steén, who helped me with two of her dogs Jakeem and Cheri.

You can watch a video from the occasion above on the Swedish Doberman Clubs YouTube channel here.

Photograph in bright light. Strong sunshine is good!

Make sure you take your pictures when you have a lot of light. Preferably a sunny day outdoors. When you want to take pictures where the dog moves, you can hardly get too much light. This is even more true when you shoot with, for example, a mobile phone with a tiny image sensor and a lens that cannot let in as much light. When it comes to our athletic dogs that are dark in color and where we want to bring out every muscle in the picture, light is the most important thing! Do not forget the eyes! They need a lot of light to stand out and we like to see the eyes, whether it is dogs or humans.

Try to have as short a shutter speed as possible.

With a lot of light, we can have short shutter speeds and low ISO numbers. This means images without too much motion blur and with little or no noise. If the camera is set to automatic or uses the regular camera app in the phone, it will set this if there is enough light. If you have the opportunity to choose a mode on your camera for Sport, I recommend that you do so. In many cameras and some camera apps, you can choose to shoot with shutter speed priority. Then I suggest you test it with settings of 1/500 or higher.

Hold the camera at eye level with the subject you are shooting.

Make sure you have your camera at eye level with the subject you are photographing. I often see pictures taken from above, from a bird's eye view, but sit down, kneel or lie on the ground. You will notice that with this simple trick, you get more good and fun pictures. If you want to photograph a dog with a human in the same image, try to get their eyes at the same height. If this is not possible, think about what is most important in the picture, the dog or the person and choose the camera height based on it.

Enhance the image on your computer or mobile phone.

Feel free to use a program on your computer or mobile phone to "develop" the image. Many pictures appear better when you lighten up the black parts or give the picture a little more saturation regarding the colors. Other things can be to crop the image to get the right size for the place where it will be used. For example, Facebook and Instagram use different sizes of photos. Many photos will benefit from a little extra sharpness and often you can remove some noise. Tips on applications can be Lightroom, available for both computers and mobiles or Snapseed on the phone. But there are many other programs, both free and paid versions you can use.

Turn off the automatic and shoot RAW.

Most people shoot with their camera or mobile phone in fully automatic mode. The camera or app tries its best to understand and create an image that is as good as possible. Sometimes it goes well, especially when shooting outdoors in good light where the whole scene is evenly lit. But just as often you get a lovely sky as a background but a black blob as a dog or vice versa. Therefore, I recommend training to set the camera manually to fit the scene and what you want to achieve. In many cameras and in some camera apps, you can shoot in a format called RAW.

Simply put, this means that the camera captures as much information as possible. Still, you need to "develop" it in an editing program afterward otherwise the images may feel washed out and lacking contrast. The advantage is that you can do much more with the picture afterward. You can often rescue an image that would otherwise have been destroyed.

Practice, practice, practice!

As with everything you want to be good at, you have to practice! Work out, work out, work out! Learn your camera, all you can do with it. How the settings create different results and work more or less well in different situations. You will be amazed at how much you can adjust, thus taking better pictures. Soon you will see that your photos are starting to get better and better.

Break the rules! :)

Finally, I think you should practice compositional rules. Following these often creates images that more people like. One of the most common is the third rule which you can read about here https://bit.ly/3ufgneH

Learn the rules and then break them to create unique images that stand out in different flows. Good luck!

Emma and Lincon

Today is the premiere for the Swedish Dobermann Club's YouTube channel. A place where we will continuously upload movies that show our dogs' versatility.

In this first film, we meet Emma and Lincon. They have a wonderful relationship based on trust, joy and love. I had the privilege of hanging out with them one full day in Gothenburg a few weeks ago when we recorded all the material. Such a great pleasure and I think their relationship comes thru in the video.

I hope you like the video and that more people may choose Dobermann as their first or next dog!

© Dalecarlia Photo 2021

Dogs

In recent months as you have seen on my social channels, there has been a lot of photography and filming of dogs and their owners in various dog sports. I have not photographed so many other dogs than my own before. Still, during the autumn and beginning of this year, many other dogs and their drivers have been in front of my camera.

Emma & Lincon, Gothenburg 2021

The plan has been to expand my offerings within Dalecarlia Photo with pictures of active dogs and portraits. I know from previous experience that being genuinely interested in what you are trying to capture is key to take great pictures. That is why dog ​​photography is available as an offering here on the site now. I am good at capturing the moment both at the training facility, on the hike in the woods or in the home's quiet corner.

Emma & Lincon, Gothenburg 2021

In 2021, I am, among other things, involved in a couple of different projects when it comes to dogs, training and competition. It's about both photography and making films. You will see more here on the website when the projects are entirely official.

As with everything, practice is essential. That's why I've exposed my friends to my lens a lot since last fall. Learning different steps to try to predict moments is important. The right settings in different contexts are vital. Everything affects the result in the end.

Look under services for a list of my offerings.

Winter

This year we choose not to travel north to visit relatives and friends, no trip to the mountains, and no snowmobile rides in the spring sun. The only reason for this is the current situation and the advice the authorities give us. We can not claim that these trips are necessary.

Therefore, it feels extra wonderful when we finally got some snow in southern Sweden. In Lund, we have not received much, but we have had a beautiful winter landscape just a little bit further north. There have been hikes in a few different constellations during the week, but the best is, of course, when we are out with the whole family.

There has been no skiing but much mischief in the snow, and one of the things I like most, cooking outdoors when the sun is shining and the snow frames it all is magical. Sometimes cooking can consist of a simple cup of coffee.

Last year we were in Åre in February, and it was the first time Exor really got to feel the snow. He liked it very much even though he is not furry for that climate. Running, jumping, and drilling his nose into the deep snow is the best he knows.

Now it looks like winter will come to an end for this time, but we hope that there will be several weeks of snow before spring takes over and leads us to a, hopefully, more normal summer in terms of our opportunities to travel and visit our family.

Strange Year

2020 has been a strange year in many ways. Not least, the pandemic has defined life for most of us in a way no one could have imagined. Despite all the darkness Covid -19 has swept in over our world, it has also given us new opportunities and forced us to see things differently, do things differently. We have taken great strides in keeping physical, social distance, and still maintaining business and everyday life. I feel for all of them that have been negatively affected by this modern plague, all of which have lost someone close or been affected with long-term covid.

For me, the year has meant more of what I love to do. I have had the opportunity to spend even more time in nature, trying to capture what I experience with photographs and video. Since I have more time, I have also gained a renewed joy in photography with analog film—and most importantly, a lot of wonderful time with my family. For me, 2020 has strangely enough been a great year.

One thing is that I have received more and more requests to sell pictures and exhibit them during this year. So why not do it? Therefore, I have now started my work of picking out photos, evaluating their potential with friends, and discussing different print options with professionals. The idea is to launch the opportunity to buy photographs at the turn of the year 2020/2021 here on the website. The first exhibition is already planned for February 2021 in Lund, if the situation will allow that.

In addition to everything that happens with my photography, much time is spent training with Exor. We practice a little daily and several times a week sessions with, among others, his sister Ebba. There is a lot of obedience practice, some tracks, and a little protection. Protection is something that Exor likes a lot, and I am not entirely opposed to it now that I have tried it. We have only done a few short sessions so far, and Exor has a natural aptitude. It is mostly me who needs the training. With my training group, I put up a stretch goal for 2021 and that is to do the “BH-prov”, a kind of working dog test.

During the year, I have hiked a lot. Exor and I have been on hikes all over Sweden, lived in tent, cooked good food in the woods, in the mountains, or by a lake. At the end of the summer, we bought a big motorhome for the whole family, which changed this a bit. It has become more of short hikes and less of living in the nature. We have seen more places and had it very luxurious in the evenings and nights in a warm and comfortable motorhome with all the facilities you have at home, such as a comfortable bed, TV, kitchen and a bathroom with shower.

But I miss the life in the forest, so we'll change that in 2021. The motorhome will become our base camp, but with more time outdoors, a combination of what it was like before we got the RV and now.

Earlier this year, I also developed some of my coffee blends, and I have continued to work with them. There was one that was specially designed for making by the campfire to thigh things together. Photography, hikes and coffee. All of these blends will be for sale here on the site later in 2021, so keep your eyes open for my coffee. And if you want to test it first, you are welcome to join me on a hike.

So, take care of yourself, and enjoy the opportunities that the pandemic in some strange ways has created, and be careful with society's fragile ones. Take personal responsibility and show thoughtfulness!

To choose film

Someone might be wondering where this newfound interest in flowers comes from. There have been many pictures of flowers in recent weeks and several visits to the botanical garden in Lund. But it doesn't really have that much to do with flowers. It's more about testing different analog films and how they render color and tonality. Of course, there is a lot of green in the garden. The same is true when I walk in nature. However, many other colors are also interesting.

If you look in our freezer, you can see a great variety of films. These are brands like Ilford, Kodak, Fujifilm, Rollei, Bergger, and so on. And from some manufacturers several different types. Fujifilm Velvia 50, Provia 100F, 400H or Kodak Ektar 100, Portra 400, TRI-X, and many more. A great mix where everyone renders colors or tones differently.

Kodak Ektachrome E100 Cross Processed in C41

But it's not just the film that varies. So do the chemicals for development. Some developers fit a specific film more or less right. Sometimes you choose developers depending on whether you want more or less grain, more or less sharpness, more or less blackness, and so on.

So the combination of all the different variants explodes. If you also add cross-processing to the picture, when you develop slide film with developing liquids for ordinary color negatives, it becomes unsustainable.

When it comes to cross-processing that you can do in both directions, slide film in C41, and color negative in E6, different films give very different results. So it's about finding what you like but at the same time making it easy for yourself. In the end, it is the image that matters most.

So in recent weeks, I have tested several different films to find a handful that I will use primarily. There are a few left to try in terms of cross processing. For example, I'm not so fond of the green tint that Kodak Ektachrome E100 gave, so I think I instead will go for Fujifilm Provia 100F. On the other hand, I like Kodak when I develop it in the right chemistry, E6.

Canon EOS 30, Fujifilm 400H Color Negative

To complicate matters further, I do not choose the same film for medium format 120-film as I do when it comes to 35mm film.

When it comes to developing chemistry, there is an infinite number of variants for black/white film, not quite as many for color negatives and slides. I have tried a variety and also a single bath variant from Cinestill, Monobath D96. Also, their C41 for the color film which consists of two baths. But I'm not entirely happy with any of them.

So right now, it looks like I will primarily use the Ilford HP5 + 400 as a black/white 35mm film but the Ilford Delta 3200 when it comes to 120-film. Color negatives will be Kodak Ektar 100 and Portra 400. And as a slide film, I think it will be Fujifilm 100F.

Canon EOS 3, Kodak Ektar 100

In my Pentax 645n II medium format camera, I will also use the Fujifilm Velvia 50 for landscape photos. You simply can not resist it!

Nikon F5, Kodak Tmax P3200

Canon EOS 3, Kodak Ektachrome E100 CP

Canon EOS 30, Kodak Portra 800

Canon EOS 30, Kodak Ektachrome E100

Kodak Portra 800

A popular color negative film is Kodak Portra. It is available in three different versions, ISO 160, 400, and 800, and these are taken with the latter of them. I guess the most popular is Portra 400, and I probably agree with that.

I chose to photograph this film as an ISO 400 film, to give it more light than what is stated on the box, and I was pleased with the result. This means that I make the camera think that it has a less light-sensitive film, so it exposes the film a little more than it would otherwise. In my case, double as much light och sometimes even more than that. But that is not the right way. That's just the way I do it because I like the results.

Vallkärra, Sep 2020

Sunset Lundåkrahamnen, Sep 2020

Hovs Hallar

Going down to the sea at Hovs Hallar is a bit tricky, especially if it has rained or if the dew has made the stones wet. It is a short distance that is quite steep, so with all the camera equipment and the dog; you have to be careful.

I arrived at Hovs Hallar a little after lunch, so I had time for two trips to see where I would take my pictures. After that, it was to wait for the sunset in the camper while a delicious noodle soup was today's dinner.
I left the camper about an hour before the sunset to have plenty of time if I would regret the location and need to find another place.

Sunset, Sep 2020

Exor is not so fond of waiting well while I take my pictures, and this evening he became no less impatient when a dog with his nude bather to master came and took his evening dip right next to us.

I took a few different pictures with only minor adjustments to the compositions but took the opportunity to shoot with my Canon 30 loaded with Kodak Ektachrome E100 slide film. Unfortunately, I only have two 50mm lenses with EF mount, an f/1.8 from 1987, and a reasonably new f/1.2. This evening it was the latter I used, although its speed was not necessary.

It was a successful evening! A fantastic sunset through some haze with some small clouds in the sky. We fell asleep early to be in place again when the sun would rise the next day.

Morning, Sep 2020

Running out of film

The other day, Exor and I made a trip to Botanical Garden in Lund. With me, I had my EOS 30 with EF 50mm f/1.2 on, charged with Kodak Ektar 100 film. Photographing flowers is not something I do very often but wow, what fantastic shapes and colors.

Canon EOS 30 and Kodak Ektar

In the last month, I have started photographing more and more analog again. I have used my small pocket cameras, my larger SLR, and my Mamiya rz67 120mm medium format giant.

The film stock in the freezer has started to decrease to the point that I have had to refill with more 35mm film. 120mm has also decreased a bit, but there is still a fair amount left. I have had many different types of film in my freezer before, but now I will focus on a smaller number of brands and variants.
On the 35mm side, I will rely on the Kodak Ektar 100 and Portra 800, which both are color negative. Also, I will use Kodak Ektachrome, which is a beautiful slide film. As a black and white film, it will be the, perhaps, a little boring, Ilford HP5+.

Mamiya rz67 Pro II and Kodak Ektar

At 120mm, the focus will be on the Fujifilm Velvia 50 slide film for landscape, and for color negative, I will use the Fujifilm 400H. Here I will run Fujifilm for black/white also, Acros 100.

Of course, there are many reasons to shoot with film. Maybe not as many as reasons why to photograph at all, but close enough. In addition to the emotional, the creative side, it is also a technical part, and that should be as easy and straightforward as possible.

When shooting with film, of course, you need to develop it and then either scan it or make paper copies with an enlarger. The actual development of film looks a little different depending on whether it is black/white film, color negative, or slide film you are working with. Developing black/white is the easiest, and there it has become even more convenient with Cinestills Monobath. Also, C41, the process for developing color negatives, Cinestill has significantly simplified it with its two-step solution. Then you have slide film that is a little more difficult, and there I use Tental's E6 development, which consists of 4 steps and a 2.5-minute rinsing between each step. So that takes time, and you need to agitate every 15-30 seconds so you can't do anything else during development.

Canon EOS 30 and Fujjifilm 400H

For my part, I urge everyone to give it a try. You can always send your film to a lab and have it both developed and digitized. There are also lots of cheap cameras you can use. The results are still in the compositions and capturing the feeling of the moment.

Canon EOS 30 and Fujifilm 400H

Hanging indoors

September, and with September comes autumn, and that means more days with worse weather. Rain, wind, and less light. Contrasts and colors disappear, and what I photograph most are nature and Exor, both look better when it is a lot of light. Of course, the golden hour in the morning and evening is fantastic, but bright light during the day works excellent when photographing fast dogs or close-ups of a beautiful flower. And we are still some of months away from those beautiful autumn colors.

When the weather is at its worst, you can always take pictures indoors, the garage can be a temporary studio. Sometimes the imagination is limited, and then you just pick things you like and take pictures of them. You can also take several photos of the same object with different cameras, both digitally and analog, to compare them with each other later. Which do you like best?

Rollei CR200 - Analog slide film

Yesterday, Exor and I hung out in the garage for a couple of hours. With us, we had a few bottles of Gin (1), not to drink! Some analog cameras as props and some to take pictures with. A bunch of 120mm analog film rolls and a lamp that I find charming even though it is a fairly new one. Studio flashes and a large thermos of coffee was also necessary in our creative place. Background sound from Youtube, Relaxing Sunday Mornings - An Indie/Folk/Pop Playlist | Vol. 4 (2) even though it was a regular Tuesday.

Dry and Pink Gin, Stockholms Bränneri

I took several pictures of the Gin bottles with my digital Canon R5 and of Exor, which at first thought it was perfectly ok to sit and lie still. After a while, he got tired and came up with his own playfulness. Then other "dead" things had to act as models again.

Yashica Electro 35 GSN

Later in the afternoon, the light returned, and the rain stopped, so we went for a walk, me, Exor, Canon EOS 30 (3), EF 50mm f / 1.2, and a roll of Kodak Ektachrome E100 (4). A favorite combination any day, they lighten the mood significantly! Recommend that you try!

“Canon EF 50mm f/1.2 USM” on slide film, Sep 2020

---

1. http://www.stockholmsbranneri.com/ 

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGBgrnCWZg8&t=160s

3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canon_EOS_30 

4. https://imaging.kodakalaris.com/photographers-photo-printing/film/color 

Canon AE-1

Loaded a roll of Ilford HP5+ in my Canon AE-1 and took it for a ride in our Volvo 245. The Volvo is an excellent subject as they debuted in same era, the mid ‘70s, and a great place to take some pictures was, of course, by "my" tree. I only have two FD lenses, and they are not one of the holy ones, I think. Most images are shot with Canon FD 50mm f/1.8, like that lens a lot. The other lens is Tokina Tele-Auto 200mm f/3.5. Not the most brilliant one when it comes to optical quality, but mechanical wise it holds its own.

I tried to take some pictures outside and also inside the car as well as under the hood. You have to be careful in a 245, the cup holder in the glove compartment is not entirely optimal while driving.
All exposures are measured with the camera's light meter. Both in shutter priority and manual mode, and I think it did a good job, perfect when it was a little less light, for example, inside the car.

I took the last pictures at home while the raindrops started to fall. Exor had to stand model, as usual, and then I took some close-ups on the afternoon coffee, Dalecarlia Barista blend. I like the pictures, and it will be fun to test a color negative film in the AE-1 next.

I also had my Mamiya RZ67 Pro II with me, it’s a medium format 6x7 camera, loaded with Fujifilm 400H color negative film. This film is, as the name suggests, an ISO 400 film, but I set my light meter to ISO 200, overexposed by one stop. When I left home, we had sun and a lot of light, but when we got to “my” tree, it had turned into a very cloudy day, with darker clouds on the horizon and a high chance of rain. The picture of Exor was taken in full sunlight at home while the other images were when it was overcast. Today it will be sunny all day, so I have loaded the RZ67 with a new roll, Fujifilm Velvia 50, and planning another trip.

Bua Harbor

We got some summer heat back this week, so Exor and I went on a little trip with the camper. The goal was Bua Hamn, just north of Varberg, where there are motorhome parking spaces. I had heard a lot of good things about this place but also some less positive comments. Everything comes down to what you want, and that is very much individual.

Krogsta 2020

When I look for a place to stay, it's not just about the place where you park your motorhome. Nor how toilets, showers, the ability to empty the tanks, and refill water or access to electricity. All this is, of course, good, and if the place has it, it should work and be clean and tidy. For my part, I use the facilities in our car and am not so dependent on what the motorhome parking offer. If it exists, it is great but not decisive in any way. In several places, I do not even check what it looks like in the common areas provided. But that is me and certainly do not suit everyone.

Something important to me is the surrounding area and what is within a walking circle of around 10 km. I would say this is crucial. And through some Googling and studying satellite images, I had a feeling that Bua Hamn could be an excellent destination to meet my needs.

Other things I take the opportunity to do when the whole family is not with me are to see if the place would be the right place for all of us on an upcoming trip. And on that point, there is no doubt, Bua Hamn is a top candidate for our family trips coming up. We are a family with two adults, three boys aged 11 to 17, and an active dog. So we have relatively high and broad demands.

The parking space is a rather sad story if you think that you just pull out the awning and hang by the motorhome your whole stay. The sun this time of year also means that you need to sit with your back to the sea and look out over a large paved parking lot and on the horizon villas of various kinds. If you want the sun in your face, that is. I had parked with my nose out towards the harbor like most guests, and I can genuinely appreciate that view as a background when I sit and work inside the motorhome.

Dobforsport Exor

For the family, there are most things you need. A football pitch right next to the parking to run off some energy. A jetty with tables and also barbecue areas. If you take a short walk, you will come to both a sandy beach and a pier with a jetty from which you can jump. And perhaps most important of all, a good 4G connection for our mobile devices.

For me, Exor and my cameras, the place is also perfect. Many nice loops to hike on and many lovely motives to try to catch. I have to recommend Bua Hamn motorhome parking with a high rating, even if there are better places by the sea if you want to hang by your car and enjoy a stunning view. But if you have the motorhome as an anchor to make excursions from, this is a top candidate.

I still shoot film

A few weeks ago, I developed my first film in a very long time. In the fridge, I had several exposed rolls. The oldest was from a year ago. It was both black/white and color negative and some slides. So yesterday I took the time to develop them all. Ilford HP5+, Kodak Tmax 3200, and Rollei CR200 in 135 formats and a roll of 120mm Fujifilm Provia 100f.

Mamiya RZ67 Pro II, Fujifilm Provia 100f

I like Provia 100f, it is not as saturated as Velvia and works in many situations. Also, as a portrait film, if you want. Here I was out at sunset and took some pictures by the water. I recently published photos from this tour that I took with my digital camera. I took this picture with the Mamiya RZ67 II Pro, a medium format camera. Personally, I think that slide films should be photographed in larger formats than 35mm, and 120mm is the largest I have. Love the colors! Too bad that it is so expensive, otherwise I would have used this film much more often. Today, a roll of film where I can photograph 10 pictures costs around 120 SEK, excluding shipping and developing, if I buy it in Sweden. Now I usually buy my film on eBay, and then I can find it for around 100 SEK incl. shipping.

Rollei CR200 is also a color reversal film, here photographed in a 35mm format. I actually do not remember in which camera I had this, but I would guess I shot this on the Nikon F5. I often shoot slide films in cameras with good light measurement when I can not measure manually external, so I think the choice fell on the F5. I'm not as fond of the colors that the CR200 gives, the slightly green/yellow muted tone. I bought it to try it out, but it is not a film I will buy more of. I simply don't like the result.

Kodak Tmax 3200

Photographing in black and white is very rewarding. This was my first attempt with the Kodak Tmax 3200, and I will use it several times, especially when I want to shoot in low light but can also imagine some action images. The dog or children at full speed. The second film, Ilford HP5 +, is a film I often use, probably the one I photographed the most with and I really like it. It is, as we say in Sweden, "lagom". Does not protrude in any direction and can be pressed both up and down during photography as well as during development.

Ilford HP5+

Now I inventoried the film stock that I have in the freezer and loaded some cameras so there will be more analog images coming soon.

New gear

I got two new lenses for my camera the other week. So yesterday was the first time I tried out my Canon RF 15-35/f2.8 doing landscape photography. I shoot a couple of regular ones at both ends, 15mm, and 35mm. Also, a long exposure. So far, very happy with the result.

The other new lens is the Canon RF 70-200/f2.8. The conditions and location weren't optimal for trying that for real. Just snapped some birds after sunset at high ISO before leaving for home.

And one guy having fun!