I haven't posted a great deal lately because I've been tied up with a few other things, namely my solo show that I announced about a month ago. So, I hope that's rectified in the coming months. Anyway, I've ran two rolls through my Hasselblad 500 c/m and I will be posting my thoughts on the camera, a few images and my upcoming projects with it by the end of this week. Until then, I was featured in a few things this past week and I wanted to pass those on to you.
First off, I attended the FPP Midwest Meet-up and Mat Marrash Gallery Show on July 15. As I mentioned in my review, it was a great time. During the meet-ups, Michael Raso typically interviews the individuals and I was lucky enough to sit down and chat with him a bit. The new Film Photography Podcast is live and it features a recap of that event. During that recap, my interview with Michael Raso is featured. My interview comes in around the 1:02:44 mark. Check out the Film Photography Project and download the newest podcast to hear my interview here.
My solo exhibit is now hanging in the gallery space at the Amos Memorial Public Library in Sidney, Ohio. It will be up the entire month of August and I'm having an opening reception on Thursday, August 4 from 6-8 p.m. So, stop by, check out my work, grab some refreshments and chat it up with me. Before then, check out the article that was featured in the Sidney Daily News yesterday here.
Thanks for reading and stay tuned for my Hasselblad images and post later this week!
Showing posts with label Michael Raso. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Michael Raso. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
FPP Midwest Meet Up / Mat Marrash Gallery Show
I've referred to a specific podcast that I began listening to in a few of my previous blog posts. For those of you that don't know, it's called the Film Photography Podcast (FPP). The podcast was founded in 2009 by Michael Raso and has been going strong ever since. The podcast has spread to a website, Flickr group, store and an eBay auction site. In addition, it's become a massive community of film shooters and film lovers around the world.
In 2011, the FPP community organized a few meet ups. The first one took place on April 16, in New York City. A smaller meet up was organized later in the month at Toronto and in June, FPP founder Michael Raso and co-host John Fedele travelled across the pond to London for a UK meet up. With all of these meet ups taking place, I was a bit jealous that I couldn't join in all of the fun. The newest co-host of FPP, Mat Marrash, lives in Findlay, Ohio. He had mentioned on the show that he was going to have his first gallery exhibit in July and I immediately planned on attending; especially since Findlay is only an hour an a half away from Troy. I was absolutely elated when I found out that in conjunction with the gallery opening, an official FPP meet-up was being planned. It was going to be attended by founder Michael Raso, FPP video man Joey, FPP Deputy Dan Domme, FPP frequent guest Lauren Bagley and of course, FPP co-host Mat Marrash. So, I took the day off from work and headed to Findlay the morning of July 15.
I arrived shortly before 11 a.m. and was greeted by Lauren and her dog, Strudel. After the rest of the attendees arrived, Michael taped a short beginning segment and we took off on a photo walk of downtown Findlay. The first stop was Leslie Lazenby Hunsberger's Imagine That! store. Leslie is a photographic technologist, specializing in photo restoration. On top of that, she has an amazing collection of cameras and has a wealth of knowledge on all things photography and film. It wouldn't be hard to waste hours talking to her about film stock, film cameras, techniques, etc. She's also an astounding artist herself, which I found out after viewing a few of her Polaroid manipulations. She was very friendly and welcomed us with opened arms and even treated us to a "grab box" of expired Kodak and Polaroid films. I grabbed an expired pack of Polaroid 108 film and can't wait to see what type of results I get. After Leslie's store, we stopped into The Baker's Cafe for a coffee break. I got to chat with a few other FPPer's who attended; Dave Mihaly from Columbus, OH and Tom Schaefer and Chris Fecio of Buffalo, NY. After our coffee break, we continued walking through downtown Findlay, shooting the new Kodak Portra that Kodak provided FPP with. I shot Portra 400 with my Canon AE-1P with my 28mm wide angle lens. Unfortunately, I had a small rewind issue and some of my film was exposed to the light, which produced a bit of fogging on some of the roll. Other than that, I enjoyed the roll and if I have something I'm happy with, I'll display it in a subsequent post.
After our walk of Findlay, we headed back to the Findlay Inn and Conference Center for pizza and Polaroid fun. We had a few hours before Mat's gallery show, so I headed back downtown and shot a roll of medium format with my Hasselblad 500 c/m. This was just the second roll I've run through this camera. After I get the results back from the lab, I'll post a few images and give my overall impression of the 500 c/m thus far. After my second round of shooting, I headed to Mat's gallery show. He had a number of amazing portraits that he shot all on film. He used a Hasselblad 500c and his Eastman Commercial 8x10 large format camera. His work is absolutely stunning and will continue to be on display at the Lea Gallery until mid August. I highly recommend checking it out. Additionally, we also ventured upstairs to view Lauren Bagley's paintings, prints and illustrations. They were also amazing and it's highly likely you'll see her illustrations gracing a children's book very soon. After the exhibit, we headed to The George, a great book/coffee shop for a night cap.
Overall, the meet up was a great time. Everyone was friendly and just as enthusiastic about film as I am, if not more so. The FPP community is filled with a great group of individuals, and it's astounding that all of these individuals, some that have never met before, can get together, hang out, take photographs and generally enjoy each other's company. It doesn't matter the skill level or the type of camera that you shoot; we all love film and we all love photography and that allows us to form a bond regardless of where we're from, where we live and what we do for a living. Ideas are formed, tips are traded and work is exchanged and viewed. This community is helping take artistic photography to a whole new level, while keeping film alive. This is what a photographic community should be; I'm grateful that I'm part of something like this. The Film Photography Podcast has helped me grow as a photographer and has helped inspire me throughout 2011. I feel as if FPP has the potential to spur a further renewed interest in traditional film photography and I look forward to what the FPP future has to offer. For those interested, I highly recommend checking out the podcast and all of the amazing work produced by the FPP community.
In 2011, the FPP community organized a few meet ups. The first one took place on April 16, in New York City. A smaller meet up was organized later in the month at Toronto and in June, FPP founder Michael Raso and co-host John Fedele travelled across the pond to London for a UK meet up. With all of these meet ups taking place, I was a bit jealous that I couldn't join in all of the fun. The newest co-host of FPP, Mat Marrash, lives in Findlay, Ohio. He had mentioned on the show that he was going to have his first gallery exhibit in July and I immediately planned on attending; especially since Findlay is only an hour an a half away from Troy. I was absolutely elated when I found out that in conjunction with the gallery opening, an official FPP meet-up was being planned. It was going to be attended by founder Michael Raso, FPP video man Joey, FPP Deputy Dan Domme, FPP frequent guest Lauren Bagley and of course, FPP co-host Mat Marrash. So, I took the day off from work and headed to Findlay the morning of July 15.
I arrived shortly before 11 a.m. and was greeted by Lauren and her dog, Strudel. After the rest of the attendees arrived, Michael taped a short beginning segment and we took off on a photo walk of downtown Findlay. The first stop was Leslie Lazenby Hunsberger's Imagine That! store. Leslie is a photographic technologist, specializing in photo restoration. On top of that, she has an amazing collection of cameras and has a wealth of knowledge on all things photography and film. It wouldn't be hard to waste hours talking to her about film stock, film cameras, techniques, etc. She's also an astounding artist herself, which I found out after viewing a few of her Polaroid manipulations. She was very friendly and welcomed us with opened arms and even treated us to a "grab box" of expired Kodak and Polaroid films. I grabbed an expired pack of Polaroid 108 film and can't wait to see what type of results I get. After Leslie's store, we stopped into The Baker's Cafe for a coffee break. I got to chat with a few other FPPer's who attended; Dave Mihaly from Columbus, OH and Tom Schaefer and Chris Fecio of Buffalo, NY. After our coffee break, we continued walking through downtown Findlay, shooting the new Kodak Portra that Kodak provided FPP with. I shot Portra 400 with my Canon AE-1P with my 28mm wide angle lens. Unfortunately, I had a small rewind issue and some of my film was exposed to the light, which produced a bit of fogging on some of the roll. Other than that, I enjoyed the roll and if I have something I'm happy with, I'll display it in a subsequent post.
After our walk of Findlay, we headed back to the Findlay Inn and Conference Center for pizza and Polaroid fun. We had a few hours before Mat's gallery show, so I headed back downtown and shot a roll of medium format with my Hasselblad 500 c/m. This was just the second roll I've run through this camera. After I get the results back from the lab, I'll post a few images and give my overall impression of the 500 c/m thus far. After my second round of shooting, I headed to Mat's gallery show. He had a number of amazing portraits that he shot all on film. He used a Hasselblad 500c and his Eastman Commercial 8x10 large format camera. His work is absolutely stunning and will continue to be on display at the Lea Gallery until mid August. I highly recommend checking it out. Additionally, we also ventured upstairs to view Lauren Bagley's paintings, prints and illustrations. They were also amazing and it's highly likely you'll see her illustrations gracing a children's book very soon. After the exhibit, we headed to The George, a great book/coffee shop for a night cap.
Overall, the meet up was a great time. Everyone was friendly and just as enthusiastic about film as I am, if not more so. The FPP community is filled with a great group of individuals, and it's astounding that all of these individuals, some that have never met before, can get together, hang out, take photographs and generally enjoy each other's company. It doesn't matter the skill level or the type of camera that you shoot; we all love film and we all love photography and that allows us to form a bond regardless of where we're from, where we live and what we do for a living. Ideas are formed, tips are traded and work is exchanged and viewed. This community is helping take artistic photography to a whole new level, while keeping film alive. This is what a photographic community should be; I'm grateful that I'm part of something like this. The Film Photography Podcast has helped me grow as a photographer and has helped inspire me throughout 2011. I feel as if FPP has the potential to spur a further renewed interest in traditional film photography and I look forward to what the FPP future has to offer. For those interested, I highly recommend checking out the podcast and all of the amazing work produced by the FPP community.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Blue Moon Camera and Machine
I took a trip to Mansfield, Ohio for a photo weekend two weeks ago and I've been anxiously awaiting the results of that shoot. I shot six rolls of film and a couple packs of Fuji and Impossible Project film for my Polaroids. I just received my negs and scans yesterday; I'm excited to post the results and provide an overview of my experience, but I would be remiss if I didn't make this post first.
In my last post, I discussed the amazing customer service that Michael Raso of the Film Photography Podcast (FPP) provided me. I'm still blown away by it and I'm happy to report that the film he resent did make it in time for my weekend photo shoot. So, thanks again Michael!
In this post, I want to bring attention to a great lab. If it wasn't for FPP, I would've never found it. The lab I'm talking about is Blue Moon Camera and Machine. Blue Moon Camera and Machine is located in Portland, Oregon. They sell film cameras, film and typewriters. In addition to that, they are one of the last remaining optical printing labs. They still process film by hand and will also print using an enlarger. In addition to that, the staff is comprised of individuals that love and care about photography and are photographers themselves. They've taken some amazing images and I highly recommend you check out their galleries.
My first experience with them was for film. I recently picked up a circa 1950s Kodak Tourist camera off of eBay. This camera takes 620 roll film; unfortunately, 620 film is not made anymore. The good news is that it's simply 120 film on a different spool. So, you can still use 620 film cameras by respooling 120 film onto a 620 spool or by purchasing modified 120 film rolls. Since Blue Moon Camera is also a machine shop, they are able to modify the rolls for 620 cameras. So, I purchased a few rolls of film from them and received great customer service. During one of our emails back and forth, someone bought the remaining stock of the film I was interested in and Blue Moon Camera graciously emailed me when they were restocked and I received my film in time for my photo shoot. Once again, a customer service experience that big corporations should pay attention to.
The last couple of rolls I had developed, I decided to try out the Lomography film lab. They had a nice package of negs, scans and prints and their price for all of that was pretty comparable to other places, so I thought why not? While they did a nice job, it took three weeks for me to receive one roll of my film and a month for the other roll. They mention that they will let you know where your film is at during the entire process, yet I received absolutely no communication from them at all. In addition, they claimed that it would take 1-2 days to process the film and send back from the time they received it. That is a false claim and because I had to call numerous times to insure that I finally received my film, I most likely won't be using their lab services again.
So, for my Mansfield rolls, I decided to use Blue Moon Camera and Machine. They offer development services as well as scans and prints; it's up to you to decide what you want. I sent them six rolls of film which they received in two days via priority mail. They called the day they received it and they were done in exactly a week. They called the day it was finished, it was shipped that day and I received it two days later. They did a fantastic job and I plan on using them again.
So, anyone that's looking for a great lab, I would highly recommend you check out the gang at Blue Moon Camera and Machine. Visit their site here.
In my last post, I discussed the amazing customer service that Michael Raso of the Film Photography Podcast (FPP) provided me. I'm still blown away by it and I'm happy to report that the film he resent did make it in time for my weekend photo shoot. So, thanks again Michael!
In this post, I want to bring attention to a great lab. If it wasn't for FPP, I would've never found it. The lab I'm talking about is Blue Moon Camera and Machine. Blue Moon Camera and Machine is located in Portland, Oregon. They sell film cameras, film and typewriters. In addition to that, they are one of the last remaining optical printing labs. They still process film by hand and will also print using an enlarger. In addition to that, the staff is comprised of individuals that love and care about photography and are photographers themselves. They've taken some amazing images and I highly recommend you check out their galleries.
My first experience with them was for film. I recently picked up a circa 1950s Kodak Tourist camera off of eBay. This camera takes 620 roll film; unfortunately, 620 film is not made anymore. The good news is that it's simply 120 film on a different spool. So, you can still use 620 film cameras by respooling 120 film onto a 620 spool or by purchasing modified 120 film rolls. Since Blue Moon Camera is also a machine shop, they are able to modify the rolls for 620 cameras. So, I purchased a few rolls of film from them and received great customer service. During one of our emails back and forth, someone bought the remaining stock of the film I was interested in and Blue Moon Camera graciously emailed me when they were restocked and I received my film in time for my photo shoot. Once again, a customer service experience that big corporations should pay attention to.
The last couple of rolls I had developed, I decided to try out the Lomography film lab. They had a nice package of negs, scans and prints and their price for all of that was pretty comparable to other places, so I thought why not? While they did a nice job, it took three weeks for me to receive one roll of my film and a month for the other roll. They mention that they will let you know where your film is at during the entire process, yet I received absolutely no communication from them at all. In addition, they claimed that it would take 1-2 days to process the film and send back from the time they received it. That is a false claim and because I had to call numerous times to insure that I finally received my film, I most likely won't be using their lab services again.
So, for my Mansfield rolls, I decided to use Blue Moon Camera and Machine. They offer development services as well as scans and prints; it's up to you to decide what you want. I sent them six rolls of film which they received in two days via priority mail. They called the day they received it and they were done in exactly a week. They called the day it was finished, it was shipped that day and I received it two days later. They did a fantastic job and I plan on using them again.
So, anyone that's looking for a great lab, I would highly recommend you check out the gang at Blue Moon Camera and Machine. Visit their site here.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Film Photography Podcast
Up to this point, most of my blog posts have revolved around my work. Occasionally, I'll post a website, artist or photographic information that I come across which intrigues me. I want to use this post specifically for that reason; and to show that good customer service does exist in today's world of bigger than life corporations that only care about the bottom line.
As most of you know, I've recently been experimenting with film photography. I picked up my first film camera at my father-in-law's estate sale. It was a Canon AE-1P; unfortunately, it was beyond repair and I was unable to use it. It now has a prevalent position on our bookshelf. The shop I took it to actually had a used AE-1P for sale and I purchased it. I put two rolls of film through it; it was a bit daunting at first. Switching back and forth from digital to film is not easy and I hadn't realized the full beauty of film until this year. A few things fell into place that helped pave the way for me to embrace the analog nature of photography. I received my first Lomography camera, a Holga, as a wedding present. My wife gave me a Lomography Fisheye 2 camera for Christmas and a Polaroid SX-70 for my birthday. I also stumbled upon a great podcast; the Film Photography Podcast.
The Film Photography Podcast (FPP) is hosted by Michael Raso, John Fedele and Mat Marrash. These men love film photography and they bring that spirit to their podcasts. There is something so unique about shooting film; it's really hard to explain unless you've experienced it. This podcast has opened my eyes to the massive world of photography that I've yet to explore. I've got a running list of books and magazines that they've referenced, I've found some great specialty labs for developing, I've learned about so many different styles of cameras, and I've opened up my work to more individuals than I have ever before. Most importantly, I've been exposed to a community of great people that love photography as much as I do and just how much knowledge and experimentation that is waiting to be tapped in to.
In addition to their podcast, the FPP gang runs a blog, a YouTube channel, a Flickr group and a store. To show support for their small operation, I purchased a few packs of Fuji 100C and Fuji 3000B pack film for my Polaroid 440 Land Camera. I received the box in the mail today; it was missing the film. There were two stamps on the box that stated the USPS received the box in damaged condition and they received it without contents. This type of incident blows my mind! How can a perfectly packaged box just be grossly mishandled and passed onto the final destination with the contents lost or stolen? You would think this would've raised a red flag somewhere. Well, apparently it didn't, and I ended up with an empty box. I specifically purchased this film for a photo shoot that I have scheduled for this weekend. I emailed the FPP store and in less than an hour, I received an extremely amazing reply from Michael Raso. He apologized for the USPS mishap and reshipped my film via Priority Mail. While I hope that I receive the film before I leave for my trip, it really didn't matter after I read Michael's email. The level of customer service he demonstrated is outstanding. The FPP is a small operation, but they care about their customers. They know that every one of their customers, or listeners for that matter, is a huge fan of film photography and they are simply treating each one like they would want to be treated. Michael Raso doesn't know me personally; yet, he took the time out of his busy day to write a personal response and send another package. I wish all businesses would work in this manner; the world would definitely be a better place.
I hope I can attend an FPP meet up and meet Michael and the rest of the FPP gang. You've helped open up a whole new aspect of photography for me and I appreciate that. If anyone reading this blog is into film photography, thinking about getting into film photography or used to shoot film and wants to get back into doing it, I highly recommend FPP.
Here's the link: Film Photography Podcast
Thanks again Michael and the FPP gang!
As most of you know, I've recently been experimenting with film photography. I picked up my first film camera at my father-in-law's estate sale. It was a Canon AE-1P; unfortunately, it was beyond repair and I was unable to use it. It now has a prevalent position on our bookshelf. The shop I took it to actually had a used AE-1P for sale and I purchased it. I put two rolls of film through it; it was a bit daunting at first. Switching back and forth from digital to film is not easy and I hadn't realized the full beauty of film until this year. A few things fell into place that helped pave the way for me to embrace the analog nature of photography. I received my first Lomography camera, a Holga, as a wedding present. My wife gave me a Lomography Fisheye 2 camera for Christmas and a Polaroid SX-70 for my birthday. I also stumbled upon a great podcast; the Film Photography Podcast.
The Film Photography Podcast (FPP) is hosted by Michael Raso, John Fedele and Mat Marrash. These men love film photography and they bring that spirit to their podcasts. There is something so unique about shooting film; it's really hard to explain unless you've experienced it. This podcast has opened my eyes to the massive world of photography that I've yet to explore. I've got a running list of books and magazines that they've referenced, I've found some great specialty labs for developing, I've learned about so many different styles of cameras, and I've opened up my work to more individuals than I have ever before. Most importantly, I've been exposed to a community of great people that love photography as much as I do and just how much knowledge and experimentation that is waiting to be tapped in to.
In addition to their podcast, the FPP gang runs a blog, a YouTube channel, a Flickr group and a store. To show support for their small operation, I purchased a few packs of Fuji 100C and Fuji 3000B pack film for my Polaroid 440 Land Camera. I received the box in the mail today; it was missing the film. There were two stamps on the box that stated the USPS received the box in damaged condition and they received it without contents. This type of incident blows my mind! How can a perfectly packaged box just be grossly mishandled and passed onto the final destination with the contents lost or stolen? You would think this would've raised a red flag somewhere. Well, apparently it didn't, and I ended up with an empty box. I specifically purchased this film for a photo shoot that I have scheduled for this weekend. I emailed the FPP store and in less than an hour, I received an extremely amazing reply from Michael Raso. He apologized for the USPS mishap and reshipped my film via Priority Mail. While I hope that I receive the film before I leave for my trip, it really didn't matter after I read Michael's email. The level of customer service he demonstrated is outstanding. The FPP is a small operation, but they care about their customers. They know that every one of their customers, or listeners for that matter, is a huge fan of film photography and they are simply treating each one like they would want to be treated. Michael Raso doesn't know me personally; yet, he took the time out of his busy day to write a personal response and send another package. I wish all businesses would work in this manner; the world would definitely be a better place.
I hope I can attend an FPP meet up and meet Michael and the rest of the FPP gang. You've helped open up a whole new aspect of photography for me and I appreciate that. If anyone reading this blog is into film photography, thinking about getting into film photography or used to shoot film and wants to get back into doing it, I highly recommend FPP.
Here's the link: Film Photography Podcast
Thanks again Michael and the FPP gang!
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