Paddock - Deserted Railway Siding

On Thursday Cathy and I drove down to the coast for the day. The little siding of Paddock, marked only by a rusted old sign,  has always been on my list of places to explore. What a sad, rundown but incredibly photogenic place it turned out to be.

During the 1960's and 70's a narrow gauge railway line ran from Port Shepstone to Harding and was the main means of transporting sugar cane and timber. Paddock was obviously a busy little community in it's day but all that is left are deserted buildings, rusting metal and an air of total despair  -  all the ingredients for great pinhole image making!

A Potter At Work

Yesterday Cathy threw some test pieces. I am always fascinated when she works on the wheel  -  watching a lump of clay being coaxed into some or other recognizable form  -   almost as good as watching an image emerge in the developer  -  almost!

Captured with homemade magnifier lens on Rollei SL66.

Fuji Acros rated at 200 ISO developed in Caffenol.

Homemade Lens

For some time I have been experimenting with homemade lenses. Using the single double convex element from a magnifying glass, adapted to fit a Rollei SL66, I shot my first test roll yesterday. "The most appealing features of the lens are the glowing highlights, limited depth of field and the soft focus effect towards the edges."

Found Objects - Wabi Sabi

Wabi Sabi - The quintessential Japanese aesthetic!                                                                        

  -  Seeing beauty in the imperfect, in the impermanent and in the incomplete.

  -  The colourful patina as objects rust and eventually disintegrate. The slow weathering of wood.      

  -  Beauty in the ordinary!

Images captured on Nikon D3X. Processed in Lightroom.

Caffenol - Not Everyone's Cup Of Tea

Yesterday I went to one of my favourite stomping grounds to put an old Leica IIC through it's paces. With a roll of FP4+ and a Jupiter 35mm lens, it really was a liberating experience. Preset focus and the "Sunny 16 exposure rule" meant freedom to concentrate on composition rather than technicalities. The choice of developer was Caffenol. Despite harsh midday lighting, the extreme contrast range was handled well by agitation-free stand development.

Filmwasters - Guest Gallery

Filmwasters has included a selection of my pinhole images in their "Guest Galleries".

www.filmwasters.com/guests/v/guestgallery55/

Enjoy!!

Colour vs Monochrome - A question Of Interpretation

Whilst on a walk at Kenmo Lake with Cathy this morning, I was mesmerised by the green summer grass and foliage, emphasised by strong side lighting, in the forested areas. It got me thinking about colour vs b&w. Although rather "monochromatic" in its presentation, the original image relies heavily upon colour for it's impact - the trees being very much secondary in the overall scene.

The same (or similar scene) in black and white, however, is a different matter. Impact in monochrome requires a different approach  -  contrast and form! A square crop from the colour image (flipped horizontally) results in an entirely altered interpretation! To my mind the monochrome version has drama, mood and a certain tension not present in the former.

Publish Post

Captured with Canon G10