Photos Photo of the Day

very nice pic

http://www.ilovephotoblogs.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/beautiful-sunrise.jpg

 

Hey Tim, beautiful images again.

I wanted to ask you if Portra comes in 135-format, since I could try it on my OM-1 if it does?

It's actually funny, isn't Portra "short" for portrait, so that would be the intended usage for it? Anyhow, it seems to work fine with landscape work

 

Thanks!

Portra comes in all major formats and in ASA 160 and 400 speeds - I've used 135, 120 and 4x5 and the characteristics are the same on all film types. The 400 has bluer shadows, but more dynamic range - it's about 19 stops I believe - while the 160 has an overall more natural colour palette but a couple of stops less dynamic range. 160's got about 6 stops below and 8 or 9 above midtone.

The 400 can be easily rated at 800 or even 1250 and still deliver good results from a standard development time (When you bring the midtone back up in Photoshop after scanning/inversion it gives the film some more contrast, which can sometimes be beneficial). Alternatively, you can push development and develop as you've rated it. Either way, it's wonderfully flexible film and if you rate it higher grain doesn't get too bad too quickly. At a push, you could rate at 1600 ASA, but that would introduce quite a bit more grain.

Portra is meant to be a portrait film, you're right - what I like about it is its very subdued (but natural) colour palette and the huuuuge dynamic range. I barely use filters if I'm shooting a view now, as there's no need - not surprisingly, there's also a more natural balance between sky and land which you can always adjust in Photoshop if required. The colours can come alive too in the right light and contrast can always be added (you can always take data away too!)

 

Thanks for the info Tim.

I did a bit of research after writing that, so I have a few follow-up questions.

Have you tried the ASA160 in Vivid Color? If I understood correctly it comes in the "normal" Natural Color + the mentioned Vivid Color.

Would be fun to know how much more vivid it is since I wouldn't expect "Kodachrome" colors from a portrait film in any case.

I really have to check my local retailer and see if they have Portra in stock (you never know in Finland).

 

Iconic by angad84, on Flickr


Joie by angad84, on Flickr


Hanging by angad84, on Flickr

 

The new Portra 160/400 are no longer available as NC/VC variations. I think that's actually better and they've got slightly more dynamic range than the older emulsions (and less grain at the same ASA) - you can always make a Portra scan 'look' like Velvia/Provia/Astia with a bit of Photoshop jiggerypokery, but I actually like the colours as they are for the most part. Sometimes a bit of desaturation can be beneficial too, giving it a haunted look.

 

A few with my new 16-35 F4 VR;

 

starting to go through the holiday pictures, so here's a ship figurehead from the collection at Mystic Seaport, Connecticut.

Mystic Seaport 3 by whisperwolf, on Flickr

Oh and a hint if anyone goes to Mystic Seaport, don't have the coffee, Blurghhhhhh brown dishwater.

 

Yeah but there's lot's of it. Welcome to America

(that's what some american teachers told me upon the topic of their vs. our coffee.)

 

Padley Stream by TimSmalley, on Flickr

 

I've just sent the following image off to the printers for the first and only time - I made this as part of a commission for a private client who wanted some unique images of Cannock Chase for their new home on the edge of Britain's smallest AONB (area of outstanding natural beauty). It will unfortunately be a limited edition of one, but it's being printed at 48 x 27 inches so should look fantastic.


'An Angelic Moment, Cannock Chase'

You can read more about it on my blog: http://tsmalley.com/blog/an-angelic-momen-cannock-chase/

 

Oh wow, now THAT is an awesome shot!

 

^^Breathtaking shot there. I wish I had the skills/equipment to capture the natural world in all its glory .

 

Oh nice shots Tim, I'd say the last one you posted is by far the most impressive to me so far and a good choice for a print.

At first when you started posting images like these I didn't quite feel them. Don't know if it was the tonality of the photos or perhaps something with the composition/subject matter.

It also might be the fact that I wasn't used to look and appreciate photos which do not always have such clear subject matter. The great thing is that as a mainly nature photographer I've really wanted to "see the photo where others don't", extract the right framing and composition out of an even "chaotic" scene, so your photos have at least pushed me into the right direction with that.

I've done some testing and I start to see the nature in a different way, but I'm still struggling a bit to get decent results from it. But keep posting your work since you've got at least a one-man Finnish fan club

 

Coffee_And_Chai_Tea by silverfish51, on Flickr

Panos gotta pan.

 

Thanks for the kind words

Thanks for the kind words - one of the most important things is to connect with your subject... especially when it's chaotic. The woodland where most of my recent images have been made - as part of a project I'm doing on the Ashridge Forest, with the vision of it being exhibited when it's sort of resembling completion - is virtually unmanaged, which means there's no felling or resculpting of the forest by man (if a tree falls, it's left to rot where it fell) and it's inherently more chaotic than most forests that are managed by organisations like the Forestry Commission, the Woodland Trust, etc.

That said, spending time in the forest helps you to understand exactly what makes it 'tick' - it took me 3 months of visiting the forest to make a meaningful photograph that has stood the test of time. I now find it easier to see pictures and make sense of the chaos, but that's not to say it's easy to make good pictures there - I still find it very hard and, if I come back from a day of exploring the forest with 6 photographs (not accounting for duplicates of the same composition on different emulsions/with different light), I've had an amazing day. If I come back with 1 good photograph, I'm incredibly happy.

The key is to just spend as much time as possible connecting with it. Touch the trees, run your fingers through the bracken, etc. It may sound silly, but that can help connect you to the location but there is no substitute to just getting out there.

Cannock Chase is a place that's very dear to me - I spent the first 6 years of my life living on the edge of it and then continued visiting regularly with my mountain bike until I was about 16. I've only recently started visiting the location again, but it's one that I have an emotional connection with. It's a bit like Dovedale, The Roaches, Kinder Scout/Edale/Hope Valley/Hathersage, Glen Coe, the Cuillin hills and Trotternish ridge on Skye, Keswick/Derwent Water (and the surrounding fells), as well as some parts of Devon/Cornwall. I've got an emotional connection with those places for one reason or another... mainly because I spent a lot of time there as a kid and have memories - photographing places that you're passionate about can really shine through in your pictures... if you're not passionate about the subject, your photos will lack that emotion which takes it from an also-ran to something that other people want to hang on their wall.

The Cannock Chase picture was part of a paid job for a client who wanted something that really captured the essence of the Chase to put on the wall of their living room and it is of a part of the Chase that's special to them. I can't wait to see, but more importantly deliver the final print - it's not going to be printed again because the client has covered all expenses (including my time) related to the making of the picture. It's a real shame, because it's one of my favourite pictures of the year and I'd love to have it not only on my wall, but be able to sell it to others too. However, they paid me to make a unique picture for them and that's the end of it - I can still appreciate it on my computer.

 

IMGP9489 by silverfish51, on Flickr

 

IMGP9494 by silverfish51, on Flickr

 

A30 Eastbound.

 

LOL. Epic!