I had a lot of fun last year working through some of my cameras and picking a different camera and film each month and shooting them for the enjoyment of photography. Often I would tie the roll to a YouTube video, specific blog post, developer review, or a podcast episode, but sometimes it would be for the fun of photography. These were always posted to Instagram and I worked again in collaboration with the community of folks through the 12monthsonfilm account. For 2025 I’ll admit there were repeat cameras from last year, but I did make a point to include some new arrivals and thoseRead More →

By 1814, both sides were starting to tire of the war. For the Americans, they had been facing no actual movement. The Royal Navy was causing havoc on the east coast. The British held Mackinac Island, Fort Niagara, the District of Maine, and Prarie Du Chien. The Americans only held Fort Erie, having been turned back in their Niagara invasion. They were under siege and had some control of the western edge of Upper Canada but nothing beyond the settlements of Sandwich and Amherstburg. The possibility of peace negotiations had started in 1813 but were soon shut down. However, with long lines of communication betweenRead More →

Well we made it through another year. Like every years things did not always go to plan and that’s okay. Because it’s important to be flexible, especially when this blog and other channels is not a full time job. The year was a lot of fun despite being a little chaotic. I always have hope that things will eventually calm down, but they do in fact always calm up. There was a rather unfortunate bump through the fall with a five week support staff strike that did reduce some capacity for creation, but I had the chance to play catch up through October and NovemberRead More →

Like my last developer review (Fuji Microfine), Fuji Super Prodol (SPD) has little information online about the developer. SPD is the faster version of Prodol and according to what I could find online says that this developer is designed for push-processing films. And to make things even more interesting is that looking at the chemical formula it shares similar characteristics to Crawley’s FX-37. This was part of the care package from a reader that included Microfine which turned out to be an amazing developer with Fuji Acros 100 II. The package does appear to be a modern pouch, and appears to be still in productionRead More →

I don’t take folding cameras out that often. First, I only have a pair of them; second, they can be a pain to use. But my good friend and fellow film photographer Jim Graves made a post that was dedicated to being folder week from 19 October to 24 October. The whole thing was started by another talented photographer, Tom Northenscold. So, why not dust off the pair of Zeiss Ikon folders and take them out for a spin? This included the simple Ikonta 521, a 6×4.5 format option with no rangefinder, to the massive but hard to handle Super-Ikonta 531/2, a 6×9 beast withRead More →

I guess you could say that this post comes out from a short I released on YouTube last month about why photo walks are important and that you should go on photo walks. When the average person hears the term ‘photo walk’ they tend to think of a group usually medium or large. And I’ll admit, large groups of strangers can be a bit iffy. But a photo walk doesn’t have to be in a group, you don’t even have to have another person with you. My good friend and fellow photographer, Michael Hurley, goes on solo photo walks all the time. In fact, he’sRead More →

When it comes to point-and-shoot cameras, they still remain very much in vogue with a certain cross-section of film photographers. While I don’t often reach for these cameras, it is always fun to try out something outside of my usual selection of cameras. This is my third Pentax Point-And-Shoot; I’ve used the first point-and-shoot, the PC35AF, and one of the Espios, a more high-end offering. The Zoom 280-P is a clunky, early ’90s brick of a camera with a bit of ergonomics. And you know, despite being a P&S, the Zoom 280-P is a decent little camera that does the job of taking photos, butRead More →

The early parts of 1814 had proven to be a quiet point in the war. While there was some action, it was almost a pause in the war, and both sides regrouped from a fiery 1813. While the British took the time to regroup, lick their wounds and prepare for renewed conflict and the promised reinforcements from Europe, the Americans took a different approach. Secretary of War John Armstrong would mostly be free of some of the older Generals, those who had achieved their rank through appointment rather than merit. As those officers had failed on the front lines, Armstrong either reassigned them to lessRead More →

One of the most rewarding and frustrating parts of working with traditional film mediums is developing the film yourself. This often allows for faster turnaround and greater control. However, when things go sideways, you can only blame yourself. I started developing black & white film myself over ten years ago now for two reasons. First, I was inspired after attending my first Photostock event, where I saw all the fantastic work people were doing and had the opportunity to chat with my good friend Matt Marrash. Second, my local lab had reduced its processing to a single day of C-41. The owner (Joan) took meRead More →

There are small cameras; then there are small ones; the Pentax MX is one of the latter. Released as Asahi’s response to the Olympus OM-1, the Pentax MX took things to the next level with the size. The M-Series of Pentax SLRs are strangers to me; I’ve used the ME, ME Super and even an MG, but never an MX. Save for a brief encounter with an MX in Bill Smith’s collection for a CCR Episode (Ep. 36 – Last But Not Least) So when I started to look for one a few years back I found that they were rare on the used marketRead More →