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Oxford: two Fujiroids

Saturday, July 20th, 2013

Here are two Fujiroids I made this afternoon while out for a family walk. I recently got a roll film back for my Mamiya Universal camera so that I can use film and Polaroid in so that’s the camera I took with me to test out the film holder. My first stop was the Meadow Land skatepark where I photographed Imogen on her BMX. We had a nice chat about film photography and she told me she uses a Holga which is a camera that has often intrigued me to try out but I’ve yet to get one. After leaving the skatepark I headed over to the Iffley Road sports centre with my wife and daughter to investigate the announcements we kept hearing from the tannoy over there. It turned out to be a running meet/competition for the British One Milers and as we sat down to watch some of the runners I noticed some activity on the other side of the race track which turned out to be a strong man competition. I also shot some expired slide film that I’m going to cross-process and I’ll post those shots at a later time if they work out.

[Tech info:] Mamiya Universal camera, 100/3.5 lens, Fuji FP-100C instant pack film.

Imogen

Strong man competitors

 

Oxford: Skatepark portraits (5×4 film)

Monday, June 24th, 2013

These two portraits were made yesterday at the same skatepark session as the two in the previous post except these were made on 5×4 black & film. The maximum amount of 5×4 sheet film I can develop at the same time is 6 sheets so that’s usually how many I load into film holders at the same time. I had already used 4 sheets from this batch at a shoot I had with Imogen so I only had 2 sheets with me when I decided to go to the skatepark. It’s a shame because the light was nice (when the sun wasn’t behind a cloud) and there was a good crowd there.

[Tech info:] Graflex Super D 5×4, Pentac f2.9 @ f4, Ilford Delta 100 processed in Ilford DDX 1+4.

Oxford: Skatepark portraits

Sunday, June 23rd, 2013

These two portraits were made at my local skatepark today. It was a really fun session and my portrait volunteers did really well to stay still whilst being heckled from their friends. I wanted to test out my Super D camera after I had some focus issues the last time I used it and the good news is I’ve managed to achieve critical focus again with my workaround but the bad news is that I need to use the camera on a tripod to do it. When you’re working with really shallow depth of field it’s always a good idea to mount your camera on a tripod so it’s not the end of the world. I only had two sheets of film with me and these last two shots of Fuji instant pack film. The film shots will follow (I left them drying in the darkroom overnight).

[Tech info:] Graflex Super D with Pentac f2.9 lens @ f4. Fuji FP-100C instant pack film.

Oxford: OWP skatepark – 10×8 portraits

Friday, June 14th, 2013

This is the second batch of portraits that I made back in April at the Meadow Lane skatepark. It was a great session and I made a total of eight portraits (that’s all the film I had with me). The first batch can be seen here. I really enjoy using 10×8 but unfortunately the camera and lens alone are a bit too heavy for me to safely cycle with on my back, not to mention the tripod and film holders I need to carry as well. This limits my usage and how far  I can travel with it which is a shame because there are so many images I’d love to make with this size of film. I really like how these have turned out and I hope to make some more during the summer if time permits.

[Tech info:] Wista 10×8, 300mm Sinaron lens, green sensitive x-ray film, ISO50, processed in Rodinal 1+50 for 6mins.

 

 

Oxford: OWP skatepark, 6×6 portraits

Sunday, April 28th, 2013

The warm summery weather we had last weekend was a little short lived and didn’t last very long so I didn’t manage to visit the skatepark on Meadow Lane this weekend. Here are a set of portraits I made last Saturday on medium format film. These guys are the early birds who were there right around when the park opened in the morning, more than likely making the most of it before the hoards arrived.

[Tech info:] Rolleiflex SL66, 150mm lens, loaded with Kodak Tri-X, processed in HC110 (1+31).

Oxford: OWP skatepark – 10×8 portraits

Monday, April 22nd, 2013

Here are some portraits I made on large format 10×8 film yesterday as part of my ongoing personal project to document the users of the Oxford Wheels Project skatepark on Meadow Lane. We had a sunny morning with next to no breeze which is ideal conditions for dragging out a 10×8 camera. Fortunately it wasn’t too busy so I had space to set up and I managed to make 8 different portraits, my most successful session so far. I absolutely love shooting 10×8 and I can’t wait to shoot some transparency film at the skatepark. Below are the first batch from yesterday, I haven’t processed the others yet. These web sized images don’t do the originals any justice. The negatives are a sight to behold and the original high-resolution scans have so much detail in them it’s mind boggling.

[Tech info:] Wista 10×8, 300mm Sinaron lens, green sensitive x-ray film, ISO50, processed in Rodinal 1+50 for 6mins.

The 10x8 Wista camera I used.

 

Oxford: OWP skatepark – BMX riders

Saturday, April 20th, 2013

This morning I went over to the OWP skatepark on meadow lane right after it opened at 10am to do a little photography. I had a lot of things to do the rest of the day and I knew the weather was going to be really nice so I made the most of it with an early start. The nice thing about getting to the skatepark early is that it’s not too busy so there’s time to set shots up and space to move around without getting in peoples way. Another benefit is the sun is low enough in the sky to cast lots of shadows everywhere which is something I like because it helps to give contrast to an image. There were a lot of skills on show this morning and the BMX riders certainly knew how to make their riding skills look easy as they whipped around the bowl. I set up some shots with Lima, who I think is able to get the most height out of the bowl but unfortunately I accidentally double exposed the last two shots. Sorry! I’ve included it for reference below. I also shot some frames of b&w film, those will follow later.

[Tech info:] Mamiya RB67, 180mm lens on Fuji FP100C instant pack film (aka Fujiroids).

 

Oxford: OWP skate park portraits

Monday, April 15th, 2013

Here are some portraits I made at the new OWP (Oxford Wheels Project) skate park on Meadow Lane yesterday. This is a personal project to document some of the users of the park because I think it will be great to look back at these images many years from now. I’ve never owned a BMX and I could never balance on a skateboard to save my life so I never found myself visiting the old ramps which is a real shame. I wish I had thought about starting this project years ago because it would be interesting to see how the bikes and fashions have changed over time as well as the riders and skaters themselves.

[Tech info:] Speed Graphic 5×4 large format camera with a Kodak Aero Ektar lens on Ilford FP4, processed in Kodak HC110 (1+31) for 7mins.

Setup shot - photo by Alex Leech

Oxford: BMX riders at the new ramps

Wednesday, April 10th, 2013

We finally had some nice weather last weekend so I made the most of it and did some large format film photography at the new Meadow Lane ramps. On Saturday I took a Super D 5×4 SLR camera (first two shots) and on Sunday I took a Wista 10×8 field camera. I’m not sure how much BMX action photography has ever been done with a 10×8 camera, I suspect not much at all. It was my first time photographing at the new ramps and I really like the new layout. I hope to spend more time there documenting the riders and skaters through the summer if the nice weather continues.

[Tech info:] 5×4 shots made with a 190mm lens on Ilford HP5, processed in Kodak HC110 (1+31) for 7:30. 10×8 shots made with a 300mm/5.6 lens on green sensitive x-ray film, rated at ISO50. Processed in Rodinal 1+50 for 6mins.

A rider from Carterton

Oxford rider

Hitting the mark

Oxford Wheels Project: The end of an era – part 2

Tuesday, September 11th, 2012

Here are the second set of images I made at the Meadow Lane skate ramps on the last day before they were demolished to make way for a bigger and better concrete skatepark.

As of last week the ramps have been demolished and work has begun on the new design. After being tipped off about the demolition day I cycled over there after finishing work to make some shots of the demolition site but I got there a few minutes too late and the van full of builders drove past me as I cycled along Meadow Lane. Doh! There were no holes in the fence big enough to poke my lens through so unfortunately I don’t have any images of it but if you can imagine a big pile of plywood that’s what it looked like.

[Tech info:] Pentax 67, 105mm lens loaded with Fuji Acros 100 film, processed in Kodak HC110 (dilution b).

The next generation

In conversation

Onlookers

Captive audience

Original skater

Final shot