more from ulia

After already posting the pictures from the first roll taken up at Mount Ulia, I might as well post the second one as well. This one tore in my Zorki when I went to take it for a spin on International Workers Day. Only logical that a Soviet camera would refuse to work on that day! It tore so badly that I couldn’t rewind the film anymore and had to get the roll out of the camera in the dark. This always means that the film gets scratched rather badly. Luckily post-processing magic can resolve the issue, but of course I won’t be printing from the original negatives. Always a shame when that happens. If there is bad camera and film combination, then probably K400 and the Zorki, since K400 is rather thin and the Zorki rather rough with the film. If you’re looking for a film that in all likelihood won’t rip in the Zorki, then go for Tri-X, never tore for me. However, it’s curls like crazy, so it’s a bit of a pain to scan.

All pictures taken with: Zorki 4K and Jupiter 12 35mm f/2.8.
Kentmere 400 developed in Tetenal Ultrafin 1:20, 16min.

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

The boy in the middle is clearly turning into a zombie, right?

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

This has something to do with whales. Need to investigate further.

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

Ever wondered why I love analog photography? Well, this picture says it all.

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

Another zombie boy?

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

Brave parking. Right at the edge of the precipice.

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

Curved lines fascinate me.

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

This was a rather sneaky picture. I even took my time making sure the settings were right. If she had turned around I probably would have startled her.

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

The stuff teenagers do.

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

© Lilly Schwartz 2014

The second girl seems to be levitating.

Comments

  • Ralf D.

    Shot 3: Exactly with you! Some very atmospheric shots and I like, no love the grain!

    Well, my Zorki also ate a film and got problems with the film transportation. I changed then to the Kiev 4.

    • Lilly Schwartz

      The classic grain of Kentmere is really rather nice I have to agree and the tonality is great for nature shots. I don’t like it that much for street though.

      One of my friends shoots with a Kiev and I agree, it’s a nice camera. The camera and the lenses tend to be a bit cheaper because it’s not a Leica copy. Same build quality. However, I don’t want to miss the fast forwarding lever of my Zorki 4K. The forwarding dial of my 3C is a major pain and all the Kievs have those. I guess it’s less likely to tear the film though. The metal teeth of the forwarding mechanism together with the bad fit of western film canisters probably isn’t a good combination in the first place, but the lever makes it even worse. With thick film like tri-x it’s ok. Never tore for me. Thin ones like Kentmere are a problem though.

      • Ralf D.

        I like the sturdiness of the Kiev and the range finder. But yes, it has only a wheel and no lever. On the other hand Capa (again…) did his Normandy invasion shots with two Contaxes (and a Rolleiflex) under fire and in the cold water of the Channel 🙂
        I’m also in search for a Zorki 4, but the local dealers only have C’s and these are a p.i.t.a. And another Kiev 4 (maybe…).
        Ok, you got me, next time I will try tri-x instead of t-max.

        • Lilly Schwartz

          Handling a film advance dial under fire, that’s wild! I’d assume that you’d have some time to forward while staying low for cover though. I’ve also done street with my 3C. Not such a problem as long as you don’t need the pictures in rapid succession, and don’t forget to forward after every shot. The real pain was that I constantly broke my fingernails on the damn thing.

          Local dealers even in Berlin have *nothing*. I was looking all over Berlin for the Jupiter 12 35mm lens and had no luck whatsoever. You can get decent Zorki 4Ks and lenses on ebay. I got my 4K only because it was bundled with the Jupiter 12 35mm. Cheaper than getting the lens on its own. The film advance lever was a bit broken on the 4K, but nothing a bit of heat shrink wire insulation couldn’t fix. It somehow turned into my primary analog camera by accident. My 3C also has light leaks and the frames end up partly on the sprocket holes, so the 4K was a real improvement not only for my fingernails 😉

          I shot a lot of HP5+ actually and it’s still my favourite film. I just love classic grain film.

  • Film certainly has its merits, as well demonstrated here. Digital is clinically (usually) clean — almost too clean to be credible. Though I don’t use film any more, I must try to get an analog look in some of my digital pictures, just for old times sake…thanks for the inspiration.

    • Lilly Schwartz

      If pressed for an answer to the question whether I prefer digital or analog, I’d definitely say: analog! The tonality is just so much better and as you say, digital is much too clinical. And of course digital noise is ugly in comparison to grain! That said, of course analog is more expensive and requires a lot more work. I can understand why you’d stick to digital. If you want to play around with the film look, then have a look at Alien Skin Exposure. That’s the software I use to convert my digital pictures to black and white. It has tons of presets for different film types and does a good job at simulating grain.

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