Zeiss Ikon Nettar Simplified

No, these images were not taken on a Hasselblad or Rolleiflex but on the very humble 6x6 Ikon Zeiss Nettar Medium Format Camera.

Originally released in 1934, it went through several different iterations with the final Nettar II 518/16 being released in 1949 and ending production in 1957.

In this video we will look at the camera, its functions, how you can load film, take pictures with it and along the way I will show you what you can expect from taking images for the very first, how to avoid making the mistakes that I made and start taking beautiful images which will rival any 6x6 Medium Format camera.

Over the next few years expect to see a lot more digital Medium Format Cameras appearing on the market. Fuji has already made a flying start with its GFX range and you might be wondering what’s the point of shooting Medium Format? What is it and what can I use it for?

Historically speaking Medium Format Film Photography has been used by professionals who are creating work for clients that needed extra detail. Peter Lindberg put it best when he said the 35mm is for conversational photography and Medium Format is more for presentation style work.

This is a 6x6 Medium Format Camera and you will be able to capture 12 shots on this wonderfully simple camera. If you have an Instagram, you’ll be familiar with the square format which was originally started with 6x6 Medium Format cameras!

At first glance there is very little to the camera. It is a very light and highly portable camera. Its bellows open to reveal a fixed 75mm lens, aperture range from f5.6 through to f22. Its shutter speeds are 25, 75, 200/sec. You can put the shutter in between these fixed positions.

As there is no on board light meter, you will need to use the sunny 16 rule if you don't have one and if you do - use it!

How to operate the Ikon Zeiss Nettar

Let’s go through controls of the camera, the shutter release, cold shoe, bellows release and the film wind. If you are not sure about something, just hit pause or come back to it so you can master this at home yourself.

By pressing the bellows release the camera reveals itself. You will have to manually adjust all the settings including the distance between you and your subject, shutter speed and aperture. I would strongly recommend using a light meter which will calculate the correct settings when using this camera.

Be careful when you first open this camera, the bellows can pop out very quickly. Place your hand gently at the front of the camera and then press the bellows release. Let the bellows unfold out slowly.

The camera is in your hands, perhaps over 70 years old, treat it gently and perhaps someone else can benefit from using it 70 years from today!

There are main parts you need to focus your attention on when you open the Zeiss Ikon Nettar. The first dial you must adjust is the distance between you and your subject. It ranges from 4ft through to infinity.

4ft is about 1.2m so as a rule of thumb you can measure one large stride between you and your subject and you should be good to go. Maybe even work out what 1.2m looks like in your own stride or step. This is especially important when shooting a subject and when you are time pressed.

You don’t want to be carrying around a tape measure with you, alternatively if you have a tape measure app on your phone you could use that too!

If you are shooting landscapes, then stick it to infinity and you are good to go, simply easy.

The shutter speed goes from bulb mode through to 200/sec. Again, you will need to adjust this yourself and set it using the orange marker on the shutter speed dial.

Your aperture dials from f4.5 through to f22. Stick to one of the marked aperture points on the dial when you are starting off. Once you have a good command of these and you are happy with the results, then play a little more and see what you can create.

Once you have dialed in your distance, shutter speed and aperture you are ready to shoot. You will need to pull the shutter lever back to prime the camera. There are two ways in which you can release the shutter.

The first is with the 'leaf shutter release' at the base of the camera. Alternatively, you can use the shutter release on the right-hand side of the top of the camera. If you are shooting handheld, I would strongly advise using the leaf shutter where you can.

If shooting something where you need to have the shot come out for sure, such as a portrait of a friend or a client, then use a cable release like this one. They are very inexpensive and you can find many online for a few pounds or dollars.

The shutter release button at the top of the camera is where you can screw in the cable release. Once in you can control the length and duration of your shutter release by depressing the shutter here. This allows you to take multiple exposures as well as long exposures. Be sure to check getting your timings correct before you attempt this though!

How do you load the film on the Zeiss Ikon Nettar?

How do you load the film? Easy, close your camera bellows and turn it over. Pull down on the silver latch on the left side of the camera. The camera takes 120 medium format rolls which will give you a large 6x6 negative.

To put the roll into the camera, pull down on the springy silver bit located on the bottom right-hand side of the camera. That will allow you to slot in your roll, then gently release the springy bit back and the roll should be firmly put in place.

Pull the film across on to the empty spool on the left-hand side of the camera, wind and close the back lid firmly.

Now, roll the film by using the scroller dial on the top left-hand side of the camera until the first frame can be seen on the camera gate located in the middle of the back of the camera. In total you can capture 12 shots on each roll of medium format film.

Want the cheapest XPAN on the market?

Did you know you can also use 35mm film in your Zeiss Ikon Nettar? You will need some 35mm adapters such as these ones. This is easily found online or at a good vintage camera store.

Here’s how to get this setup. You will need any roll of 35mm, attach the adapters like so. With the adapters fitted you will need a spare film spool and some tape.

Take the film tongue and attach your tape like so. Now word of caution here if you are doing this in the open you will lose the first few frames on the film as it will be exposed when you pull it to stick it in.

You can get around this by investing in a dark bag. Once you have the film on your adapters and the tongue taped you can pop this into the dark bag and then mount the film blind into the camera. It looks hard but honestly it's really easy.

On a side note the dark bag has come in very handy. On occasions when film might get stuck in your camera, this can happen on any film camera, you can whip this out and salvage your film anywhere, anytime! I have saved several rolls in my time using this.

It is however, especially important for this camera because once you have finished the roll there is no way of rolling this back. So you will have to pop it into the dark bag and then manually wind the film up. You can do this by twisting this top bit clockwise.

Now I don’t have the tech to show you how to mount this in the dark bag but I can show you how to mount it in the daylight. Simply pop the film into the holder like so and then drag your film across and place the spool inside.

Before you close the back of the camera I would advise you to put some tape or piece of cardboard, you can take some from the box of film and tape it right over this red window. The reason is because this normally would allow you to see which frame number you would be on medium format film.

You can see that here on this medium format film strip. This paper protects the film from being exposed from the red window which is not present on 35mm film so you have to make one! If you don't you’ll end up getting a panoramic shot like this.

You might be thinking, but Ahsan, you have a window latch at the back of the camera! Yes, you do and you could tape that up or even just keep the camera inside a case if you have one. That way you know it should be fine.

There are lots of film stocks to choose from on 35mm and Medium Format. These include color negative films such as Kodak Portra, through to dedicated BW film stocks produced exclusively by Ilford and if you are feeling truly adventurous then stick in some slide film such as Ektachrome, Velvia or Provia.

Yashica Mat 124G Walk In Knightsbridge With Kodak TriX

A long wintery walk in Central London with my Yashica Mat 124G. The film roll options were between Kodak TriX, TMY and Ilford XP2 (C41 BW). Twelve shots to play with so I went with the Kodak TriX hoping to capture a grainy central London landscape.  

The Yashica Mat 124G comes with a light meter onboard which is incredibly useful. The ease of using it in comparison with using a phone meter or handheld dedicated meter such as a Sekonic is undeniable. 

First shot walk past the Victoria and Albert Museum. Walking along further a car had bumped in to the back of another car which was blocking a Deliveroo delivery man from getting to his destination. A little quicker reaction would have made a great street snap but by the time I had set it up the car had been moved along. Turning back to capture this road with some leading tree lines looked a good alternative close option! 

A little bit surprised to find tropical looking trees in this part of town. Street photography is showing how things can change so quickly in the scene you might be walking in. Take this third shot for example. Framed up the shot only to have a lorry come and park right in front. Exercising a little patience (you can hear the lorry in the video!) and changing my line a little to capture this shot. 

Earlier on I had noticed this classic MG parked up and knew I would come back and take a snap of that. Back on to Kensington High Street walking along and a snap of Harrods. A lot of construction work is going on in the area. Perhaps an opportunity while crowd footfall remained low and slow!  A chair shot to reflect that fact on the ground. 

A little further along I tried a moving walking shot of two pedestrians walking along to see what I was able to capture. Not too surprised by the resulting outcome! 

Crossing the road over into Hyde Park and saw a little waterfall which looked picturesque before finishing up around the lake area. Was a little tempted by the ice cream and pizza place but erred on the side of health! 

Bronica Zenza ETRS With CineStill 800T

It was absolutely roasting on the day I had organised a series of workshops across London. To catch some cool air we stopped over in this cafe. Almost immediately I knew I had to get some shots on some CineStill 800T in here. So many tungsten lights! We reserved up a little spot while we waited for our cold drinks to arrive.

Armed with my Bronica Zenza ETRS I loaded up the roll and got shooting.

Why did the images come out blasted in orange? Well, if you haven’t checked out my previous video on this check it out here:

Essentially if the ‘remjet’ layer hasn’t been removed properly from the Kodak T rolls and then is processed in C41 chemicals you get this result. CineStill reimbursed everyone after it turned out the entire batch had turned out this way. Whilst I was disappointed not to see the actual results from this film I am really pleased with the shots nonetheless!

The Bronica’s waist level finder is an absolute dream to shoot with. Combined with the fact you have only fifteen shots per roll you are forced to carefully think about what you’re going to shoot and you have to move to reassess the best possible options. Using an eye level finder is a very different experience. You will have to slow down and eradicate the ‘spray and pray’ option which digital offers widely.

A little bit disappointed with the later images. Always remember to carry your light meter with you and definitely check the light meter reading if you’re changing your setting. You can use a simple phone light meter or a more expensive option such as the Sekonic light meters.

Get out there! Shoot and make mistakes, that’s the beauty of photography whether digital or analog. Learn to slow down your process, reflect on what your taking. Get in touch with your questions and comments. Would love to hear what you would like to learn more about or anything that you think I may have missed!

Zeiss Ikon Nettar vs Yashica Mat 124G with Ilford Delta 400

These cameras both use the 6x6 picture format on Medium Format film. The Zeiss Ikon Nettar being the older more rustic version in comparison with the Yashica Mat 124G.

You can have a look at some of my previous videos on the Zeiss Ikon Nettar here.

It was time to test out both cameras under the same conditions using the same film (Ilford Delta 400) and settings throughout. This way I could see how they would perform and what differences potentially could pop up.

Taking a leaf from the Thoreau and his wandering walks in the wild I decided to take a walk of my own in the urban jungle. The walk started on a bright sunny but cold and windy Spring day. I saw these newly painted houses and thought that would be a good place to start.

Surprisingly switching between both cameras was quite seamless. Having the Yashica Mat 124G around my neck and the Zeiss Ikon Nettar tucked away in my jacket pocket. I found taking the folding camera out easy to quick take out of my pocket and snap the shot in frame.

Each time I tried to align it as closely to where the lens from the Yashica was pointing and snap it from that perspective. You can see from the first shot the tones have come out darker in the Yashica on the car and trees. This was to become a consistent theme throughout all the images.

I carried on along and found a side entrance to some apartments which I wandered down to see if there was a route to the other side through. After a short walk through some pastel pink coloured buildings (which I was very much tempted to snap but then thought I don’t have Portra 800 loaded!) I came to a dead-end. I turned back and looked up to see this staircase winding down the side of the building with just the right amount of light on it. While I did my best to shorten the interchange time between cameras, the light had changed slightly after snapping first on the Yashica Mat 124G. The tones have come out a bit darker on the Zeiss Ikon Nettar probably due to the reduction of light on the frame. On a side note, I did find framing and shooting the shot upwards a little tricky and fiddly.

I double-backed on myself and got back to the street where I started from and carried on, turning left and find this row of Victorian Houses. I do like a chequered entrance and with a bike in frame it was a winning combination. The images are almost identical here in tonality, although I slightly prefer the framing on the Zeiss Ikon Nettar.

Coming to the end of the road, I had a decision to make, whether to carryon walking straight or turn left. The decision was made by the graffiti on the wall on the left hand side. Be Happy! The clouds were starting to draw over and the light was intermittent and variable. The framing on the Yashica 124G has come out better probably because of the viewfinder which allows for a more intuitive framing experience. The Zeiss Ikon Nettar has a little square viewfinder which is not entirely accurate in giving you a realistic view of what the image will turn out to be.

The low-ish walled bridge was just about reachable to place my camera on top and capture a few snaps of the railway lines. Initially, I had thought about taking the images of the train tracks but then saw these trains coming along and decided to shoot those in frame. Next time, I’ll stick with the railway lines!

London ‘Mews’ streets are just the best to shoot. More recently, I have seen a trend in these little side streets being blocked off to the public which is quite sad. Capturing the vanishing point of this street on the square 6x6 format was a bit tricky. It would be interesting to see how a 6x9 format would fare here.

The architecture was starting to change as I crossed the main road. Moving away from terraced Victorian homes to more detached villa style homes. Notable persons of historical interest even resided in these homes from almost over a century ago.

As you can see from the image comparison, both cameras came out with near identical shots. The only real difference between the two being with the Zeiss Ikon Nettar shots coming out lighter and less constrasty on the blacks.

CineStill 800T on Yashica T5 vs Yashica Mat 124G

Which film camera would fare better, I wondered? The rise in popularity of the modest compact camera has been one to watch over the past year or so. I certainly was very excited to be shooting with the Yashica T5, in part, because of my experience with the Yashica Mat 124G and hoping to find a similar enjoyable shooting experience.

At the early onset of the digital camera era, I remember there being a lot of discussions about Megapixels - it entirely dominated the conversation. Which got me thinking about how much detail the compact camera with its tiny body and lens could take. Would the images come out similarly or exactly the same? Of course both Yashica cameras are very different to each other, so it’s not a like to like comparison in the fullest sense of the experience but fun nonetheless!

Low light conditions along the River Thames called for some higher ISO film which had been lounging around in my bag for a while now. I always find unwrapping CineStill 800T film a little tricky, they use some strong glue! It was the first time I would be shooting this film in the late afternoon and I was very much looking forward to seeing the results.

The Yashica T5 is very simple to load, frighteningly simple. I can see why this would appeal to the enthusiast for sure! Everything boils down to the number 35 on this camera. The Carl Zeiss Tessar 35mm f/3.5 lens can allow you take images as close as 35cm away from you which is great for any budding street photographer. The ISO ranges is from 50-3200 and when you load the film it will automatically adjust the settings using its inbuilt DX Code Reader.

In comparison the 80mm f/3.5 lens produces some fabulously sharp images on the Yashica Mat 124Gs however the ISO range is only up to 400. So when shooting on this camera you will need to push the film in development. You won’t be able to get as close to your subject as the Yashica T5 but it is surprisingly far less invasive in public than holding up a 35mm to your eye. Also, the limited 12 shots will force you to think carefully about what is actually worth shooting.

The automatic focus on the Yashica T5 is handy and takes a few seconds to adjust while it makes whirring sound. I have found that it likes to compensate for the lack of light constantly by adjusting to using its quite powerful on board flash. If you don’t want this trigger then you’ll have to manually switch it off each time which can be quite tedious.

Taking images on the Yashica Mat 124G is a serene experience, the simple click sound can be lost if in a loud environment but it compensates for it by its quite enjoyable winding mechanism. It will need a lot more delicate care and touch when using it.

Both cameras feature a plastic body design which aids in their lighter weight and portability. However, you do need to be careful with both from knocking them about. The compact non professional Yashica T5 is great for those grab and go situations, easily loaded and popped in to your bag or pocket. The Yashica Mat 124G is really for a photographer looking to capture much more detail and depth in their images with a clearer idea and purpose of what they will be shooting.

Overall, there are some distinct differences in results between both cameras. The Yashica Mat 124G pushing to the blue end of the spectrum in far more the shots than the Yashica T5. Was this down to the differences in the lenses between the cameras or the format of the film?

Finally a big thank you to Lucas & Molly for helping with filming and capturing some wonderful snaps on their film cameras! You can follow them on IG here:

Lucas: @analogsquare Cover Image by Molly: @eclectachrome

Pentax Me Super First Walk In Notting Hill With Kodak Portra 800

My first walk with the Pentax ended up in a complete disaster. I had put a roll of Kentmere 400 through to test how it would fare. Having thought that the roll had run though the camera fine, I sent it off for development. Only after having the film developed it was brought to my attention that nothing was actually shot on it.

So what was wrong with the Pentax ME Super (or K1000)? Well, it turns out that even though I had seen the film catch and reel on to the camera, when closed, it was not moving to the next frame. This required the roll mechanism to be replaced entirely, which took a few weeks to get done.

With a tinge of excitement and trepidation I took my camera out for a walk in Notting Hill one cold Spring day with two of my favourite photographers, Lucas & Molly. This time feeling more confident, I put in a roll of Kodak Portra 800 due to the continuing murky English weather conditions.

The camera is so light and small its a delight to carry with you. Almost feels like nothing which makes me wonder if it was the materials they used to make it or did they leave something out. Compared to similar cameras it’s certainly one of the lightest and smallest I have held. I suppose any Leica would be a clear challenger.

I do like the catch mechanism in the Pentax Super ME but it can be a little fiddly if you haven’t shot with it before. I need to work on my technique a little more and with a little more practice I should be able to load the camera with one hand soon. Not sure if that is at all a possibility with Medium Format cameras!!

The location couldn’t be more perfect. The pastel colours of the homes intermixed with cobbled roads and old school telephone boxes. There’s certainly plenty here for someone trying to capture colour and environment of a place.

As we walked along Portobello Road I found myself learning something new each time I took a snap with the camera. What I particularly enjoyed was a three light indicator which pops up with you slightly depress the trigger. It forewarns you whether the image will/will not come out due to the f-stop on the camera against the ISO of the film. Extremely handy and so helpful in its absolute simplicity. This reason alone could be a reason for why someone could consider getting one of these cameras.

Given the lack of light, I think Kodak Portra 800 performs really well here and certainly has given me some optimism in using this film more often around London now using not only this camera but another analogue cameras too. I am curious however to find out how an equivalent 35mm lens would fare.

One thing to note is if you are wearing gloves to not let your fingers get too close to the lens. This can be quite tricky due to the size of the camera but certainly one thing to watch!

Overall, its a fabulously compact piece of kit. If you’re on a budget and an enthusiastically want to explore analog photography more than look no further than the Pentax Super ME (K1000). Only those who own really understand its sheer beauty!

Finally, a special thanks to Lucas & Molly for the great conversation, company and being so generous with their support as always! You can follow them on Instagram here:

@analogsquare

@eclectachrome

Yashica Mat 124G & Fuji 160 Walk In The Park

Word has it that Nietzsche used to walk up to 8 hours a day with a paper and pen. Where do you think all the notebooks went? We can sort of hazard a guess to what he may have been ruminating about…When’s the last time you got up for a spontaneous walk in the park?

When word had got to me about the Fuji Pro 400H being discontinued I was quite upset however alas Analogue Wonderland came to the rescue with a new batch of Fuji NS 160. With little hesitation I order my first few rolls and waited for the right time to explore this new film!

My first thoughts were; a) how different this film stock would be compared to the Fuji Pro 400H? and b) how it would compare to Kodak Portra 160? But that aside I decided to go for a first walk with this as is see what it could do!

The sun was so strong and bright as I walked in to the park with my Yashica Mat 124G and my roll of 120film. I sat down opposite the cafe area and started loading up the roll with the sun warming my back. I didn’t have to work too hard for the first shot as this man came and sat down opposite me. I popped opened the viewfinder and framed up the first snap.

The great thing about my Yashica is it’s onboard lightmeter. Simply dial in your ISO and the light meter correctly adjusts for the conditions. Now, this may not always be the case for old film photography equipment but with good care, or perhaps a service you can recondition these wonderful cameras and get going on your analog photography journey!

The thing about Fuji Pro 400H is its ability to really make colours come out strong in every frame. Choosing a good location therefore is super important so that you can maximise the real estate on each picture you take. Of course, I didn’t know how the Fuji NS 160 would compare but I hazard a guess that the colour rendition would be up there.

Bearing in mind the film stock I would strongly recommend shooting with it where you have strong colours available. Perhaps you may be using this film for shooting portraits, in which case it will be perform exceptionally well with people of different tonalities. (I have yet to try it with Fuji NS 160 but looking forward to an opportunity as and when it may arise!)

The blue, green and brown settled well for the second image with the dog walker in the middle of the frame. The line of trees disappears in to the distance drawing you in to the image. Late mornings are great time to explore, there are not too many people about but just enough to create some interesting compositions! It would be interesting to see how the film would fare in late summer afternoon settings too!

I waited for the morning walkers to cut across the deep green grass and large blue sky before taking the third image. This was more a ‘scientific’ shot, getting an image with large swathes of two colours and how they would perform.

As I was walking along, so many opportunities to take candid street style shots appeared. I initially framed this image to take of the person sitting on the bench as they walked in front on me with their yellow jacket. However the the shadow created by the light hitting the tree felt like the tributaries of a river on the floor and I just couldn’t resist but take that image.

Crossing over back in to the other side of the park over the railway line I saw the light falling down and thought this could make a rustic image. I think someone framed within it would look even better but probably would need a reflector or secondary light for the subject.

Loved this disused train station, got me working thinking about how train stations were used when they first came in to existence. No platforms, I wonder how safe it was just to board straight from the rail itself?

Overall, really pleased with how these images came out. I definitely I am looking forward to exploring this film stock more in different conditions. Certainly would be good to see how it fares under different light conditions, landscapes and portraits too!

Fuji GSWiii & Fuji Pro400H At Home

Common photographic thinking tells us that we should use the right camera for the right job. So what do you do when you are bored out your mind and are in the middle of a pandemic?

It is a question that many of us have thought about in the wake of being limited by geography. The pandemic has hit us all in very different ways, generally for photographers specialising in the landscape or portrait photography beyond their immediate realm or home.

In a moment of absolute genius or sheer desperation, I thought why not experiment using the Texas Leica, officially known as the Fuji GSWiii to shoot some flowers indoors. For the measure, throw in some recently discontinued Fuji Pro400H. What could possibly go wrong?

It is impossible to know how the images would eventually come out and that’s the beauty of medium format film photography in itself. There’s no cheeky look at the view screen, no immediate feedback, so you can carry on in your own merry way. Having said that, there are many ways to mitigate any disastrous consequences; using a light meter and carefully composing the shot are just to name a few.

Eight minutes and eight frames later the shoot was done. So fast, you exclaim! No, alas the development would take many more weeks before I finally got to see the beautiful 6x9 negatives in their full glory.

In my excitement to get going, I initially put the roll on the wrong spool before realising the errors of my ways. On a side note, the little spool release buttons are great. Makes the whole job of putting the 120 rolls in a breeze.

The first shot, out of focus and misaligned. I immediately realised my mistake and measured the distance between the subject and the camera, changed the settings on the lens, reframed and shot again.

A little better for the second shot although the flowers laying across the table have been cut off. The viewfinder in the Fuji GSWiii is helpful but in my short time of using it can be a bit off. Always frame your image and then take a step back just to make sure your getting everything you want inside the frame.

The tulips came out quite well, the colours in particular came out strong. I was pleased with the next few shots. Although the idea of shooting the flowers from below the table and mirror, is something I probably will not be doing again any time soon.

The very last image was taken on a larger table and is my favourite image out of this set. The colours are all well balanced and the framing is just right for me.

What did you think of the selfie?

CineStill 800T Pushed On Yashica Mat 124G

The cold, wet and windy conditions continue to brace these shores. What’s better than sitting indoors for long periods of time? Go a cold wintry walk!

I’m loving the square format and the size of the negatives on the Yashica Mat 124G and had been itching to try some CineStill 800T on it for some time. I decided to go for a long walk and hunt for subjects to shoot in low light. After donning many, many layers and a beenie (not much natural insulation on top at the minute) I headed out in to the urban jungle.

Fortunate enough, I have shot with both the camera and film separately so this would be a good test of how far I could push the CineStill on this camera. What kind of images could I get?

The first thing to note with the Yashica Mat 124G is that it has an internal light meter which can deal with up to 400 ISO. Now this creates an immediate challenge on how to shoot with film beyond 400ISO. There’s no reason to panic though- simply push the film +1 stop in development and you’ll be all set with correctly exposed images. For ISO 3200 films such as Ilford Delta 3200 or Kodak P3200 just push the film +3 stops in development if shooting with this camera.

Mathematics aside, let’s dive in to the first shot. This newsagent seemed like a good port of entry. The light falling out from the shop has a nice blu-ish tinge to it and the halation of the LED lights have come out well too. In retrospect, I think this image would be better if, I just moved to the left a little more to capture the customer at the till so as to capture the sense of the place more. In post I raised the highlights a little bit, its a subtle change but I like that additional edit.

Walking along the road a little further down, I saw this Chicken & Chips shop with a large front glass with lots of light falling outside. The framing wasn’t too challenging and Lady Luck arrived as a customer walked right up to the till as I was readying to take the shot. There was a small bench to the right which in the original image is not very noticeable however in the second image with the edit you can make more of it. I wanted to highlight the texture in the foreground to give a little more sense of depth and scale in the image. However the edit has made the light a little flatter which may or may not be of be of taste. Overall, both the images work really well. This is certainly one of my favourite shots from this set.

Shooting petrol/ gas stations is a right of passage with any film photographer and I wasn’t going to pass up on the opportunity to do so. I do find it a little ironic shooting the petrol station but at the time of writing this perhaps we are reaching the end of the fossil fuel age? (I hope!) The image has been well rendered with some resemblance of the foreground too. Ideally more street lighting would have definitely added more depth to the image.

I think if I am going to shoot petrol stations again, I probably will use my Fuji GSWiii 6x9 on a tripod at night. The main reason is the landscape format would allow far more detail of the station to come out and it would probably be a more imposing image. Perhaps what is lost most in this square 6x6 format is the dead space above and below the station.

That is main reason why I probably subconsciously walked across the other side of the road to get a closer perspective which would fill the frame more.I decided to leave off the far left edge of the station banner to create this sense never ending length further. I brought the highlights down in the edited image to bring a bit more emphasis on the forecourt. Overall, pleased with both images.

I carried on hunting for a new subject, however there really wasn’t much available to shoot and the lighting with in most part very poor. As I framed up this local newsagent I had envisaged seeing a much brighter foreground areas with the light spilling out from the shop. However, this was not to be. So I compensated for it by bringing up the highlights and finer details are more present in the edit. It was far more in tune with what I had in mind when I originally took the shot.

One of the biggest learnings from this evening walk was the limit to which CineStill 800T will work in extremely low light conditions. The motor shop sign in this image didn’t come out but is a good example of when not to shoot with this film (unless you have a tripod and do a long exposure!). The more ambient light available on the street the better your CineStill film will fare get you the image you are looking for.

Green washing forecourt came out well as there was a little bit more light available in frame. Perhaps taking the image from the side where the purple colours are popping would test the film more.

Have you used one of these self collecting boxes?

The last image comes out well and a realistic capture of this cinematic film. However from the outside, there is not much information. As a result, I increased the highlights a little bit more in the edit which brings out the street corner better. Overall, would have been better to have kept the green tinge from within the shop.

Overall, CineStill 800T performs well in well light low light conditions the best. If you are looking to push the film a bit further you are more likely to get more context in the foreground in very low light conditions but will probably have to compensate by using a tripod and accept the grain and muddiness of the image may increase. Happy Creating!

Apocalyptic London with CineStill 800T on Nikon FA

We all love the cinema; the films, the emotion, the story. Trying to recreate that cinematic feel has been made easier by the crowd funded CineStill brand which removes the remjet layer from the original Kodak films for the film photography enthusiast to have fun with! 

I am a big fan of futuristic type films such as Blade Runner but what drew me in more was the rendition of colours and light. I always wondered how the filmmakers were able to achieve such depth and unbeknownst to me it was this special cinematic film that was being used. 

It was an absolutely delight when I heard that this film was available to shoot with and after making several calls to photography specialists around the UK, I landed my first few rolls that had literally just arrived at the wonderful Analogue Wonderland (www.analoguewonderland.co.uk) Their friendly service dispatched the films that very day and I was so excited start shooting with this film as soon as possible! 

I decided to find an evening to shoot this roll in Central London, where I could find bright lights in to the late evening. For this walk, I took my Bronica Zenza ETRS medium format camera. Fifteen shots of high density cinematic film were about to be shot! 

Wandering the streets, I took my time framing each shot, trying to capture scenes which afforded plenty of night light. This being a test roll, I wanted to see how these images would fair under relatively bright night conditions. 

It wasn’t until many weeks later that I would find out from my developer that there was something seriously wrong with the images. Ricardo had seemed really worried when I initially spoke with him about the issue but he had taken the time to research the issue and postulated that the Remjet layer had not been fully removed properly. As such, when developed, it created this large orange haze across the whole image. Later, Magda emailed me some links to forums where this was being discussed in much detail. Turns out there was a whole batch of this film which CineStill was now recalling.  I called up, Analogue Wonderland and as usual they took care of everything with ease. 

Perhaps surprisingly, I am quite pleased with how the images have come out. The tungsten lighting has been amplified in deeper red/orange colours and in contrast with the black in the images, it gives a really apocalyptic feel to the set. Brighter white lights gave a bright yellow feel (the Waffle Cones image!) and it would have been interesting to see how other similar scenes may have come out too! My favourite image is right at the end of the selection, walking towards the West End theatres. The large lit billboards, street lamps and taxi headlights with the red sky and floor give a real feel the pandemic times we are all going through today. 

What is the Remjet layer? 

This is a black layer made from a coating of black particles that is found on motion picture Cine film.  

What is its purpose?

The Remjet layer protects the film from static and halation of lights and is most commonly used on Kodak films. 

What needs to be done in development?

The black layer must be carefully removed during the development process. If it is not properly removed it can lead to the images coming out with a dull orange complexion as you can see from the video. 

How can I save time and money in development of motion picture film?

The easy answer is to use CineStill 800T. Their film removes the Remjet layer for you so you can process it with ease in C41 chemistry. 

However, there are some downsides to pre-removal of the Remjet layer. It will lead to your images coming out with halation of any lights in low light conditions. If a subject and location is chosen appropriately the images have a great potential to the viewers delight! 

Another advantage of using CineStill 800T is you can use develop this film from the comfort of your own home using C41 chemistry, or simply take it to your local developer! 

No thank you, I want to use the original motion picture film! Where can I get that?

You can get Kodak Vision 3 200T and 500T Colour Negative Film from specialist film stockists. A simple search online will point you to a wide range of stockists closest to you. 

Pushing Fuji XTRA 400 3 stops on Nikon FA

Nikon FA with a roll of Fuji XTRA 400 had been sat waiting to be shot... but by the time I got to checking it again it had expired. Now more than ever was a good time to experiment with some 400 ISO film. 

Over a few weeks I carried my Nikon FA and looked for opportunities in the evening to shoot a few shots until done. 

If you are pushing film to the max and shooting at night, you should expect there to be a muddy brown tinge to the images. 

In a nutshell, I found that in very low light conditions a muddy brown look gets more amplified. It is possible to reduce this in post after if required but depending on what your aiming for you might just keep it. 

The last image of the petrol station was one of my favourite shots from the roll. With a bit more experimentation using brightly lit areas it would be fun to see how else other 400 ISO film would fare! 

Overall, it certainly worth playing with in different conditions but remember to end all good shoots with a good a place to eat!