Would that I could...

[venchka]

...and why do I bother?

Why bother with sharp lenses.

Why bother trying to find the perfect film speed.

Why bother with accurate exposures.

Why bother with finding the perfect film-developer-time combination.

Why bother with shadow and highlight detail?

Why concern myself with all of that trivia?

What I really should be doing is learning to use my eyes.

Any old Brownie Hawkeye would do. Like the one that sits on a shelf in my home. A present for my 10th birthday.

Any old film I had laying around would do. I have bushels of old film.

Any old developer would do. I have lots of old D-76.

Would that I could see like this.

Would that I could make prints like this.

I would be a happy camper.

The link to the whole story...

http://www.research-design.co.uk/fin...&article=12632

A link to more...

http://www.research-design.co.uk/trial.php

[wclavey]

Wayne, sometimes I look at my pages and pages of negative sleeves and think "why bother?" But then I see a picture that I have taken that, perhaps not good, shows me a tiny little iota of what I am trying to say and it pushes me off again on another voyage. I look at all the pictures in the "Post your churches" thread and wish that I could take any single one of them (except the one I posted...)... but that's why bother...

[Roger Hicks]

What makes it worthwhile is the occasional picture that makes you think, "Hey, I'm really not too bad at this, when I'm lucky."

The route by which you get to that point, and the point at which you say it, can vary widely. Both are subject to constant revision.

Cheers,

R.

[dazedgonebye]

We're having a run on regretful "am I good enough...why do I do this" posts lately.
Much navel gazing going on.

I've done too much of that already...all I found was lint.

I'll never be Ansel Adams, or Cartier-Bresson, or Robert Capa...heck, I may never even be that kid at the Ritz camera with too many piercings.
I hope in time to make a passable me. Sometimes proud of what I do, sometimes disgusted...most all of the time enjoying myself.

[back alley]

could it be a harbinger of winter that has stimulated the navel gazing?
i know by mid winter i usually am ready to sell all the gear and start over again.

lately i have started to care even less about lens sharpness and resolution and pixels and started to look at as many photos as i can and to try to see and shoot with a different eye.

corner sharpness, i mean really ...!

[venchka]

Thanks everybody.

I have a handful of "keepers". I look forward to making one more keeper. And then another.

What strikes me about the photograph I cited above is that by modern standards, without the caption stating that the image is in fact a photograph, the image could be almost any media. It has qualities more closely associated with charcoal or pastels. An "impressionist" quality. Or most nearly what we might call today a "crap" photograph. Nothing really sharp. Blown highlights. Blocked up shadows. Uneven sky. But I love it!

Maybe my niche is crap photographs. Some days I am convinced that I have those skills mastered.

The hunt goes on.

[xayraa33]

You can make some Mr.Hollyer type photos with a Holga camera and some Fomapan 400 film and a walk around the canal districts of the UK on a fine day if you want too.
it is all in the way you see the world, not the gear.
photo gear paring down is a good idea.

[Sparrow]

Originally Posted by venchka

Thanks everybody.

I have a handful of "keepers". I look forward to making one more keeper. And then another.

What strikes me about the photograph I cited above is that by modern standards, without the caption stating that the image is in fact a photograph, the image could be almost any media. It has qualities more closely associated with charcoal or pastels. An "impressionist" quality. Or most nearly what we might call today a "crap" photograph. nothing really sharp. Blown highlights. Blocked up shadows. Uneven sky. But I love it!

Maybe my niche is crap photographs. Some days I am convinced that I have those skills mastered.

The hunt goes on.

the answer is................ Cafenol maybe

[venchka]

Stewart,

I like it. Or maybe the 60s trick of panty hose over either the taking lens or the enlarging lens. Or maybe both. Or some of those Chinese magnifying glasses used in an article in View Camera magazine last summer. At about $1 each they were way better than one could imagine.