A tilted stump in the Toiyabe National Forest. Shot with Fuji X-T5 and the Fujinon 35mm f/1.4 at f/4. In camera conversion to Kodachrome 64 film simulation.
The Girl and I are walking up at the Spooner Summit site again. The heat returned this week, so we seek altitude to find cooler temperatures during our hikes. In addition, I just love the forest this time of year. The bear brush is beginning to show signs of fall (yellow leaves). Very soon the days will cool and snow will come.
This old stump is a remnant from a fire that occurred in the area some years ago. The floor mast has mostly recovered and signs of the fire on the ground are limited to a few burned remnants of trees and the plethora of stumps where dead trees were felled as a matter of safety. I presume the wood was recovered and used for gainful purpose.
I have been carrying the Fujifilm X-T5 body with the Fujinon 35mm f/1.4 lens quite a lot. It is a standard lens for the APS-C sensor of the X-T5 and I think renders one of the better images from the Fuji glass.
I used one of the Fujifilm film stock recipes from Ritchie Roesch’s Fuji X Weekly website, the Kodachrome 64 simulation. I loved K64 back when it was available. The warmer colors suit my vision well. It is a pity that Kodak stopped manufacturing the stock. I would shoot it now.
Sera on overwatch. Shot with Fuji X-T5 and Fujinon 35mm f/1.4 at f/8. Kodachrome 64 film simulation in-camera.
Yesterday was a good hike, once I got up the hill. I was huffing and puffing on that first steep climb out. But the rest of the hike was good even if I was a bit pressed for time.
I paused, briefly, along the way to make a few captures. I like this one of The Girl. She was not completely on-alert, having just surveyed the area for chipmunks. But, she had taken the high ground and was holding it.
From the gazebo overlooking Washoe Valley, I shot this frame with the Fuji X-T1 and the Voigtlander 27mm f/2 at f/8 raw. I post-processed the image with Photolab 7 to look like Kodachrome 64.
When The Girl and I paused at the gazebo that overlooks Washoe Valley from the south yesterday, I made a few captures with the (now ancient) Fujifilm X-T1 and the Voigtlander 27mm f/2 manual focus lens (in X-Mount).
I really like this vantage point and should probably get up really early and hike it so I can catch some morning Sun just striking the valley floor. That would probably make it worth dragging the Pentax 645Nii and shooting some film.
While I stood there just taking in the scene, I thought how interesting it might be to bring a large format film camera to this location and make some captures on black and white film. With the proper filtration, the sky could be darkened to make the contrast pop. That would be best if there were a few clouds.
A couple of color frames might be interesting as well.
The Girl ignored my thoughts, of course, and focused on cooling down and her water bowl.
When I put away her bowl and stowed my camera, she jumped up, ready to continue the lizard hunt. We headed back down the hill, both satisfied and a little warm.
The Girl leading me down Deadman’s Creek Trail out at Washoe Lake State Park. Shot with Fujifilm X-T1, Voigtlander 27mm f/2 at f/8, and post-processed to a Tmax 400 film simulation using Nik Silver Efex Pro 6 and DXO Photolab 7.
After my physician’s appointment this morning, I decided to take The Girl out to Deadman’s Creek trail for our daily outing. It was not too hot (could have been on the south facing side of the climb) and I was surprised at the amount of vegetation growing along the creek and the coolness caused by said vegetation’s respiration. It was very cool, literally and figuratively.
The climbout tested me a bit and I was very watchful of the girl as there can be rattlesnakes there. It seems that previous traffic motivated the snakes to stay away from the trail, so The Girl had some fun chasing lizards and rodents while we hiked.
We paused at the gazebo overlook for a water break and for me to make a few captures of Washoe Lake and Slide Mountain. I finished the test roll in the Fujifilm Klasse and made a few more captures with the Fujifilm X-T1 and a lovely little Voigtlander 27mm f/2 lens. That X-T1 has been carried a lot and the body shows it. But the shutter does not have a high count because I shoot all of my cameras like I do film — deliberately.
I saw another hiker with two dogs depart the staging area, so decided to be watchful on our return trip. But, they took the cutoff (which is marked “Do not cut the trail“) and there was no canine encounter. I think that is just as well as they seemed pretty active and Sera would have loved to engage.
Maybe it would have been alright. I just never know until the dogs meet. Don’t start none; won’t be none.
As we reentered the cool of the vegetation along the creek (still water in it too, which she enjoyed), I noticed her waggle as she advanced down the trail. I made the capture.
When I arrived back home, got some stuff done, and then reviewed the images, the caption came to mind. We do wander quite a lot, The Girl and I. We are rarely lost, though. We simply like to wander.
This is my recently returned Olympus OM-1 MD with a Zuiko 50mm f/1.4 lens affixed.
Sometime relatively long ago, an old motorcycle friend indicated that he was selling his Olympus 35mm film kit. So, I emailed and asked him what he had and what he wanted for it. His response seemed more than fair so I sent him a check.
This Olympus OM-1 MD was one of the two cameras in the lot. It actually had the motor drive cover in place. (Many of these cameras do not have the cover.) Frank took care of his equipment.
The second body was an OM-2s Program. It actually came with a box and paperwork. There were a few lenses that came with the kit as well.
Back when Steve had his shop in Sparks, my buddy Jimmy and I used to gather there for a visit. Steve took the OM-2s to his bench and checked the meter and shutter. He looked at me, a bit shocked, and said “The meter is right on and so is the shutter. This is scary good!”
We all had a good laugh over it. The OM-1 fared reasonably well, although the meter was off by a full stop. I do not recall if it was under- or over-exposing. It does not matter now.
I picked up the camera from the shelf a few months ago and found the winding mechanism jammed. It would need a repair. So, after a bit of searching, I found John Hermosa, who runs a Zuiko repair shop and sent him an email. The repair would not be cheap, but this is a fine old mechanical camera — about as simple as cameras come.
So, I sent it to him for assessment and responded a week later with a repair bill and asked for payment. I knew it would take a month or two for it to be returned.
It arrived in the mail a couple of weeks ago. I mounted a Zuiko 40mm f/2 pancake lens that I had in my inventory and loaded a roll of film for some testing. When in the field, I noticed that the viewfinder did not brighten up after releasing the shutter. Some investigation revealed that the aperture blades were slow to return to wide open. I saw no oil on the blades, so the mechanism must be fouled.
I emailed Steve, who moved his business to North Dakota a few years ago, but is a trusted technician. I sent the lens to him this morning for cleaning.
That meant my first test roll is probably trash. I have not decided if I will send it for development or not.
This morning I mounted a Zuiko 50mm f/1.4 silver nose on the OM-1 and took it with me on walkies. I shot two-thirds of the 24-exposure roll on my walk with The Girl and will finish it up tomorrow.
The walk was lovely! The temperature has moderated this week and it was 72ºF when we reached the staging area. She was antsy to get out and so was I. There was another vehicle there, so I was watchful. But I saw no dog so let her out.
And off she went!
I donned my pack, which was a little heavier with a few small hand tools I added to the loadout. We headed up the trail. The sun felt good, not oppressive as it has the last couple of months. She had a blast running about hunting chipmunks.
I ran the little camera, using the internal meter. (It is an old-school match needle meter, just like what I learned on.) I made some adjustments by intuition or shot an extra frame with an exposure adjustment.
I can see why a lot of professionals chose these little cameras for their work, especially field correspondents. They are small, handy, have a good viewfinder, and the lenses are good.
I am looking forward to the results of the test roll. The 40mm lens will be a welcome addition to the kit because that is a favorite focal length.
I plan to keep this little camera and a handful of lenses to support it.
When the Sun does not work for you, find another way. Shot on walkies with the Fujifilm X100V and converted to an Ektachrome E100-like look in DXO Photolab 7.
Yesterday on walkies (hiking in the national forest), I looked for a subject. Nothing was grabbing my attention, so I had to dig a little deeper. While this image is not portfolio quality, it still represents a reason I love hiking in the mountains — the sun filtering to the forest floor through the pines. The interplay of light and shadow soothe me, as does the hike with The Girl.
Sera and I have been walking this trail a lot this summer. I never tire of it. Shot with the Fuji X100V with the 23mm f/2 at f/8 and straight out of camera.
The Girl (Sera) and I are walking this trail a lot this summer. At an elevation greater than 7,000 ft the weather is cooler. The Ponderosa Pines provide some shade (and lots of sound when the breeze blows). The terrain is varied enough that I get a pretty good workout in on the climbs. There are tons of chipmunks for The Girl to chase. There is not much foot traffic on the trail, although I remain watchful.
There are lots and lots of images to make on the trail. We will probably be able to hike it for another three months or so. Once the snow begins to accumulate, hiking will be more difficult. I might pick up some snowshoes this winter.
But for now, we continue to hike the trail most days. It has been a great break from the more congested Silver Saddle Ranch trails that we were walking (and still sometimes do). There is also less risk of rattlesnakes. I really do not want another rattlesnake encounter.
From the same roll as the previous image, this shot southeast over Carson City and the Piñon Hills to the east of Carson City was made with the Nikon F2as and a Nikkor 35mm f/1.4 on Ilford XP2 at about f/8. No post processing.
This is another capture from the roll of 35mm Ilford XP2 I finished up on the hills between Carson City and Washoe Valley. The Girl and I drove up the steep trail on the east side of this hill, which gives a lovely view of both Washoe Lake and Carson City. An afternoon pop-up thundershower was brewing to the southeast.
I wanted to finish up the roll in the Nikon F2as and the Bronica, so I spent a half-hour walking the hilltop with Sera (keeping a sharp ear out for snakes) and making some images. This frame looks like I used a red filter to add some contrast to the sky and the exposure seems just about right. I see some detail in the cloud tops and plenty in the valley below.
It was a good day. The breeze atop the hill was a little stiff and gusty, pretty typical for a Nevada afternoon. But it also was cooling so I did not mind.
The rocks were a little rough on The Girl’s feet. So I put her back in the rig.
Sera after I put her back in the rig. Shot with Nikon F2as and a Nikkor 35mm f/1.4 on Ilford XP2 with exposure data unrecorded. No post processing was applied.
Five rolls of negatives were returned to me this week. I spent a few minutes looking through them, after reviewing the scans. I came away with a few notes, but need to formalize them.
There are a few good frames in the set. It is probably about my average hit rate. I would like to move that hit rate up, but that is probably another story.
A number of frames were significantly underexposed, both the Pentax 645Nii and the Nikon F2as. These were generally frames that had a lot of sky in them and I think it biased the in-camera meter. I would get a better result if I opened up the aperture a stop or two. (Note taken…)
I missed focus on a few frames. The take away is to be very careful when focusing, particularly the Bronica. I have a bright screen to put in the Bronica and need to get that done before I take it out again. It will help.
I replaced the screen in the Pentax with one that has a split-image/microprism cell in the center of the frame. This is going to improve my ability to focus the camera.
I need a light table and loupe for review of my negatives. I think there is a light table buried in the garage (in a box) somewhere. However, the technology has changed (for the better) since I bought it, so I will buy a new one. The LED lamps are so much better than the micro-fluorescent tubes of my original.
In the meantime, I made the capture with my F2as and a Nikkor 35mm f/1.4, probably using a filter (not recorded) and I did not record the exposure. The film was Ilford XP2. It is a good frame.
We were on the hills between Carson City and Washoe Valley. I have a few more good frames from that outing.
A bit of lichen and the stob of a branch. Shot with Fufifilm X-T5 and Voigtlander 27mm f/2 at f/4.
I am enjoying the little Voigtlander 27mm f/2 Ultron for the Fuji X-Mount cameras quite a lot lately. I decided to take a break from the legacy glass and the Sony A7Sii and shoot my Fujifilm cameras a bit.
I like the Voigtlander 27mm for a number of reasons. It has a chip and so communicates its settings to the camera. That means that the EXIF data is populated and the camera can use the information to adjust exposure as needed. Yes, it adjusts exposure without these data, but with them the camera can do more.
Do not ask me how. It is magic.
That said, the Ultron optical formula does not produce the clinically (near) perfect images of computer designed glass. The images from the Voigtlander have some character to them. They are not always perfect at the edges and corners. They have interesting bokeh (out of focus areas). They produce good colors and are plenty sharp enough.
I have been playing with images of the lichen that grows on the Ponderosa Pines in the national forest. I should probably back off the exposure in the subject image just a bit as the stob seems almost blown out. But I like the image anyway and it was slightly adjusted in DXO PhotoLab 7.
The Girl and I enjoyed the hike yesterday. It was a good day. Life is good.
