Candid – Page 2 – tim dobbs photography

1st roll of film in 4 weeks…………

For the last 4 weeks I have been really neglecting my blog due to a really persistant chest infection which not only laid me very low but it stopped me doing what I love…. shooting film.

So this weekend as I am feeling much better I was determined to shoot at least one roll of film so I loaded up the Bronica with some Ilford Delta 400 and set it to shoot at 800 as I was visiting my parents and knew that the light indoors would not be the brightest.

My dad is getting used to me pursuing him around the house with my camera so gave up and posed for me for once 🙂

Mum doesn’t really like having her photograph taken so I had to be a bit sneaky and managed one or two frames.

The same goes for my wife so most of the shots of her are candids not really portraits 🙂

I found that shooting at iso 800 in 6×6 format on Delta doesn’t really increase the grain much when processed in infosol 3 and really helps when trying to hand hold in poor light.

I think I will most probably shoot at 800 most of the time as the benefits out weigh the little extra grain you get ( I love film grain anyway ).

Thanks for looking and I am hoping to post a lot more frequently this year.

Comments most welcome 🙂

Street Shooting with Film…………

Last weekend we popped down to Porthcawl for an hour or so with my F90x loaded with ilford HP5+ thinking I would capture some gloomy shots of dark clouds and wet holiday-makers but as soon as we parked up the sun came out and so did the people.

It’s a bit of a challenge to shoot candid street photos on film as you cannot just shoot loads and find the good one’s later you have to be very patient and when a shot shows it’s self make sure you get it right.

As the sun was pretty bright and most of the times I found myself shooting into it I was not really sure whether or not I got the shots even though I deliberately over exposed trying not to get silhouettes but the camera and film combo worked great.

It was quite a nice walk around the seafront and we popped into Coney Island on the way back to the car, I could have done with a roll of Colour Film then but they say its going to be a Sunny weekend so we may pop down again, its great to have the seaside right on your doorstep.

The Bridgend Show…………

Awful weather for this years Bridgend Show, wellies were the order of the day.

This year I decided to just take my film camera a Nikon FM2n with a Nikkor 35mm and try and capture some reportage style shots using ilford HP5.

We went quite early on the Saturday and there was not a great deal going on but I hope I managed to capture a few nice shots.

Father’s Day and a trip to Porthcawl………….

We popped down my Mum and Dad’s on Father’s day and I was determined to get some candid portrait shots of Dad as he never likes his photograph taken and as a challenge I was using film.

As usual he was a hard subject to pin down but I did manage to get a few nice frames with pretty good expressions.

When we left we popped down the coast to Porthcawl for a nice stroll by the seaside where I shot another roll of Tri-x 400. It is getting easier to shoot manual now after 15+ rolls and it is such a nice feeling to take my time and choose the shot rather than shoot everything and look through later for the best ones.

Ok, not every shot I take on film is perfect but even the one’s that are not quite what I envisaged at the time are still keepers.

Thanks for looking….comments very welcome

Keep film alive

click on image for a larger view………….

“Bridgend Mashup” digital version……..

As I said in my previous blog post I also shot some of the action type stuff digitally which was so much easier than trying to shoot full manual on my film camera…….

The band shots were also shot on film and I prefer the more gritty feel of the film shots over the cleaner/sharper digital ones.

As you can see in this post there are far more digital photographs than film but that is the thing I like about film it makes you choose your shots far more carefully.

There is no way I would go back to shooting film for everything but I will be taking a film camera be it an SLR or a compact like my Olympus Trip everywhere alongside my DSLR as I feel it really compliments the digital shots and I really enjoy shooting and processing film again.

Thanks for looking

click on an image for a larger version…….

Ilford HP5 at The Bridgend Mashup……….

It was “The Bridgend Mashup” event last week featuring various Street activities like Skateboarding, Bikes, Street art and music amongst other entertaining things.

My son Ben and I popped down for a couple of hours and as well as my trusty DSLR I took my Nikon FM2n and a 50mm 1.8 shooting some Ilford HP5 Plus 400 for the first time.

I was extremely pleased with the results the film gave me, it performed excellently in the sometimes harsh sunlight and then overcast skies.

I didn’t attempt to shoot any of the high-speed action stuff on film due to the full manual controls I have on the FM2n I left that to my D7000 the results of which I will post in my next blog.

I will certainly be using HP5 again as the level of detail I managed to capture from highlight to shadow was great and considering I processed it myself I was doubly happy 🙂

Click on an image to view larger……….

More from the Classic Car Show…….

I have manage to edit some of my digital shots from the Classic Car show I visited the other week. There is a mix of cars and portraits, I noticed that this year I shot far more people shots than cars which showed me the way my photography is starting to go.

I really like shooting people be it portraits or just candidly in the street and since getting back into film that is what I want to do more than any other photography.

I still like the look I get when tone mapping Classic cars, this type of look is not appreciated by everyone but I like it….lol

Thanks for looking….. click on an image to see it larger

Photo Exhibition and Cardiff Bay……..

We went to the “Cardiff after Cardiff” exhibition at the Wales Millennium Centre this weekend and thoroughly enjoyed it, I love Street Photography and this was right up my street as they say.

Here is a link to the exhibition http://www.wmc.org.uk/Productions/2012-2013/18969/79765/?view=Standard

Here is the link to the blog that explains how this exhibition came about http://cardiffbeforecardiff.tumblr.com/

After the viewing we walked around the bay looking for photo opportunities using my film camera and my D7000 and Tamron 17-50 f2.8 and immediately came across a great couple sitting down enjoying an ice cream. I didnt want to shoot them candidly so I asked if they were up for a portrait and they gladly obliged 🙂

The main image at the top of the blog is of the Seamen’s Memorial Sculpture created by Brian Fell to the sailors of the Merchant Navy who lost their lives crossing the Atlantic Ocean during the Second World War and the building in the background is the Pierhead Building built in 1897 as the headquarters for the Bute Dock Company.

All in all it was a cheap afternoon out and I am looking forward to getting my film back to see the results, Cardiff Bay is a great place to shoot street stuff.

Click on any image to view larger…..

Thanks for looking …. comments welcomed

I Shoot People………….

I have no speciality when it comes to my photography, not being a Professional and having to earn my living at it so my photos are very varied.

The one thing that I have found over the last couple of years is that I enjoy shooting people more and more.

I have off camera flashes and studio lights but much prefer take photographs of people either candidly or much better after meeting them when I am out and about and taking an informal type of portrait.

Since getting back into film recently I am looking forward to shooting in this style on various types of film camera and waiting in anticipation for the results……..

Here is a little selection of shots, so of which I have posted on the web previously but some are new.

Comments as always very welcome…….

Boxing Day…………….

A quiet Boxing Day here in the South Wales valleys, the weather is Grey and very wet so no trips out with the camera.

Still have the Nikon 50mm on the camera so I decided to annoy the family with some candid abstract shots around the house using the D7000 and the SB700 flash.

Not the most exciting of shots but it sums up the relaxing day at home……lol