Astoria Ship

Photographed in Astoria Oregon along the docks.  

I love walking around Astoria and seeing all the ships on the horizon.  They look like people to me, relaxing on a couch after a long journey, reflecting on where they have been and where they are going next.

Camera: Fuji GA645zi
Film: Kodak Portra
Location: Astoria, OR 

Field Nude

Getting caught up on film scans this weekend and this one I thought was quite pleasing.  

Photographed with a Mamiya 645e and an 80mm f/1.9.  I've said it before but I have such a love and hate relationship with this camera.  On one hand it is very portable and easy to hand hold, on the other hand the mirror slap is so massive that getting really sharp images is difficult below 1/250th of a second.    

Still, sometimes the resulting slight softness can work to may advantage. 

Camera: Mamiya 645e
Film: Fomapan 100
Model: Sister Thyme
Location: Portland, OR - Sauvie Island 

Motel Pose

I had to push process this film a little bit and anyone who has ever worked with Foma film knows that a little bit of a push leads to grain, grain, and lots more grain.

This is not a bad thing mind you.

Camera: Mamiya RB67
Film: Fomapan 100
Model: Keira Grant
Location: Portland, OR 

Kitchen Nude

Playing with some very contrasty lighting in my kitchen.

This is another image with my 50mm F/1.1 Nokton photographed wide open.  This lens is a major challenge to use, particularly because I'm using it with a rangefinder.  The depth of field is so thin it's pretty ridiculous.

Camera: Leica M
Location: Portland, OR 

Bridge Nude

Photographed near a bird sanctuary at the edge of the Columbia River Gorge.

I learned an important lesson the day I photographed this...never try to do nudes in a bird sanctuary. Everyone else around either has binoculars or telephoto lenses!

Camera: Sony NEX 5n
Location: Portland, OR - Columbia River Gorge

Nude on a Fence

I was having a heck of a time finding good spots to shoot on this particular day. Every location I had planned ended up having people hanging around, which isn't exactly great when trying to photograph a nude.

In the end we walked down a random alley and just photographed against someone's back fence. Luckily my model was awesome enough to make the ho-hum location work.

Camera: Leica M
Location: Portland, OR 

Campground Nude

Photographed at an empty campground in the Columbia River Gorge just outside of Portland Oregon.  I like the texture on the wall contrasted with the models very pale and delicate skin tone.  

It came out pretty nice!

Camera: Fuji GF670
Film: Ilford HP5
Location: Portland, OR - Columbia River Gorge

Bricks and Window Light

This is an older negative that I just got around to developing.  I hate to say it, but I don't enjoy developing 35mm film all that much.  It's so small to work with it kind of irritates me and as a result I tend to put it off for what is in this case a ridiculous amount of time.  I far prefer working with Medium Format or Sheet Film. 

Camera: Bessa R3A
Film: Ilford HP5
Model: Iona
Location: San Francisco, CA

Lake Bed

My temp control was unfortunately all over the place when I was developing this image, which accounts for the rather splotchy grain patterns.  

Oh well, I'm not going to beat myself up over it.

Camera: Mamiya RB67
Film: Fomapan 100
Location: Portland, OR - Sauvie Island

The Pug Shake

Normally I don’t go for fake Photoshop borders but in this image it just sort of works.

This is a picture of my dog giving herself a nice shake after rolling around in the grass for a bit.  I made this with a 50mm F/1.1 Nokton which is my favorite lens for extreme shallow depth of field. 

Camera: Leica M
Location: Portland, OR 

Out the Hotel Window

I was in the darkroom making a print of this image yesterday.  Given all the shadow areas in the image (totally clear on the negative) it was quite a challenge but looks incredible once I got it nailed out.  

Viewing it on a computer screen doesn't quite do it justice unfortunately, but that's okay.  I appreciate the opportunity to share the image regardless. 

Camera: Mamiya RZ67
Film: Ilford HP5
Model: Sarah Pardini
Location: Portland, OR - Crystal Hotel

Hawthorne Stretch

Photographed under the Hawthorne Bridge with a 15mm Heliar attached to a Leica M.

Camera: Leica M
Location: Portland, OR - Hawthorne Bridge

Along the Trail

I'm loving my Fuji GF670 more and more for location shoots.  I'll admit I didn't like this camera all that much when I first bought it as I found it awkward to hold.  Like most medium format equipment it was just a matter of getting used to it however and figuring out a good way to work with it. 

Camera: Fuji GF670
Film: Ilford HP5
Location: Portland, OR - Columbia River Gorge

Pinhole Hand

Photographed with a pinhole camera on 4x5 sheet film.  Exposure time was about five minutes long.

I think the softness of the skin in this image turned out really well and I have to credit the model for holding as still as a person possibly could during a long exposure.

Camera: Ilford Titan Pinhole
Film: Fomapan 100
Model: Olivia Odd
Location: Portland, OR 

Holding The Tiger

This little tiger was very curious about me, especially when I pulled out a camera. I think the cat liked all the clicks and mechanical sounds.

I really love working with available light, especially when I have two subjects in the same frame!

Camera: Sony Alpha A850
Location: Corvallis, OR 

Stalking Pug

I love the way my dog looks like she is on the prowl in this image.  Sure, she isn't a jungle beast in any way what-so-ever but I still think she's cute!

Camera: Fuji GA645zi
Film: Fomapan 100
Location: Portland, OR - Sauvie Island

Reverse Light

This image took me back a little bit when I first scanned it because it is so rare for me to like an image where my primary lighting was along the model's back.

Camera: Mamiya 645e
Film: Kodak T-Max 400
Model: St. Merrique
Location: Portland, OR   

The Winds of the Gorge

It was rather windy and misty out in the Gorge this weekend.

Luckily it was tolerable enough to make a few great images. The Gorge can be such an epic place and I feel incredibly fortunate that it takes me only twenty minutes to get to the heart of it from Portland.  It's a really great place to be a photographer. 

Camera: Fuji GF670
Film: Ilford HP5
Location: Portland, OR - Columbia River Gorge

Portrait of Us

I always enjoy handing people cameras with viewing screens or waist level finders.  There is typically a good thirty minutes where they look down into the camera with fascination. 

Camera: Mamiya RZ67
Film: Fomapan 100
Location: Portland, OR - Crystal Hotel