Early October and the Allegan Forest is still lush and green for the most part, though a few small Sassafras are starting to lighten.
Made with a Rocohflex Diacord L on Classic Pan 200, HC110 Dil B for 7.5 minutes.
A two pronged test here... first testing a Tamron 28-75 f2.8 zoom with film. Secondly, testing Ultrafinne Xtreme 400 in Microdol-X stock solution. I like the results on both accounts.
I couldn't find a starting time for UFX 400 in Microdol-X, so I used the time for HP5+ and added a minute, which worked out to UFX 400 rated @400 in Microdol-X stock 12minutes at 20C. I've been doing some informal comparisons between Ultrafine Xtreme 400, HP5+, Ilford Pan 400 and Kentmere 400. All are clearly distinct films but UFX 400 and HP5+ are generally very close in processing times, so I'm comfortable using the HP5+ times as a starting point for UFX 400 when developer times are not available.
In regards to the Tamron 28-75 f28 -full name: Tamron AF 28-75mm f/2.8 SP XR Di LD Aspherical (IF) - I wanted a better zoom for my Pentax film bodies, and the Tamron is one of the few current lenses that still works with the cam driven auto focus found in older Pentax film bodies. So far it has proven to be excelent with film. Its also been very good on the APS-C Pentax k3. I am hoping that it will also be serviable on the Pentax k1. Even if it isn't, its an excellent upgrade over the FA 28-105 f4-5.6 and FA 28-70 f4 that I had been using.
Another take on the scene that I posted a few days ago. This was taken at the same time but at the start of a new roll of film - so it took another couple of days to shoot out the new roll and develop it:
I move the camera a little but mostly switched to a wider lens. Taken with a Pentax Mz-S, SMC F 28mm f2.8, on Arista Ultra Edu 200. I accidently exposed this at ISO 100 instead of 200, developed in Microdol X 1+1 for 9 minutes.
Yesterday (August 12) in the Allegan Forest. A heavy rain came down a hour or so before I arrived and a faint mist was rising in the heat. I have probably passed this spot a thousand times without noticing it, but this time I finally saw it.
Taken on Arista 200 rated @ 200 and developed in Microdol-X, 1+1, 9 min @ 20C.
I am happy to announce that two of my photos will be exhibited in the 2016 American Landscapes exhibition hosted by the Maryland Federation of Art.
My two accepted pieces are Muddy Back Roads, a photo made in January of this year:
And October Morning, from October 2014:
This year's exhibit will run from August 12 through September 10, 2016 at the MFA Circle Gallery, 18 State Circle, Annapolis, MD 21401. The juror this year is Liza Key Strelka, Manager of Exhibitions at The Phillips Collection in Washington, DC.
An online preview of the exhibit can be found here. More information about this and other MFA exhibits can be found at mdfedart.com.
A zinnia bloom, just getting started:
Arista EDU Ultra 200 pushed to ISO 400 and developed in HC110 Dil H for 9 minutes (20C). Everything about this combination is officially not recommended - though nominally an ISO 200 film recommended ISO is usually more like 100 and HC110 is labelled as "not recommended" as a developer. But in this example I like the pronounced but fine regular grain and interesting tonality.
In my garden yesterday, the bud of a large zinnia bloom, yet to open.
Arista EDU Ultra 100 in developed in Rodinal 1:50.
I usually see Fox Squirrels and Chipmunks around my house, but this summer this Red Squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) has been resident in my backyard. He (or she) can steal a bird feeder full of sunflower seed in a single afternoon (somewhere nearby a few kilos of bird food is stashed away.) He "sings" for prolonged periods of time - up to an hour - sometimes chanting "chock-chock-chock" over and over from the top of the fence, sometimes sitting in trees improvising a mix of bird-like tweets with squirrelly scolding. He's not much larger than a chipmunk but unlike them he consistently outwits the resident cat.
A quick hand-held grab shot from this morning as the squirrel was serenading from the tree branches. Pentax K3, Tokina ATX 400mm f5.6.