Back from NYC with film !

[robert blu]

First I desire to thank the friends who in my previous post gave me good suggestions. I'm back in Italy now and would like to share a few random comments about this experience.

taken with i.phone

NYC is an exciting place to be and to visit, this for sure and both my wife and me have been very pleased. Of course in one week and being the first time we have been there our visit was more on the touristic side than planned, next time we'll do different!

Photography: I was happy to use the Zeiss Super Ikonta, I shot in 8 days 22 rolls (delta 100 - delta 400 - xp2). Did I get many excellent photos? I don't know, but I know I enjoyed it! I also use in case of difficult light the Leica x1 but not so much because it is difficult for me to concentrate on two different systems. Therefore I mostly used the Zeiss. I also (this was new for me) took the simple snaps with the i.phone, interesting and relaxing.

Shops: I visited twice B&H which was not far from my Hotel: I bought a few more films and my wife spent more money than me because she absolutely needed 🙂 a new bag (a yellow kelly) and a new strap for her DSLR. This is what happens when your beloved share the same passion with you! Anyway impressive place, never seen anything like that!

Before leaving Italy I exchanged a couple of mails with this repair shop , again not far from my hotel, I found via the Impossible web site : they repaired my SX70 (brought in on monday, ready on tuesday afternoon) which in Italy nobody was able to repair. It is important to me because this camera was a present from a dear friend who is no more with us. Affective importance.

Disappointing: I wanted to visit the Impossible project space but when we went there during the opening hours it was closed. We had no other opportunities to go back, they could have put a note on their website about it, just my opinion. Ok, I didn't spend more money!

Lovely: tutto! Everything! Among which many bookshops, included the ICP one.

taken with i.phone

Difficult: to understand the subway, but we managed it! And to understand the american pronunciation, ohh !

Now is time for developing, scanning, editing etc than I'll post in the gallery a few pics. And it's time to plan my next visit, with a slightly different approach, less touristic. And maybe sharing some time with the NY RFFs friends (this time was a special present to my wife and I wanted to keep it very personal between us two).

Here is a photo from the zeiss (simply from a low res scan).

Ciao a tutti

robert, more comments and pics later in my blog.

 

[KevinVH]

Looks like you had fun. Nice picture of the NY skyline. Thanks for posting!

 

[kbg32]

The subway seems more daunting than it actually is. A good subway from the station, and they are posted, can be a great help to the uninitiated.

Glad you enjoyed your stay. Looking forward to the images.

 

[crosseyed-cricket]

Fantastic! I'm glad you had a good time here. I'll look forward to seeing your photographs.

I head back to Italy in a few months (Milan, Florence, Rome). Last time, I shot digital...this time I plan to shoot mainly film.

 

[KM-25]

These kinds of posts are why I come here, 100% pure grade A photography. Love the color matched shoes in the top shot!

 

[robert blu]

@ crosseyed-cricket . if you come to Italy let me know, maybe we can have a coffee together. Specially if you like "espresso" or "capuccino" 🙂
@KM-25: yes, my american shoes !
One more from my Zeiss...

 

[Ko.Fe.]

You made it!
Film pictures looks very pleasing!

And I should find out which app for iphone gives so nice pictures as well 🙂

 

[Bill Clark]

I hope these provide pleasant memories for you both. Nice job!

Just a thought to help, perhaps it doesn't pertain to you, however, I see photos from many folks who keep them on their smart phone/tablet computer and that's it. No backup!

I'm thinking of up grading my router and I see many now have a USB plug in so as a hard drive can be used by those devices that use the router. I like that!

I have several of the pocket sized hard drives that are powered by the USB port. Seems now I could use my iPhone and iPad for this.

Hope this helps you.

Thanks for showing us some views of New York through your eyes.

 

[lynnb]

Great to see your Ikonta shots here and in the Gallery Robert. Looking forward to seeing more!

Glad you enjoyed your holiday with your wife.

 

[robert blu]

@ Ko.Fe. with the i.phone I used the Hipstamatic app: you can select film (!) and lens (!!). I used the Kodot film and the Buckhorst H1 lens!

@ Bill Clark: thanks for suggestion, my i.phone photos are always downloaded to my computer (with backups) and imported in LR as all my other files. I like to print them (after editing) in small format. Sometimes I print the good ones larger! I'm also thinking to get the Impossible Instant Lab now at reduced price.

I enjoyed shooting with the Ikonta, but I also used my i.phone sometimes!
Of course these are two very different exercises...🙂

And here is the Zeiss version...just from a low res scan for contacts...

 

[Brad Bireley]

very nice. looking forward to seeing more Robert.

 

[Highway 61]

Robert, not wanting to be the fly in your coffee, because I always enjoy what you write and shoot very much, but there seems to something off with your Super Ikonta film pressure plate. I have an Ikonta 521/16 with the very same film chamber and, if the photo corners are a bit rounded, the frame edges aren't as fuzzy as yours.

Or - would the rear end of your bellows intrude into the light path ? Hmmm.

 

[robert blu]

Robert, not wanting to be the fly in your coffee, because I always enjoy what you write and shoot very much, but there seems to something off with your Super Ikonta film pressure plate. I have an Ikonta 521/16 with the very same film chamber and, if the photo corners are a bit rounded, the frame edges aren't as fuzzy as yours.

Or - would the rear end of your bellows intrude into the light path ? Hmmm.

Thanks you are correct, I had noticed that. I'll investigate, thanks.
robert

 

[helen.HH]

Lovely !
Great to see NY from another 'Eye'

 

[robert blu]

When my wife and me visited Ground Zero we were ready to face a strong reality. But the impact, the emotion was so strong that made difficult even take photos. It seemed somehow disrespectful. But we wanted in a special way to "save" this emotion for ourselves, for our future. Therefore I approached it very slowly. The sun was very strong that day producing very hard contrast, light and shadows. I took a few pics with my Zeiss but I was unsure of the result so I switched to my Leica x1. A preliminary look at the LCD, the histogram and the benefit of the raw files could help me.
By the way this was the main reason to have that small digital camera in my bag, in case of difficult (to me) light situations.
From the series I shot I now selected the three frames I posted in the gallery and which I show down here. Why these three? I see these photos like a triptych, memories for the people who are no more with us and whom we'll never forget #1, light and shadow fighting each others #2 like a metaphor for good against bad and the life which takes again its role with the rebuilding #3.
At least this is my interpretation.

 

[kbg32]

"Ground Zero" is a tough place Robert. I was working near there until this past March when my work moved uptown. I did a project for the years I was working down there on the people who came to watch the new construction. It was sad to see and hear the disrespect or lack of knowledge of many, not all of course, of the visitors to the area. I am old enough to remember the area before the original towers and to have had friends work there, one of whom lost her life.

Thank you Robert. I am glad you and your wife experienced it as it should - a place of respect and quiet reverie.

 

[jane7l]

thanks for interesting insight. visiting ny city in a few days for a vacation. hope to get some nice photos as well.

 

[robert blu]

Ground Zero with the old Zeiss

Ground Zero with the old Zeiss

Last time I tried to explain how much was difficult for me to photograph when we went to Ground Zero. It was the first time in my life I was in the place of a tragedy. An immense tragedy. Now looking one more time at the contacts of the photos taken with the old folding Zeiss I re-evaluated these shots. For me selecting the correct photo is part of the photographic process, as important as shooting. And it can be a long process, thinking and rethinking.

 

[robert blu]

it seems from what my friends included the ones on RFF say that frame 13 (last photo posted) is the one to select from this series. As luiman says there is the void, the names, the persons and the buildings.
I agree, I'll try to print this one.
When visiting a new place is difficult not to be attracted by the extreme differences with our usual place. This brings of course the risk to fall in the cliché "already seen so many times"m, which for a photographer is not the optimum. But the small child inside me loves big truck and how could I not to make a photo like this one? 🙂

And of course we wanted to go higher, toward the sky! In the small town where I live the tallest building is 16-storey and we call it "the skyscraper" 😀

Yes, I know these have not been done on film ...