Online gallery posted: East Timor

[alansoon]

Greetings friends,

I've returned recently from a trip to East Timor. Now that the rolls have all been processed, they're finally online. There are two galleries (disclaimer: the one on cockfighting may not be appropriate for all audiences!) on my site:

http://monsoonphoto.net/

Your critiques, comments and questions are most welcomed.

And since this is a photography forum, here are some technical notes: A Leica M6 and an M2 were used (and no animals were harmed!). I carried two lenses: a Minolta Rokkor 40/2.0 (mounted on the M2) and a CV 21/4.0 (on the M6 .58). Almost all shots were done on Kodak 400TX and souped in D-76.

Thanks for looking.

 

[saxshooter]

Nice pictures, Alan. I spent a lot of time photographing in East Timor 1998-2001 and looking at your pictures made me miss the place. Is the Turismo Hotel still there?

 

[zuikologist]

Very nice series of pictures. They convey the edginess and humanity of the place.

 

[Goodyear]

Alan, your site kept me late for work today after you posted on CVUG.

I intend to return to it and make my way throguh the archives. Excellent work!

 

[peter_n]

Great stuff, Alan!

 

[Jason_K]

Nice images Alan.

 

[alansoon]

Thanks everyone.

Saxshooter: The Turismo is still there. I spent a few nights there. What a legend, eh?

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

Very beautiful shots. Bookmarked.

 

[nickchew]

Excellent

Love the one with kids swimming in Atauro Island.
Were you in the water for that one?

Nick

 

[alansoon]

Good guess Nick. The water was at chest level for that one. Anything for a photo, right?

 

[markbrennan]

Hi Alan -

Thanks for sharing. Really nice B&W work and great storytelling. I must say, the glow you get w/ your TRI-X is what I really aspire to in my own B&W work (though it may be hard since I don't soup my own film; my local lab, which is good, uses Xtol).

Wondering if you shoot digital for any of your professional PJ work?

All your portfolios are great; really nice work. I'll bookmark them.
Thanks,
-Mark

 

[Peter]

Hi Alan,

Great work! I always love B&W photo-documentary and you have captured the place and the spirit well! I will be going to a Karen refugee camp next week and I hope I could do the job of documentating the place and its people as well as you did.

Regards,
Peter

 

[nickchew]

Good guess Nick. The water was at chest level for that one. Anything for a photo, right?

Anything?
Not getting your leica wet though!

Nick

 

[alansoon]

Mark: Thanks for the kind words. No, I don't shoot digital at all. I find that the digital workflow really doesn't save me any time. With film, I push myself to get it right the first time rather than waste time adjusting it in front of a computer. Film just works better for me.

 

[alansoon]

Mark: One more thing -- the "glow." I rate my Tri-X at ISO 250. That really helps, IMO.

 

[alansoon]

Peter: Thanks, I appreciate it.

Make sure you post some of your photos when you return. I'm sure we'd all love to see it. I assume this camp is in northern Thailand?

 

[markbrennan]

Alan -
Thanks for the replies - very informative. Nice to know there's an accomplished pro using exclusively film! I like your sense of economy and discipline (as a beginner I found digital began to make me sloppy and lazy, hence one of many reasons I switched to film).

Re. the "glow", I will try shooting at that speed (although lately, given the waning daylight in NYC, I've been rating my TRI-X at 1000, so it'll take a little work and getting used to!).

Oh, a follow-up question on that: since alas I don't process my own film, if I were to rate my TRI-X at 250, should I ask my lab to pull the film, or just process as if it were 400?

Thanks again for sharing your wonderful work and the feedback.
Best,
-Mark

 

[alansoon]

Thanks Mark.

If you rate Tri-X at 250, just have it processed normally -- ie. at 400. No need for special instructions.

And then come back and share the photos with us. ;-)

 

[Honus]

Beautiful work, Alan. I like your point of view and you have an excellent handle on exposing and developing - a very rich tonality. What developer & dilution are you using?

- robert

 

[alansoon]

Thanks Robert. I'm using D-76 at the recommended dilution.