Best Way to Use the Final Stock of Fuji FP3000B? Party!

I have a beautiful old Polaroid 250 instant camera. This is a pack film camera, which uses FP3000B or FP100C pack film from Fuji. While the FP100C is still being produced (fingers crossed for the future!), FP3000B has been discontinued. That's really too bad. FP100C is 100 speed color instant film, while FP3000B is 3000 speed (!) black and white. Neither of these films can cover for the other.

 

Anyway, I'm not going to get down about the fact that no new FP3000B is being made. I have a few packs left, and plan to use them well.

 

Last night, I used two packs of FP3000B at my company's holiday party. Knowing that it would be pretty dark at the party, and understanding that Polaroid cameras have relatively slow lenses, it was clear that flash was going to be necessary. So, I put the Polaroid camera on a flash bracket, on which I mounted a modern Nikon SB600 flash. Using a cable that I cobbled together from an old Polaroid flash bulb mount and an accessory hot shoe, I got the whole contraption to work. Testing it out ahead of time, I found that full power manual flash from the SB600 works very well with FP3000B at about 5-10 feet distance. Perfect for the party.

 

Now, this is harsh, direct light. That's the look I decided to go for, since the theme of the party was "sock hop," reminiscent of the days when someone would have photographed it with instant film and a big, bright, direct flash bulb. I got exactly what I wanted. Here are the results.

 

 

I can't think of a better way to use up what's left of this awesome black and white instant film.

 

People loved posing for me, and especially seeing the results. My catch phrase was "by the time your eyesight recovers from the flash, the print will be ready."

 

Fun.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

Impossible Saves the Day

I went out to photograph my friends Danny and Melissa who are the band "Mink.". I shot mostly with my Nikon Df, and got some images worthy of the effort. But, guess which shot was most favored by Melissa - an instant shot on Impossible Project Color 2.0 film in my Polaroid 600 camera. Here it is:

 

Sometimes, many times, simple is best.

 

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Impossible Project Magazine - Rooster Brennan Documents African Safari with Instant Film

I am still thinking about how equipment and creativity interact to tell a story. Just yesterday, I met with my photographic friends and mentors, and got some feedback on the Smithsonian Folklife Festival images that I've been posting here recently. I got comments ranging from something like "See, if you control the background, you can't tell that these shots weren't made in Lima, Peru, as opposed to DC," which I loved, to "Not really sharp. That's the problem with flatbed scanning of 35mm film." All of the comments were useful to me, and were correct.

 

So, how does one share an African safari on instant film?

 

Image Source: https://magazine.the-impossible-project.com/wandering-man/

 

Well, you can check out the Impossible Project's magazine to see how Rooster Brennan did it, using the Impossible Lab to print his images on instant film. The article focuses on storytelling, more than equipment. I think he's done a fine job. (Click Here) to read the story and see the pictures.

 

I think that I still need to work on my storytelling with pictures. If the storytelling were strong enough, the technical details would become much less important. That's my goal.

 

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Impossible Project Instant Film - Color 2.0 Beta

I recently picked up a like-new Polaroid 600 series camera, just for fun. I've wanted to support the Impossible Project, who's restarted a factory making instant film for the 600 and SX70 cameras. (Click Here) to check out the Impossible Project.

 

 

I've shot a little of their black and white film in the past. This time, I ordered a triple pack of a new beta-version color film (2.0 Beta to be exact). I've shot one pack of it, and I like it.

 

Looks like Merlin the Dog wants a sip of Coke.

 

As you can see the color is a little on the yellow side. It has nice subtle tones, and reasonable saturation. I took these at the Waterford Store in Waterford, Virginia, in the exact place where I'd photographed my lovely daughter several years before.

 

It's fun to know that instant photography is still available to us. I like the mix of the immediacy we're used to with digital, and the uniqueness of film.

 

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Fun Snaps With Polaroid 250, Bounced Flash, FP3000 Pack Film

I have a newly-serviced Polaroid 250, which is one of the high end models, with Zeiss finder and a metal body. I've been playing with bounced flash (my Nikon SB600, for which I made a sync cable out of an accessory hot shoe cable and the terminal from the original Polaroid flash). I have found that setting the flash to manual, 1/2 power, pointed at the ceiling gives a good exposure for a close up subject when the camera is loaded with Fujifilm FP3000B black and white film and the camera is set for asa75 film with flash.

 

Coming home tonight, I saw my daughter sitting on the couch in her American flag socks, and just had to get a couple of pictures. I made her get up and pose on the stairs for me. Here's the best exposure of four:

 

And here's a slightly strange one, which is the result of two failed exposures where the flash didn't fire, plus a third good one, where it did:

 

 

Something about these old Polaroids. Somehow, the weirder the result, the better.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

Spring Really Coming? And Some Thoughts on Cheap Cameras.

Previous Spring, by Reed A. George

Polaroid 103, Fuji FP100C Instant Film

 

I was talking with a couple of friends today about favorite and not-favorite photographers, what I like about cameras and photography and why, and the like, today.

 

It was an interesting discussion, starting off with the fact that neither of them is fond of Gary Winogrand's work; I find it fascinating. Then, we moved on to cameras. Now, you probably know that I love fine cameras. But, I also love cheap ones. This brought me to the realization that some of the images that stick in my mind were made with the cheaper, less precision-made cameras. This image is a good example of that. I can still remember the smell of spring in the air, and the fact that my allergies had started up. It almost makes my eyes itch to look at this picture. But, it also reminds me that spring is right around the corner.

 

Would this image win any popularity contests? Almost certainly not. But, it works for me.

 

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Instant Photography Today

Winter 2014 (kind of looks like Winter 2015), by Reed A. George

Polaroid 103, Fuji FP3000B Pack Film

 

I'm still having some fun with instant photography. This was one area I'd stayed out of for several years, but am now in, and really enjoying it. My entry was the Polaroid 103 that my parents sent to me. I converted it to use AAA batteries, found Fuji pack film, and started shooting. Lots of fun.

 

Then, I went to the Film Photography Project's Walking Workshop last spring, where I was introduced to the new Fujifilm Instax Neo Mini. I now have one, along with the wireless Instax printer. These are fun, but they're really just party toys. The images are nice, but quite small.

 

Next, my friend Dennis Gallus sold (nearly gave) me his Mamiya Universal Press (MUP) outfit. I added a pack film back, and now I have a very capable, high quality instant imaging system, complete with full manual control and interchangeable lenses. Awesome.

 

And now, I've picked up a higher grade Polaroid (the Model 250), complete with several hard-to-find accessories, including the portrait kit, closeup kit, remote release, and timer. That camera is on its way to Seattle for a shutter replacement. What makes the 250 higher quality than my 103? All metal body, Zeiss finder, tripod mount, some exposure control. All pretty nice.

 

I was reading about the current state of instant photography. It's not all good. The worst news is that the venerable Fujifilm FP3000B is discontinued. Still available at this point at twice its normal price or more, but no longer being manufactured. That leaves only FP100C, which is great color film, but no B&W option. The Impossible Project is a great development, making new instant films with a reconditioned Polaroid factory, but the prices are high, and the offering incomplete. $3 per shot is an awful lot. I find myself hoping that they'll make pack film in the future, but I'm not looking forward to the cost.

 

(Click Here) to read a review of the state of instant photography on polaroidland.net.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

Found Another Mamiya Universal User - and Review

Image Source: http://snapitseeit.com/camera-review-mamiya-universal/

 

A few months back, my medium format shooting capability was significantly expanded when my friend Dennis Gallus sold me his lovely Mamiya Universal Press (MUP) camera kit.

 

I've been searching for other users of the MUP online, and well, there aren't very many of us left. I recently found this review of using the MUP with instant film on one of my favorite new sites, Snap It | See It.

(Click Here) to read the review, which also remarks on using the MUP with flash, something I have yet to try.

 

I've been distracted from the MUP recently, with several other new-to-me cameras. I've simply got to get more hours in the week(end)s to shoot the MUP.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

Amazing Instant! - Seamus Heneghan on Snap It | See It

Image Source: http://snapitseeit.com/artist-spotlight-seamus-heneghan/

 

The blog Snap It | See It is one of my favorites for instant photography. They have been spotlighting great instant photographers, which I think is really cool. Once I have a little body of instant work, I will probably send them a note to see if they'll feature it.

 

This artist, Seamus Heneghan, has some great stuff on the blog right now. I really like the gridlines in the image above. He's got another there, with just a cat's face behind the grid, too. Interesting.

 

(Click Here) to see the post on Snap It | See It.

 

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Final Round of Found Prints from The Gilded Flea

I've made two posts already of found prints and an internegative that I recovered from my friend's antique shop "The Gilded Flea" in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. (Click Here) to go to their website; they have tons of amazing stuff.

 

Here are some more prints that I picked up on my visit. I selected them just because they interested me.

 

Can anyone guess why I liked this one? The lady with the Polaroid, of course. She's even got her flash bulb pointed to the ceiling for bounced flash. I bet her shot came out great.

And who can argue with "Rockley Music Co.?" Apparently, they also sell Frigidaire appliances.

 

On the back of this print, it says "It's running fine now."

 

And finally, this one. Hey, honey, come sit in this tree so I can take your picture!

 

Thus ends a round of found prints from the past. I hope you enjoy seeing them as much as I did.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

RoidWeek #2, 2014 - This Week!

I just found out about this. RoidWeek, which is a celebration of instant photography, starts today and goes through Friday. The event welcomes any instant film shots, but not digital facsimiles of them. They don't have to be Polaroid.

 

I read about it on Snap It | See It. (Click Here) to see the post. Inside, you'll find a link to the flickr page where you can submit images.

 

Importantly, images need to be taken this week, and the "week" is only five days, this Monday through Friday.

 

I'm going to have to load up my Polaroid (or Polaroid back for my MUP) and get some weekday shots to post.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

Evan Leavitt's Doing Instant Photography Now

Image Source: http://evanleavittphotography.wordpress.com/2014/09/04/camak/

I've posted Evan Leavitt's work several times in the past. The shot above, entitled "Camak," was made with a Polaroid camera and Fuji instant film. Right up my alley.

I think Evan's work has a very special feel to it. He shoots with vintage equipment, many times even making a paper negative. The results are always impressive to me.

(Click Here) to visit Evan's blog.

DMC-365.blogspot.com

Bike Riding with the Fuji Instax Neo

My wife and I went on an all-too-rare bike ride together last weekend. I took the Fuji Neo along.

Before the Ride, by Reed A. George

Fuji Instax Neo Instant Camera

 

I carried the Neo around my neck the whole ride. It's very light, so that didn't present a problem at all. I decided to try and capture some motion blur in one of the more wooded sections of the trail. First, I tried the B setting, and overexposed to the point that the image was useless. For my second try, I simply turned off the flash, which resulted in a longer exposure. Here's what I got:

 

Daylight Motion Blur, by Reed A. George

Fuji Instax Neo Instant Camera

 

My wife had some challenges with her biking shoe clips, namely getting them to clip in and then unclip. Here she demonstrates the emergency evacuation procedure, which consists of pulling your foot out of the shoe, leaving it attached to the pedal. No kidding, these shoes were the biggest safety hazard of the ride.

 

Pedal Clip Challenges, by Reed A. George

Fuji Instax Neo Instant Camera

 

I'm really enjoying the little Fuji Neo. I'm hopeful that Instax film for it will be around a while, even while Fuji discontinues it's older pack film. There seems to be a lot of focus on Instax, and I seem them popping up in various places. If you're looking for a fun photographic diversion, give one a try. The Neo happens to have a lot more creative settings than the other models, including B (time exposure), exposure compensation, and the abilty to turn the flash off when you want. Buy yours from my Amazon link below and support my blog!

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

 

 

More Fun With the Fujifilm Neo Instant Camera, and a Review

 

Hair, by Reed A. George

Fujifilm Instax Mini Neo 90

 

A couple of weeks back, I posted about the Fujifilm Instax Neo camera that I'd just bought. (Click Here) to see that post, which includes several images.

 

I've gotten more interested in instant photography lately. I really like the Fuji pack films which fit many Polaroid cameras, including my 103. (Click Here) to read about that camera. However, one can only guess that these films are not long for this world. In fact, discontinuation of one of the two types, Fujifilm's black and white FP3000B, has already been announced. FP100C is still being made, but who knows for how long.

 

So, probably the most attractive thing about the new Fujifilm Instax Mini Neo is that there's a good chance this film will be around for a while. Fuji's doing a good job of introducing new cameras, and even some with creative controls like the Neo, so hopefully that will keep the market strong.

 

(Click Here) to read a nice review of the Instax Mini Neo on SnapItSeeIt.com.

 

For not too much money, the Neo is really a nice, fun little camera. Buy yours through my Amazon link below!

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

Nick DeMarco Shoots Mamiya Universal and Fuji Pack Film

Nick and His Mamiya Universal Press Camera

Image Source: http://rangefinderchronicles.blogspot.com/2014/07/my-mamiya-universal-first-shots-with.html

 

Nick DeMarco runs the blog "Rangefinder Chronicles." He's a serious Leica user, and shares results made with both old Barnack screwmount and M film cameras.

 

Now, Nick's doing something different. He's picked up a Mamiya Universal (medium format press camera, shoots 6x9 images), with a Polaroid back. It takes the Fuji pack film, just like my old Polaroid does.

 

(Click Here) to see a post about my Polaroid.

 

There's just something about instant print photography. Even for my teenager, who is growing up in the digital age, her and her friends love to watch an instant print come into being. In fact, I've been considering the new Fujifilm Instax Neo as my next instant shooter (see Amazon link below). It's styled in the Fujifilm rangefinder motif, and has some good creative controls. It also uses the more modern Instax film, which I hope will be around a while. The black and white pack film from Fuji (FP3000B) is discontinued.

 

Nick shares several great images he made with his new Universal.

(Click Here) to see them on his blog Rangefinder Chronicles.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

Polaroid in the Forest - Black and White

I've written about my Polaroid 103 instant camera before. (Click Here) to read about it.

 

I recently took the Polaroid and a new pack of FP3000B film out into the forest on a hike. I planned on using it just to quickly check out some compositions, which I would later shoot with the Graflex Speed Graphic 4x5 camera I carried with me. I never ended up using the Speed Graphic, but did get a few images with the Polaroid before I ruined a $15 pack of film (more on that in a minute).

 

Here are three images I captured that I think are worth sharing:

 

 

This film is pretty interesting. At iso 3000, you get extremely deep depth of field when shooting outdoors. the prints are a little larger than 3" x 4" in size, and look quite sharp at that size. I scanned the prints, and at any size larger, they don't look so sharp. I'm not sure if that's because the originals aren't so sharp, or if my scanner's focus isn't exactly right for this type of scanning (reflective, as opposed to scanning negatives in transmission mode).

 

(Click Here) to read about how this film is being discontinued by Fujifilm. I sure hate to see it go.

 

Back to ruining a pack of this stuff, I have had this happen twice now. After you expose the film, you pull a small tab of paper from the side of the camera, which feeds a larger, stronger paper tab between the rollers in the camera. The rollers distribute the developer chemicals over the image as you pull it out. Well, that first small piece of paper tore, leaving no tab to pull. I simply stopped, put the camera away and decided to work on it in the dark at home. Unfortunately, that failed and I ended up exposing the rest of the pack. I'm not exactly sure how to avoid this in the future, but with the film going away (and up in price), I sure don't want it to happen again.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

First Snow - Shot With Low Tech Wonder, Polaroid 103

 

Snow is Coming Down, by Reed A. George

Polaroid 103, Fujifilm FP-3000B Instant Film

 

As I write this, it's December 8, 2013, and we're having our first winter storm of the year. Being a self-respecting photographer, I couldn't just sit at home and finish scanning film (which is also on my list for today). So, I packed up a few cameras and drove out to the local wildlife reserve. Here's the only shot I made with the Polaroid 103 today. You can see the snow streaking down. I increased contrast in Lightroom (after scanning the print). I think it came out pretty darned good.

 

This was shot on the endangered Fujifilm FP-3000B instant black and white film. (Click Here) to see an earlier post about Fuji's plans to do away with this film. I sure hope they can be convinced to change their minds, but I am sure the market's small.

 

As will all things, they can't last forever. I am glad that I got the chance to use this excellent film, and enjoyed the result today.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

Perhaps if you buy some film for that old pack film camera you've got sitting around, Fuji will keep making it for a while. Here's a link:

 

 

 

Fuji Instant Film Going Away? Please Sign the Petition Against It. For Me.

 

Image Source:

https://www.change.org/petitions/stop-the-discontinuation-of-fuji-3000b-instant-film-by-fujifilm

 

Several months ago, my Mom sent me a gorgeous old Polaroid camera. You may have seen some of my shots with it here on DMC-365. I was very happily surprised to find that Fujifilm was still making instant film that fits it, and I've really enjoyed using it from time to time.

 

Fuji has announced plans to discontinue the film. Now, I know, it may be a lost cause. But, there a petition started on change.org to try to influence Fuji to reconsider. All it takes is a digital signature to help your luddite film photographer friends like me. Or at least try to help us out.

 

Please (Click Here) and sign the digital petition. I'd sure like to see this film stay around.

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

 

 

 

Recovering Polaroid (Fuji Pack Film) Negatives - I Must Try This

Image Source: http://delvauxkoen.blogspot.be/2013/08/creating-negatives-from-fuji-fp-100c.html?utm_source=buffer&utm_campaign=Buffer&utm_content=buffer882a7&utm_medium=twitter

 

You may have seen my Low Tech Wonders post about the Polaroid 103 camera that my parents sent me. I really enjoy shooting it, and the results are pretty impressive. Using modern Fuji pack film that is still easily available (see Amazon link below), the 103 just needed a simple modification to run on AAA batteries to be once again functional.

 

(Click Here) to read my post about the camera.

 

I had heard somewhere that in addition to the instant print you get from the Fuji film, you could recover the negative image for scanning. I found a post by Koen Delvaux about how to do this.

 

(Click Here) to read Koen's instructions on recovering instant negatives.

 

Koen demonstrates that the negatives are actually much sharper than the instant prints. While the process for recovering them involves straight bleach (fairly dangerous stuff), I think it's worth a try. I don't know what to expect in terms of being able to store these negatives long-term, but if I can get a good scan of them, that's probably good enough. My Epson scanner does a much better job on negatives than on prints as well.

 

Thanks, Koen, for the clear explanation of how to do this!

 

DMC-365.blogspot.com

 

 

What if we put Robert Capa in Afghanistan with an iPhone?

 

Instant Print Composite, by Joshua Yospyn

Image Source: http://yospyn.com/#/portraits/instant-film/vaki17

 

Two ideas came together for me this morning. The first is that I read an article about Ray Metzker on the New York Times' blog "Lens." This piece makes the point that Metzker has stuck with the development and evolution of his style over the course of decades. He was firmly in the class of modernist photographers during his relative youth, and eventually developed a completely new style in making single-image composites, sometimes from whole rolls of film. He refuses to go backwards, shoot in his previous styles, just to sell prints.

 

For an example of his composite photography, (Click Here) and scroll down to the third image.

 

Now, the Lens piece contrasts Metzker's focused concentration with today's whipping boy, the iPhone and instant gratification. I do understand the point that in many ways "serious" photography is giving way to amateurs pointing their phones at something and instantly uploading the results. For example, (Click Here) to read about the Chicago Sun-Times firing all of their photographer staff. Not cool.

 

The second idea came from attending a photo critique at the Washington, DC Leica Store yesterday. Our main speaker was Joshua Yospyn, who among other things, is making very interesting unique pieces of art like the one above from instant photographs (Polaroids in this case).

 

Joshua is a Washington, DC-based photographer. (Click Here) to go to his website.

 

I've been playing with an old pack film Polaroid myself. (Click Here) to see a few of my own Polaroid images.

 

So, maybe we're kind of missing the point. It's not the technology that's causing the problems. Instant gratification has been around a long time. It's the fact that we need photographers to step up and use the technologies to make even better photographs. This is not all about reporting on riots or demonstrations. As Joshua shows, in addition to being instant, Polaroids provide a tangible artifact, a real print. He assembles them and displays them under a sheet of acrylic. They are real works of art. You could do similar things with quick prints from iPhone images as well. I'm sure the Polaroid camera optics are much better, though.

 

But the real point is not prints versus electronic images. It's that if iPhones and Smartphones put instant photography at the hands of amateurs, just think what a truly skilled photographer can do with them. We can keep our Leicas, Nikons, or Canons, too. But I think we should challenge ourselves to put the benefits of our concentrated effort into new situations, including different, even instant, technologies.

 

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