Film Photography Crash Course

Read another blog post around film photography at photographyconcentrate.com.

Rob Lim compiled a nice article on film photography: Film Photography Crash Course

Rob Lim names main motivators for shooting film to be:

- The look of film
- The process of shooting film
- Helps you learn photography

One interesting reference is to digitaltruth.com with a series of apps for the film photographer who wants to take control over all his development and printing process.

Scenic Places in Black and White - Schloss Neuschwanstein

Neuschwanstein - Werner Neumann-Peters (500px)

Schloss Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Germany is one of the most visited places in Europe. In recent times this is more than 1.4 million visitors per year.

The castle has been built in the nineteenth century above the village of Hohenschwangau by Ludwig II of Bavaria. The castle is built in romanticism style.

The castle has served a venue in several movies. One of the most famous is the use as sleeping beauty castle in Disney's Cindarella.

Shortly after the death of King Ludwig II in 1886 the castle was opened to the public. Ever since the castle of the fairy-tale king is a must see on many tourist's itineraries.

Schloss Neuschwanstein - Jorge Schramm (500px)

Not only for tourists but also for photographers the landmark has some magic.

Embedded in beautiful alpine landscape, with dense forests, lakes, hills, and mountains the scenery offers endless opportunities for beautiful shots under unique light conditions.

The challenge is to find the right spot with the best view on to the castle at the right time.
Looking through collections of examples this is possibly the key to success, but also one of the strongest secrets of photographers.

Choosing black and white can give some more magic to that scenery.
For example the image below by Viktor Lakics showing the castle embedded in dramatic mountain landscape right after a storm. Rays of light shooting through the dark clouds of the thunder storm, fog arising from the forests, reflections on the lake, and the majestic castle in the foreground give this image some drama which would not be as intense when shot in color.

After the Storm (Mono) - Viktor Lakics (500px)

As can be seen from these examples shooting in black and white can be a artistic technique to add some other dimension to your imagery.
However, there is much difference if a picture has been shot as a monochrome capture or if it has been transferred to black and white in post processing.
Already when shooting the black and white photographer should take certain aspects into account.

Most important is the search for contrast. Try to capture true whites with true blacks in the same image. Only this way the lack of color will transform into interesting texture.
While with color you would rather avoid flat light, in black and white this can be a condition which gets most out of a scenery.

For some tips visit: link

Influential Photographers - Peter Lik

Australian self-taught photographer Peter Lik is one of the most successful contemporary landscape photographers. - According to his website lik.com Peter Lik's comment about his most favourite image is: "I haven't taken it yet."

Peter is running a series of galleries around the US and Australia showcasing his landscape images.

One of the most famous pictures of Peter Lik is the image "Phantom" taken in Arizona's Antelope canyon which has been sold at US$6.5 Million. This is the most expensive photograph ever sold.

The picture in black and white has been bought by a private collector who acquired some other of Peter's images at exceptional price.

The Antelope canyon picture taken by Peter Lik has been the starting point for thousands of photographers hunting exceptional light conditions in this spectacular geological formation. An internet search yields an endless number of great images taken in the very same spot.


Another of his iconic images is "Inner Piece" a beautiful back lit tree captured in Oregon.

For more inspirational pictures check out the image collection on Peter Lik's website.

Underwater Videography - Above and Below the Banda Sea

Above & Below - Banda Sea from Behind the Mask on Vimeo.

Black and White - Volkswagen Beetle Photography

Route 62 - Sebastian Hahn (500px)

Beetle art - Ici Bizzi (500px)

My First Car meets Mt. Fuji - Naoya Yukimoto (500px)

VW Käfer - Christopher Marx (500px)

Old Boy - Eikaetschja (500px)

Medium Format Digital Photography

Now, digital medium format is coming.

Fujifilm is the next one to go medium format.

The GFX 50S is the first digital medium format camera by Fujifilm.

Read the following blog post for recent news: link

Scuba Diving Cocos Island - An underwater photographer's dream

Cocoas Island off the coast of Costa Rica in the pacific ocean is a dream to visit for most passionate underwater photographers.
No where else there is literately a guarantee to see schools of hundreds of hammerhead sharks and other big fish.

See the blog post by Mary Frances Emmons on experience visiting Isla del Coco:
Scuba Diving Cocos Island Aboard Okeanos Aggressor II | Sport Diver

Revival of Vanishing Technologies Through Art

It is no secret that technologies which already disappeared go through serious revival. Not only in photography but also in many handcrafts.

Visit the blog post by Ariela Gittlen on 7 Vanishing Technologies Making a Comeback Through Art.
It is a portrait interesting to read of seven technologies which are going through serious revival in newer times.

• Film photography
• Polaroids
• Screen-Printed Textiles
• Practical Special Effects
• Sign Painting
• Mail Art
• Cadmium Pigment

Raising Interest in Analog Photography

A recent survey around analog photography shows interesting conclusions.

More than 50% of analog photographers expose more than 50 films per year.

More than 60% of film photographers are photographers for a long time.
Interestingly, 7% are newbies in photography.

The ambitious analog photographer self develops his films.

When it comes to develop prints on paper still 47% are following the complete analog process.

A majority of analog photographers prefers black and white film.

Influential Photographers - Paul Nicklen

Paul Nicklen, 1968 born Canadian nature photographer is working since 1995 as a full-time photojournalist.

He is famous for images from the arctic and the antarctic.

Photographing the polar regions is a serious challenge.
Paul takes images on land as well as underwater. On his website he shares some pictures showing how he deals with climatic challenges.

Paul was won the 2012 Veolia Environment wildlife photographer of the year among other awards.


Please visit Paul's website for a more closer look at his portfolio.

Some images are never seen close ups and portraits of wildlife.

Such as the little baby penguin on the right, or the sea elephant on the bottom of the page.

Underwater Videography - Micro Life in the Red Sea

Red Sea Micro Life by Camel Dive Club, Sharm El Sheikh from Camel Dive Club on Vimeo.

Black and White - Taxi Driver Photography

Subconscious Portrait - Azmain Iktidar (500px)

Taxi driver, be my string for the hour. - Kobi Balulu (500px)

Vintage Twins - Mohana Vamsi (500px)

Taxi Driver - Gergo Ertl (500px)

Yellow Cab Driver - Erik Yeh (500px)

The Comeback of Film Photography

It seams that I am not the only one fascinated by film photography.

In a recent post on PetaPixel blog Temoor Iqbal published a post entitled "Film Photography is Making a Stunning Comeback" - see link

One thing which adds technical value to me when shooting film is the fact that developed film persists for ages while digital images just disappear in a digital archive and always need some other technology to remain accessible.
In the blog exactly this aspect is outlined too.

Some statements:

"File types come and go—even the ubiquitous JPEG format may not be readable by standard hardware in 20 or 30 years—so constant, active conversion is required to ensure the survival of an archive."

"Ultimately, this is not to say that everyone should immediately discard their digital cameras and switch to film, but rather that film still has a very real and serious place in the world of photography."

Timelapse Photography - Bern, Day to Night

Bern - one of the most beautiful cities in Switzerland - in a stunning timelapse sequence from day to night.

Bern - Day to night from Christoph Schlatter on Vimeo.

David Burnett’s Unconventional Images of Olympic Athletes | American Photo

Read the blogpost by Jack Crager on David Burnett’s Unconventional Images of Olympic Athletes | American Photo

“Moving Stills” Is A Short Film Offering An Incredible Look Into The Old Photography Business | Popular Photography

“Moving Stills” Is A Short Film Offering An Incredible Look Into The Old Photography Business | Popular Photography

Influential Photographers - Tray Ratcliff

One of the todays most influential photographers is Tray Ratcliff. On his website Stuck in Customs he is sharing plenty of information around his photography work.

Tray is a travel photographer. There is to my perception virtually no place on earth where Tray has not yet been shooting. His portfolio of most impressive imagery can be found at link.

Southern Guangxi Province, China

Tray has been one of the first photographers of the digital age to make use of social media in order to promote himself as a photographer as well as promoting his work.
Be it through image processing tutorials, such as the HDR Tutorial. Or, video tutorials such as link. Gear talks about mirrorless cameras, and so forth, ...

Saint Mark's Tower From Above, Venice Italy

Underwater Videography - Documentary on researching Maldivian Manta Rays

Hanifaru Bay - Researching Maldivian Manta Rays from Danny Copeland on Vimeo.

Black and White - Train Passenger Photography

The passenger - Paul Mendonça (500px)

Little Passenger - Umut Sinan Özdemir (500px)

Countless ways to unwind... - Philia (500px)

Waiting - Mark Corpe (500px)

Calibrating boredom - Candice Montgomery (500px)

How to use a light meter

When using old film cameras one can not rely on the technological power of built in light meters such as in contemporary DSLR cameras.

Light metering is something rather sensitive when shooting film.

Alex Burke posted a tutorial on petapixel.com worth reading on how to use handheld light meters in order to evaluate the right exposure for your shot.

Timelapse Photography: Lights over Switzerland

Lights over Switzerland II - by Christoph Schlatter

Lights over Switzerland II - Timelapse from Christoph Schlatter on Vimeo.

Film Cameras in a Digital Age

Why a mechanical film camera in a digital age? - A question which keeps me busy since quite some tome. And apparently not only me. - A recent post on leicaphilia.com all deals around this question.

Mechanical cameras have been considered obsolete for some time. The number of digital camera models hitting the market in the last slightly more than 10 years is almost infinite. - Never the less analog cameras undergo a comeback.

Photography shops have old mechanical second hand cameras again in their offering and retired mechanical engineers who still know how to service them start small businesses again do do so.

The post on leicaphilia.com is worth reading for everybody who is interested in this topic.

Scenic Places in Black and White - Matterhorn

Zermatt in Switzerland is one of these places in the Swiss Alps that offers endless opportunities to enjoy the scenic mountain panorama.

Recently I spent a weekend on the Riffelalp, the Gornergrat side above Zermatt. From this location there is one of the most spectacular view on the iconic Matterhorn.
Taking the train to the Gornergrat is one thing not to miss. From the Gornergrat Kulm one can experience an exceptional panorama on the Monte Rosa, the Matterhorn and plenty of other 4000 m.a.s.l high peaks of the Swiss alps.

Opportunities for iconic pictures can be found at the Riffelsee. A little lake embedded in-between two mountain rims with usually mirroring clear surface in which the Matterhorn is reflected.

It is possibly one of the most touristic shots. Thousands of international tourists per year in search of typical pictures. Here another representative in black and white taken on a beautiful morning this summer.

Best time to go is in the morning since then the sun illuminates the Matterhorn from the front. A scenic place for landscape photography.

Influential Photographers - Michael Aw

Dolphin Dreaming - Van Gogh Edition - Michael Aw (500px)

Michael Aw is one of the most influential contemporary underwater photographers.

Recently he has been selected as one of the 40 most influential nature photographers (see link).

He has published a number of photo books on underwater photography and is the man behind the Ocean Geographic magazine featuring articles around marine conservation.

Visit his webpage at: link

Manta morning - Van Gogh Edition - Michael Aw (500px)

Michael Aw not only publishes great underwater photography work he also organises spectacular expeditions.
To places such as Socorro in Mexico, Raja Ampat in West-Papua Indonesia, or to Fakarava in French Polynesia.

Underwater Videography - The Arrival

The Arrival from MUSIC by Morten Gildberg on Vimeo.

Black and White - Car Photography

Janis Joplin - Aake Kinnunen (500px)

classic car - Alexey Gorshenin (500px)

Car Audio - Dmitriev Dmitry (500px)

Plymouth Barracuda 1969 - Magnus Levin (500px)

fiat 500 - Alessandro Bordini (500px)

Photoblog: Ilford - Best in Black & White

Black and white film and chemicals producer Ilford is running an open photoblog on their corporate website.

Find it at: link

The blog is collecting a number of very interesting stories.

For example the one about Ribnar Mazumdar who calls himself a "hybrid photographer". Meaning, that he is shooting both film and digital following a digital workflow.

Have a look and explore.