Author Topic: Wherein limr and 02Pilot go to the desert (Read 13955 times)

02Pilot · « **on:** January 22, 2015, 02:16:46 PM »

At the end of last year, limr and I set off on a trip to Arizona. Some of the itinerary was planned in advance, but the overriding theme and purpose was to have a vacation where we did what we wanted when we wanted, with no external constraints to consider. Obviously, photography was going to play a significant part in the whole thing; many rolls of film were exposed, and only now are we getting to the point where an end to the develop/scan/edit process is in sight.

With that, it was time to start another photo essay thread. Rather than just dump a pile of random photos here, I thought it might be more interesting to do a thread with thematic posts, the idea being that each photo post will include five photos on a related subject. Sort of a collection of photo essays, all in one thread for your viewing convenience. We'll each post our own photos rather than lumping them together, so don't be surprised if you see some that are similar - we were on vacation together, after all.

To start things off, here are five of my photos of that great cliché of the American West, the open road. My kit on this trip consisted of a Canon P with Voigtländer 21/4, Canon 50/1.5, and Leitz Elmar 90/4, and a Voigtländer Perkeo II (plus a digital camera that shall remain anonymous). Film stock was Tri-X and Ektar.

Bryan · « **Reply #1 on:** January 22, 2015, 03:46:11 PM »

Very nice, I really like the fourth one with the cactus, did you use a filter?

02Pilot · « **Reply #2 on:** January 22, 2015, 04:14:06 PM »

Thanks. Yes, I was using filters - deep yellow on the Perkeo and orange on the P with the 50/1.5 (no filters on the shots I took with the 21/4 and the 90/4). In retrospect the orange might have been overkill for some shots, and it vignetted more than expected, but them's the breaks.

limr · « **Reply #3 on:** January 23, 2015, 02:38:00 AM »

And here are my first five. I got an adapter to shoot 35mm film in a medium format camera, so I loaded up the Lubitel and tried it out during the trip. So I guess my theme here is Sprockety Goodness in the Desert.

rs Grass and tree by limrodrigues, on Flickr

rs Road by limrodrigues, on Flickr

rs Road and shadow by limrodrigues, on Flickr

The lab that does our color is usually really good about cutting the film, but for some reason, they cut the film in the middle of some frames. It was tricky to keep them close together while scanning. I thought the break actually looked kind of neat on these next two.

rs Tree and wagon wheel by limrodrigues, on Flickr

rs Cactus tree by limrodrigues, on Flickr

ManuelL · « **Reply #4 on:** January 24, 2015, 12:42:20 PM »

Great stuff! The curve (O2Pilot's 2nd) and the Cactus (Limr's last) are my favourites in the series.

02Pilot · « **Reply #5 on:** January 24, 2015, 01:01:38 PM »

Thanks Manuel.

02Pilot · « **Reply #6 on:** January 24, 2015, 01:07:35 PM »

Continuing our jaunt through Arizona, and in a way related to my initial theme, I present my second collection: Signs.

Indofunk · « **Reply #7 on:** January 24, 2015, 03:45:13 PM »

Love the signs!

02Pilot · « **Reply #8 on:** January 24, 2015, 04:13:55 PM »

Thanks, Satish.

hookstrapped · « **Reply #9 on:** January 24, 2015, 05:27:51 PM »

Quote from: 02Pilot on January 22, 2015, 04:14:06 PM

Thanks. Yes, I was using filters - deep yellow on the Perkeo and orange on the P with the 50/1.5 (no filters on the shots I took with the 21/4 and the 90/4). In retrospect the orange might have been overkill for some shots, and it vignetted more than expected, but them's the breaks.

Very much like 3, 4, 5

02Pilot · « **Reply #10 on:** January 24, 2015, 05:49:09 PM »

Quote from: hookstrapped on January 24, 2015, 05:27:51 PM

Quote from: 02Pilot on January 22, 2015, 04:14:06 PM
Thanks. Yes, I was using filters - deep yellow on the Perkeo and orange on the P with the 50/1.5 (no filters on the shots I took with the 21/4 and the 90/4). In retrospect the orange might have been overkill for some shots, and it vignetted more than expected, but them's the breaks.

Very much like 3, 4, 5

Thanks. I actually took a color shot of #3 as well, but the monochrome version seemed more evocative.

limr · « **Reply #11 on:** January 24, 2015, 06:02:07 PM »

My next five (okay, there are six) actually coincide with the One Subject One Roll project. The theme is Cacti and the pictures can be found here: http://www.filmwasters.com/forum/index.php?topic=7652.new#new

I'll probably revisit this theme, however, given there are a lot more pictures of cacti on other rolls! But I do have some other themed shots I'm working on for this thread as well.

But first it's back to 02Pilot!

02Pilot · « **Reply #12 on:** January 25, 2015, 05:18:45 PM »

While I don't always spend as much time focused on photographing the little details as limr, I do shoot that way from time to time. So with that in mind, I give you Details:

Indofunk · « **Reply #13 on:** January 26, 2015, 06:56:10 PM »

Love the details, especially the color details! (I too shoot details often)

imagesfrugales · « **Reply #14 on:** January 26, 2015, 10:01:49 PM »

Great show, love 'em all. Carry on ......

02Pilot · « **Reply #15 on:** January 26, 2015, 10:13:07 PM »

Thanks guys. I've probably got a couple more sets before I'm done - stand by.

limr · « **Reply #16 on:** January 27, 2015, 02:05:28 AM »

My turn. This theme is "Plants and Rocks"

First, here are two from Lubie plus Ektar:

Apparently, even when I shoot wider landscapes, I like to focus on foreground detail

Rocks in distance (2) by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Little bush by limrodrigues, on Flickr

And from the K1000 plus Portra 160:

Weed by limrodrigues, on Flickr

There was still a bit of snow:

Bush and shadow by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Here I go again with the foreground detail:

Branches by limrodrigues, on Flickr

And a bonus picture. This one has mostly plant and just a bit of the rock it was growing out of in the corner and background, but I love the curlies!

Curly cactus by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Indofunk · « **Reply #17 on:** January 28, 2015, 01:12:04 AM »

Excellent! I love Ektar

I too tend to focus on the foreground always, and to a fault. I've told myself that I need to really assess the shot and determine whether I really do want the focus to be on the foreground or not. But in all of your cases you made the right decision

limr · « **Reply #18 on:** January 28, 2015, 01:59:13 PM »

Quote from: Indofunk on January 28, 2015, 01:12:04 AM

Excellent! I love Ektar

I too tend to focus on the foreground always, and to a fault. I've told myself that I need to really assess the shot and determine whether I really do want the focus to be on the foreground or not. But in all of your cases you made the right decision

Thanks, I thought so too

Adam Doe · « **Reply #19 on:** January 28, 2015, 05:08:11 PM »

What a cool series of photos.

I love the way the Welcome sign is framed against the cloudy sky. The South 89 is great as well, i really like the contrast between the sky and scrub and the exposed rock face and signs. I love the fragility of the Little Bush against the imposing, (seemingly)massive rocks behind it. Clichés be damned, those are some cool road shots, especially the second and fourth. Also diggin' the sprocket exposed cactus and the shot of the wooden door with the gate shadow.

Hope there's more to come!

SLVR · « **Reply #20 on:** January 28, 2015, 08:50:45 PM »

I think everyone should do a desert trip. It's so much fun even if you end up spending the majority of the day driving. It must have been even better because you guys were specifically going for photos.

Question though, why Tri-X? It's either crazy bright during the day or pitch dark at night.

Francois · « **Reply #21 on:** January 28, 2015, 09:01:38 PM »

Makes me want to move where it's warm and dry...

Bryan · « **Reply #22 on:** January 28, 2015, 09:33:51 PM »

I love that Old Town, Ledbetter Law sign, and the closeups are great to. The desert is one of my favorite places to shoot film but after a while I can't wait to get back to some lush green vegetation.

02Pilot · « **Reply #23 on:** January 28, 2015, 09:46:34 PM »

Thanks, guys. It was really interesting shooting there since neither of us had really spent any time in that sort of environment, so everything was just different. We drove a fair bit, but we also made sure we had time to explore some places on foot - we like to walk around town, stop for a beer or a coffee, poke into a shop or two. Warm and dry it wasn't, however - it snowed the second day we were there, and the temperatures only got up to normal on the penultimate day of the trip. I nearly broke my neck several times climbing up a ridge to get that snowy road shot with the cactus in the foreground - the drifts were at least knee-deep.

TinTin, Tri-X is kind of a default for me (though HP5+ is moving into that position as my Tri-X stockpile dwindles, given the cost disparity in bulk rolls). I'm used to it, I have a bunch of it, and I have filters if I want to add some flexibility. I shot the vast majority of my monochrome with filters on this trip (orange on the P, deep yellow on the Perkeo - both require two additional stops), so I wasn't bumping into the limits of exposure.

And yes, there are more to come.

limr · « **Reply #24 on:** January 29, 2015, 04:04:52 AM »

Quote from: 02Pilot on January 28, 2015, 09:46:34 PM

Thanks, guys. It was really interesting shooting there since neither of us had really spent any time in that sort of environment, so everything was just different. We drove a fair bit, but we also made sure we had time to explore some places on foot - we like to walk around town, stop for a beer or a coffee, poke into a shop or two. Warm and dry it wasn't, however - it snowed the second day we were there, and the temperatures only got up to normal on the penultimate day of the trip. I nearly broke my neck several times climbing up a ridge to get that snowy road shot with the cactus in the foreground - the drifts were at least knee-deep.

TinTin, Tri-X is kind of a default for me (though HP5+ is moving into that position as my Tri-X stockpile dwindles, given the cost disparity in bulk rolls). I'm used to it, I have a bunch of it, and I have filters if I want to add some flexibility. I shot the vast majority of my monochrome with filters on this trip (orange on the P, deep yellow on the Perkeo - both require two additional stops), so I wasn't bumping into the limits of exposure.

And yes, there are more to come.

What he said

Except for the part of nearly breaking my neck. I didn't go all the way up that hill. I thought about following him all the way up and then realized that I was quite perfectly happy shooting my details at the bottom with a quite perfectly intact neck

02Pilot · « **Reply #25 on:** January 30, 2015, 11:34:27 PM »

OK, time for another batch. Being well-known for wide-open spaces, the American West has long been associated with various and sundry modes of mechanized transportation, most notably trains and cars. With that in mind, I give you Getting Around:

limr · « **Reply #26 on:** February 02, 2015, 05:28:00 PM »

I swear I did shoot black and white film while in Arizona, but for some reasons, I was dragging my feet on getting it all developed. I've finally started and have developed most of it, scanned in about half. While I'm working on those, here one last batch of color-only. I'm calling this group "Arizona and...snow??"

yellow fire hydrant by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Green giant by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Gas station by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Saint by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Horse and slide by limrodrigues, on Flickr

02Pilot · « **Reply #27 on:** February 05, 2015, 12:45:13 AM »

OK, time to pull out the big stuff. I showed a B&W panorama stitched from two 35mm shots in one of the weekend threads, but now I'm hauling out the heavy artillery: two panoramas, each stitched from two 6x6 frames of Ektar shot with the Perkeo II. I was quite pleased with how these came out.

Indofunk · « **Reply #28 on:** February 05, 2015, 04:25:51 AM »

Impressive!!!

Bryan · « **Reply #29 on:** February 05, 2015, 04:44:03 AM »

Beautiful, love the Ektar.

02Pilot · « **Reply #30 on:** February 05, 2015, 02:16:59 PM »

Thanks, guys. I was really pleased with the way the Ektar shots came out, especially the MF stuff. Based on the results from my last few trips, I think I'm moving toward shooting all my color on 120, at least when I travel.

Skorj · « **Reply #31 on:** February 12, 2015, 12:48:57 PM »

I keep coming back to look at the wide range of work here. Very nice!

02Pilot · « **Reply #32 on:** February 12, 2015, 02:35:29 PM »

Thanks, Skorj. We both remarked on how diverse the state was - drive fifty miles and the whole landscape changed - so I suppose it's no surprise that the photos reflect that.

With that in mind, it is time to post another set of photos. We covered a good bit of ground in our travels, and thus spent a fair amount of time in the car. Along with this came many stops (some more abrupt than others) to take photos of the ever-shifting views. So here is Scenes from the Road, Part 1.

Indofunk · « **Reply #33 on:** February 12, 2015, 04:08:30 PM »

I like the church!

Indofunk · « **Reply #34 on:** February 12, 2015, 04:09:09 PM »

Taken out of context, people would wonder why I said that...

limr · « **Reply #35 on:** February 12, 2015, 04:31:58 PM »

Quote from: Indofunk on February 12, 2015, 04:09:09 PM

Taken out of context, people would wonder why I said that...

limr · « **Reply #36 on:** February 13, 2015, 04:46:25 AM »

Here are some more from me. I call this "Oddities"

First, there were random Christmas decorations found in very unlikely places - a tree on the side of a lonely highway...

Ornament tree by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Of course I had to take selfies in the shiny bulbs

Xmas ball selfie by limrodrigues, on Flickr

More decorations, this time just one lone silver bulb hanging off barbed wire at an old construction site or something on the side of the road - I already posted one in the weekend thread but here's another from a different angle:

Christmas ball by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Even on museum trains:

Decorated train by limrodrigues, on Flickr

They also seemed big on the old truck "getting gas" at the old gas station. This one was next to the third VW bug with exposed engine:

Texaco Beetle by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Here's a shirt to help you over the fence so you can rebelliously defy the sign:

No trespassing by limrodrigues, on Flickr

My favorite oddity was the porch kitty at our hotel in Prescott:

First look at the kitty by limrodrigues, on Flickr

And finally, a giant bull:

Bull 2 by limrodrigues, on Flickr

Indofunk · « **Reply #37 on:** February 13, 2015, 05:17:12 AM »

I love all those random ornaments!! Makes me want to go out right now and put random Xmas bulbs on trees, fences, lightposts, etc. Remind me to do it this December!!

02Pilot · « **Reply #38 on:** February 13, 2015, 12:27:32 PM »

Quote from: Indofunk on February 13, 2015, 05:17:12 AM

I love all those random ornaments!! Makes me want to go out right now and put random Xmas bulbs on trees, fences, lightposts, etc. Remind me to do it this December!!

It's a lot more odd if you do it in July. Don't forget to wear your Santa hat and sing Christmas carols while you're at it.

Adam Doe · « **Reply #39 on:** February 13, 2015, 02:30:31 PM »

I like the ornament on the barbed wire photo and the bull shot as well. Really neat pictures.

limr · « **Reply #40 on:** February 13, 2015, 03:21:39 PM »

Quote from: 02Pilot on February 13, 2015, 12:27:32 PM

Quote from: Indofunk on February 13, 2015, 05:17:12 AM
I love all those random ornaments!! Makes me want to go out right now and put random Xmas bulbs on trees, fences, lightposts, etc. Remind me to do it this December!!

It's a lot more odd if you do it in July. Don't forget to wear your Santa hat and sing Christmas carols while you're at it.

Exactly. Don't wait until December - start doing it in April or so. For Arbor Day!

limr · « **Reply #41 on:** February 13, 2015, 03:22:02 PM »

Quote from: Adam Doe on February 13, 2015, 02:30:31 PM

I like the ornament on the barbed wire photo and the bull shot as well. Really neat pictures.

Thank you and thank you

Indofunk · « **Reply #42 on:** February 13, 2015, 03:44:25 PM »

Quote from: limr on February 13, 2015, 03:21:39 PM

Quote from: 02Pilot on February 13, 2015, 12:27:32 PM
Quote from: Indofunk on February 13, 2015, 05:17:12 AM
I love all those random ornaments!! Makes me want to go out right now and put random Xmas bulbs on trees, fences, lightposts, etc. Remind me to do it this December!!

It's a lot more odd if you do it in July. Don't forget to wear your Santa hat and sing Christmas carols while you're at it.

Exactly. Don't wait until December - start doing it in April or so. For Arbor Day!

:headslap:

sgt.brimer · « **Reply #43 on:** February 15, 2015, 10:44:10 PM »

I love the set of "signs". I am making early plans for a trip down Route 66 in early September. My plan is to be able to have enough time to stop along the way to take photos and still make it to California with enough time to visit family and friends before heading to Monterey Bay for a few days.