Anyone interested in photography will surely have heard of the “nifty fifty” – the 50mm standard SLR lens. Almost every single SLR manufacturer had a 50mm lens with and f/1.7, f/1.8 or f/2.0 aperture that was sold as the “kit lens”, and Canon was no exception. These days, “kit lens” has become a dirty word […]
Read more "Canon 50mm f/1.8: the evolution of an icon"I’ve moved house a few times over the last 10 years and at each place I’ve set up my own darkroom. I started with a rented flat, where I would develop film in the bathroom sink but there was no room for printing. At a later rented house, I made a makeshift darkroom in the […]
Read more "Building a darkroom from scratch"I’ve moved into a new house now and it doesn’t yet have a darkroom. I thought I’d try something a bit different and launch a Kickstarter appeal to fund the construction of a new darkroom so I can continue my photographic work. In return for your backing, there are rewards such as silver-gelatin prints, film […]
Read more "Building a new darkroom"A little while ago I was given a Vest Pocket Kodak (VPK) by a gentleman at church. It had belonged to his grandfather. When he rediscovered it recently, his grandchildren weren’t interested in it, so he kindly offered it to me. It was in poor condition but I promised to fix it if I could. One of […]
Read more "Restoring a Vest Pocket Kodak"A combination of bad weather, having a toddler and generally being busy has meant I haven’t done much photography recently. When I have taken pictures, it’s never been enough to finish a film. Last fortnight, though, I finished a roll of film in my Canon T90 that’s been in there for ages, and I had […]
Read more "Photo catch-up"Since having a baby and giving up astronomy, I’ve not been out much at night. But last week, Ed invited me to go and photograph the industry at Severn Beach in the small hours. There’s a new SITA Severnside energy recovery centre (i.e. burning rubbish to generate electricity) and every night there’s a delivery of […]
Read more "Severnside"Last week, Matt and I visited the Priory Church of St Mary in Usk, South Wales. Our visit centred around the large pipe organ which boasts three manuals (keyboards) and horizontally-mounted trumpet pipes. We were both a bit out of practice but I made some recordings anyway. There are mistakes aplenty but these three pieces show some […]
Read more "Priory Church of St Mary, Usk"