On the rooftop in Osaka CBD
Fuji Neopan shot on a Hasselblad 500cm w/ Zeiss Planar 80mm 2.8
Wet mounted and scanned with a circa 2001 flatbed scanner
GhettoScan_008
Ektar 100 shot on Kiev 88 w/ Zeiss Biometar 80mm 2.8
Scanned with an orthodontist's x-ray lightbox and DSLR with reversed 50mm lens
GhettoScan_007
A pyramid in Melbourne
Tri-x shot on a Hasselblad 500cm w/ Zeiss Planar 80mm 2.8
Scanned with an orthodontist's x-ray lightbox and a point and shoot
The camera that will improve your photography
My trip to New Zealand earlier this year helped me remember the importance of forcing yourself out of your comfort zone for self improvement. Whether it's climbing a mountain or escaping a blizzard, the feeling of vulnerability challenged me and helped me better understand how I react under pressure.
I was standing on top of a mountain in New Zealand in the middle of a blizzard, feeling cold, disorientated and alone; this was totally out of my element considering I had spent the last year sitting in an office in a nice suit sipping coffee all day. I found that my natural instinct when the blizzard first hit the mountain was to do what felt most comforting to me - hide from the wind behind a rock and huddle up.
Nobody would have come to my assistance that day and I had no means of contacting other people for help. I would never have made it down the mountain that day and helped my friend (who I later discovered had passed out in a hut at the base of the mountain) if I hadn't broken through my lack of comfort. It made me ponder about my own comfort levels in various situations - both at work and in my personal life.
In retrospect, getting through that day reminded me of the attitude I had when first starting this journey and I came to the realisation of how complacent and weak minded I had become the the year before.
When I was a 16 year old boy, I would always strive to experience new things and not let certain social ideals confine my decision; I would throw myself into new surroundings without a second thought. These experiences helped me gain many valuable skills that aided me later on in life, especially the interpersonal skills. These early risks helped me make significant leaps in my career, that enabled me to achieve many years worth of experience before my friends even graduated high school.
To the people still studying, this isn't a recommendation to leave school; you must be able to appreciate the importance of education, yet not be hesitant to question it. A course or an online tutorial will not lead you to success but provide you with the relevant knowledge to achieve your goals. There is no defined trajectory to reach your goals. The knowledge your mentors provide you are the metaphorical bullets that you must aim at the desired target.
Andy! What what the fuck did I read! I want to know about cameras that improve my photography n shit not this wisdom bullshit. You're such a fucken scam omg fml just wasted 5 minutes of my life reading irrelevant stuff. Bring back the pics! No more posts with big words
Meet Steezy. He is named after my teenage alter-ego.
Steezy is not a magical camera that will change your photography overnight, merely a tool. I bought this camera from a Ukrainian bloke name Grevorg a few months ago to challenge myself and force myself out of my comfort zone. It is a manual focus, manual exposure, manual winding film camera. It weighs a ton, it's unergonomic, it's known to be unreliable and you look like a creep carrying this around; however, it is a tool that has aided the improvement my photography dramatically. Shooting with this camera and it's unusual characteristics has helped me become more methodical and precise in my art marking process. Each time I load a roll of film (which costs a fortune) I only have twelve shots; I cannot delete the image if I don't like it, nor can I see the image until it has been developed and scanned.
It has taught me to value each frame, a lesson that has passed over from my personal projects to my professional work, vastly reducing my workflow and increasing the quality of my work.
Following my path may not lead yield similar improvements in your own photographic process, but taking a jump into the unknown and continuing your photographic journey will.
Disclaimer
This isn't a #humblebrag success story, this is my journey. Like you, I still have a long way to go.
Share this journey with me.
People of interest
To my two lovely former bosses who re-inspired me to take the jump and do something bold
and supported me with unwavering enthusiasm even when I was sometimes doing a shit job.
And to my collaborator, business partner and friend with whom I travelled New Zealand with.
Many of my achievements in the last year would not have been possible without your input.
Lake Mariam
We woke up at 430am to attempt this trail. Our aim was to get there by Sunrise
The trail is marked and fairly easy to navigate. DO NOT attempt this in the dark. We attempted this with head lamps and we were lost for a good hour.
The early morning mist hovering above the lake and the surrounding mountains were breathtaking. For anyone visiting Lake Mariam, it is an absolute must to sit down and enjoy your surroundings for a while. Forget taking photos, just soak it in. What I loved most was the fast moving fog that was constantly changing.
Wanaka
After the near suicidal amounts driving the previous 2 days, Wanaka was a good place to relax.
The weather had cleared the first day we spent in Wanaka and it felt good to be back in a big town. We spent our first day relaxing around the lake and getting absolutely trashed in the evening. Sauna and beer doesn't go well together.
While nursing an acute hangover the next day, we climbed Mt Iron. It's a short drive from the town centre and the trail is well marked. You start with an absurd amount of stairs until the first look out. From then on it's mainly gravel ascents. Beware of sheep shit. There will be sheep shit everywhere.
Try travel light, there is no point lugging around 10kg worth of camera gear as it will only take away more of your shooting time. Filters is a must, mainly to cut down of the atmospheric haze.
The roads outside of Wanaka are all very rewarding. Drive along the road towards the treble cone ski fields and continue onto the gravel road that follows the river. You will need to ford a few streams along that road, but will be well worth the time.
DO NOT FEEL PRESSURED TO DRIVE THE 100KM/H SPEED LIMIT.
You be overtaken quite a few times on this road by local drivers who are more accustomed with the local road conditions. There will be many potholes and fords you will have to cross, often with little signage. There will also occasionally be cows and sheep scattered alongside the road.
We spun out while going around an unexpected turn on the road. We understeered and veered into the ditch before doing a 180 degree slide. It felt like an action movie stunt and was pretty exhilarating until I realised how close we were to smashing into a tree.
Franz Josef
We stopped at Franz Josef on our way from Picton to Wanaka.
Just fyi for people who don't know, Franz Josef is a glacier.
You can choose to walk a marked path to the bottom of the glacier or you can choose to charter a flight onto the actual glacier. For travellers thinking of booking a helicopter tour, make sure you leave ample time in case of bad weather! We were lucky we didn't charter a flight as the weather grounded all flights on the day we had set aside for Franz Josef.
Walking the trail to the bottom of Franz can be done in any weather, provided you bring the right clothing and gear. If you do attempt this trail in the rain, you definitely need to have a rain cover for your gear. There is no shelter and your equipment will be drenched. We lost one of our DSLR's to the rain.
It is a fairly easy walk with plenty of markers and most of the walk is fairly flat. Depending on the time of year you decide to visit Franz Josef, be prepared to be disappointed. From the pictures we had been shown at information centres, the glacier extended right down to the valley. We went to Franz in mid-April and the glacier had retreated nearly all the way up the mountain.
West Coast
After getting off the ferry at Picton late in the afternoon, we decided to drive as far south as we could. Driving late into the night, we came to the realisation that we were the only car on the road. At one point we drove for well over an hour before seeing car. Which brings me to the best and worst part about driving down the west coast - much of the landscape is untouched and unaltered with little human presence. The silence can be welcoming at first, but eventually it will evolve into the feeling of desolation.
We managed to get to a small town that night with a caravan park after driving some 300kms. Was funny to think I started that morning in a town on the west coast of the North Island, some 300kms outside of Wellington.
The next morning we made the push to Wanaka with a stop off at Franz Josef. The rain started coming in after lunch, really a shame since we were driving through some of the most scenic roads we had encountered since arriving in New Zealand.
There are many worthy locations to shoot along this road so be prepared to stop occasionally. The rivers here are all light blue and very beautiful. I found some of the single lane bridges to be quite interesting as well.
Fill up your car as often as possible during the day. Our petrol light turned on en-route to Haast, the last big town before Wanaka and upon arriving in Haast late at night, the only petrol station in town was already shut.
Mt Ruapehu
DISCLAIMER: Prior to this, the only mountain I've climbed involved chairlifts and a paved paths. And I'm not the fittest person in the world.
Mt Ruapehu is one of the tallest point in northern New Zealand. It's tallest point is 2797m above sea level. It is best know for the lake that has formed at the peak.
This was a challenge both physically and mentally. I hadn't slept much the night before and I was planning to summit with nothing in my stomach other than a Up n Go. Part of me did not want to go on, I couldn't breathe very well by the end and the had reached almost white-out conditions. My climbing partner climbed with me until the last hut and was too sick to go on. I managed to get very very close to the peak, but after reaching the start of the crater at the summit, the combination of fog and wind meant reaching my destination was out of the question. Bit of a buzzkill, I didn't get a single photo at the crater lake.
I proceeded to bitch and moan for the rest of the day about not getting the shot.
For travellers thinking of climbing Mt Ruapehu, Make sure you check the weather as it could jeopardise your climb! Weather can change extremely quickly!
There are many routes up the mountain and we decided to trail behind a bunch of more seasoned climbers. It is not advised to attempt the climb without any previous experience as there are no markers. I made the mistake of climbing the last few hours by myself and it was by no means easy to navigate.
Travel light! For people who aren't acclimated with higher altitudes, the last thing you want is a camera backpack with 10kg worth of gear inside.
Huka Falls
Just like most accessible tourist destinations, there isn't much of a chance for you to get a truly unique shot as the vantage points are finite. However, that shouldn't take away from the beauty of the location. The rapids is stunning and the water light blue as as advertised.
It is right off the highway on the way from Rotorua to Taupo and the carpark is a mere 10 meters from the actual rapids. Be ready to fight for a parking spot if you go during a busy season.