Seventies (2)

February 1944 my home town Nijmegen was bombed. Thirty years later there were still ruins and big holes everywhere - it was a rather unsignificant, poor town. And lots of children. (Houses "unfit for habitation" were still normal, I remember now!)

Big picture: 1971 Quarz 5 (see "the Forties"; I developed my 8mm at home, big question: how to dry 7,5 meter of film?)

Small one: 1976 Hasselblad (Sonnar 150mm?)

The Eighties

To me, the Eighties are defined by (chlorine)water. Mirror-telephotography with two Metzes, or almost drowning with two Calypsos. Behind the horizon was something called "digital", but in 1989 I still bought a nF1 - what did I know...
But I also bought me a nostalgic Lubitel166B - not the real bakelite thing, but nevertheless.

The film at that time: probably HP5 in HC110, but I also tried XP1 - not bad, but "experimental".
The portrait is made with the Nikkor 2,5 35mm I still use on the Nikonos: great for really bad weather. The UW28 is for Under Water only.

In the Canon (tired: shutter works only at 125 and faster, mirror definitely needs viagra) was RolleiRetro80 again and - see below - at 50 ASA and 30% underdeveloped it is usable.)

In the Lubitel I had today good old HP5 - with a Russian 2.8 orange filter. Fun.

The Nineties

The world is going digital, I end my photographic career and in 1991 the Russians bring their new analogue Zenit HORIZON 202. Ugly, weird, problematic: you just hàve to have it! Still don't know what I can do with it.

RolleiRetro80 - I hate this "Kevlar" base: too clear, can't tear it off in the darkroom, it's indestructible. At 80 ASA it's rock-hard (next time I'll overexpose and underdevelop, that solves the problem).

The picture: I never was in America, but last week I was in Gennep - looks the same to me. (I love Edward Hopper!)

Prelude 2000

Around 2007 I bought a.o. the Cyber-shot H9. I hadn't photographed for ten years, the little Kodak digi was not bad, but the 15X Zeiss Tessar was the attraction (for this Hasselblad-man). Well: forget it. The best thing is the huge lens-hood. Very impressing.

Century of Photography

This spring and early summer a spent a lot of time birdwatching. I also made a series of ± 20 drawings: "the Art of Wrestling". So now it's time to return to the cog-wheels, the guillotine- and Compur-shutters of real cameras. Starting in August I shall make a trip to 1910, with stops at every decennium. Roll-film, sheet, even some colour will pass. Looking forward to it - anyone seen my rucksack?

The picture: yes, it's me. Almost exactly 60 years ago.

Pontoon-bridge

Last year it was raining só heavily, I had to take my 1980 Nikonos - but building the bridge in the cold, wet mud was rather spectacular (small picture). This year I took the 1916 Ernemann (Roadmouse: I "modified" the 9X12 Bob O to take 120 film) and the weather made it, ehhhrm, boring. So I bought some great cakes at Harrie-Jan Loeffen's and went home to overdevelop the RolleiRetro400 in Rodinal...

125mm Detektiv Aplanat, F12,5 (=16) at ±1/50

Walk of the world

40,000 Walkers, 1,400,000 visitors, more than 60 nations. Four days in my home town, Nijmegen.
1938 Kodak (Nagel) Duo 620 (Tessar 75mm, all 1/100 at F11, measured with the Nebro Visual (=optical) exposure meter);
pre-1970 Ilford Selochrome (160 ASA) in eternal Rodinal (1:50 11m.)