Richard Vanek - Black and White Photography

Today is Saturday and we had again lecture of foto academy. At first I was very ethusiastic, but first month wasn't really helping me much. Today it was nice, we had some practical advises, also example about making portraits and than we did some very fast tryouts. One roll I did is already drying and I will scan it tomorrow. If anything nice will be there, it will pop up at Last roll page.
What I can see now already is that I again forgot about paralax problem of rangefinder when shooting from very close. This becomes a real problem, when one like to catch certain composition in close distances.

At the Last roll page you can see few shots done yesterday. It was hardly 20 minutes practicing of making double portrait. I took a bit of street/candid style as that is what I like. You may like them too, take a look they will be not very long there. Only drawback is that all situations are made up. But anyway I have more of them, but not all will be able to look good on web. One is really interesting as there is a reflecting of one face over other from already reflected light on door. I hope it will look good on print.
It was great weekend, and I must thank the most to Vierka. Thank you a lot!

Sometimes you like to be alone. You need only the other person and you have all you ever wanted. Isn't that beautiful?

I have got some feedback about my recent tryout from Saturday. Most of it says it is not bad but it is not photos they would expect from, me. They said it is just different. And I could agree that I feel much more comfortable as observer and not as composer, when it comes to photos making. For example "Look at the light" I like the most.

New picture added, this time from France. It was very dull day, Sun after storm just started to show up.
I recently developed few rolls of Czech FOMA 200 film. I used Ilfotec LC29 in dilution 1:29 for 5:30 at 20C. The negatives are not as I would expected, so I mixed yesterday Fomadol Excel, developer made by FOMA and I am going to try it today. I have few rolls of this film so If it will looks better I can use them.
I still shoudn't forget about dozen rolls from France which are waiting to be developed. For those Fuji Neopan 400 I am using with quite nice results again Ilfotec LC 29, but in dilution 1:19 for 5:30 at 20C.

This picture was taken in France, close to the city La Baule, known as 'Pointe du Castelli'. I went there one day when was raining almost all day. I did quite a few shots there. I really like atmosphere of this picture. Heavy clouds still onthe sky with Sun trying to break in. I used Ilford HP5+ and developed in in Ilfotec LC29.

Today, next interesting day. I have got quite a few useful comments about my last week portrait 20min shooting. And also very nice discussion with C.S. about what should I do to go further. It was nice morning.
As you maybe now I have got quite interested about old Olympus OM system, lately. Friday I drow to T. with intention to buy OM-2 + 50mm lens, but after while we both find out that Auto mode was broken. Today my coleague offer me his old OM-2n with bunch of lenses. Camera looks working properly and lenses (28/35/50) are in great shape so I think after I test it on one roll I will buy it. OM system SLRs are very small, nice simple robust cameras. Even over 20 years old, they still having something what other do not have.
I also bring you next picture from France. Exposed on Ilford HP5+ (I am starting to like that film more and more) and developed in IL29. This shot of megalite have realy some kind of secret feeling. At least to me. I'll try to print both photos from France this week.

We were searching for them while beeing in France. We were unpatient to see some. First we had one on map and try to locate it. Even we went to somebody backyard we failed. Some other day we missed them first. After they told us where to turn we found them, not one, but whole fileds all of them nicely in rows.

First roll from OM-2n is hanging to dry and I must say it looks very, very good. Some nice close up portraits I did today in park. The feeling I have when use OM-2n is great somehow I lost my distance from people. Happen to me today that I took porttrait one old lady just walked to her as close as 1 meter. I really like this camera. You can precisly focus, able to be very close and auto mode is great. It is actualy aperture priority, same mode I used when I worked with Canon AE-1 about 15 years ago. I will see tomorrow when I scaned them and maybe print something.

It is already quite late, but I am scanning roll from yesterday and also one I exposed with Leica and 35/2.0 Summicron about two weeks ago. I also again refill cartridge for printing and hoepfully will do some printing this week. I really like to try print some portraits from yesterday and also Those two pictures from France with dramatic sky.
Traffic on site goes constantly up. It is nice that people are visiting and aperantly also like some of my pictures. Maybe it is not far time when my site will reach 10000 hits a week.
I am still thinking about sugestion from C.S. that I should pick-up theme and work on it for a while. I believe it is very nice suggestion how to improve in certain way and also to have some goal and see the road to reach it. Let keep it in mind for little while and maybe it will turn to more concreat shape.

Lately I am getting problems, that people are linking my images without my permission and use them on their web sites. I modified a little configuration of the server and hopefully this will be not possible (at leats not as easy :-) to do. Anyway if you will get to any problem when viewing my pages normaly, please let me know.
Yesterday I printed one shot from OM-2n roll, nice portrait. It looks really good. I also print After the storm. It is quite difficult negative so I wasn't fully satisfied. What I could see, was that HP5+ is really quite grainy film when done in LC29 esspecialy when compared to Fuji Neopan 400. Grain is in average at the same level asi Delta 3200 done in DD-X.

I have just returned from E. with two nice Olympus Zuiko lenses. 50/f1.4 and 28/f2.8 I am so happy. I will try then tomorrow right a way. I have told this so many times, but anyway this OM system from Olympus giving me such a nice feeling and taking pictures with it is real pleasure, it plays in my hands. I hope soon I will be able to show you some results. I need to rework "Last roll" page a little. I want include there some text to explain what was that particular roll about. I think it could be interesting.

IMPORTANT
Please note that piskoftak.sk is going to disappear in near few days. Update all you bookmarks to piskoftak.com.

In a last few days I was a bit experimenting with different developers for Fuji Neopan 400. I know, I should stay with one for long time and get max out of it. I call this my short experimenting, 'way to choose the one', with which I will work for a long time :-).

I tried Ilfotec DD-X, Tetenal Emofin (two bath developer, interesting experience, film is just drying), Ilfotec LC29 (different dilutions), Xtol 1:1. I must say so far I like the most Ilfotec LC 29. I am curious about Emofin, will see tomorrow when I will scan the result.

In a mean time piskoftak.sk was disabled. Now I am accessible purely by piskoftak.com.

Oh, people that was a difficult time, last few days. Now it is better. I didn't write much in this journal as I have no energy. Saturday I did two prints in darkroom with help of C.S. One picture "Kids playing with popets" is quite nice. I will post it soon.
I have also print yesterday Three chairs but it turns out little bit different, not so dark and contrast, as on web. Maybe I should adjust exposure as I like version on web better.

Few more rolls developed in different developers and I am waiting for two next from Paterson to arrive soon. I am getting tired of all those different things. So far I was most happy with Ilford Ilfotec LC29. So my search for Hooly grain and grey scale :-) is almost over. And result well pick one and stick. Didn't I knew this few years already? Well at least I have some choice to pick up from.

I am doing quite clean organization with my negatives, prints. Thanks to IMatch it is going quite well, just need a time. I like to print few prints for friends and familly to give at Christmass time, I hope I will manage.

I am really happy with OM-2n and 28/2.8, 50/1.4 and 85/2.0 stuff. Different way of working, feeling better than with Bessa R2. Let give it little bit more time.

So that is for the moment. I will soon make new photos on web and some changes I was planning for quite some time. Hang on!

Today I have sold next print. And guess which one? Yes, Three chairs. At the end the print turns out to be very nice. It needs some work, but thanks that it was exposed on Kodak TMX there was almost no grain and I could make whatever I wanted.
I have also updated picture on web so it fully reflects final print.

You could also note that I am adding my copyright notes into pictures. Unfortunately it is become necessary as quite a few web sites recently starting to link my photos directly without asking permission.

My journey after 'Holy grain & gray' is almost over. Today I have received (thanks to the nice neighbors across the street) Paterson Aculux 2 and FX-50. Of course I immediately try Aculux 2 and film is drying now.

Just scanning Fuji Neopan developed in Paterson Aculux-2. Film was exposed mostly inside in very low contrast lightning. As far as I can see now scale of grey is definitely beautiful. I will do some high res scans later and hopefully will update last roll page to show you some. And next two rolls I am planning to develop today if some time will be left. This time it will be high contrast light.