Exhibition Season 2013

Hi Folks... long time, no photos... I know! However, if you are in Melbourne over the next couple of weeks you will have the opportunity to come along to a couple of exhibitions I will be participating in, one being my final end of year exhibition at the Victorian College of Art & the other is the annual Unsensored Analogue Photography exhibition at Collingwood Gallery.

Would love to see you there!

x Mel

Winter, just passing through

LC-Wide (Kodak T-Max 100)

I seem to be shooting more black & white than usual these days, discovering new film favourites and letting the winter light speak for itself. I'm enjoying spending my days at the studio, working on projects and having the time to go out and shoot in daylight hours.

x Mel

P.S. I'm running a Introduction to Lomography workshop in Melbourne on August 15th if anyone is interested! You can find all the info and booking details here: Introduction to Lomography Melbourne.

Black & White Autumn Waltz

Belair X6-12 (Lomography Lady Grey 120 film)

So, winter, you've well and truly arrived in Melbourne. Short, short days, filled with coffee and wholesome soups. It feels like there is a wind of change (a bit of an icy one) blowing through town at the moment. I've recently resigned from my day job, which is equally scary and exciting, but will leave me with more time to devote to Lomography Australia and my own art/photography practice. The lovely folks in my studio have been super supportive over the past couple of months, and it's wonderful to get advice from creative types who know what you are going through.

I'll be back at VCA completing my first year of post-grad next semester, so it will be lovely to have more time to dedicate to my projects and also to spend some daytime hours in the studio.

Many changes are afoot, who knows what will happen in the next few months, but I can say one thing, I'm looking forward to the change. (hopefully you will also see more posts from me on this little blog)

x
Mel

O'lovely!

   

O'lovely - LC-A, LC-Wide & Diana Mini (various film types)

Back in January I had the pleasure of joining the wonderful O'lovely girls, Laura & Shakira for a photo shoot, here in Melbourne. The theme was 'runaways', so we spent the afternoon shooting at a local train station & getting up to general hijinks.

O'lovely have just arrived back from recording new material in New Zealand... so keep an eye out at the links below for new music.

O'lovely at Triple J Unearthed
O'lovely My Space
O'lovely Facebook

x
Mel

Spotty Melbourne

LC-Wide (Kodak BW400CN) (colour spots added in Photoshop)

I'm a big believer in being authentic in analogue film photography, especially when portraying the end result truthfully. I'm not big at editing my film shots, I pretty much just remove dust & straighten the occasional photo. However since doing Blogshop in Sydney back in December, I've been inspired to add a little something to a few of my film photos. I don't think this will become a regular occurrence but it was fun &interesting to play around with a few effects & such in Photoshop.

These photos are from a selection from I took in Melbourne back at the end of last year... & these three just seemed to work well together to me.

How do you feel about post-processing / digitally editing your film photos?

x
Mel

Photo Swap 2012 - Part Two

My Melbourne photos from the photoswap with Margrethe from Norway. 

(LC-Wide with expired Agfa 100)

Oh the joys of a Melbourne spring! Sunny 28 one day, rainy 8 the next... thankfully there is always just enough light to snap up the sights of the city.

I can hardly believe that it is already November, the year has gone so fast & so many things have happened. Next weekend I am spending a long weekend in Sydney, a little mini break is exactly what I need & if I manage to take some photos while I'm there, that's a bonus. (Although I am limiting myself to only taking 3 cameras with me!) I'll also be catching up with a couple of old friends from the UK & Europe that I've not seen in ages... fun times!

Then 3 weeks after that I am back in Sydney for a Blogshop workshop which I'm going to with the spectacular photographer Olivia... we are making a big girls weekend away of it & I just can't wait for cocktails harbourside & learning loads of neat new photoshop skills.

Sometimes you just need a little travel time to clear your head & heart.

x Mel

Oh Hai Hiatus!

Vignetting Victoria Exhibition photos by Patrick Boland (except the last one)

Apologies for the little mini hiatus... life suddenly became very busy post-exhibition season & I only now getting back into the swing of daily life.

The Vignetting Victoria Lomography exhibition was an amazing success, and I am incredibly thankful to all of you who supported me through it's planning, organisation & running. Most especially Lomography Australia/NZ, No Vacancy Project Space & Brooklyn Brewery, hopefully this is just the start of a thriving Lomography community here in Melbourne. Thanks also to all those Lomographers who contributed to the exhibition, it was lovely to meet some of you & have you share in the experience.

It was an absolute pleasure to meet all of those who visited the exhibition & to meet so many fellow Melbourne Lomographers while teaching workshops. I can't wait to get more Lomography events & workshops started so I can continue to share the LomoLove around.

x Mel

Vignetting Victoria Lomography Exhibition

Lomography Australia / NZ is proud to present an exhibition of selected photographic prints collected from 35 photographers Australia-wide who utilise a range of Lomography film cameras and techniques. Discover the Lomography photographer’s view on Melbourne and Victoria, with a blend of urban, suburban and rural work that ties together the beauty not only of Melbourne but also the state as a whole.

We’ll also be having workshops, a POP UP Project Store and also a DIY station where you can personalise your own Lomography La Sardina camera. For more information follow Lomography Australia/NZ on facebook or visit www.lomography.com.au.

I will be gallery sitting the exhibition for the entire 2 weeks it is running, along with running a Lomography POP UP shop in the gallery space & running Lomography workshops.

The workshops I will be running include Introduction to Lomography; Fisheye 1, 2 & Baby Fisheye; Diana F+, Diana Mini & Baby Diana; Light Painting & Multiple Exposures; and finally a Lomography Melbourne Night Walk. Pop on over to the Lomography Workshops website to book, since spaces are limited.

I can't wait to meet all the Melbourne Lomographers who come to the exhibition & those who have work included, so come by & say hello!

x Mel

LC-Wide x Fisheye 2 on the Streets of Fitzroy

LC-Wide x Fisheye 2 (Lomography 800CN film)

On Saturday morning there was a brief, yet exciting few hours of sunshine here in Melbourne... so out I went with my LC-Wide & recently borrowed Fisheye 2... one swapped double exposed film later & I'm super happy with my results... I love experimenting with double exposures & I think I will really learn to love the Fisheye 2.

I love how well the two very different lens of the LC-Wide & Fisheye 2 complement each other & give different angles... I will most definitely be using this combination of cameras again very soon. I also love how forgiving the 800 speed film can be, without too much grain... I look forward to maybe even giving some xpro a go next time on this little doubles combination.

I love walking the streets of Fitzroy, if for nothing else than the awesome old cars that you see around the place... I'm always a sucker for a cute old car & a bit of lane way street art... oh & don't forget the occasional (done too much these days) feet shot.

Come on Melbourne sunshine, stay just a little longer?

x Mel 

The Winter Wait

LC-Wide (Kodak Ektar 100CN)

Oh, the Winter Wait (as I call it)... that time when you are just trying to wait winter out... when you really do know deep down inside that there is a minimum of 6 weeks of chill left. Sometimes I think a bit of englishness rubbed off on me from my days in London, like taking about the weather... yes I most definitely talk about the weather too much.

To think that this time last year I was in a New York City "heatwave"... I remember how lovely it was to be warm again, then I also remember the sunburn & the noisy airconditioner in my Chelsea hotel room. It really does only feel like yesterday since my days in New York... *mental note - need holiday*

I know that now I'm helping out with the excellent Australian/NZ people that my opinion of Lomography products will sound biased, but just to clear that up... this is MY blog... I promise only to talk & post things that I think are completely awesome & amazing... in this tradition I want to mention how much I love my LC-Wide... in hindsight it really was worth every cent I spent on it. I highly recommend that anyone who has used an LC-A before should get their hands on a LC-Wide & at least put a roll of film through it. I still love my old Russian LC-A, but I must say that the LC-Wide is slowly & surely swaying me her way.

Antipodeans, stay warm. Everyone else, stay cool.

x

Mel

Melbourne, can you hear me?

LC-A (Agfa Precisa 100 shot at 50 ISO x-pro)

Melbourne! Victoria! Yes, I'm talking to you!

Do you shoot film? Would you like to learn more about film photography?

I am now the Melbourne/Victorian Ambassador for LomographyAustralia/NZ & I am here for all your Lomography needs, wants & queries.

What better way to celebrate Lomography in Melbourne & Victoria but an Exhibition, right?

You can find all the details about the Vignette Victoria Lomography exhibition that will be filling the No Vacancy Project Space in Federation Square in September 2012, over at the Lomography Aust/NZ website.

You are also more than welcome to contact me at melbourne@lomography.com.au with any questions to may have.

x Mel