Friends in Black & White

LC-A (Kodak BW400CN)

I often forget how much I love using black & white film in my LC-A... a wander around the streets of Melbourne & a couple quiet drinks with some work friends easily changed that.

The season is slowly changing here, the nights are getting cooler, the mornings have a slight chill, jackets & cardigans are slowly emerging from closets. Soon the light will become scarce & I will be pushing 400 & 800 ISO film through my cameras & watching the leaves fall.

x Mel

Happy 2nd Anniversary Melbourne!

Diana Mini (Kodak 400VC & Kodak 800)

It has been 2 years this week since I first moved to Melbourne... time flies when you are having fun, working, studying etc.

It's hard to imagine what life would have been like if I had stayed in London or if I had moved back to Brisbane... all I can say is Melbourne I love you & for now I may go on holiday occasionally, but I will be coming back to you for a while yet.

Happy Anniversary Melbourne!

x Mel

Guggenheim New York City - Diana Mini

     

   

Diana Mini (Kodak Portra 400 VC)

The beautiful majestic Frank Lloyd Wright Guggenheim Museum is in many ways both a cultural & architectural icon, but when you stand in it's shadow while glaring up at the long curves of it's facade it almost feels as if it breathes, deep heaving breaths into it's surroundings. While inside, I felt like I lost the concept of where I was a few times, due to it's shrine like ambience, you feel like you are within such a holy space that you no longer wonder what exists outside it's walls.

x Mel

(P.S. Those of you who read my blog through RSS feeds etc... I'm trialling a new blog layout... let me know what you think. Ta!)

Diana Mini: A history in film.

When I first purchased my Diana Mini I hadn't used a film camera since I visited China in my final year of high school in 1997 (you do the math!). So when I started back in the analogue world I wasn't sure of the importance of what film to use and almost unaware of the different ISO varieties. 

Now, I'm sure that there are other Diana Mini users who have used more of a variety of film, but I thought it my be helpful for me to share my film experiences with Diana Mini.

Lomography 800 ISO

This was the first film I ever used in my Diana Mini, and it is still a favorite. It's wonderful on dim lit days, winter especially and it carries good colour saturation with a a bit of grain. I have used this in full sunshine and in complete shade and still had excellent results.

Lomography 400 ISO

Possibly my favorite Lomography colour negative film. It captures colour so very well & has a beautiful smooth grain. Wonderful to use on sunny or cloudy days, with or without flash. It's the little black dress of colour negative films.

Lomography 100 ISO

This film is a great basic film to use if you don't know what you want to shoot or when. Good for use in sunny weather, good lighting or with flash. I always keep a roll handy, my spare roll is usually this film.

Lomography Redscale 100 ISO

Oh such a great redscale! It's the only redscale film I have tried in my Diana Mini thus far, and I loved the results. The one downside is that out of all the film I've used, this one is most easily sprocket torn for me. Regardless, redscale is one of my favorite lomo shooting styles.

Lomography X-pro Slide 200 ISO

This is a relatively new addition to my film collection and the first xpro slide film I have used in my Diana Mini (I shoot almost exclusively xpro in my LC-A). I was so impressed by this film in my Diana Mini, I may have over exposed it a little, but the colours are amazing. I will definitely be stocking up on this film again.   

Fuji Superia 200 ISO

A favorite stable amongst photographers, this film will never disappoint. I've used it in both my Diana Mini and my LC-A. Bright true colours and a lovely smooth grain, it is probably the best basic spare roll film outside the lomo film range. 

Kodak Portra 400 VC

Another new addition to my film collection. So far I love the bold colours and good grain. Best not shot in strong sunshine I've found. I look forward to seeing how this film fairs in a Melbourne winter.

Kodak Portra 800 ISO

I fell in love with this film last winter here in Melbourne, since it captured beautiful colours and light even on dark cloudy Melbourne days. I must say I've not used it much over the summer, but when I have it fairs very well in moderate sunlight. The main drawback of this film is the price.

Kodak T400CN B&W (expired 2002)

This film is discontinued, and has been replaced by the Kodak BW400CN. It is wonderful for many reasons, firstly it is a black and white film that is developed in C-41 colour negative chemicals, so can be developed without expense. It is a great quality film, I've never had it sprocket tear in my Diana Mini, it gives a medium to large grain and great image quality. 

I hope this helps out some of you who are new to the Diana Mini or analogue photography in general. I hope I have covered the films well enough, if you have any questions, then please leave a comment or drop me an email. 

❤ Mel