Shelbie Dimond is a film photographer currently based-in San Francisco, California. She is an advocate of film. And below is the interview of Shooting Film with Shelbie Dimond about her film photography.
I'm
20 years old. I live in a cabin in the woods with my husband. We have
two cats and two bunnies, I love mafia movies, sushi, instant film,
polly pockets and roller skating. I begin roller derby training in a
week!
How did you get started and interested in film photography? My father gave me his old Canon AE-1,
which he used for astro photography. When I was little, he'd take long
exposures of me with comets, the northern lights and meteor showers. I
started taking self portraits out of boredom during the winter months,
and it just grew from there.
Do you remember what was your first film camera, and what cameras do you use now? The AE-1 was my first, along with a polaroid camera. I still use the AE-1, land cameras, SX-70 and as of yesterday, Instax Mini 8.
Do you work as an amateur or professional photographer, and have you completed training or have you learned by yourself? I
work professionally, and I spent about a year and a half in college
studying photography. I am mostly self taught, but I am going back to
school next year to study more. I'd like to practice studio work and get
back in the dark room.
Talk to us about your background in photography? And what gives you inspiration? It
all started with me posing really still with crazy things going on in
the sky, my dad taking those long exposures. I don't do self portraits
much these days, not sure why I stopped. I'm inspired by almost
anything- at the right time and place and light. I like to create
surreal worlds with my photography, as well as documentation of my life.
Last question, what place does photography have in your everyday life? I'd
say photography holds a very dear place in my everyday life- most of my
friends are people that I've met through photography. I use photography
to remember places, people, and emotions. Photography is my main
creative outlet and how I express myself.
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Kaija Straumanis: Stuff Being Thrown at My Head
Photography: "Stuff being thrown at my head" by Kaija Straumanis. Brilliant.
The other day someone showed me a series of photos of people who
put objects all over their cats and dogs, I was like “GET WITH THE
PROGRAM!” This is the new
big thing: getting a good camera, standing in a public area and having
friends/colleagues throw non-spikey items at your head to create the
best self portraits ever!
Kaija Straumanis – whose Twitter bio suggests she is “cut from a
very, very strange cloth” – has started this phenomenon with this
brilliant, surprisingly excellent series of images. For me, the pumpkin
smashing against the side of her head is the real money shot. How long
is it gonna be until everyone’s doing this and putting it online? My
guess is minutes. Fly, copycats, fly!
Thomas
Ramsay, Nancy Goetzinger, KD Kidder and Neil Steinberg in the
Photoworks studio space discussing their recent merger and opening of a
new photo school. - Times-Mirror Photo/Rick Wasser
Within
24 hours of finding out Art Square, a visual arts space in Loudoun, was
closing, award-winning photographer, cinematographer and film director
Tom Ramsay, who taught at Art Square for four years went to visit KD
Kidder, the co-owner of Photoworks in downtown Leesburg, with the
intention of proposing a collaboration.
As Ramsey entered the shop, Kidder said: "I can't believe you're here."
"Why?" Ramsay asked.
"Because we want to start a photography school here at Photoworks," Kidder said.
That was Jan. 18. Eight weeks later, on March 11, the first class will be held at the Leesburg Photography School at Photoworks.
The grand opening will take place March 7 at a First Friday open house at Photoworks at 2a Loudoun St. SW in Leesburg.
For years, Kidder wanted to start a photography school. The recent closing of Art Square helped to move up the start date.
Photoworks is a 35-year-old example of how it is better sometimes to follow a passion, and not simply the profits.
The
company was started by Kidder and Neil Steinberg in February 1979 after
a local photography company that employed Kidder folded after over
expansion.
Steinberg and Kidder opened their store with a passion
for photography and the opportunity to fill an unmet demand in the
market. They knew they needed to start small and not concern themselves
with growing too quickly.
The two decided to slowly expand into
different rooms in the building on a core business model of portraits,
film and restoration work.
Their love of photography kept the
doors open and, even as the business evolved, Photoworks stuck to what
Kidder and Steinberg thought was best.
As digital photography
began to eat the film business, Photoworks kept a darkroom because
Kidder enjoyed developing photos herself.
Steinberg, a portrait
photographer, and Kidder, who prefers candid event photography, also
specialize in commercial head shots and restoration services for photos
that have been burned, folded or underexposed.
The company's
newest commitment to launch a photography school is perhaps even more
solid than the original decision to start the business.
Offering
photography classes made sense for the Photoworks business model because
no extra permits or business licenses were required and only a minimal
capital investment was needed.
By growing an interest in
photography, Photoworks wanted to grow interaction with local
photographers and bring back the collegial atmosphere Kidder missed from
the old film days.
When film was popular, Kidder said, she would
see patrons once a week or more when they had film to develop. Now,
since photographers don't need to come in to the shop, the community
aspect has gone.
Kidder and Steinberg, with Ramsay and his wife,
Nancy Goetzinger, also a photographer and videographer, hope to bring
back that community.
Monday, March 3, 2014
Photographer captures evolving landscape of Coweta and beyond
by Clay Neely
“Sometimes you just have to take leaps that you’re not totally prepared for but the timing is right."
According to the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus, the only
thing that is constant is change. In our lives, as in business, things
are continuously changing and evolving, and we must learn to adapt to
the changes, as they may dictate our future.
Photographer Bob Shapiro has been a resident of Newnan for more than
40 years. As a photographer, he has captured many of the extraordinary
changes of the city in which he lives, through his camera’s lens.
These changes did not happen overnight.
“When I first started in 1973, I knew every single one of my
customers as friends first,” said Shapiro. “Now, it’s the other way
around. My customers become my friends and we develop long-standing
relationships.”
Originally a native of St. Petersburg, Florida, Shapiro joined the
Air Force in 1966 as a photo interpreter. Stationed at a B-52 base in
Guam, he scored bomb missions in Southeast Asia.
“I would interpret U2 spy plane shots and I was there in the earliest
days of satellite photography. Our offices shared a building with the
photography lab,” said Shapiro. “I was fascinated with watching these
guys process and print film. I’d often be in the lab for hours.”
“Finally, I bought my own Pentax Spotmatic and two lenses. The first
photograph I ever took, I was able to process and print myself,” he
recalled.
For the next 18 months, Shapiro had the entire lab at his disposal,
and it was there that he began to learn his craft through trial and
error.
“I’d always been a frustrated artist,” said Shapiro. “I had friends
in school that painted and sketched, but now, all of the sudden, I can
see something in my mind and get it onto a flat piece of paper. I knew I
wanted be a photographer.”
Upon telling his father of his revelation, though, Shapiro was met with total silence.
“I don’t think that’s quite what he had in mind for me in terms of a
career,” said Shapiro. “But he gave me $500 dollars and I moved to
Atlanta. I accepted a job in a warehouse that sold photographic
equipment for a few months, then began working at a studio in Riverdale.
I liked what I was doing. Then, I was presented with the opportunity to
work for The Newnan Times-Herald,” said Shapiro.
“I might have stretched the truth and told them I could do stuff that
I actually couldn’t,” he laughed. “I honestly didn’t have enough
training to be a photographer for a paper, but I guess I did alright
since I wound up working there for the next seven years.”
Shapiro in 1976 at Drake Stadium
However, in 1980, Shapiro and his wife, Georgia, made the decision to open a photography studio together.
“Sometimes you just have to take leaps that you’re not totally prepared for but the timing is right,” said Shapiro.
On May 1, 1980, Shapiro worked throughout the night putting out the
local newspaper, then met at his lawyer’s office at noon to sign the
papers for the studio purchase.
“The first studio was where Harmon & Garove is now located,” said
Shapiro. “It was a great spot, the front door facing the courthouse. In
the summer, we would open the front doors and smell the popcorn popping
at Kessler’s.”
He remained there until 1984, when Shapiro purchased a vacant lot that would ultimately become his new studio.
“I never thought that photography could pay for a building, but
Georgia was convinced that it could,” said Shapiro. “I guess she was
right.”
Through his many years as a professional photographer, Shapiro has
witnessed a multitude of changes: styles, preferences, locations, gear.
However, the advent of digital photography would prove to be the biggest
shift for Shapiro.
“It changed everything,” said Shapiro. “Every time I clicked a film
camera, it would cost $1.25 after all expenses, so I had to choose shots
carefully. For something like a wedding, I’d shoot around 200
photographs. Now, I’ll shoot 1,500 images. The images aren’t any better
with digital,” said Shapiro. “That’s probably the biggest change — just
fire off the shots.”
“And if I wasn’t shooting, I was in the darkroom,” said Shapiro. “If
you shot color and wanted it in black and white, it was very difficult.
There were so many different films you used for both inside and outside.
Cameras had no light meters. You relied on instinct. You had to
understand the mechanics and chemistry of photography to be a
photographer — digital photography changed all that.”
“In the past, when you worked with film, you didn’t experiment much. You looked at everything with a trained eye,” said Shapiro.
Digital photography allows for the time and expense to try new
things, as Shapiro often does in his studio. Shapiro appears relatively
unfazed by the digital revolution and the prospect of future changes.
“I’m terrible at predicting the future. What I do know is that the
pendulum swings back and forth,” said Shapiro. “Styles change, tastes
shift. You used to see all these photographs that were made on railroad
tracks — now they’re all taken out in open fields.”
Shapiro feels that studio photography will ultimately become popular
again, citing the same pendulum effect where people inevitably want
something that looks different. Often, what is “old” becomes “new”
again.
“Film will never come back, though,” said Shapiro. “Which is a shame
since one of the most difficult things to do is create a quality
black-and-white print. That’s where you see the largest gap between film
and digital. I could show you 10 ways to do it on Photoshop but it
still lacks a certain nuance. It’s just like comparing a vinyl record to
an MP3 file. The latter is more convenient but you sacrifice quality
because of the conversion process.”
Shapiro has managed to sustain the great recession where professional photography was no exception to the hardships.
“When the economy tanked, I spoke to a colleague and he said, ‘You
know, it’s a blessing, the fact that we own our buildings.’ If we had
been renting, I don’t know what would have happened,” said Shapiro.
“Dealing with a bad economy and a thousand other photographers out
there who are doing it cheaper than me? It’s nice that we’re seeing the
economy on the rebound but I’m definitely happy I’m on this end of my
career.”
However, he indicates no sign of slowing down and shudders at very mention of the “R” word.
“People constantly ask me when I’m going to retire,” he said. “I
really don’t see a reason to. I don’t play golf. I’m much more flexible
these days so we can travel whenever we choose.”
“What’s the point in retiring when you love what you do?”
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Shelly Sometimes...Always Shoots Film!
by : Michael Raso
Greetings! I’m Shelly Valdez, aka Shelly Sometimes on various social media sites (visit my Flickr page!),
and I live in Denver, Colorado. I work for a technology public
relations/marketing firm, doing all sorts of graphic design.
I’ve
been interested in photography ever since I was a little girl when
someone gave me a Kodak Instamatic camera. I didn’t have an allowance to
be able to afford film, so I would go around pretending to take
pictures with it! I didn’t really pick up photography seriously until
about 2005, when I got my first digital camera.
I’ve been
dabbling in film since 2010. I was shooting a DSLR at the time, and I
also had just purchased my first iPhone. Not many people think of
iPhones as a gateway to film photography, but that’s what did it for
me! I found a camera app called Lomo and I wanted to learn more about
that style of shooting. That led me to purchase my first film camera - a
Holga 120CFN.
I
didn’t really get “hooked” on film photography until late 2011. I’m a
big thrift shopper, and I used to look at cameras all the time, thinking
I might hit the jackpot and find a Leica! Instead, one day, I found a Mamiya Sekor 500DTL,
complete with a couple of lenses and a flash - they were a little
battered and dirty and I don’t think I paid more than $20 for the lot.
It only took one roll of cheap drugstore film to create a monster. I
couldn’t learn about film photography fast enough and I experienced the
first symptoms of what would turn into a serious case of G.A.S.!
top page image: FPP Debonair Camera on Fujifilm 400H / above: Rolleicord III camera on Kodak Ektar 100 film
Now,
I shoot pretty much exclusively on film - the DSLR is gathering some
dust on the shelf as we speak! I’m a big fan of vintage mechanical
cameras - I use a Rolleicord III
for lots of my shooting lately. I’ve been lucky enough to shoot with so
many different kinds of cameras: 35mm SLRs, rangefinders, 110, 127,
you name it. I’m also addicted to all things Polaroid - I shoot both
integral and pack film!
I love experimenting with all different
kinds of film, but I definitely have some favorites. I’m not a big E-6
shooter; I stick with black and white and color print films. I’ve become
really fond of both Fuji Neopan Acros
and Kentmere 100. Can’t beat the price on either of those and you get
really great results! For color, I love the cool tones of Fujifilm Pro
400H. And for instant films - I could go on for days. LOVE The
Impossible Project’s new Color Protection film, for sure!
above: PX 70 Color Pro film by The Impossible Project
I’ve
used quite a few different plastic “toy” cameras in the past - in
addition to the Holga 120CFN, I’ve had a Holga 135BC TLR, a Vivitar
Ultra Wide & Slim and a Diana Mini. As much fun as these cameras
are, they can be expensive to purchase and that’s what made me so
intrigued by the Debonair 120 plastic camera
when I first heard about it on the FPP. A medium format camera for
only $19.99? As far as I could tell, I had nothing to lose - even if I
didn’t like it, I wouldn’t be out much and the money was going to
support the FPP podcast!
FPP Debonair Camera - Kodak Ektachrome 160T
When
I first unpacked the Debonair, I had to laugh - this is a really
lightweight camera and there’s not a lot to it. I could see a lot of
advantages to it over other toy cameras right away. It’s SO easy to
load - no worrying about propping up your rolls with bits of cardboard,
having the sponges in the camera come loose, taping down the back of
your camera so it doesn’t come off, etc. I’ve run all kinds of film
through the camera so far - tungsten slide film, black and white, color
of various ISOs, and it delivers great images all the time.
Shots
from the Debonair have a look that I can’t describe - it has the same
sharp focus in the center and fall-off on the edges that a Holga
does...but it’s different somehow. I’ve had some shots come back that
had an almost 3D quality to them - they were just that clear and sharp.
Funny
story about my Debonair - I thought I saw some dust in the lens after I
shot my first roll, and figured I could just screw the lens off and
clean it out. Well, big mistake - I actually broke the lens straight
off of my camera! I panicked, but figured out pretty quickly that you
could just screw it right back on. Now, I have to be careful when I
focus or the lens comes back off, but besides that, I haven’t noticed
any difference at all. Good thing I bought a second Debonair as a
back-up!
This year I decided to enter The Krappy Kamera Competition ( http://www.sohophoto.com/krappy_kamera_comp.html
)! It’s held by the Soho Photo Gallery in New York City. They’ve been
doing this juried competition since 1992, and it’s my understanding that
they receive hundreds upon hundreds of entries every year. I saw
notices about it for months on Twitter, and thought it sounded great but
I didn’t plan to enter. Then, close to the deadline, I changed my mind
and I further decided to only enter images that I took with my FPP
Debonair. Out of all the entries, 50 images were selected to hang in
the exhibition, and one of them was mine - a double-exposure shot on
Lomography Redscale film that I named ‘A Forest Entire’. To have a photo
hanging in a gallery in New York is a dream - even though it gives me a
pretty good laugh to know that it was taken on a broken plastic camera!
"A Forest Entire" - Shot with a FPP Plastic Filmtastic Debonair on Lomography Redscale 50-200 film (120)
I
don’t have any new exhibition or competition plans in the works -
although I always have my eyes open for cool ones! I’m looking forward
to participating in the 600 Exposures on a Polaroid 600 Project (http://snapitseeit.com/600-exposures-on-a-polaroid-600/) and March of Film (http://marchoffilm.com)!
I’m
concentrating now on getting better at developing my own black and
white at home - I started doing this a couple of months ago, but there’s
so much to learn! I’m also going to be buying a Hasselblad in the next
couple of weeks - I’m so excited, and I can’t wait to take my
photography to the next level!
All photos by Shelly Valdez
Saturday, March 1, 2014
Only Two Days Left to View Fine Art Photography by Diallo Mwathi Jeffery at Oakland City Hall
February 27, 2014 --
Oakland, California (PRWEB) February 27, 2014
Award
winning documentary filmmaker and fine art photographer Diallo Mwathi
Jefferys works are on display this month until February 28, 2014, on the
third floor rotunda gallery at the Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank H. Ogawa
Plaza in Oakland, CA. The exhibit offers spectacular panoramic images of
the Oakland - San Francisco skyline and architecture, picturing Oakland
in a new light. All exhibited photographs are available for sale by the
artist for a limited time. The exhibit closes at 5 pm on Friday,
February 28, 2014. To make a purchase, contact: http://www.diallo.com/shop.
Subject
matter includes both iconic and lesser known Oakland - San Francisco
landmarks, dramatic urban landscapes and surprising perspectives of this
iconic cityscape. The brilliant limited-edition color photographs on
cotton and bamboo are signed by the artist, and range in size from 19 x
13 inches to a 20 x 60 inch panorama of the Oakland - San Francisco bay.
You are invited to view the art on display at the Oakland City Hall,
and make purchases from the artist directly at: http://www.diallo.com/shop.
Jeffery
is a graduate of Oakland Unified Public Schools and Morehouse College
in Atlanta, Georgia, and studied at Academy of Art University in San
Francisco, CA. Jeffery discovered photography as a child using his
fathers Pentax K1000 35mm film camera. After attending a stop-motion
film camp held by Mosswood Park recreation center in Oakland, Diallo was
hooked on visual arts. Jeffery used a borrowed video camera to shoot
other films, studied photography under high school teacher Jackie
Begrin-Marston, and landed an intern position with noted KTVU newsroom
videographer, the late Willie Kee.
Daniel
Peña doesn't have a smart phone. It's one of the things that make him
seem immune to the rest of the world's jittery, digitally driven speed. Peña moves
at his own unhurried pace. Often with is Nikon FE in hand,
he's economical with his shots, only clicking his vintage film camera
when he thinks there's something special. A roll of film will sometimes
spend weeks in his camera before it's ready to be developed.
The tactic is worlds away from digital photography, where a hundred shots are fired off in just a few seconds. It's not that Peña knocks
digital photography; he's just not into it. Still, he thinks the
massive uploading of digital photos to social sites like Instagram and
Facebook is a good thing.
Photo by Daniel Peña
"It
makes photographers like me work a little harder, you know?" he quietly
mumbles, strolling down a dusty Tijuana alleyway toward his home.
"Everybody has access to a camera now. That's why I'm trying to do
things a little differently."
The
25-year-old lives alone in an apartment in Mariposa, a live-work artist
enclave literally steps away from the United States-Mexico border
fence. Across the street is Casa del Túnel: Centro de Arte y Cultura
en Tijuana, the site of a former drug tunnel transformed into an art
gallery and event space that's currently operated by the Balboa
Park-based WorldBeat Cultural Center. Like countless photographers before him, Peña's
photographed the nearby white car riddled with bullets—a permanent art
installation that sits in front of Casa del Túnel. But because of his
use of film, his skill for capturing the right kind of light and his
penchant for leaving in unexpected surprises like flecks of dust on his
negative, the result is unique. In Peña's photo, the car looks like it's floating in thin air and the white specks on the print add to the ghostly effect.
"I
don't like to edit too much," he says. "I like to keep it what it is. I
don't like to turn it into a completely different image."
Photo by Daniel Peña
The fuzzy, gritty, raw quality of film serves Peña well, especially for his shots of Tijuana,
which are increasing now that he lives there. Five months ago, the
young photographer finally mustered the courage to move out of his
parents' home in Chula Vista. When his parents, who are natives of
Mexico, found out he was moving south of the border, they were shocked.
"They were like, 'What? Why would you go to Tijuana?'" he laughs.
But the work that's been appearing on his website and more frequently on his Tumblr blog since
his move answers his parents' question. The chaotic and colorful city
inspires him. Before the move, he used to cross regularly and wander
around Tijuana with a camera as his only companion.
On a recent Tuesday afternoon, Peña ventured out to add a few shots to his Sight & Sound series,
which features photos of street musicians that he shoots with film,
develops into prints then scans and posts to his website. Under each
photo, he includes a digital audio recording of the music being played
while he's shooting the photos. The added layer of audio has a unique
effect that's somehow more compelling and moving than if he were to
simply combine the two elements in video form.
"See, I think there's a guy by the bridge, but I can't tell," Peña says,
walking toward the border crossing and squinting into the bright
afternoon sun as he points at an underpass near the Sentri lane, where
people with cards and clearance line up for faster entry into the United
States. "Usually, street musicians are here when there's a long line of
cars. It's not too busy today, so we'll see."
Photo by Daniel Peña
Sure enough, in the shadow of the underpass sits a white-haired man with a beautiful handmade guitar. Peña uses his
workable Spanish and timidly asks the man for his permission to take
his photo and record some of his music using a small handheld digital
device. After Peña drops
some money into the guitar case, the man happily starts strumming. The
introverted photographer hangs back and starts by shooting from a
distance. He slowly works his way closer to his subject and, after a
handful of clicks, is eventually satisfied with his shots. He thanks the
man and moves on.
The
soulful singing of an old woman spills out from the center of Parque
Teniente Guerrero, a small community park in downtown Tijuana. People
fill the benches surrounding the gazebo in the middle of the park where
the woman performs. Again, Peña snaps
a few shots from afar and eventually works his way in and shoots a few
more before the old woman wraps up her set and hands the microphone to
the famed "El Muerto de Tijuana"
street performer, an old goth man whose original rock music laid over
electronic keyboard beats is clearly a crowd favorite. After a few
songs, Peña gets his shot and then sits back to take in the show.
"Things
are always changing, you know?" he says later as he navigates Tijuana's
bustling streets, trying hard to put the motivation behind his
analog-photography obsession into a few simple words. "Everything is
just a moment in history and then it's gone... I'm making it stand
still."
Photo by Daniel Pena
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Ross Jenkinson: Photography
Photography: Ross Jenkinson makes the English countryside look dreamy
We English-folk are told from an early age all about “England’s
green and pleasant land”, but seldom do we actually sit back to enjoy
the famed views we’re so lucky to have access to, not least because
they’re so seldom visible through rainclouds and fog which dominate the
landscape. Fortunately we’ve got Australian-born, London-based
photographer Ross Jenkinson on hand to capture those momentary glimpses
of beauty that our drizzly country has to offer. His dreamy shots take
full advantage of the light, encompassing luscious green meadows and
rocky mountains to create an atmosphere taken straight from the hymn
Jerusalem. We starting to wonder if perhaps we should get out more.
I am a 22 year old college student that resides in South Florida. I love
all kind of art and reading and writing and biking and anything
beautiful I love being quiet and myself and I am a whisper kind of
person, somewhat shy of noise.
Since when do you do photography? I
started taking pictures back in the myspace days in 2005, where my
friends and I would do silly photo shoots with my point and shoot
camera. In 2008-09 I went through a really hard time where I was lonely,
and desperately needed an outlet for all the horrible emotions I was
feeling. I was at Costco, and bought photoshop on a whim, playing
around, doing horrible editing of wings, etc. (hah!) A few months later I
sold my clarinet of 9 years and bought a DSRL. I started a 365 project
in 2010, and now its just history.
Why do you do mostly film? In 2010 I bought a Canon AE-1
off of EBAY on a whim and completely fell in love with film. I love the
permanence of it, and how you have one chance to capture a fleeting
moment. I love the grain and scratches and all the imperfections that
somehow mirror my life and thoughts.
What camera did you start with, and what cameras do you use now? My first DSLR was a Sony A200 with the kit lens and a 50mm, but now I use a Canon T2i. The lenses I have for my Canon are a 30mm f/1.4, a 50mm f/1.8, and a 24mm f/2.8.
My first film camera was an awful broken Minolta. Now I use a Canon AE-1 with a 50mm lens, a Instax Wide, and various little thrift store cameras.
What makes you want to keep shooting? I
take so much joy in capturing the beauty around me. I love having
people seeing photos I’ve taken of them, and have them feel beautiful. I
love turning the ordinary into something extraordinary. I just love
creating and writing, and photography has jumped into my life and turned
into something I don’t think I can live without.
Do you have any tips for someone who’s just picking up a camera? Keep
shooting. Find photographers you love and become inspired. Take on a
project, whether a 52 week, a 365, or anything that will keep you going.
Even if you feel like you aren't improving, keep going because one day
you will wake up and be pleasantly surprised at how far you’ve come.
Photo by Daniel Pena
