We've been having a spell of very hot weather in southern California. It is not unusual, at this time in early October it is usually still very hot, although there have been years in which it was a little cooler. I remember that right about this time, we would have several cultural events taking place. One would be the Irvine Global Village Festival, an event which features several stages with dance performances (and a few musical groups) representing the diverse cultures of Irvine. It is a showcase for them in a festival that would attract thousands of people, and I would be walking around very sweaty but happy with my cameras. I will miss not being able to attend this year because of the pandemic. The other event, which I have only attended once in my life, would be the Tustin Tiller Days parade. It was unseasonably hot that time about 12 years ago, just as it is now, and I wondered at the stamina of the parade participants, especially those from marching bands. I would have loved to attend it once again as well, sizzling or not sizzling.
Yesterday I walked around in the morning to get some exercise. I took a circle around the circle city, and took some sheets of IR film as well as Fomapan 100. I made mistakes, and this is an abject lesson in what happens when we are not paying attention.
There is a church close to the center, one where my father went to have his fateful diagnostic exam that led him to have an operation that ultimately killed him. It makes me sad when I see that hospital, because I almost feel as if my dad is still there waiting for me to pick him up and take him home and tell him not to get that operation, just wait for the end at home.
I took this image months ago, with a Holga Pan 120 camera. It was not one of the images I took on Sunday's walk on October 4th, 2020.
Still, there is a church next to this hospital and I thought I would take an IR image of it. I thought it would really stand out with ultra dark skies and maybe white trees around ti, and had my shot all planned but then I wasn't happy with it. I had taken that shot before on regular black and white film and didn't want to repeat myself, plus, the angle of the trees left little room for them in the shot, and I wanted the trees prominently. The thing is, I had the shutter cocked and the slide out and the focus set for close distance. So what do I do? I made a rookie mistake. I decided to alter my shot at the last minute, and I ran into the middle of the street to try to get the church framed by the two trees on either side, and didn't even remember to reset the focus not to carefully frame my composition. Plus, did I mention I was in the middle of the street? At any moment a stream of cars would be passing by, so I felt I had to hurry. So, to make a long story short, I screwed up royally.
It is out of focus and not framed correctly. It might have made a better photo if I took care of those details. I was worried about the cars which, a few seconds latter, did not disappoint me, they came rushing past. I should have done better and I will attempt it again, but this time, I will slow things down and think, think, think. Nothing comes of hurrying.
This was a thing not to do.
By the way, here was my other IR shot, when I had walked for another 30 minutes and was on the way back to the car. I saw this bank building which I have seen and wanted to photograph several times before, and I slowly took my time. The thing is, this is not a good composition for IR. If I want to take advantage of the features for this film, I need to find the things that make it pop, in this case, vegetation. If I want dark skies, I can get that with regular black and white film and a red 25A filter. I do not have to waste a sheet of IR film.
But this is what happens when you are adamant about doing something. There is not enough of a coherent idea to make this a good composition either.
Another thing not to do.
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