Jason Beyond » Film BW

Merry Christmas and Happy Boxing Day!

beyond — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 05:08:45 +0000

Merry Christmas to all!~ Been busy busy busy. Was shooting on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I am working as well today. Yeah. What a bummer. Its Boxing Day…yet I am at work. Well..I got mouths to feed and buying spree to be fulfilled. I hope everyone had a good holidays. Its Nathania 2nd Christmas. This year its more meaningful as she went to the church for the party. Best start them young. Hahaha.

Recently, took a trip to Australia with my wife. Yeah. We left the baby home. I swear I wont do that ever again. Period. We missed the little one so much when we were abroad. Thank God for the iPad, iPhone and Optus Australia. I was never cut off from home and internet. For AUS30 I think we got ourselves a pretty good deal. AUS300 call credits/Unlimited FB and Twitter/500 mb Data lasted through 3 weeks trip. Best! I think I called home 2-3 times a day. Hahaha. One thing about Down Under. There is no such thing as free Wifi (unlike Malaysia where its free at most popular spots) except in the Airports or maybe some places that I didn’t know. Would be great to able to FaceTime with love ones back home. So the Data plan was keeping me very happy as I traveled. If one follows my FB updates you will know.

I tried to do some Street Photography when I was in Melbourne. I love the place. Its pretty ‘multiracial’. You got all sort of mixture of people there. The city is mix of modern and old architecture. Perfect. We walked to the bus stop to catch the bus to the train station. From Murumbeena train station we took the train to the city. I dont know why. But Melbourne has lotsa lotsa lotsa graffiti. I guess it makes the city colorful. It was towards the end of November and Christmas decorations were up during the last week of our stay in Melbourne. Didnt manage to take much pictures. I admit..I sucks at travel photography. Did a couple of street shots. Havent process the other pics yet. Here are some samples.

Uncle David Jones

Quickie

Should I get a Haircut?

Epson V700

beyond — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 08:46:09 +0000

Once upon a time, I bought an entry level film scanner from Low Yat Plaza. The Canon 4400F was priced around RM450. The price was just nice for me. Just started working then. I needed a film scanner as I shoot film most of the time as a hobbyist. The scanner served me well over the years. Of course, over the years I realized that the scan quality from the scanner was just so so. I knew back then eventually I have to upgrade my scanner. The thoughts of getting a Nikon Coolscan or other dedicated film scanners passed through my mind a couple of time over the years. Almost bought the Nikon Coolscan from Fuzz. But thats another story. So finally, I sold off my Canon 4400F sometime ago in anticipation of a new scanner. Sold it off at RM 300 or RM 350 if I am not mistaken. I placed an order with a local supplier. I finally got the Epson V700 @RM 1850. A very decent buy if you asked me. I went on a scanning spree immediately after I unboxed the scanner *laughs* From RM 450 to RM 1850, I noticed the difference in scan quality immediately. Pictures are sharper and the details *wow* are way way better. No regrets in getting the scanner. In fact..I regretted not purchasing the V700 earlier. I threw away a lot of film last time..Thinking that my pics were not of quality shots. Some of the scans are too soft and blur. Ended, I thought it was my error and threw them away. So guys…Dont hesitate. Get one!

Dad and Nathania. The infamous ’stare’ from my Dad

Nathania crying for ‘Help’

Steady Girl

She loves see saw, horse and swings

Grandpa gives a helping hand

Sister, Dad and Nathania

FILM: RMAF Museum

beyond — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 09:27:13 +0000

Went for a shoot sometime on a Sunday after work. The guys wanted to shoot at the Royal Malaysian Air Force Museum (RMAF). I was kinda interested as I have not been there before. Heard of it alot plenty. Passed by there whenever I use the Seremban Highway. But visiting the place? Never before. It was a Sunday and I dont want to miss quality family time, I decided to bring my wife and baby along. Hehehehe. Armed with a Leica M6, I paired it with a Voighlander 15 mm f4.5 Heliar LTM and Fujifilm Neopan Acros 100. There are no entrance fee. Just need to pass through the army’s checkpoint. Met up with Johan, See Meng, Francis, Edwin, Nick and even Madji at the airfield. First impression is that the airplanes are kinda old. Yes. They are decommissioned aircrafts. Some are already leaking. But nonetheless, they are still an awe to look at. This is the first time I am up close to a helicopter. Amazing stuffs. Little Nathania was kinda cranky and pulled a long face all day long. Mummy dear was having a hard time to pacify her. Mom took some shots with the Sony NEX 3 while I shot here and there. First time using the 15 mm. Not easy to use an Ultrawide angle lens. The perspectives are a little different from conventional composition. I tried to be as creative as possible. But hey…This is my first time with the lens. The excellent Visual Finder (external) was bright and made composing a lot easier. Finally finished one roll and headed home with the family. The guys went ahead for drinks. I had to head home as I need to prepare the little one for her first swimming experience. Will blog about that later. Anyhow..Fast forward. Decided to develop the film via semi stand development technique. I used R09 developer at 1: 100 dilution. The film was pre washed for about 5 minutes. Temperature used was room temperature (note: Will try to use 20 degree Celsius in future). I only gave 15 inversion before leaving it to stand for one hour (note: Will use one minute of inversion and leave to stand. Will also introduce light swirl at 30 mins interval). Stopped with water and fixed via the normal method. Left to dry. Scanning was done with Canon 4400F scanner ( Sold this scanner yesterday. Not too happy with the scans). Had to fix it a little via Lightroom. Added some black and recovery. Here are the pictures for sharing.

Shadows

The Giant

I Am No 4

One Camera One Lens One Film

beyond — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 06:37:29 +0000

Hello! Good day to all. Was surfing www.rangefinderforum.com and I came across an interesting link posted by a fellow forum member, Petronious. He started a project some time ago. For the one whole year he would only shoot with a single camera and film. You can check out his work on his blog www.rollei35andpolypanf.blogspot.com . Of course I was very interested in his project. You see, most photographers would have more than 1 camera in their drybox (if they have one) be it film or digital. Next we have the lenses. All the way from the superwide to the supertele (for those who can afford it la). For my Nikon film system, I know I have from 28 mm all the way to 180 mm covered ( all primes *wicked*). And I know too that I don’t use them often. So I got in touch with Petronious. I asked about the project and how he dev his film. The dev part was interesting too. This is because he is using stand development method. Normal dev technique usually takes about 8-15 mins depending on the type of developer and film used. Stand dev uses small amount of developer and long dev time. Another fellow forum user Tang Yi Ming aka Neoro uses Rodinal 3 ml with 500 ml of water. But his aint a stand dev method coz the process is complete in 13 minutes. Film development is like a cooking class. Different people have different method and recipe. But it all for tryout. I don’t mind experimenting. Here is a recipe from Petronious. Do check it out.Credits to Petronious.

Some words about my stand developing method:

• I use APH09 developer, which has the same formula as Rodinal
• Dilution is 1+100; my tanks are from JOBO with plastic reels (One daylight Tank 2400 for one film, one system 1000 tank for max. five rolls)
• After filling in the developer I invert the tank 15 times and let it stand still for one hour (longer time doesn´t harm the film in my experience)
• I don´t use stop bath, only water after the developing (two water changes with five inversions each)
• Then fixing with Adofix (or similar fixer)
• Washing method: Water in the tank, five inversions; water change, ten inversions; water change 20 inversions; final change, the 40 inversions.
• I take the film from the spool and strip off the water with a paper towel (no pressure, only to get the drops off)
• Then I hang the film for drying

Note: This is by no means my own invention, I only combined some advices from the net; the drying by paper towel is not recommended by many people, but I found that the Polypan doesn´t scratch as quickly as often mentioned.

I think I ll start shooting with one camera and one type of film and prob one type of dev too very soon. Try it out. After a year, review your work and see if there is any improvement.

Yakuza Boy

beyond — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 04:45:53 +0000

I think I need to get the camera out of the Dry Box and start shooting something. Hehehe. I got a wedding job tonite. What I meant was, to shoot someone or something. It s time to plan and execute a shoot according to plan. Cant just shoot here and there. Kekekeke. Here is a shot of my cousin Anson Ngiam. Some years ago, he pop-ed up at my place. And at that time, I have this wooden samurai sword bought from Penang. I asked him to pose for me. With the light source (window) from the left, it s perfect lighting. Shot using Nikon FM2n, Nikon 85 mm F2 AIS ( I regret selling this lens) and Fujifilm PRO H 400.

Happy Men

beyond — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 04:04:44 +0000

Woot! A second post in the same day. Hehehe. This is a shot of my two Leica-nuts buddy. We were having a small gathering at Brussels Jaya 1. Excellent roast pork and beer! A must visit place. Shot using Nikon FM2n, Nikon 28 mm F2.8 and Fujifilm ProH 400. Converted to BW via photochop.

Bundle of Joy

beyond — Mon, 17 May 2010 13:42:41 +0000

Good Evening all!~ I m going to be a Daddy soon. Wife is currently 30 weeks pregnant. It s such an amazing experience from Day 1. I didn’t really blog about this earlier. So I guess I want to share this now. We actually got to know about the pregnancy last year (Nothing to be shy about despite we actually got Married this year, but we are legally registered early last year) on the 27th of November. It was a day before my cousin’s birthday. Hahaha. Can remember this forever. I could hardly contain my excitement when wifey called me that morning. It was around 8 am. She told she had a positive result for the pregnancy test kit. The first person I called was my cousin. Hahaha. I didnt tell mom and dad immediately. I was worried as they are kinda traditional. But I did tell my parents after speaking with my cousin. I was kinda shock actually. The person who I thought all along as a open minded person (mom) was shocked whereas the person I thought of as ‘kolot’ (dad) was pretty cool about it. Hahahah. Mom eventually shared the happiness and excitement. She was already wishing for a grand daughter. * her wish came true*

We went to a private O and G doctor at Sentosa Hospital to ‘confirm’ the pregnancy. Pregnancy was confirmed via a test strip again. Next came the ultrasound machine. Dr showed us a small sac with a black dot. She said, there..That s your Baby. I was like..Wah!~ But the next thing she did really kicked in. Dr: Mr Ng, Lets see if we can see the heartbeat. Me: Dr, Baru 6 weeks only wo..? And the next thing I saw was some ECG waves on the monitor. It was then, when I became kinda excited and in awe. I am going to be a father. Life is really a miracle. It’s just so magical. I got a copy of scan and kept it in the wallet

Fast forward, wow..Wifey is 4 months into pregnancy. We went for regular checkups in Klinik Kesihatan Jinjang. They have a Klinik Ibu and Anak there. We were actually amazed at the stringent screening process in KKJ. They did all kind of tests. Kudos to them. Imagine how much you will have to pay if these procedures are done in the private sector. Every a month or so, we went back for ultrasound scan. And this time, I asked the Dr ‘Eh Dr, Boleh nampak Boy or Girl tak? ‘ She zoomed into something and we actually saw a Penis!~ I was like super happy at that time coz I wanted a Boy!~ Hahahaha. Wifey have always wanted a girl. Kekekek. So I was talking to the tummy for one month or so by referring the baby as Boy Boy. Imagine my shock when during the fifth month ultrasound, we failed to locate the tiny kukuciao. Kakaka. Dr told me, ‘Jason..Saya rasa girl la..Pasal nampak Burger’. Hahaha. This time, Wifey was really happy. My mom was even happier. I was disappointed. But at the end of the day, I know I would be happy as long the baby is healthy

So last night, wifey is already 30 weeks pregnant. I took out the camera and said ‘Mummy!~ Come..Lets take some picture’. It was raining and we did about 10 shots in the bedroom Hehehe. Since I am still in Black and White mood. I kinda converted some pics into BW again. Kekekeke. One thing I noticed was..The tummy is really Bulat. Old people has this saying ‘ If it s a boy, the tummy elongates. And if it s a girl, the tummy is Round’. I guess it s pretty true. I hope to take more pics soon. So stay tune

My wife asked me to smooth-en her hands..Mana boleh wey!~ Hahahah *evil*

Not exactly what I had in my mind..My PP not power la

Leica M9 and The Legendary Noctilux

beyond — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 15:08:07 +0000

Woot! Sometime ago I had a small TT session with my friends. One of them brought a M9 and another had his 50 mm Noctilux. So I mounted the lens and had a go with it. I find the Noct exhibits some really neat characteristics of its own. For instance, when shot wide..You will get some really nice vignetting effect. Hahaha. Yes, that s right. No need to photoshop. The image is not really sharp. It s a bit soft. So I sharpen my shot abit. Not supposed to do that, but I think I wanted all the attention on my subject of interest. The bokeh rendered is amazingly addictive. Once you tried it, you would wanna try to shoot wide open all the time. This is not the first time I handled the M9. But I would like to comment on a few things. First, I dunno why the hell it cost so much compared to the M8 and M8.2 . And even if you have the moolah for one, M9 is pretty scarce. It s hard to land your hands on one. Even if you do find one, the price tag is pretty high. I have seen some trying to sell at RM28k in Msia and higher than RM30k in HK. So if your urge to get one is high, by all means get it. Put the price factor and el-cheapo LCD aside..You have one hell of a RF camera here. Here is a pic to illustrate the output from the M9 and Noct.

Photo data:
Year: 2010
Sensor: Leica M9
Developer : Photoshop
Lens: 50 mm Noctilux

BW Film Developing Refreshed!

beyond — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 12:33:29 +0000

Last week, I paid a good friend of mine a visit. Torben from Denmark is one of the most well versed Leica-guy that I have ever met. I first met him during a Leica outing organized by Photomalaysia sometime in 2008 ( If I am not mistaken). He has in his collection some really mean Leica gears Now he uses the best Leica M ever produced. That s another story. Anyway, I believe Torben shot film for most of his life. So here we have me, I needed a refreshment or rather, a guide to show me how to dev BW film. It s not that I have not done it before but I wanted really consistent results.

So here are some steps which I would like to highlight in this entry. It will also serve as a reminder to me as well. Hehehe. During the demonstration session, I noticed one thing. Eliminate all possible source of errors. Torben uses one developer only. I asked him why not try other developers. He said this is to achieve consistent results and he can expects or predicts the outcome of the film. I hereby need to stress that all developers has their own characteristics. Temperature is the next important factor during the developing process. Torben actually has a separate tray filled with ice water bath with the developing tank in the tray. He checks the temperature every now and then and pops in a cube or two of ice to maintain the temperature at 20 degree Celsius. He says..If the formula says 20 degree Celsius, make sure it 20 degree Celsius during the 12 mins of developing time.

We used water as Stopper. It works the same. Fixing is interesting. Torben used the same temperature theory as the developer. We kept the temperature constant at 20 degree Celsius. Fixing time is from 2-5 minutes. But you can check easily by looking at the negatives. If it appears cloudy and hazy..Fix again. Last step, instead of using wetting agent, Torben flushed the negatives for half hour. And the last step is the easiest..Dry it. O..I forgot. Instead of the up and down agitation. We actually used the spindle that came with the developing tank. We swirled the negatives slowly for every 10 sec of the minute. I can see that the negatives came out less contrasty and it s better than mine LOL. Here are two pics to share with you guys. Cheers! Happy BW Developing. Thanks Torben

My dear wife..Yee Woon

My dear Cousin..Anderson

Photo data:
Year: 2009
Film: Kodak Tri-X
Developer : D76
Lens: 50 mm Summilux