Sarah was one of my more productive models back in the day, with whom I was able to create possibly the most difficult (and most erotic!) imagery of my career. One day she let me know that she was getting a new tatoo on her back, so I invited myself over to get some snaps. Shot with Sputnik, handheld I think.
Marine Memorial Park – D.C. from west
Augusta – Maine Capital Building – most northeastern capital – Maine’s 16 counties got statehood from 1820 with Missouri Compromise
Out West – maybe Wyoming – somewhere near Four Corners
Near Maroon Bells – same park – all pairs handheld with TLR
James Roy’s submission for loop d22.
(You can right-click on my images to view at a larger size)
Washington Monument from the Lincoln Memorial
I’ll start with an old image. I took this with a Sputnik back in 1998, I believe, on Ektachrome E100S. Back then I also shot some stuff with a twin Mamiya C-330 rig, but I don’t think I could have done that from the steps of the Lincoln memorial; and anyway, the light leaks in the right frame give away the camera. I think back then I only had square-format mounts, so I never mounted most of the shots from my Spud, because of the leaks. But thanks to the magic of Ian’s 645 mounts, I was able to salvage this one. In the distance you can see scaffolding going partway up the Washington Monument. That renovation took place between 1998 & 2001, but I’m not sure if the scaffolding was going up or coming down when I took this.
At Water’s Edge
A fairly closeup shot of tree trunks, one of which is still standing but obviously dead. They’re on the edge of a pond not far from me. Holmes Run, a small creek, runs out of this pond & eventually passes close to my house, and gives its name to my street. I bought a TL-120 about a year ago, but I’d been very nervous about actually taking it out & using it. This shot was from one of its first outings. The film is Provia 100, but I didn’t record the exposure details.
Drill, Grind & Dry
A picture of one of my favorite places to hang out & putter. My recently-acquired drill press sits on top of a clothes dryer. I guess I mostly took this to try out my TL-120 with flash. I bounced a DigiBee DB800 off the ceiling, and used a slow shutter speed to pick up some of the other light in the room, especially the little light built into the drill press. I meant to leave a little room above the top of the drill press; I guess I’ll have to work on correcting for viewfinder parallax when I’m up close like this.
Stainless Steel Conundrum
This is also very close to my house, in an office park on the other side of the creek. The building is occupied by some subsidiary of General Dynamics, but owned by some real estate trust in Chicago, I think. I’ve never been able to find out who made the sculpture, or if it has a name. I guess the picture would be better if it had a few people in it. Also my TL-120 & Provia 100, around sunset on a cloudy day.
Concorde G-BOAD
This is an Aerospatiale/BAC Concorde on Pier 86 next to the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City.
The Concorde was a supersonic airliner that was operated by British Airways and Air France from 1976 through 2003. This particular aircraft (G-BOAD) holds the world record for a transatlantic flight from JFK to Heathrow. While the Intrepid museum ship and its pier were undergoing renovations a few years ago, this aircraft was on display at Floyd Bennett Field Gateway National Recreation Area in Brooklyn.
This was taken with a handheld (string monopod) Sputnik on Kodak E100G.
MiG-21PFM
This is a Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21PFM on the flight deck of the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City.
The MiG-21 is a fighter interceptor designed and built in the Soviet Union. Having entered service in 1959, it is still serving in many countries.
This particular aircraft comes from the Polish Air Force, and although depicted in camoflage in this photo, is now in a high visibility scheme used during a NATO Tiger Meet competition.
This was taken with a handheld (string monopod) Sputnik on Kodak E100G.
F-8K Crusader
This is a Vought F-8K Crusader on the flight deck of the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City.
The F-8 Crusader was an air superiority fighter that served the US Navy from the late 1950s through the mid 1980s. A unique feature of the Crusader was its variable incidence wing. Rather than have a very nose high attitude during take off and landing the Crusader’s wing would be tilted up. You can see this where this aircraft’s squadron name (Sundowners VF-111) is painted on at the front of the wing. During normal flight this would be retracted flush with the fuselage.
The Crusader was also intended to be the last US Navy fighter to have a built in gun, and was therefore known as “The Last of the Gunfighters”. Two of the guns can be seen below the cockpit. Poor air-to-air performance by the Phantom II and early aircraft missles lead the US Air Force to add a gun to its version of the F-4, and the gun returned in the US Navy’s F-14 Tomcat.
A detatchment of the VF-111 Sundowners flying F-8C Crusaders served aboard the USS Intrepid for one deployment to Vietnam. Later, while flying the F-14 Tomcat, the Sundowners appeared in the movie Top Gun.
This was taken with a handheld (string monopod) Sputnik on Kodak E100G.
F-4N Phantom II
This is a McDonnell Douglas F-4N Phantom II on the flight deck of the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City.
The USS Intrepid served in the Pacific theater during WWII, as a recovery ship for the Mercury and Gemini space missions, and in the Vietnam War, before being retired and converted to a museum ship.
The F-4N was an updated fighter bomber that served the US Navy during the 1970s and 1980s. It was replaced by the Grumman F-14 Tomcat.
This was taken with a handheld (string monopod) Sputnik on Kodak E100G.
Big Bud
Deer Skull
Eiffel Tower
Hibiscus
Bert McIlwain’s submission for loop d22.
Aspen 2
Marymere falls
Poudre Canyon Wall
Untitled
Joel Alpers’ submission for loop d22.
Photographed at a “New York Pin-up Club” event, March 2019. TL-120 with Vivitar 285-H fill flash, Provia 100F +1.
Studio lighting was provided for this event which I metered. Probably 1/8 at f16.
Photographed at the 2019 Coney Island Mermaid Parade. TL-120 with diffused Vivitar 285-H fill flash. Provia 100F pushed one stop. For close portraits like this a diffusor is critical for the fill flash. Sadly the 2020 Mermaid Parade was cancelled, this event is where I do most of my Medium Format shooting these days.
This is a Hindu Temple in Jaipur India, nicknamed the “Monkey Temple” for obvious reasons. Taken with a TL-120 – Provia 100F pushed +1, February 2018. Probably hand-held, there were attendants hassling me about my cameras even though I had paid a few hundred Rupies per camera at the gate.
The Domkhar festival is a wonderful experience. Before we left on our trip, we planned our trip around two festivals. Typically most occur in the Spring and Fall in Bhutan, this was in the Springtime. If you do plan on going to Bhutan during those times of year, your travel agent and/or guide will almost certainly schedule in a festival or two for you to see. The area of Bumthang was the furthest east that we travelled in Bhutan, and it’s an area that I would highly recommend. The festival lasts for about 3 days, and we visited on it’s first day. The festival is dedicated to the birth anniversary of Guru Rinpoche, the second Buddha, or more importantly the father of Buddhism in Bhutan. Monks dress as animals and other characters, and display themselves in lavish costumes. They dance in a mesmerizing choreography. We did manage to get a chance to explore the village of Domkhar as well, which felt like you were entering into a time warp going back about 2 centuries. All in all, it was an awesome experience and not your everyday trip to the beach! Shot this with my Sputnik on Fuji Provia 100f film.
As we walked over the main bridge to the Dzong, a small crowd of monks were walking up a path towards us. Knowing full well that this was a good opportunity to capture them, I ran ahead of my group, as the lighting was nice and dramatic. Happily, I managed to snap a couple shots off before they walked past. What’s great about Bhutan is the sheer beauty and photo-ops at every corner. Unfortunately, you must be accompanied during your entire stay in Bhutan, government rules. Luckily however, it’s a great way to see the country since your guide and driver are always at your beck and call, are extremely knowledgable, and are always striving for you to have a great experience no matter what. If you see a photo op on the side of the road, they will gladly stop! We had them stop actually quite often. We are not used to being ‘pampered’ on our trips, and in fact we are usually quite uncomfortable and ‘unguided’ most of the time, since we tend to travel on a budget. However, Bhutan was an exception for us and since we had no choice but to have a guide, we embraced it with loving arms! If you’re even remotely interested in visiting Bhutan, please message me and I will gladly give you all the details. Shot on my Sputnik, with Fuji Provia 100F film.
The Punhaka Dzong is the second oldest and the second largest Dzong in Bhutan, and arguably the most impressive. It’s surrounded by a converging river, which adds to it’s splendor. Dzongs used to be fortresses during wartime, but now are used for government offices and a religious monastery. My favorite view of the Dzong is from the bridge leading over the river to the main entrance. This was a more crowded part of Bhutan, mainly because it was closer to the west side of the country, where most tourists tend to gravitate to. This Dzong was by no means, an exception. Due to this, I had to ‘nudge and dodge’ my way over to the railing to get the shot. This was taken with my Sputnik, on Provia 100F film.