Well, this is somewhat promising...

[ImageMaker]

I haven't had a call yet on the advertisement that ran (as "filler", and I didn't get a chance to get last week's issue to verify if it was even inserted) in the Rhinoceros Times as compensation for the photos I shot for them at the park event a couple weeks ago, but did just get a promising development: a follow-up assignment.  I'm to photograph the Greensboro Youth Council Carnival, including a Battle of the Bands (probably be two sessions over the five day carnival run, in order to catch most of the acts in the Battle).  The paper's even working on getting me a press pass -- don't know if that'll get me any extra access, but at least it'll mean I don't have to pay to get in to shoot their picture.

This'll be a bit different; it's an evening event, running 4-11 PM, so I'll need to use flash or shoot "available darkness" for at least some of the time (the latter, as much as possible, since flash is always a big disruption in a night venue).  Should give me an opportunity to get some B&W in the paper, since I don't yet have a method worked up to push C-41 film using the 2-bath developer.  Fortunately, Ultra 400 looks quite okay at EI 1600, and I can probably get 3200 out of it with Super Soup (though I must test that before trying to use it for an assignment).

I'm sure I'll be glad to have a fast lens...  

[Andre Reinders]

Great news  - congrats!

On the 'fast colour film' front - I once used Fuji Superia 1600 for shooting a local band performance, it worked well.

[ImageMaker]

Unfortunately, Andre, I don't know if I can even find Superia 1600 locally; I've got Superia Xtra 400 and Ultra 400 available (and I know I can push the Ultra 400 at least two stops if needed).  With EI 1600, an f/1.4 lens, and hand holding down to 1/15, I should be okay (in fact, a band on stage is often a lot better lit than first impressions would suggest -- it's just a high contrast light with a large fraction of the scene dark enough to fool the meter).

[Andre Reinders]

I know Superia 1600 can be hard to find.

I found some good advice a while back on the internet about shooting the stage. Basically it said that you want to spot meter on the face and add 1 stop (+1 exposure compensation) this would give you the best exposure. It also said that you shouldn't worry about having ultra fast lenses because the performers will usually move around enough to put themselves out of the dof - so f4 would usually do it. They used the example of a guitarist who, during a riff, may lean back an extra 12" after you lock focus - with f1.8 you may lose the shot.

I shot all the photos I took at 1600 (I think) for the 1 stage shoot I did. The photos are on my website in the galleries under people. http://www.lightofday.ca
I used the Superia 1600 and Delta 3200 (I think).

What about using some 800 speed film? You would have to push it less.

Good luck and have fun!

[ImageMaker]

After I "lock focus" -- if my Super Takumar has a locked focus, I'll need to send it somewhere for repair (or tear into it myself, but I'd hate to mess it up).  And spot meter the face -- that's rich, when the newest camera I'll be using for this is 30+ years old and my hand-held meter is 15 years older than that (and only has settings up to ASA 400 anyway).  Most likely I'll take an average reading (the only kind I can take) and close down one stop (two if there's a lot of black background).

Don't know how close I'll be able to get, so the lens speed thing may be decided for me; I have a 135/2.8, and a 2x I could hang it on (which would give me a 270/5.6), or a 400/6.3, though I'd have to steal a strap from somewhere to carry the 400 in its case.  The 400 is a preset, though, and really calls for a tripod or monopod due to weight and length.

What I'm talking about pushing, Andre, is B&W, and the only local source that might have fast B&W a) won't have much if any and b) will charge full retail for Kodak or Ilford, which is more than a comparable color film.  I have the ISO 400 B&W on hand, and pushing it is routine; with my process, a push to 800 looks like most people shooting at box speed anyway, so a push to 1600 won't look bad at all.  It's only for color that pushing isn't (yet) a viable option for important images.

But I'll see if the local camera store or Ritz have some 800UC or Superia 1600 on hand.  It'd be nice to be able to shoot the night stuff in color, and simplify the metering, too, since color negative tolerates overexposure in the highlights better than pushed B&W.

Meanwhile, I have to get a foam job done, at least removing the goo and sealing the hinge (for a backup camera; the primary is freshly serviced and ready to go, just needs loaded).  Just received a Sears TLS (Ricoh Singlex TLS with Sears badge), shutter and meter good but needs foam; that'll be a *BIG* improvement over the Zenit as a second body for gigs like this; only differences from my Singlex II are no hot shoe and the shutter speed control is on front instead of on top, and a meter/DOF preview switch like a Spotmatic instead of the somewhat easier push button on the II -- even has the 125-synch metal shutter.  

[ImageMaker]

Well, I've finished the shooting for the Greensboro Youth Council Carnival and Battle of the Bands.  The winner, BTW, for those keeping score, was a group called "Tie Me Up, Untie Me", who demonstrated I'm starting to be an old fogy by sounding, to my ears, more loud than pleasant.

Overall, I shot seven rolls (24 exposures) over two nights -- knocked off early on Wednesday night, due to lightning in the distance and beginning rain (though the carnies reported that it never did rain hard enough to be a problem and the lightning stayed in the distance), but stayed long enough tonight to test my homebuilt monopod (man, I should have had or made one of those years ago -- I shot down to 1/4 second a couple times with what I felt was about 50% success, though I'll know a lot more after processing and scanning.

Which, of course, is what I'll be doing for the next two or three days.  I processed the first two rolls last night, and got 1 1/2 of those scanned today, but I have five more rolls to soup and will probably have two full days of scanning ahead of me (my scanner isn't very efficient at handling large numbers of frames, though I've improved my workflow so at least it doesn't take me five hours to do one 36-exposure roll any more).

Then it's off to the Rhinoceros Times with CD in hand, and wait until Thursday the 17th to see which photos they use...

[lesged]

Cross your fingers, Donald, and hope they pick a bundle of your shots. Please show them here.

[ImageMaker]

As last time, I'll post the ones I submit.  

Of course, it'd be better if they were paying me, but I did give out a couple of my cards for In Situ Photography last night, and the fellow running the pony ride offered me $20 if I'd send him a high quality shot of his tent, after dark with the lights visible, and showing the weathervane on top.  I got a couple twilight shots I think he'll like...

Edit: Well, first milestone -- got the last of the film developed, and it's all got images on it.    Interestingly, the available-light shots of the last band in the Battle are better than the one I shot with flash; might have been too far away, I suppose, though the flash is supposed to be good for 30 feet with ISO 400 film.  More when it's scanned...

[ImageMaker]

And it's done -- 177 images scanned, edited, and 28 selected (after some cropping and dust spotting), burned to CD and ready to take down to the Rhinoceros office.

You can view a slideshow of the selected images, in order of exposure, HERE...

[Kin Lau]

Pretty good stuff... I like the shot of the kid pouting with the mother.

A couple of the colour shots are just a bit too grainy for my liking, but that's just me.

[ImageMaker]

The grain mostly is the result of cropping -- I found my 135 mm had too narrow a view to compose with, but the 50 mm was too wide once on the film, so I shot most of the carnival with the 50 and cropped as needed.  In a few cases, the resulting crop was less than a quarter frame, and by then the grain starts to show in ISO 400 film.  Adding to that, a few of these were marginally underexposed (manual camera, I wasn't checking the meter as often as I should have), which always makes the grain worse with color negative films.  Even the worst probably won't look bad when printed through a newspaper's half-tone screens, I hope.  And in any case, 28 images will most likely become twelve or fewer by the time the editor has had her way.

Longer term, I think I might want to shop around for a 75-80 mm or try to find an affordable, reasonably fast zoom in the 28-80 or 35-105 range in M42.  After dark, though, the fastest zoom I could possibly afford will be too slow (I was shooting at f/2, 1/15, give or take a stop, for most of the night shots), and I'll be back to the 50/1.4 prime...

[Kin Lau]

That helps to explain it. I gave up trying to crop iso400 film for that reason.

The russian Jupiter-9 (85/2) in M42 mount is quite nice and reasonably cheap.

[ImageMaker]

The russian Jupiter-9 (85/2) in M42 mount is quite nice and reasonably cheap.

Lots of Russian lenses seem optically good (the Helios-44M that came with my Zenit is so nice I'm seriously considering getting it CLA'd so I can use it on my Singlex II -- currently, it's too stiff and the Ricoh won't fire with it on there).  Is the Jupiter-9 another one traditionally lubed by dipping in axle grease, i.e. guaranteed to require a CLA before routine use?  

Edit: Wheee, I see "reasonably cheap" is a relative term -- only two in M42 on eBay just now, one is $43 with 4+ hours to run, from a low-feedback seller in Hong Kong, the other is $115 BIN, $99 start and no bids.  That makes it tempting to just mount the 2x converter on my Super Takumar 50/1.4, giving me a 100/2.8...  :eek:

[Kin Lau]

Unfortunately, I sold my extra one to GeneW for about $40-, but that's what I paid for it in a package of 3 lenses. Gene got a bargain

$100- is way too much, closer to what a LTM one would cost.

Unfortunately, there really isn't much choice in the fast 85 or 100 market available cheaply. An 85mm Pentax M42 will run you at least a couple of hundred.

If you have an Adaptal2 for your m42, the Tamron 70-210/3.5 built in the late 90's is reputed to be the best one ever.

BTW, don't forget that most 2x converters were only good for f2.8 or smaller, so that 50/1.4 + 2x is more like 100/4 or even 5.6.

If you don't mind shooting an RF, a good Kiev + J9 is a very good combo. Shutter noise is the quietest, and you can handhold to quite low speeds. The Kiev also has a long enough base-length to accurate focus the J9 wide open.

[Kin Lau]

Heads up IM, a Vivitar S1 70-210/3.5 in M42 is on Ebay http://cgi.ebay.ca/Vivitar-Series-1-70-210mm-1-3-5-Pentax-Macro-Lens_W0QQitemZ270120419808QQihZ017QQcategoryZ4688QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Looks like it's the Kiron made one too. I never thought these were available in m42.