Circa 2020

Home-developed Ilford HP5 ~ Yasicha A

This past week has been wild! In observance of my birthday this past Monday, I’ve been treating myself to some fun times with friends. My dear companion Shoshi made the trip up from New York City to spend a very action-packed weekend in New Bedford with me. Saturday night, we attended a killer show at Circa; I’ve visited the shop fairly frequently and although it’s quite dangerous for my wallet, I cannot say enough great things about this place. I always leave there with some lovely vintage treasures in hand, and the owner and staff are absolutely wonderful to chat with. Every now and again, they host shows featuring local bands, and due to my work schedule I never was able to attend until now.

During the afternoon I made my way half way through a roll of HP5, and despite the wild difference in light, I successfully killed off the roll during the show. I didn’t have a tripod handy so I took multiple exposes to compensate for the dim lighting. In the future I think I’d like to try instead pushing a full roll to get some clear photos, but I still enjoy these “drunk-goggle-esque” exposures from the evening. Most of all, I am so thrilled to have been present for some great performances by Carl Simmons and Germ House.

Hospitals on Home-Developed Black & White

Mostly Ilford HP5 ~ Yashica A

During most outings, I have been carrying along my little Yashica A (not only does it fit so nicely in my camera bag alongside my Mamiya, but I will forever love these little twin lens beauties). For the most part, I always have it loaded with Ilford’s HP5; this has been my go-to black and white film for quite some time. Since summertime, I’ve been saving most all of my black and white film so I could practice developing film at home. I’ve saved up a substantial amount over the months, and no longer know what any of the film holds; they are like fun little time capsules!

The past few weeks I have been recovering from the wintertime plague and it seemed as good a time as any to start chipping away at developing a few rolls. I tried Cinestill’s D96 monobath for the first time, and I must say I prefer the sprint system to this one. Though the process was very quick and easy, my negatives came out a little thin in all three batches, despite troubleshooting and fiddling with my temperatures. This process seems great for beginners like myself though!

Although I shouldn’t have been so surprised, it was pretty bittersweet seeing a full roll from the now-demolished Westborough State Hospital. I had spend a good amount of time there over the years, and it has been greatly missed in recent months. One of my most memorable visits had actually been around this time last year on my birthday: it was a foggy February day and Travis and I drove over that morning and spent most of the day wandering and taking photos. I think it was the last occasion that we seemingly had the place to ourselves. The months before and during demolition (when these photos were taken), it was hard not to run into anybody. That hospital had certainly seen better days, but it still had its charm and I’ll remember it fondly.

Also among my physical pile of negatives are a couple other former hospitals. I am grateful for having visited so many lovely places this past year, and I hope to see many more over the coming months (especially as the weather gets a bit warmer!)

Light & Shadow with Challyn

Ilford XP2 ~ Mamiya RB67

Challyn and I met through the good ol’ restaurant industry; she is such a sweetheart, and you’d be thrilled to have her as a server or bartender. She contacted me recently to take some portraits, and I was entirely excited to work alongside her. Eager to utilize my apartment space, we got together in New Bedford and made some magic! I have been gaining some confidence with multiple exposures and stacking out-of-focus images. I’m not quite where I’d like to be yet, but I’ve certainly come a long way since my first few accidental multiple exposures just over a year ago. It’s become easier over time to work with the light and shadows, and envision how each image will imprint itself (having my makeshift black backdrop has helped significantly with multiple exposures as well). As much as I’m looking forward to shooting outdoors again with warmer weather, I’ve been having so much fun creating in my little apartment studio setup.

Feeling Handsy: Digital Self Portraits

Canon 80D ~ In-Camera Multiple Exposures

I’ve been having a bit of a rough mental health week, so I took my emotions out in front of the camera. This winter I’ve been cramming my schedule in an effort to fight off the good ol’ seasonal depression. Seemingly this tactic worked until it got to the point of being a little overwhelming. To add to the mix, this past week I got word that my friend from my coffee-shop days passed away. I, alongside many of my old regulars and coworkers, attended his wake on Tuesday. There were so many familiar faces, it almost felt like a reunion of sorts, despite the disheartening circumstances. I am so grateful to have known Peter over the years, though I regret becoming a bit of a stranger since I left the coffee shop. Years ago, Pete and I traded cameras. I had upgraded my digital camera (to photograph my first wedding), and no longer had much use for my old Canon, and he had an old Olympus OM-2 that had been collecting dust. This was my first film camera. These days, I have grown to shooting predominantly film. I don’t think I would be where I am today with photography if it wasn’t for that first step. It’s funny how such small occurrences in ones life can snowball into much more prominent life changing events.

Anyhow, this afternoon, I had killed off what film I had left in my Mamiya, but was just settling into my creative flow. It wasn’t quite enough to load another full roll of film, so I decided to take my digital camera out of retirement. I always forget how many bells and whistles that camera has in comparison to the film cameras I’ve gotten so used to. I had only ever experimented with the in-camera multiple exposures a handful of times, but today seemed as good a day as any to dive back into it.

Content with the outcome of those few photos, I uploaded the files (yay, instant gratification!) and stumbled upon a few other self portraits from November. These were taken before my wintertime blues settled in, but after it had started getting a little too chilly for outdoor portraits. I have been repeatedly pleased with utilizing my apartment for portraits, and I hope to do a few more shoots there this season.

Other Works of 2019

I’ll start by admitting I am frankly not the best at maintaining an online presence. Maybe one day I can improve upon this, but in the meantime, I am compelled to figure out a new system for myself in the realm of the internet. With the launch of my website this past year, I was hoping it would push me to work through more entire rolls of film, as I do enjoy releasing my works as larger collections. This motivation worked briefly in my excitement, but my expectations for myself were not entirely realistic. And that’s okay; I’m only human. I live and I learn.

I always tell people I love taking photographs, but I hate post production. I have a hard time camping myself in front of my computer for long periods of time without getting antsy (this makes scanning in film a super fun time). But I have found enjoyment in revisiting images as they inspire me. Going forward I will continue to do just that. There is no benefit to me pushing myself to share images that I am not excited about. I am also setting the goal for myself to post to this website at least once a month with whatever I have been working on. So be sure to check back in coming months!

I have been enjoying seeing myself improve over the years, and I truly hope my progression continues with the new year. For all those who managed to read through my ramblings, I wish you all the best in 2020!

Middle of Nowhere House

Portra 400 ~ Mamiya RB67

Summer 2019

In the peak heat of summer, I stumbled upon an overgrown house whilst driving through the middle of nowhere. Though it looked pretty nondescript on the outside, curiosity got the best of me and I poked my head in. I haven’t encountered too many houses where most everything was left behind; I was very pleasantly surprised to be greeted by such large collections of books, teacups and treasures. However, between the oppressing heat and the wasps residing there, I wasn’t keen on overstaying my welcome. Revisiting this film now that it’s wintertime reminds me of my wanting to go back for a longer stay. I’ve toyed with the possibility of portraits here as well. I suppose only time will tell!

The Sad Rolls

Portra 400 / Portra 160 ~ Mamiya RB67

June 2019

Upon returning from one of our road trips in 2019, I could barely contain my excitement in getting my film developed. Travis and I had a wonderful time, and were thrilled with the opportunity to visit a few fun places. Little had I known, my 50mm lens had been having a malfunction in which the aperture ring was working inconsistently. Though it sounded like the camera was functioning normally, the aperture ring would snap right shut, letting in no light whatsoever. Of the two rolls of film taken (luckily at the tail end of our trip), and what should have been 20 exposures, these are the surviving few that were actually taken. The rest of the film was left entirely unexposed. Needless to say, I was awfully bitter about this, resulting the negatives sitting untouched for a good portion of the year. I have since deemed this set as being from “The Sad Rolls”.

Dog Days of Summer

Ilford HP5 / Ektar 100 ~ Nikon F5

July 2019

Since I was young, every year, my dad, aunt and uncle make a trip to Maine to relax and decompress. In my busy adult years I have been lucky to attend, even for a day or two. That was the case for me this year, as my weekends have been consumed by work. It was such lovely weather the days I spent up north, and it is always a pleasure getting together with the family (and their pups!)

Autumn Eternal with Danielle

Fomapan 200 / Ilford FP4 / Lomography 800 ~ Mamiya RB67

October 8, 2019

Danielle had reached out to me following a little creative funk I had been in. I hadn’t really created with anybody since the summertime and was eager to set up a couple fall shoots. I had been lucky to bring out my camera a few times to shoot some buildings, but otherwise, my portraits were in a bit of a standstill.

While I am based in Massachusetts, she was in Pennsylvania but we were both willing to do a bit of traveling to shoot together. I had known of a lovely fort in New York City, close to where my best friend had lived for a few years that was conveniently an equidistant drive for us both. I packed pretty heavy between my hefty film camera and a luggage filled with dresses and props, but Danielle was kind enough to lend a helping hand as we wandered the fort. This was a lovely day, and I was thrilled to have been brought out of my little funk.

Beach Day with Jess

Lomography Redscale @ 50 ~ Yashica D

Last week I was thrilled to get together with my friend Jess for a beach day! Quite honestly, I feel I have been slacking on summertime outings so getting out and about was much needed and very much appreciated. We were fully prepared for the beautiful sunny day with beach blankets, books, snacks and a bottle of rose. I brought my little Yashica D also for some impromptu photos; I will always have so much love for this camera as it’s what lead me into medium format. Sadly, it had been a little while since I’d last utilized it as I suspected (correctly as it turned out) that it had a small malfunction. Due to this, a few exposures did not make it onto this roll, but I’m pleased to see at least these few photos came out just fine. I was excited about the resulting cool tones from overexposing this film, and also about some of the multiple exposures I tried. Most of all, I was ecstatic to enjoy a wonderful day alongside such great company.

The Witching Hour with Caleigh

Lomography Redscale @ 100 & Catlabs 80

I was absolutely thrilled to collaborate with fellow film photographer and model Caleigh at her beautiful home in Providence. I had the opportunity to try two film stocks I had never previously used, but was so pleased with the results; I feel both films worked entirely well for this shoot. We spent the afternoon taking turns shooting each other and I feel we both got a lot out of the lovely set she created. Caleigh’s work is entirely inspiring and she remains someone I look up to in the photography world. I highly encourage checking out and supporting her art, and if you have the opportunity, absolutely shoot with her!

Self Portraits: A Series in Movement

Kodak Tri X 400 on Nikon F5

What started off as merely experimenting and pushing myself out of my comfort zone has blossomed into a series capturing movement in still frames. Recently this series has played an important roll in coping with my mental health. It has been a wonderful outlet to release emotion; there is something empowering about creating movements in front of a camera. Instead of feeding into my depression, I have been aiming to use it to fuel creation.

Multiple Exposures with Marianna

Ilford HP5 & Lomography 400 on Mamiya RB67

This May I had the pleasure of again working with the lovely Marianna. She was one of the first models I had the opportunity to photograph when I began diving into medium format in the fall of 2018. It is always a fantastic experience to create with her; she has been nothing but welcoming in my experimental processes, and I will be eager to see what we cook up the next time around.

Rachel & Patrick's Wedding

Lomography 400 on Nikon F5 & digital images on Canon 80D

My cousin Rachel got married in springtime and I was entirely honored to photograph the occasion. This was my second (and likely my last) wedding photography experience. And what a fantastic experience it was; I got to spend the day taking pictures of family and friends, and the rain even held out until just after the ceremony. Rachel and Pat are two of the kindest people I know and it really was a joyous occasion. Although wedding and event photography in general is not a genre I feel I excel in, I was happy with quite a few of the photos I took that day. These are a few of my favorites.

Colleen at the Hartford Manor

Ilford HP5 on Mamiya RB67

This spring I was invited by the fabulous Shannon to a group shoot in Hartford and by some miracle, I found last minute shift coverage at work so I could attend. I had the pleasure of meeting and shooting with some talented and empowering women including Colleen. She is not only a wonderful model, but very gifted photographer as well. Despite the initial hiccup of being locked outside the Airbnb, we all absolutely made the most of this location with the time we had. It was an excellent time with such a welcoming and lovely group of ladies. Colleen was a joy to collaborate with, and I hope to shoot with her again!

Self Portraits: Bloom

February 2019 - Double Exposed Lomography 100 on Canon AT-1

Shortly after Valentine’s Day, I noticed an influx of folks throwing away their drooping bouquets in my apartment building, leftover from the holiday. Regardless of not entirely knowing what I would do with them, I sent out a request that instead of tossing their dying flower arrangements, I could come and take them off people’s hands. Immediately I got a few responses and met a wonderful florist who resides on the other end of the building. He passed along a stunning bouquet that decidedly I shot an entire roll of film of later that day. After a few attempts with double exposures, I had been wanting to try a different technique: shooting through a roll, rewinding, and shooting images on top of the prior exposures. In my past experiences with 35mm double exposures, I hadn’t been pleased with how the images overlapped as it was difficult to physically hold the film in place while advancing frames (not to mention the hand cramps). I was hoping this technique would perfectly line each exposure on top of one another. Despite it not working out as intended, this roll of film has still been one of my favorites in the realm of multiple exposures.