Mikeinlagardette's photos with the keyword: foma

Another from the same test roll. Easy to include too much foreground when held vertically !! Kodak Vigilant 616 converted to 120. Foma 100 in divided D23

Once a busy station, this imposing building now handles very few trains each day, and the central freight track was lifted some years ago. This photo was developed in Caffenol - although I enjoy messing around with different developers, I sometimes return to using coffee as a developer - I simply like the novelty of it !! 1950's Ensign Selfix 16-20, f3.5/75mm Ross Xpres lens, x2 yellow filter. Foma 100@200 in Caffenol, 14mins @21C. Scanned @ 1200dpi on Epson V500

This church was built in the 13th century, but the tower and spire are later 15thC alterations. There is some speculation about why the spire is twisted, the most likely explanation being the use of unseasoned oak for the internal carpentry, combined with premature removal of the external scaffolding, but what is certain is that it was not intentional! This was taken on Foma 200 film, and developed in PC-Glycol and the result is a bit too "soot and whitewash" for my taste, although almost grain free. I scanned this neg at a higher resolution than normal, so it's a 32mb file which would result in an image over 2m wide if printed full size, and if you look at the original scan you will see why I like my old Kodak Tourist so much !! When the camera was built, it was unusual to make prints much bigger than about 6"x 3½", so the original owner could never have realised what this fine triplet lens was capable of! 1948 Kodak Tourist, f4.5/105mm Anaston lens, x2 yellow filter. Foma Ultra 200 in PC-Glycol, 8mins@21C. Scanned in 48bit colour@2400dpi on Epson V500

It is strange that France, which played such an important role in the development of photography, should have produced so few notable makes of cameras - but on reflection, I suppose one could say exactly the same of the British! Almost all French made medium format folding cameras were 6x9, there were a few 6x4.5, but I can think of no 6x6 French folders, although I'm sure there must have been some! This is a 6x9, a Kinax Junior, made by Société Industrielle de Photographie et d'Optique, Paris & Montreuil sous Bois, I think, in 1953. Well made and well finished, this version shared the same body as the more highly specified models, but has only a modest f6.3/100mm triplet lens in a simple 4 speed shutter, 1/10th to 1/150th + B. It uses 620 film, which is why I have only ever taken a few rolls of film with it, and the lens has a strange 29mm diameter mount for push on filters and hood, so I had to machine up a little adapter ring to allow the more normal 32mm fittings to be used. The camera is like new, seems to have been hardly ever used, and now I have sorted converting 120 to 620 without re-spooling, I will put another roll through it, but the f6,3 is a bit limiting, as is the top speed of 1/150th, so I'm not optimistic - really, just a Shelf Queen! Mamiya RB67, 645 back, f3.5/65mm Mamiya Sekor lens. Foma 100 in divided D23, 7+5 mins stand @21C, scanned @1200dpi on Epson V500.

Testing the strength of some old developer, I used some Foma R320. This is in divided Kodak D23, and although the film is inherantly very grainy, the effect is not so noticable as with some other developers. The tower of the church in Dun le Palestel, Creuse. This church was built between 1902 - 1908, and replaced an older church which was beyond repair. 1956 Agfa Karat IV, f2/50mm Solagon lens, x2 yellow filter. Foma R320 Soft, in divided D23 5+5mins @21C Scanned@1200dpi on Epson V500

Another picture taken before winter closed in! These deciduous ferns are prolific here, and in autumn turn to a golden yellow before returning to the earth. Hard to do with an old folder without a rangefinder - I didn't quite nail the focus, and at full aperture the DoF is tiny, and a slow shutter speed didn't help! 1942 Voigtlander Bessa 66, f3.5/75mm Heliar, X2 yellow filter. Foma Ultra 100 in PC-Glycol, 10 mins@21C Scanned@1200dpi on Epson500.

Almost the last days of November, and the air temperature was 19C when I took this near our house, and we still have a Castor Oil plant in flower in the garden! So much for the climate change deniers! From the first roll since I fitted a replacement bellows to the Ventura, my temporary repairs to the original had finally failed after five years. I used a bellows intended for a Kodak 66, which has a 75mm lens, so it is a little more extended on an 85mm lens, but they are otherwise identical and made from far better materials than the original Agfa, so make an ideal repair, which is quick and easy to do. 1953 Agfa Ventura 66 Deluxe. f4.5/85mm Solinar Lens, x2 Pictorial green filter. Foma Ultra100 in PC-Glycol, 8mins@21C Scanned on Epson V500 @1200dpi

A mild autumn has left many trees in leaf far later than usual, and these oaks are an example. The terrain in this part of Creuse is not suitable for large scale cereal growing - it is mainly beef farming country, so most of the fields are quite small, and many are still separated by hedgerows that are often hundreds of years old. My first efforts with PC-Glycol and medium format, - I was careless about the exposures, and the film was also over developed, but worth going on with! 1942 Voigtlander Bessa 66, f3.5/75mm Heliar lens, X2 yellow filter. Foma Ultra 100 in PC-Glycol, 10 mins@21C Scanned@1200dpi on Epson500.

Most rhododendrons and their cultivars have quite shiny leaves but this hybrid has leaves that seem as if they are covered in felt! I bought a few of them some years ago as small plants, I think the variety is "Red Jack", but I really can't remember Getting to like the Retro 320 in PC-Glycol - tried this with the 1+50, but I can't see much difference, except for shorter time of development! 1983 Mamiya ZM Quartz, f1.7/50mm Sekor lens, x2 yellow filter. Foma Retro320 Soft at EI 320, 6ml PC-Glycol, 0.5% sodium carbonate solution to 300ml + 0.5g potassium bromide. 8 mins @ 23C. Scanned at 2400dpi on Epson V500.

Here's another frame of Foma Retro 320 Soft, exposed at box speed, and developed in PC-Glycol. I used the 1+100 dilution for 11 minutes because the temperature was almost 23C, but I think 12 mins @21C is about right. I am encouraged by these tests, the film and developer seem well matched, it's a pity the film isn't available in 120. I'll try some other films in PC-Glycol and see how it turns out, - I added 0.5g/litre of potassium bromide to the sodium carbonate this time, because the previous roll of Retro 320 had a bit of fog, but it's probably unecessary with most films. 1983 Mamiya ZM Quartz, f1.7/50mm Sekor lens, x2 yellow filter. Foma Retro320 Soft at EI 320, 3ml PC-Glycol, 0.5% sodium carbonate solution to 300ml + 0.5g potassium bromide. 11 mins @ 23C. Scanned at 2400dpi on Epson V500.

Another example of a negative developed in PC-Glycol, this time using Foma Retro 320 Soft. I exposed this frame at EI 160, and used a 1+100 dilution and gave it 11 minutes This is the first time I have been happy with this film, - the developer brings out a nice glow, and the grain seems to be less intrusive compared to other developers I've tried, but still gives a pleasant vintage look. 1983 Mamiya ZM Quartz, f1.7/50mm Sekor lens, x2 yellow filter. Foma Retro320 Soft at EI 160, 3ml PC-Glycol, 0.5% sodium carbonate solution to 300ml. 10 mins @ 22C. Scanned at 1200dpi on Epson V500.

Chateau de La Roche. The Department of Creuse is not famous for it's chateaux - you need to go to the Loire to see the most beautiful examples, - but there are a few here, and this is an impressive building, by any standards Here is a view of the front facade of the chateau, which is surrounded by a very formal, strangely five-sided moat, ornamental, rather than defensive. The original building was built for Gabriel Foucauld, between 1533 and 1588, but only a little of this remains, and we are looking at a largely late 18thC rebuild, by the architect Pierre Berthomier, and the result of further restoration during the 19thC. Taken with a 1942 Voigtlander Bessa 66 some years ago, in fact the very first roll of film I exposed in the camera, which came from the late Robbe Keppens, in exchange for a very strange 35mm Agfa Flexilette! 1942 Voigtlander Bessa 66, f3.5/75mm Heliar lens, X2 yellow filter. Fomapan 100 @200 in Diafine, 4+4 mins @21C

The church of Saint Sulpice was built in Romanesque style in the 12th century, but has since been extensively altered, most notably by the the fortification of the choir and eastern gable sometime in the 14thC, and the construction of the massive tower around 1400. Like most of these small villages and towns in the area, the church is the dominant building, but there are quite a few other interesting old buildings in the town. More play with stand developing two baths, this time with the Kodak Tourist for transport! 1948 Kodak Tourist 120, f4.5/105mm Anaston lens, x2 yellow filter. Foma 400 in Thornton's Two Bath, 6 mins stand in A & B @21C Scanned @ 1200dpi on Epson V500.

Here is another of these elaborate dovecotes, this one in a nearby village . The house to which it belongs dates from the 18thC, so I imagine this is also of the same age. Quite why they were built in such an elaborate manner is a mystery, but they are very pretty, at least I think so! I tried developing this in Thornton's two bath without agitation, - just 30 seconds gentle inversions and then let stand for 6 1/2 minutes in bath A, drain and refill with B and stand for 5 minutes. The grain is smaller, but at the price of loss of edge definition, and the negs were a little over developed,so no real gain! Mamiya RB67 with 645 back, f4.5/65mm Sekor lens. Foma 100 in Thornton's 2 bath, 7+5mins @21C Scanned @1200dpi on Epson V500

That's enough railways - for now! Notre Dame de la Reconnaissance, seen from the market place. Most of my local pictures tend to be of older buildings, but this church is relatively modern, built between 1905 and 1908. It replaced an older church, which was apparently beyond reasonable repair. Taken with a 1948 Kodak Reflex II, a beautifully made American camera, the first production TLR to have a fresnel screen viewfinder, and razor sharp lenses of an unusual design - the fact that is 620 means it doesn't get used as often as a 120 camera might, but it's a pleasure to use. 1948 Kodak Reflex II, f3.5/80mm Anaston lens, x2 yellow filter. Foma 100 in divided D23, 5+5mins @21C. Scanned @1200dpi on Epson V500