Random Notes

Most of my projects are shot on film. I started shooting film in 2024 and have continued ever since. While I own a few digital cameras for snapshots, I prefer the process of shooting film.

For trips, film can be cumbersome, so I tend to shoot a mix of both formats or go fully digital.

For 35mm film, most images are captured on a Canon A-1 with a Canon 50mm f/1.8 FD Mount lens, though I occasionally use other lenses. You might also come across the occasional frame from a random point-and-shoot.

Prior to March 2025, my 120 film shots were taken with the Fujica GW690, which has a fixed 90mm f/3.5 lens. Anything after that was likely shot on the Mamiya RB67 Pro-S. I meter my 120 film using Ansel Adams’ zone system and a Minolta Spotmeter F.

Both development and scanning are done at home. I use the Cinestill C-41 kit for color negative film and Ilford Ilfosol 3 at various dilutions for black-and-white film. 35mm scans are done with either a Plustek OpticFilm 7600i scanner or a DIY copy-stand setup consisting of a Cinestill CS-Lite as a light source, a Canon EOS Rebel SL1, and a vintage Vivitar Macro 55mm f/2.8 1:1 lens.

120 film is scanned using the same copy-stand setup, but since the negatives are larger, multiple shots of different sections of the frame are taken and stitched together in Photoshop or Lightroom. Negative scans are converted using the Negative Lab Pro Lightroom plugin, followed by minor adjustments to white balance, exposure, sharpening, contrast, dust removal, and any other small refinements as needed.