Interlude from San Francisco - September 2011

So work has been crazy  busy and I had absolutely no time to do any posting for a while, or anything else for that matter. In the mean time, I got hold of a Yashica Mat and ran a couple of test rolls through it while I was doing my daily commute.

Yashica Mat LM, Kodak TriX 400 El 1600

 The mess at work and the legal drug.
 

Yashica Mat LM, Kodak TriX 400 El 1600

 The light at the end of the tunnel... belongs to a train.

Yashica Mat LM, Kodak TriX 400 El 1600

The religion.

Yashica Mat LM, Kodak TriX 400 El 1600

The concentration.

Yashica Mat LM, Kodak TriX 400 El 1600

The squeeze.

Yashica Mat LM, Kodak TriX 400 El 1600

 The wait.

Yashica Mat LM, Kodak TriX 400 El 1600

The splash.

I love the square format. There is just something amazingly well-balanced with each composition.

I also love the fact that with even a cheap scanner, I can get 160 megapixels out of a single negative. Yes, you read that right. 160 megapixels.

Total investments: about $400.

One up for analog.

San Francisco - Metreon - May 2011 (23)

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

San Francisco - Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial (22)

Martin Luther King's legacy, just like Madiba's, is an inspiration to people of all races.

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

San Francisco - Reflections: Oche Wat Te Ou (21)

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

There is this pond in the middle of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in the heart of San Francisco. This is my selfportrait of the trip. This reflects my mood at the time (excuse the pun).

They say that when one travels solo, one discovers more about one's self.

They also say that as a photographer matures, their photos start to take on a new perspective. Whereas new photographers try to mimic others' work and present their work as something that would please the crowd, the more mature photographers present work that convey emotions. Their emotions. Their very own.

What does this photo say about me? Confusion? Faceless? Undiscovered?

San Francisco - Daytrip to Yosemite National Park, May 2011 (20)

My day trip to Yosemite National Park. I reserved my solitary roll of colour film for this location, because I wanted to capture the lush greens. Then my 24 hour lab's machine broke and could not process my C41 film. Then I lost the film somewhere along the way to the next lab.

I suppose now I have to look in the S90 shots for the crappy greens.

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

San Francisco - Golden Gate Bridge & Alcatraz Island, May 2011 (19)

The most famous landmarks in San Francisco!

The tourist in me told me that I had to do the tourist thing of walking across the bridge. And I followed that instinct. Problems:
1. I busted my knee doing a run in SF that morning. This proved to be a bad idea - the hills in the SF area are not knee friendly and I had to spend most of the day limping around.
2. The intention was to walk across and then take a bus back. There was no bus back.
3. It started raining when I reached the other side.
4. It started getting dark when I reached the other side.
5. There were no cabs neither.
6. Good thing that there were no cabs -- there was a serious accident on the bridge so all traffic stopped for over two hours. I would have had to fork out like $200 to sit on the bridge in traffic -- sometimes, blessings come in weird packages.


Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*




Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

 Alcatraz Island


Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*



San Francisco - California Academy of Sciences, May 2011 (18)

The Academy of Science also has a living roof. This has certainly taken green living to a whole new level.

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*





San Francisco - California Academy of Sciences, May 2011 (17)

I always found science centres to be amusing. There is always the opportunity to interact with something. In this case, there is a four-story dome where the biosphere of a rainforest is replicated.

It has certainly put me off going to the Amazon Rainforest.



Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

There was also an awesome aquarium. 

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

San Francisco - de Young Museum Fine Arts Museum, May 2011 (16)

I don't usually go to museums. I can never find the patience to look at the description of each item. Whatever descriptions they do provide tend to be on the thin side - not enough to enthus. But there are also too many items and short descriptions to look at - to many to remember. Kind of like the overloading of crappy information that we are exposed to every day.

But then again, I enjoy museums - they are always quiet and allow people to procrastinate in peace. They also allow people like me to watch other people procrastinate.

It also doesn't hurt to be surrounded by the work of the old masters, however little I understand their motivations for creating their lives' work.



Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*




Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*




Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*




Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*




Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*




Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*



San Francisco - Bay-to-Breakers, May 2011 (15)

The Bay-to-Breakers race is a 12km race across San Francisco, from the easter end to the western end, ending in the Golden Gate Park. The not-so-serious contestants dress up for the race and soak in the relaxed atmostphere.

It's wonderful to be able to slow it down, to soak it in.

Bull

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

Jane of the jungle.


Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

 They were meant to be something.


Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

"Optimus Prime"


Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

 They were meant to be something too.


Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

 Homecoming queens?


Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*




Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*





Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*



San Francisco - Pier 39 Blues, May 2011 (14)

This guy was good.

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

San Francisco - Pier 39 Crab House, May 2011 (13)

I don't mind spending everyday
Out on your corner in the pouring rain
Look for the girl with the broken smile
Ask her if she wants to stay awhile

Maroon 5

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

San Francisco - Pier 39, May 2011 (12)

Ever find that it's getting harder and harder to breathe? That extra O2 certainly helps to put a smile on peoples' faces. What else are they pumping in that air?

Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*

When it gets cold outside and you got nobody to love
You'll understand what I mean when I say
There's no way we're gonna give up
And like a little girl cries in the face of a monster that lives in her dreams
Is there anyone out there 'cause it's getting harder and harder to breathe
Is there anyone out there 'cause it's getting harder and harder to breathe

(Maroon 5)



Kodak TriX400 in HC-110 (1+31) 6.5min, Leica M6 + Zeiss 50mm Planar T*