I don’t NEED another camera. I really don’t, and I keep telling myself that, but it never seems to work! When the Fujifilm X-T50 mirrorless digital camera came along in June 2024, it just tugged at my heartstrings so much, I knew that one day my resolve would weaken… So, I’ve got one, despite the fact that I’ve already got an X-T3 and an X-T5. (And of course, a half dozen or more film cameras). Overkill, some might say. My self-justification for the purchase, and I suppose, my excuse to finally yield to the temptation came when the price of a new X-T50 camera body dropped from £1299 to £1149.
Fujifilm X-T50, fitted with an 18-135 f/3.5 – f/5.6 Fujinon lens, and a leather half-case for protection.
This project was about evangelicalism in Northern Ireland. Up to this point, I had been looking at how the secularisation of society had impacted on evangelical beliefs, practices and worship styles, in the evident decline of the mission-hall culture in the province. But how are the evangelicals striking back? There are a number of different answers to that question, but at least in Northern Ireland, one of the most visible ‘attacks’ on secularism, historically and consistently used by evangelicals and fundamentalists is the strange practice of nailing messages to trees throughout the countryside. A number of these placards had been erected around the Ards Peninsula.
Introducing another of my eclectic camera collection, – meet the iconic Agfa Karat 36, a strut-folding 35mm camera.
This cute little camera is no lightweight, not in performance, and not in bodyweight! Made of metal, the camera was German produced and made to last! It made its first appearance around 1935, and was discontinued in the 1950s. The original Karats used a specially fitting film cartridge, but from 1948 the design changed allowing the camera to use standard 35mm film cassettes. Mine is the latter.
It must have been around 2005 when I visited the home of Belfast artist Denis Johnston and viewed some of his paintings. Denis lives in Belfast and was a member of the same church as me at that time, and so I would have visited him on occasions, but on this particular visit he showed me some of the art he had showed on display in an exhibition. The imagery was stunning, with amazing technique and beautiful scenery. Yet my eye was continually drawn to one particular painting, and I couldn’t resist expressing my admiration for it. It wasn’t a beautiful landscape or an amazing sunset or mists rolling across a lake, – it was a small section of Regent Street in Newtownards, with a pedestrian crossing and a big dark shadow, and some old, and entirely unremarkable buildings. Thousands of people must walk past it every week. Yet I couldn’t take my eyes off it! Why? Just because it made me feel that I was right there! It had a ‘sense of place!’ It told me about the place, gave me a sense of ‘belonging’ to it, drew my mind visually into the picture.
The popularity of running as a leisure activity is growing exponentially. And runners seem to actually like being photographed.
I’ve been photographing these athletes for around five years now, and I use the Fujifilm X-T5, with a 100-300mm lens. I open the lens aperture to its fullest extent, which at 300mm is around f5.6, which reduces the depth of field and give a nice bokeh effect in the background. I set the shutter speed to 1/500th sec to freeze the movement, and that usually means an ISO of 1600 or thereabouts, – depending on the light quality, of course.
Yet one more of my personal vintage camera collection…
The ‘Vest Pocket Camera’
These tiny folding bed cameras had a unique feature – the “Autographic Back,” perhaps the first primitive version of a data-back! There was a slot in the back of the camera, that could be opened by the photographer, to allow them to write the date of exposure on the back of the film.
Yet another in my occasional series featuring cameras in my rather eclectic collection! This time it’s the MicroPress 4×5 Large Format Press Camera,
Another one of my antique camera collection. The MicroPress 4×5 Large Format camera from around 1950. It’s hard to believe this monster was designed for use by press photographers on location. The images, though were high definition and amazing quality. Photographed under studio lights with the slightly less antique Fujifilm X-T3. More images…
Iv’e run my first roll of Kodak T-Max 100 film through my Nikon F100 camera, on a recent two night break on the North Coast of Northern Ireland – the world renowned ‘Causeway Coast.’ The scenery in this area is spectacular, but on a rainy November weekend, with a strong wind blowing in from the sea, cheesy tourism like images are scarce! But I managed a few black and white…
I’ve just run a roll of ADOX Black and White film (ISO100) through my Nikon F100 camera. I’ve never used Adox film before, in fact I’ve never even heard of it! I ordered two rolls, one rated at ISO100, and one at ISO50 from Stuck in Film.
German precision and style in the shadow of Belfast’s famous heavy industry, the old Harland and Wolff cranes that overlook the city. Photographed with the Nikon F100 on Adox ISO100 and developed in Atomal for 10 minutes.
Isn’t it great when you shoot them and they have both feet off the ground. Incidentally, this image was made at a distance of around 150 yards from camera position.
For those who like to know these things, the image was shot at F=290mm, f/5.6 @ 1/500th second on ISO500. The aperture was wide open to allow a shallow depth of field, hence the bokeh (the fall-off in focus) visible on the ground, while the faster shutter speed froze the feet in a fraction of a second – a moment in time. The ISO was set at 500 to achieve a 1/3rd stop over-exposure, and CLICK.
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