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There are certain brand names in cameras and even models of cameras that carry a certain quality that goes along with it, and often the idea that the simple matter of owning one will improve the quality of your photographs by extension. One of those names is Leica. The Leica has been attached to many greats within the world of photography. The Barnack Leicas are among those cameras and have created great images in the hands of famous photographers. So I went into this and found a good camera at a fair price, but I soon found that maybe Leica wasn’t for me, having goneRead More →

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While many continued to use and love the all mechanical Nikon F2 the F3 was a departure of sorts for Nikon moving towards an electronic-based camera and a very stylish one at that. Designed by the noted industrial designer Giorgetto Giugiaro who introduced the red strip that still appears on Nikon SLRs today. This is the camera that got me back into semi-automatic manual focus photography after I received it as a gift from a photojournalist with a vast collection of lenses and the MD-4 motor drive. While heavily used, this camera has seen a lot of action in the past and continues to seeRead More →

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If there is an icon of Nikon’s durability and commitment to quality the Nikon FM2 is that camera. With one of the most extended production periods of any Nikon camera (1982-2001), the FM2 is a no-nonsense, mechanical camera that can take any punishment you throw at it. I picked up the FM2n originally as a gift to a friend, but quickly fell in love with the camera and promptly purchased an older FM for the friend and kept the FM2n for my own. The FM2n became a constant companion. The Dirt Make: Nikon Model: FM2n Type: 35mm, Single Lens Reflex Lens: Interchangeable, Nikon F-Mount Shutter:Read More →

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When it comes to cult cameras, I don’t think any company can compete with Olympus for the sheer number of models that have gained cult status before the current wave of point-and-shoot madness. You have the Mju (ยต) aka Stylus, Stylus Epic, the entire XA line, and then there’s this camera, the Trip 35. When it comes to sleek and stylish cameras not to mention easy to operate and compact the Trip 35 has all of that in spades. And it probably helped catapult the camera to fame with the support of David Bailey. My own journey into the Trip 35 started with the FilmRead More →

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Publisher, Parliamentarian, and Traitor, the strange case of Joseph Willcocks started in 1773, born in the Republic of Ireland, at the age of 27 the young man found his way to the town of York in Upper Canada. He soon found employment as the private clerk of the receiver general, Peter Russell, but it would not last, as Russell was not pleased with Willcocks’ advances towards his half-sister. But that did not stop Willcocks, who found another patron quickly in the form of the colony’s chief justice, Henry Allcock and with his influence was appointed to Home District Sheriff. However his views on the landRead More →

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Gordon Drummond was the first Canadian Born Governor General of British North America and Commander-In-Chief of the British forces in the colonies that made up the region. Born in Quebec City on the 27th of September, 1772 but returned to England following the death of his Father in 1780. Educated at the Westminster School and joined the army as an Ensign in 1789 in the 1st of Foot (Royal Scots). He rose through the ranks quickly, achieving the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel by 1794, and Major-General by 1805, having seen combat in the Netherlands, Mediterranean, and the West Indies. He married Margaret Russell in 1807. Drummond’sRead More →

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It ended with an explosion, but this is how it started, the sun creeping up over the historic fort, the trees, earthworks, masonry redoubts and blockhouses, tangled abatis, and rows of white tents. This was the scene early Saturday morning as nearly 1100 military reenactors started to crawl out of their tents and start to put on their uniforms, ready to put on a show the likes the site or the neighbourhood had ever seen. This year marks the 200th anniversary of the bloody siege of Fort Erie, the last major campaign on Canadian soil during the War of 1812. Sure, Plattsburg, Cooks Mills, Bladensburg,Read More →

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I’ve honestly smelled better in abandoned buildings than this dark brown, almost black solution sitting on the counter in my film lab (read: laundry room), but will it develop film, everything I’ve read and seen online says it well; my brain and nose say otherwise, and I pour it into the tank. So as I agitate the tank, I hope that this strange brew (with apologies to Bob & Doug McKenzie) does its job. So before I continue, let me answer the question that some of you may be asking, what exactly is caffenol? Caffenol is a film developer that you can make at homeRead More →

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One Hundred years earlier, a US Ship on the Canadian Shoreline was not a good thing, but in 1913, the crew of the US Coast Guard Light Vessel 82 (LV-82) was the only thing keeping sailors on Lake Erie and their demise. In November of 1913, nature unleashed her fury. A storm known as the White Hurricane swept through the great lakes region, causing a level of destruction on the lakes not seen in recent memory, yet the crew of LV-82 stayed. Their station, Point Abino, was known for its shallow shoals and dangerous waters. Standing at their station facing 80 miles per hour windsRead More →

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By the end of summer 1814, the jig was up for the American invasion. While they had managed to strike at the British and nearly pushed them off the Niagara peninsula again, the new commander-in-chief of the British forces in Upper Canada was going to have none of that. Following the quick movements, it all turned around at the Battle of Lundy’s Lane and General Drummond managed to push the Americans back to their beachhead at the now heavily fortified Fort Erie where the Americans had started not a month earlier. And Drummond would begin his siege that would lead up to one of theRead More →