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Whenever I think I have gotten to know what each photography company has to offer, I’m always surprised when something new comes across my desk. I always figured that Foma produced films and clones of other developers. But when someone commented on an earlier review about Fomadon LQN, I started to think that maybe other developers weren’t cloned available. Sadly I couldn’t get Fomadon LQN from my usual source (but a review is coming); the source did have LQR. So I grabbed a bottle, thinking there might be something to Foma developers. LQR is the high-contrast brother to LQN, and after my good luck withRead More →

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The gift of a Nikon F80 kickstarted my deep dive into photography and a return of film as a medium in my toolkit. With the F80 came a selection of lenses; some were good, and others were cheap. And only one of the lenses (AF Nikkor 35mm f/2D) I got with that F80 remains intact in my kit today. But there was one lens from that kit that I missed the most, the AF Nikkor 24mm f/2.8D. As I mentioned in last month’s lens review, the D-Type lenses can carry a high price on the used market, but the Non-D lenses can be had forRead More →

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I’m a big fan of prime lenses; they have always been a go-to for working with SLRs. And I have many options for my auto and manual focus Nikon kits. And while I have all my preferred focal lengths in my manual kit, I have been lacking a couple of options in my autofocus kit. Sure I have two fantastic zoom lenses with missing focal lengths, but they are both heavy and awkward to bring along when size matters. The problem is that even today, AF-D lenses can fetch a high price on the used market. So when someone offered up a couple of second-generationRead More →

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When it comes to Minolta and Konica, both had terrific optical quality throughout their run as separate companies, but at some point in the merger is where they started to lose a little steam. And while there were still some winners, there were also some troublesome lenses. No company can be 100% perfect all the time when it comes to optics. Sure, the Nikon Series E had some winning glass, but that line also had some bad lenses. This is the second Konica-Minolta lens I’ve reviewed, and it is not what I was expecting, and that’s not a good thing. I got this lens asRead More →

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There have been a lot of great releases of developers onto the market of late, including refreshes and clones of some of my favourites. And this won’t be the last time you see a clone of a beloved developer in this series. But with the dull grey days of winter starting to pile on, now is the time to begin using developers designed to help push development and ensure your fast films keep their fine grain. But there’s something that sets Bellini EcoFilm developer apart from other Xtol clones, such as Adox XT-3, which is that the concentrate comes in liquid form rather than powder.Read More →

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I love a good wide-angle lens, and while I have two excellent options in my A-Mount kit, the 17-35mm and the 28mm f/2.8, sometimes you want something a touch wider and in a fast prime. So I kept my eyes out for a 24mm f/2.8 and jumped when I came across one for a good price. I was not disappointed at all; this is a fantastic lens and one that will be used much more than the 28mm when photographing landscapes and urbanscapes. Lens Specifications Make: Minolta Model: Maxxum AF 24mm 1:2.8 Focal Length: 24mm Focal Range: ∞ – 0.25m Aperture: f/2.8 – f/22, 7Read More →

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I know, I know. I said I was happy with the Maxxum 50/1.7. But I’ve had a few people comment on that post on how the 50mm f/1.4 is a much sharper lens. The trouble is that a fast prime is often more expensive, but I got a good deal on this one, so who was I to say no? And you know, this lens lives up to everything that folks say about the glass. It’s a clean and professional with nothing overly special about it and delivers quality no matter what situation or aperture you throw its way, plus it behaves much better thanRead More →

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I seem to be developing a soft spot for cheap and cheerful SLRs from the 1990s and early 2000s. These may not be the best or most robust cameras out there, but they aren’t hard on the pocketbook, make use of existing lens systems and deliver decent images without too much fuss. Plus, they make great loaner kits for those who want to try film photography but don’t want to invest in something or worry about all the details, such as manual focus or exposure. Well, meet the EOS 3000; you could almost say that this was the entry-level SLR that perfected Canon’s entry-level SLRsRead More →

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When it comes to fast Nikon Zooms, the modern trinity is the 14-24/2.8G, 24-70/2.8G and 70-200/2.8G (although I’m sure these have all been updated to the new E-Type lenses by this posting). However, a pair of these lenses have older versions; while the focal lengths are different, the constant f/2.8 aperture is the same. Now in my own lens catalogue I have only a pair of the G-Type in the trinity, the 14-24 and 70-200, but the cost of the 24-70 plus the word being it doesn’t work too well with film (I’ll have to test that) kept me from purchasing the lens. But theRead More →

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When it comes to Ilford developers here in North America, we have access to most of their chemical stocks. But there is one that is a bit of a unicorn, and that is Ilfotec LC29, and I can’t see why! This is a developer that, despite being close to Ilfotec HC, does not produce images in line with what Ilfotec HC produces, and it is far easier to pour than Ilfotec HC! I splashed it a little bit at how easily it flowed. Right from the start, I knew I had a winner here in LC29 and feel bad that it isn’t readily available hereRead More →