Of the four fathers of confederation, I’ve explored in these blog posts the one with the strangest story, and the youngest in both age and political experience is Thomas D’Arcy McGee. Born the 13th of April 1825 in Carlingford, County Louth, Ireland. Raised by Irish Roman Catholic Patriots, much of his early education came from his mother, who as a Dublin Bookseller filled McGee with the stories of the Irish heroes of old. His knowledge continued in the illegal Hedge Schools where he learned of the past and ongoing struggles for Irish independence from British Occupation. His experience continued when his family moved to WexfordRead More →

When it comes to political change in Canadian history, there has always been two behind any major change. Robert Baldwin and Louis La Fontaine for example, and while George Brown would play a major role it would be George-Étienne Cartier who would provide political support to John A MacDonald but ensure that French-Canadien culture would not be lost. Born the 6th of September 1814 in Sainte-Antonie-sur-Richelieu in Lower Canada. Baptised with the name George in honour of King George III. But George’s family already had a long history in the new world, even claiming relation to Jacques Cartier (although there is no evidence to supportRead More →

The strange part about the arrival of democracy or somewhat responsible government in Canada is that it was not something won by force of arms or through negotiation; instead this first step towards self-government and limited autonomy is one that was granted to the provinces of the Empire in a change of public opinion. By 1848, it no longer made sense to hold onto the empire in the manner that still dated to the 18th Century, even though the Colonial Office and Parliament had tried hard for many years. You have to remember the 1840 Act of Union still found it’s foundation in the 1791Read More →

Like Robert Baldwin, Louis Hypolite-La Fontaine is a figure in Canadian History that I have never learned about or even knew existed until I started researching this project. And even then, he nearly ended up playing a secondary role in my narrative. I quickly realised that if I had done that it would have done a great disservice to his role in Canadian History and his foundational efforts from the run-up to the Lower Canada Rebellions and into the establishment of Responsible Government and the unified reform movement in the Province of Canada. Born the 4th of October, 1807 the fourth son of a BouchervilleRead More →

Often overlooked by many photographers in favour of Portra 400, Portra 160 is a different film altogether and one that is not a particular favourite of mine. Part of the early resurgence of film from Kodak that brought us Ektar 100 and Portra 400. Portra 160 is the combination of the two early films Portra 160NC and 160VC. As the name suggests, the film is designed primarily for Portraits and presents a low contrast almost pastel look a clear departure from the vibrant colours you get from Ektar 100. Film Specs Type: Colour Negative, C-41 Process Film Base: Acetate Film Speed: ASA-160, Latitude +/- 2-StopsRead More →

If you remember back to my review of the new release of Kodak TMax P3200 I mentioned that I wanted to give the film stock a better chance at impressing me, the review is a chance to see how the film behaves in different developers. I’d give it a chance to show me what it can do at 1600, 3200, and 6400 but all developed in Kodak’s TMax developer. The 3200 images are from the original review, so I made a point to get another two rolls and shoot them accordingly and then develop them both in TMax Developer. Please note, I use the termRead More →

The reintroduction of TMax P3200 had a bit of a polarizing effect on the film photography community. Many welcomed it back, seeing this as a positive step for Kodak, a teaser before they get the new Ektachrome back on shelves and in cameras. Others were rather derisive on the move, decrying it wanting films like Plus-X back before a high-speed film because we still have Ilford Delta 3200 and it comes in Medium Format as well! I took a more balanced approach, I’ve only really shot high-speed films a few times, but I figured hey, might as well give it a go. I had shotRead More →

So what happens when you put the two ASA-3200 speed films against each other? Well, you have the 3200 club. As everyone knows, Kodak this year re-released their TMax P3200 film and while Ilford has always maintained their Delta 3200 films, I decided in light of having reviewed both films, to compare the two. Now, this blog isn’t designed to speak to which one is better than the other. Because there’s already too much of that in the Photographic community as a whole. To start off what do the two film stocks have in common? Well, both are a modern T-Grain emulsion, where the silverRead More →

While not many people would notice it, but when watching a film, and you come across this amazing sequence in black & white, the rich tones across the board, and just a classic cinematic look and wonder, how can I make my still images look that good! Well if you are watching a film shot on traditional film stock the answer is rather easy, Eastman Double-X 5222. Chances are you’ve seen a film shot on this stock, such as the opening sequence of Casino Royale or Shindler’s List. I first came across Double-X a few years back when I purchased some rolls through the FilmRead More →

The middle-of-the-road film stock in the RPX line and another fantastic entry. Like RPX 25, RPX 100 is the spiritual successor to Agfa APX 100. While I don’t have much experience with APX 100 (I have about 50 sheets of the stuff in 4×5), the film is similar in look to Kodak TMax 100. And actually, you can use some of the TMax 100 times with RPX 100. While it’s no FP4+, I actually think RPX 100 is slightly better than Kodak TMax 100 mostly because of the huge latitude on the film, in fact, you can even do the Panatomic-X trick and shoot theRead More →