It’s hard to believe it’s been five years today since I married my best friend. I don’t often put a lot of my personal life here on my blog, but today is a special day so it deserves something special. And since photography has always intertwined in my relationship with my wife it only makes sense to put it here on our fifth wedding anniversary. I guess it all started on a rainy day in Arras. So today I present a set of photos from the past five years of our marriage and the adventures we have had together! And while we haven’t been ableRead More →

When it comes to Film Washi, they certainly have gotten their hands on some interesting film stocks. And after enjoying some of their products last year, one of their products I’ve wanted to try. But with any repurposed film stock, you have to wait for the raw materials to become available. Thankfully after watching out on the Film Photography Project’s store I saw them come back in stock thanks to their email newsletter. Type “F” is a special X-Ray film used for mass lung disease diagnoses; according to the Film Washi website, it is truly a unique film that offers, coated without an anti-halation layer,Read More →

Heading into the big city is a rarity these days between no major events running yet and mainly shooting for review purposes and parenthood. My travel circle is limited these days, not that I’m complaining. But having a random mid-week trip into Toronto with a bit of free time allows me to get out, stretch my legs and camera gear and head out for some enjoyment of the craft. It also helped that I was again shooting for the Embrace the Grain film of the month challenge, which for March was Kentmere 100. So I packed two rolls of film, two cameras, and two lenses.Read More →

It’s not often that something new hits the market, especially something that comes out of Canada. If you haven’t heard of Flic Film, that’s okay; I only recently discovered this Canadian film lab out of Alberta in 2021. They mainly focus on selling rebranded motion picture films, the Eastman Vision3 series and Eastman Double-X; they have a chemistry production side. But their chemistry has a twist; they’re working on making it more environmentally safe. And that should come as no surprise given they are based out of Alberta with many rural properties and reliance on septic systems. And that is where Black/White & Green (B/WRead More →

When I was starting to shoot film seriously, I stuck mainly to negative colour stock but started experimenting with black & white, but slide film was something that I avoided. Slide film was for professional photographers or travel photographers who wanted to share their trips on a slide projector. My first experience with slide film was Fuji Sensia and I was hooked. So I decided to jump right into the iconic Fuji slide film, Velvia. The original Kodachrome killer, and yet I only started shooting the stock after it got discontinued, the first roll running through my camera in 2009. Film Specs Type: Colour ReversalRead More →

There’s something special about arriving before the crowds do. When it comes to Toronto Distillery District Christmas Market, that is key to capturing both the space and the decorations. So for the final week, I ducked into Toronto in the early morning and wandered around the area before heading home and to the family times of the Christmas Season, and it seemed to be the appropriate way to end the project. If you’ve spent any time in Toronto or are in some way involved with the arts scene, there is a good chance the Distillery District is a familiar sight. In 1831, James Wort, aRead More →

When it comes to metering for precision, there is nothing better than a spot meter, but most spot meters these days are expensive, both new and on the used market. The first and only spot meter I’ve used is the Pentax Spotmeter V. This analogue 1° spot meter has become the accessory that always gets thrown in my bag when I’m out with my Crown Graphic Hasselblad or Mamiya for precision tripod-based work. The meter served me through almost my entire War of 1812 project, Canadian Confederation and most recently, the Railway project. A simple easy to use device that allowed me to execute aRead More →

It’s funny that for this year’s 52-roll project, the city of Toronto that has in the past featured prominently has taken more of a minor role this time around. With all the restrictions placed on us this year, I have found myself purposefully avoiding the city. But when my friend John Meadows asked me to be a part of his project, I jumped on a visit to Toronto. After spending time at The Only, I decided to take the hour and a half walk from Greektown on the Danforth to downtown Toronto to stock up on supplies at Downtown Camera. Having already told the grandRead More →

And now for something completely different. I know I’m better known for my reviews of film-based cameras, but I have reviewed a digital camera here before, back when I got the camera that this one replaced. In fact, the Nikon D750 marks two, not three things. First, it marks a return to an SLR as my digital camera; second, it marks the return to the Nikon Digital system. And finally, a digital camera that I like using a lot. It’s not to say the a6000 was an unenjoyable camera to operate; the only complaint was that the system continued to be limited. Yes, I couldRead More →

I kept typing the title “If I left the Zoom”, which is also appropriate these days, but there’s nothing to do with Zoom this week. Instead, the title comes from the third studio album from one of my favourite bands, Jars of Clay. But like zoom, this week also has nothing to do with Jars of Clay. Instead, we’re heading to the Toronto Zoo. The Toronto Zoo is a spot I haven’t been to since my last 52-Roll project on an early date with my (then future) wife, Heather. The first Zoo in the city of Toronto was the Riverdale Zoo that opened in 1873.Read More →