What’s there to say about a camera that you can sling over your shoulder, take everywhere, and nearly forget about? The Hexar AF was like this. Mercifully too big to be stuck in a pocket, but just right for hanging from a diagonally worn strap, for riding in that spot in your back just below the tail end of your ribs. Somewhat quirky handling. Sometimes frustrating focussing errors due to parallax and an indiscriminate focussing spot, issues only partially overcome by switching to EVF mode. No real spot meter though, or at least not one that I’ve been able to find, although I’m still discovering things. Great lens.

I like it.

But I haven’t taken that many pictures with it yet. Not entirely the camera’s fault. Once I’d decided that it was competent, and that it wouldn’t annoy me, I found myself buying the glass negative carrier for my Coolscan 9000. The X100 calmed what had been a nagging fear that photography was pretty much going to suck for me once film was gone. It won’t. It won’t be the same, but it will still be fun. And knowing that has given me permission the continue fiddling while Rochester burns. I’ll continue playing with the X100, but there’s pile of film in the cabinet and freshly cleaned Mamiya waiting.

My Iceland set is now up on Flickr. A couple of quick notes:

1) I dislike Delta 3200 in 120. I’m fine with the grain, but it just seems a little flat.
2) Traveling with the RF645 is easy.
3) Wear one, pack two.
4) 15 minutes floofering around in the wind, cold & rain will make you ponder the value of very expensive tripod heads.
5) My tall Paterson tank leaks at the joint between the black plastic and the orange lip.
6) Rotational agitation alone is not sufficient to ensure even development of two rolls of 120.
7) I’m still struggling with some 120 scanning artifacts, namely a dark band on the edges of the film perpendicular to the scan path. I’ve talked to Ed Hamrick, but he’s stumped and so am I.
8) It take a long time to develop 14 rolls of 120 in a single roll tank.
9) I’ve ordered an X100.
10) You should listen to Neil Tyson’s inteview with Moby on Startalk Radio. Gray goo is where it is at.
11) Frank Petronio might be onto something.

One from a whole roll shot wide open on the CV 1.4 SC. See the rest here. Still working on developing and scanning Iceland.

Þórsmörk Glacier Valley

Kate and I spent the week of Thanksgiving in Iceland. Great time, lots of photos, very relaxing, only a little bit of snow. I’ve already started developing and scanning, but it will likely be near Christmas before I’m done with the photos. Not much activity on the blog until then. Happy holidays.