I took up photography as a hobby, not labelling myself as a photographer. So I will not do an in-depth review of this film stock by Ilford. I don’t think I have taken many black-and-white photos, perhaps because I am worried I cannot compose the picture nicely. Think about it: there are no colours to draw attention to. But as a challenge to myself, I decided to try two rolls of it to improve my composition.
I have tried a few black-and-white films before, and I was bummed when I got back my last roll of black-and-white because the grains were so rough, and I couldn’t make out what I was taking. I was, of course, very disappointed and didn’t dare to attempt any more black-and-whites. But I was very relieved when I got my scans back. I was immediately drawn to how small the grains were and how soft the highlights were. Even when there isn’t much natural light, the film held up pretty well. Images from this film stock are also incredibly sharp, even when paired with a point-and-shoot. As a hobbyist, it’s sufficient for me, and I love it.
I did say this is not a film review, so I will stop talking about my thoughts on this film stock. In other news, I am now months into the third year of my PhD program! While I am glad to be titled ‘PhD candidate’ and not ‘student’, I am obliged to write more academic papers and run more experiments and analyses. That is why folks at Apartment coffee (following three pictures) will be so sick of me. Perhaps it is their coffee and hot chocolate that are increasing my levels of inspiration or that I love to work anywhere but in the office; I am always so productive at the Apartment. I never thought I would come this far academically, but I cannot picture myself working either—adulting problems.
While expanding the types of pictures I take, like incorporating a lot more humans, I still love taking pictures of weird inanimate things that look like they don’t belong there—for example, mannequins, abandoned trolleys, and empty chairs. I often wonder what GrainsandSuch would think of me whenever they develop and scan my photos. That said, I am glad I find joy in taking pictures. I am exploring my neighbourhood a little bit more, trying to observe things around me, and thinking a lot more about composition. Like I’ve said before, I think I was upset at how unintentional I was with every frame I took with my DSLR.
So I am obviously still terrible with blogging, so I will leave you here and share the remaining pictures I wanted to share with you. Next time I will most likely share my trip to Phuket and Bali in December (more on that next time).
