Heptonstall - Still Messing with Film

I think I wrote previously that I had been ill for several months this year and this has taken its toll on my productivity levels.  A quick way of telling how little work I have done is the amount of film I have lying around.  I still have the majority of my stock of Superia 400 waiting to be used on Laundry; I've got several rolls of Fujicolour 200 and a roll of FP4+ rolling around my camera bag.  There is also nearly a full box of 4x5 sheet film still sat in the fridge.  On top of this I had a part used roll of Ilford's FP4+ in my K1000.  In fact it had been in there quite a while.  It was time to use it up.

I decided I would have a little trip to the nearby village of Heptonstall.  I had been meaning to do this for ages.  So while I had a roll of film to use on nothing in particular, I thought I would take a visit.

Heptonstall is quite a large village on the Yorkshire side of the border with Lancashire.  As far as remote goes in England it is quite remote being, that it is set quite high up in the Pennines  and is quite distance from any major towns or cities.   This probably one the reasons that it has stayed the way it has for many a year.

Even being so close to where I live and work, I had never heard of it until a couple of years ago.  Heptonstall first came into my consciousness through the work of Fay Godwin.  Godwin struck up a life long friendship with poet Ted Hughes.  Hughes collaborated with Godwin on a book of poems and photographs entitled The Remains of Elmet.  The poems were a reflection of Hughes' growing up and life in Heptonstall which lies in the ancient former kingdom of Elmet.  Each poem was accompanied by one of Godwin's' photographs.  The combination of these two extrodinary talents meant that visiting Heptonstall would appear on my to do list.  It would be remiss of me to mention that Heptonstall is also the final resting place of American poet and Hughes' wife, Sylvia Plath.

As it turned out this wouldn't be the last time that Hughes would have an influence on me.  His collaboration with another photographer, Peter Keene on River would lay the foundation stones for my project The River (more on this in the very near future).

Anyway, I managed to find a bit of time to visit and I have to admit I found the place captivating.  It certainly lends itself to photography and in particular film photography.  The centre of the village could be straight out of 1940's inspired film set.

It’s definitely a place that I must visit again and spend a bit more time photographing.  The shots into this post were shot on FP4+ rated at 50 ASA and developed in D74.

Being Multi-disciplined

Most photographers have a passion for one particular area or genre of photography, others try a bit of everything and as a result of this master any.

I like trying new things.  I like trying new techniques but I quickly find that I'm bored and return to my two favourite disciplines, nature (in this I include landscape and wildlife) and documentary.  I just guess it is where I am comfortable, where I am home.

Finding Treasure

Roe Lee Park Pavilion - Pracktica MTL3.

Ilfodata B, ASA 25, f16. Developed in Rodinol1:300, 30 minutes

A while ago I was given a box of old photography junk.  Most people would have thrown it away but I had a rumage through it and found some useful stuff.  Some I'm actually using!  A couple of old bakelite 35mm developing tanks, bits of measuring stuff, some reusable 35mm film canisters (for hand rolling.  Film not tobacco!) and a couple of rolls of Ilford HP5+; all good usable stuff.

There was also a sealed tin with white tape round it.  On the tin it was marked Ilfodata B made by Ilford.  If what was on the tin was right, this was 100ft of 35mm film.  Guess what? I was quite excited!

Off in to the reading room, I mean darkroom, I mean bathroom (it's multi-functional!).  I shut the door and carefully opened the tin and sure enough, there in the dark, I could feel a roll of film!!!  So I snipped a bit off and rolled a short length.  I gave this to Bob to have a play with.  He's more experienced than me with weird stuff.

After searching the internet we could not find any information on this.  We found one article on Ilfodata HS something or other which was made by Ilford for copying documents.  We had an inkling that the film we have is for something similar.

So we were still in the same boat.  We had absolutely no information about this film; what it’s ASA (ISO) rating was, how to shoot with it or even how to process it.  Bob thought it might be ‘contrasty’ with being a document film but also thought that the developer pyrocat would sort it out.

Assuming that this was the last 100ft of this film in existence (that we know of.  There is none on eBay or in of the places where we know to get weird stuff from) we thought we should contact Ilford and see what information they held.

They basically knew as much as we did.  They thought it was manufactured somewhere in the 1970’s (which we gathered from the design on the tin) and suggested an Ilford developer that we probably wouldn’t use anyway.

So back to square one!

Pracktica MTL3 with Pinhole lens on.

This weekend I decided to bite the bullet and shoot a little bit and try developing it.  I have to admit, my knowledge of handling film is limited but I am learning all the time.  Back when I shot film, I mostly shot colour and sent it to a lab.  I dabbled a bit with processing black and white but didn’t go beyond a couple of rolls.  So, I’m on a learning curve of chemicals, techniques and working in the dark!  It’s fun.  I mean really fun!

Friday night I rolled enough film to shoot five frames.  I had the idea that I would try shooting with a 35mm pinhole again.

Come Saturday morning I nipped down to Roe Lee Park to shoot the pavilion there.  It has sort of become my test subject!

I shot one frame with my 50mm lens at ASA25, f16, couldn’t tell you the shutter speed but I think it’s around 1 second maybe ½.  I then shot one at 5 seconds to try and take in account reciprocity.  I then changed the lens and put a 43mm pinhole lens on and finally a 75mm pinhole.

During the evening, I re-read the article on the HS and one thing jumped out at me.  The author had said that the film was similar to Kodak Technical Pan.  I went on Massive Dev Chart and look up Technical Pan Developing times.  At least I would have a starting point and could mess with development on the results of this short length.  I’d nothing to lose.  There sure enough was Rodinol, 1:300 for rating ASA25.  Excellent.  I could do this.  I mixed up the chemical and began the process.  40 minutes later and I was on the final wash.  A bit nervous I peel the film off the reel.

Wow, was my response.  The photograph made with the lens on was stunning.  I could see every tile, every mortar joint in the building.  The negative look gorgeous.

The pinhole isn’t  quite right but it’s getting there!  These are scans of the negative.  For some reason the scanner has cropped the top of the building off on but it gives an idea.  The neg is so much better though!

A trip with a Trip

Ghyll Cemetery

Just before Christmas I bought some Kentmere 400 film.  Basically to try it out and I have to say, I am impressed.  It’s a lovely film for the price.  Yeah, I’m impressed.

A couple of weeks ago, I put the film in to my little Olympus Trip 35 and started shooting with it.  Nothing in particular but just trying the film and getting used to the camera.



A Nelson Street

I love the Trip.  It’s such a fantastic design and beautifully built.  The images from it are lovely too.

So, just taking my time shooting a little randomly slowly started to fill the roll up.  Even Eve, my daughter took it out and had a go at shooting with it!  She did pretty good as well!



Griffin Manor

First up was a stop off a Ghyll Church and Cemetery and Barnoldswick.  Some nice little shots came off from that.

Then there was pulling my camera out of the bag at the camera club.  Just for a little documentary type shot.

One grab shot in Nelson which I think has a nice social commentary without having people in it and finally, a little walk around Griffin Park, Blackburn.

To see the shots and other shots with the trip visit my flickr set here.