Alaska 2024, Analog Edition

Greetings,

I promised to post one last edition from our Alaska trip, dedicated to my analog film photography. It’s been just under two months since we have arrived back in Colorado. Over the course of our trip, I shot 16 rolls of film. I’ve finally finished with developing and then scanning each roll. Some are from my Hasselblad 500CM camera, and some are from my two pinhole cameras, of which one is a fixed 6cm x 6cm frame, and the other is a multi format set up that lets me choose between 6cm x 6cm, 6cm x 9cm, or 6cm x 12cm. Now, the pinhole for those of you who might not know, is about as basic as photography can get. It is just a small square wooden box, with no glass or lens. It has a very precise pinhole that allows the light to hit the film when the small shutter is opened. Pinhole images are not sharp like an image taken with an actual lens with glass elements. One characteristic though, is that everything in the frame is the exact same focus and depth of field. No focusing required or aperture settings, just point, and shoot. The challenges then, for using a pinhole camera, is to get the composition set right, which can be real challenging, since there is no view finder to look through, and the exposure time. Both take a little time to get right and so, with taking care in all the steps, very compelling images can be created, as long as one is ok with a not quite sharp image. Which I am. When I first started in photography, sharpness was a huge goal for me. I spent many hours in the field and on the computer working to get the sharpness correct, or as I thought it was supposed to be. Now though, I have moved down that journey line a bit more, and have realized that the content in the image is the real thing I need to work on more. Using a pinhole camera, strips away everything except the very basic of needs to make an image.

When shooting film, developing, scanning, and then finally processing on the computer, there is a great need for patience and the acceptance of a very slow gratification factor. In this case on some of the images, I exposed the film between 3 and 4 months ago. I did not keep these rolls in any order or with any notes on them. When developing time came, I just picked each roll based on brand, and style and developed them. So, each time, I had no idea what was actually on each roll. After taking some from the very first day, to the very last day of the trip, it was very fun to see which images were there and then try to remember where they were taken. I did struggle at times to remember them all, but eventually I did.

There were many surprises I experienced of how the images affected me. With digital images, the immediate feeling can be there on the back of the screen at the time you press the shutter button. But, film keeps those secrets until a later date. I do have to say though, I do remember distinctly the set up and taking of most of those images. I remember what was in my head, and what I was feeling at the time. My mood, my attitude, etc. I remember how I felt before I decided on what to shoot and where to set up. I am really wondering now, if any of those moods and feelings have come through in these images. Either by design, or some subconscious effect. Regardless of which effect comes through, I am very happy with the results and so I chose my favorites to share here. The order of the images is based on how I feel the images work together. They are not chronological per the progression of the trip.

May all your adventures be fun and filled with awe and excitement!