Island in the Net by Khürt Williams
Technology and Photography Musings. Established circa 2000.
I attended a splash photography workshop today, in person, outdoor, and appropriately physically distanced from my the instructor and a minimal set of attendants. These photographs are the first edits.
Submitted for the 100DaysToOffload project.
With 35mm film, you develop, scan and post your images weeks after the photographs were made.
NOTE: I'll begin this experience report with a brief disclaimer. It's been less than three years since I returned to shooting 35mm film after switching to digital photography over 20 years ago. I've inundated myself with as much film education as possible between web articles and advice from experienced film shooters. But, since my prior experience with film is decades old, this review is from a rather novice point of view.
Kiran, Bhavna and I walked in the Gulick Farm Preserve a few weeks ago. I brought my Fuji X-T2 and XF27mmF2.8 lens, my Minolta X-700, MD Rokkor-X 50mm f/1.7 lens, and a fresh 35 exposure catridge of Kodak Portra 400. Kodak Portra 400 is a fine-grain high-speed colour-negative film. I had never used Kodak Portra 400 before, but based on my experience with a roll of Kodak Portra 160 at Avalon Beach, I expected good results.
The Gulick Farm Preserve walk was shorter than expected, so we dropped in at Barbara Smoyer Park. The light here was much brighter as we didn't have the forest to provide shade. The Kodak Portra 400 and the Minolta X-700 performed well.
Later that week, Bhavna and I were at Brick Fram Tavern for our regular weekly "dinner and chat". At this time of the year, the sun sets sooner. I was interested to see how the Kodak Portra 400 would perform in changing lighting conditions as the sun went down.
Earlier in the week, I had stopped at the Princeton Fire Department on Witherspoon Street to make some images for the Lens Artist challenge.
Hoping to make some photographs for a photo challenge, I went into Princeton and walked around near the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, formerly the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.
From Wikipedia:
In 1930, Princeton University established the School of Public and International Affairs, which was originally meant to serve as an interdisciplinary program for undergraduate students in Princeton's liberal arts college. In 1948, the School added a graduate professional program and was renamed to honor Woodrow Wilson, who was the 13th president of the University, governor of New Jersey and the 28th president of the United States.
...
In 2015, student protesters forced Princeton to reconsider having the School named after Wilson due to his racist views, of which they disapproved. The Wilson Legacy Review Committee ultimately decided to keep his name attached to the School, noting that, like many other notable figures from American history, Wilson had a "complex legacy of both positive and negative repercussions".On June 26, 2020, following the eruption of George Floyd protests and the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement, the Princeton University Board of Trustees decided to rename the Woodrow Wilson School the "Princeton School of Public and International Affairs", citing Wilson's "racist thinking and policies [that] make him an inappropriate namesake for a school or college whose scholars, students, and alumni must stand firmly against racism in all its forms." It was also announced that Wilson College, the first of Princeton's six undergraduate residential colleges, will be renamed First College. Woodrow Wilson opposed admitting African-American students to Princeton and introduced racial segregation into the United States federal civil service as President.
I wanted to capture the intensity of the contrast between the white of the columns and the shadows but the overhead clouds didn't care what I wanted, obscuring much of the light. I also think I arrived an hour too late.
Submitted for the 100DaysToOffload project.
