All of Analog.Cafe, Page 25

719 Reviews, Guides, and Essays

My Olympus Pen FV
The Elegance of Accomplished Engineering and Invention
September 14, 2020
A detailed review of the only professional-grade half-frame film SLR, its unique features, and an incredible lens selection.
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Still Life — With a Chase Scene
Adventures in Pictorialism
September 10, 2020
Stage IV emergency restrictions are in place across the city due to Covid-19. We are confined to stay at home until the virus is bought under control. I am fine with that. I found the round vase in a junk shop. It’s pretty old and is made of the most beautiful green glass.
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Rapid Eye Movement
R.E.M.
September 7, 2020
Do our dreams work as some sort of defragmentation? How does this random reconstruction of images and information visualize so many discordant elements in such a significant way? I have always been intrigued by the influence of dreams and all the surrealistic projections of our subconscious.
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Instax Mini 90 Neo Classic
Specs and Usability, Plus: How It Holds Up to iPhone and Polaroid SX-70
August 31, 2020
A complete camera and film review, including user guide, buying guide, and comparison to iPhone and Polaroid.
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Film Photography News — August 2020 Recap
Kodak’s $765,000,000 Story, Lenses, Pixels, and Photo Essays
August 25, 2020
Kodak’s $765,000,000 story, Leica’s commitment to film, variable-shape pixels, and a short history of fast primes.
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Analog Iran
The Changing Face of Young Iran
August 20, 2020
In 2019, I spent four weeks travelling through the fascinating country that is Iran. I shot over 30 rolls of black-and-white 35mm film, documenting Iranian people’s everyday lives. The result is a collection titled “Analog Iran. ”This particular short series reflects the changing face of young Iran.
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Streets of Solitude
Photos From the Bordering Triangle of Germany, France, and Switzerland
August 17, 2020
Some may say that streets are social and lively — perhaps, but they are also places of broken dreams, empty selves, and collective solitude. Taken at the bordering triangle of Germany, France, and Switzerland, these images expose the cityscapes’ gloomy, bleak facade.
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We Will Always Have Paris
Paris, Je T‘aime
August 10, 2020
I lived in Paris for a year. I had a hard time settling in at first. But in a few months, I fell in love with the city. Infatuation with the City of Love may be a visitor’s cliché, though I don't mind. The French word happens to be my favourite utterance; I like how it sounds and the genuine motives behind it.
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“Polaroid Originals” vs. “Polaroid” Film for SX-70
A Side-by-Side Comparison of Old vs New Polaroid Colour Film Packs
August 5, 2020
A few test shots, discussion, and advice on using old vs new Polaroid SX-70 film.
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Film Photography News — July 2020 Recap
Kodak Asset Sale, Olympus Quits Making Cameras, Nikon Recall, Your Support
July 28, 2020
Kodak’s assets’ sale, Olympus’ exit from the camera market, a major Nikon recall, and the Intrepid’s new LF camera.
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Lonelinets
The Loneliness of the Nets
July 23, 2020
The nets that protect the gamesThat maintain the sense of teamThat separate the meeting pointCrosses from the sweaty airThat resist the harsh lifeThat also fool the sunLike usLonelyHit by the sunEntertained by the wind’s blowsSwollen in the facethey fall downbut they never give upSlapped by sure volesShaken by a penaltydecided at the last secondIncest of many dunksLonelyAbandoned like stray dogsIn the cold of the Sundays’ endThey don’t win and they don’t loseNetworks of the fields that have never leavedBetween buildings under constructionBetween a kick-off whistle and a train passingBetween the churches and a childhood memoryBetween the leather and the dressing roomAnd the showersEmptyPitchesLonelyUnder the snowThe loneliness of the netsWhich keeps company with memoriesThat smells of tennisGrassTeammate fatiguesTangled at the timeLike the soulLonelyDid you ever hear the sound of the nets?
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Humanidade
July 22, 2020
The warm humanity. The charm of Bahia, the island of Boipeba, and its animated, colourful landscape with their daily struggles and hopes. Their genuine humour, the wealth that sweats through the adventures of their stories. They live, absorbed in their smells, their senses, in contradictions and pains; immersed under the shade of palm trees, protected by the coral reefs, among a thousand types of mango, fragrant, sweet — redeeming, at least in some small part, the echoing sufferings of the ancient colonialism.
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History Repeats Itself
An American Protest
July 21, 2020
“History repeats itself” is a truism almost as old as history itself, and for a good reason. Patterns established early seem to absorb into the psyche of humanity for generations to come, playing out in societies repeatedly. America’s original sin, slavery, was embedded in our Constitution in a coded way, for the word never appeared there, yet the horrific practice was made lawful.
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Catching Myself in Reflections
Self-Empowerment Through Portraiture
July 13, 2020
One would think that not having someone to shoot photos of me is why I end up with so many pictures of self on random street reflections. When I do have someone, I tend to obsessively direct them to get the picture I have in mind. When shooting digital, perseverance and patience could probably get us there.
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A Terrace in the Sky
Exploring the Pedestrian Platform, Elevated Over the Bank of Thames River
July 9, 2020
The flâneur’s philosophy is to seek to understand the city by experiencing it on foot. It is an urban exploration that involves embracing serendipity and chance discoveries. A few years ago, I came across a public terrace with views of the Thames located at the back of St.
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How to Calibrate Infinity Focus on a Rangefinder
July 7, 2020
This guide will show you how to calibrate infinity focus on your film rangefinder camera without having to go to a repair shop or buying expensive tools.
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Comuna 13: From Violence to New Horizons
Exploring the Infamous Neighborhood in Colombian Medellín
July 6, 2020
Colombia — a country that I’ve been fantasizing about visiting for the past two decades. When the time finally arrived, the decision had to be made on which cameras and lenses to bring. In a mood to capture the essence of the place in an emotional way rather than just pleasing pictures, I decided to bring my 1979 Minolta XD-7 together with the Minolta MD Rokkor 50mm f/1.
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An American Fault Line
The U.S./Mexican Border
July 2, 2020
The U. S. /Mexican borderlands would be a hauntingly beautiful place if the scars of humanity were not so deep. One is reminded of prison, on the one hand, a cemetery on the other. The ghosts of asylum seekers and migrants are omnipresent through the carefully placed crosses and memorials that line the border wall.
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Bronica ETRSi 645
A Complete Medium Format Kit for Less Than $400*
June 22, 2020
A review of a relatively cheap medium format SLR option, complete with lenses, and film holders.
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Nostalgia for an Undefined Something
Panorama Photographs of Brexit Fans Near the British Parliament
June 18, 2020
From late 2018 to early 2020, I spent many a spare moment photographing in the area surrounding the British Parliament, Parliament Square and Westminster tube station. I would train my camera at the various groups of people protesting, marching or merely standing in front of Parliament for and against the United Kingdom leaving the European Union.
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