Sunday, September 27, 2009

New Home.

sorry, foxtrot has moved! I'm now running the blog through WordPress due to a greater choice in formatting/layout. Follow this link to go to the new blog:

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Clingfilm.

Ever tried making your own frame masks? I wrapped the little square frame mask for my Diana+ in cling-film, clipped it into place and loaded the film. Here's what happened.








Monday, May 11, 2009

Journal.

I started writing because it felt like something I should probably start. I'm still toying with the regularity, whether I should write everyday, every few days or whenever I feel I have something worth writing, but for the moment I'm going with everyday. It's also a beautiful book, which I bought here.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Redscale.

So I finally got my hands on a few rolls of Lomography Redscale 35mm film. You can make it yourself (instructions are pretty easy to find on the internet), but being impatient I chose the easy option. In a nutshell it's loaded into the canister backwards, so that the 'wrong' side is exposed. For once I couldn't decide on a couple of photographs to post, so I'll keep this post slim and share one of my favourites.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Latest Roll.

I almost intended this roll to be a response to Brazillian photographer Cassio Vásconcellos, but they came out working pretty well on their own. There's a few with the annoying fog and burnt-on numbers I sometimes find, but this time it's seemed to work really well. I tried some double-exposures with different lenses, which also looks pretty cool.









Friday, March 13, 2009

The Dead Weather

Another music post, but this is definitely worth it. I was surprised when a friend of mine asked me last night, "Have you heard Jack White's new band?". I hadn't heard so much as a rumour, so I went to iTunes and found The Dead Weather's debut release Hang You From the Heavens, with a cover of Gary Numan's Are Friends Electric? on the B-side. This time around, White is behind the drum-kit, with Alison Mosshart (a.k.a VV of The Kills) supplying lead vocals, Jack Lawrence (of White's other other band The Raconteurs) on bass and Dean Fertita (QOTSA) on guitar. The sound is exactly what I would expect from a mix-up of the White Stripes, The Raconteurs and The Kills, the same raw, dirty sound associated with Jack White. The B-Side is also very interesting, one that definitely does Numan's original justice.



Hang You From the Heavens released 12th March on Third Man Records

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Dan Auerbach

Dan Auerbach (of the Black Keys) released his debut solo album Keep It Hid this February, which simply serves to emphasise his ability as a versatile and talented musician. The album seems to take the driving blues sound of the Black Keys discography and tone it down until it resembles more country and western, with suitable harmonies to support the comparison. Recorded at his own studio (Akron Analogue), Auerbach has made good use of vintage and analogue equipment, resulting in a much warmer sound compared to the industry standard these days. James Quine, Auerbach's uncle also appears on the album playing guitar, adding an extra touch. Standout tracks include Heartbroken, In Disrepair, The Prowl and Mean Monsoon, while the stripped down sound of Goin' Home and Real Desire add a softer dynamic. Here, Auerbach performs the opening track, Trouble Weighs a Ton with James Quine.


Keep It Hid released on Feb 9th 2009, on Nonesuch Records

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Blackbird, Fly


So it's been well over a month since I last wrote, I must get back into the habit now that exams are over (for the time being), and I can start taking photographs I enjoy (rather than racing to get coursework in on time). This post will hopefully serve as a preview of what to expect from this blog in the coming weeks/months, at least in my output of photographs.
Having lusted over vintage TLR cameras for a while now, I've so far managed to abstain from spending absurd amounts on a Rolleiflex or Lomo Lubitel. Luckily, last night, I stumbled upon the Blackbird. Made by Japanese toy-camera company, this plastic TLR is unique for a few reasons. First, it's made entirely of plastic, so I expect the images will be similar to those shot with a Diana+ or Holga. Secondly, it seems to be the first exclusively 35mm TLR, with frame masks included to create either standard images (24mm x 36mm), square images (24mm x 24 mm) or a complete frame, sprocket holes an'-all. Hopefully, a few posts down the line I'll be able to share my first TLR roll, and hopefully I'll be able to write a few more posts between now and then.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Jay Jay Pistolet

'"I hate my voice...I think my lyrics are bad too", says singer/songwriter Justin Hayward-Young, aka Jay Jay Pistolet, as he flits from modest martydom to forthright faith, "but I already know that one day I'm going to be really good but I don't think I'm there yet." One thing's for certain, though, his new release 'Happy Birthday You' is a haunting, vintage, post-war collection of naïve love songs produced by Charlie Fink of Noah & The Whale fame. Anti-folk associations aside, Justin should be rescued from the oversaturated gaggle of musicians circulating at the moment. "When people criticise me, it's always that I'm not offering anything new. But I don't think that's really that bad...if I wanted to do something new I'd probably sit on a computer all day and make weird sounds. All I want to do is make nice songs."
- The Fly, Jan 2009
This track was filmed for the Fly, it's beautiful. I also recommend We Are Free, it's a much bigger sound similar to that of Bright Eyes.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Split Exposures.

It's been almost a week since my last post, and since then I've had back my latest roll of film. It's not the best, the lens had broken off the camera body just before the shoot so I had to hold it against the body myself, which means that they're all pretty washed out, but here's the best of the photographs I could salvage.

(n.b. I made myself my own basic 'splitzer' by carving up a plastic salt-pot lid so that it covered half of the lens at a time, so that I could shoot half-a-frame at a time thanks to the Diana+'s frame advance system not being coupled with the shutter.)