As I stood beneath the towering structure of the St. George Island bridge, the view from the Apalachicola side was nothing short of mesmerizing. The bridge soared high above me, its massive undercarriage creating a geometric marvel that twisted and faded into the distance. The street lights lined up like sentinels, gradually disappearing into the horizon.
I create my landscape photography with film and digital technical cameras and received a request to share how I compose in the landscape with the gear I use. Learning how to compose images is not a simple topic to cover, nor can that be shared in one article alone. However, sometimes, we can find tidbits of information from other photographers that can add to our technique and save time and expense or make sense of our particular way of looking at things. In this article, I share the previsualization technique that guides me to where I need to set up the camera.
The golden hour cast a warm, amber glow over the Custard Castle, its neon signs flickering to life as dusk approached. The Ice Cream Cone, Italian Ice, Soft Pretzels, and the inviting “Open” sign shimmered with a nostalgic allure, beckoning travelers on the Black Horse Pike to stop and savor a moment of sweet simplicity. Nestled twenty miles from the bustling Atlantic City and the Jersey Shore, the Custard Castle had stood proudly since 1972, a steadfast beacon of delightful treats and cherished memories.
This article reviews two rolls of 120 film shot in succession in A12 and A24 film magazines with a Hasselblad 501CM camera equipped with a CF 135/5.6 lens and a Hasselblad Vario Tube. I’ll guide you through the process of loading 120 film into the A24 magazine, which was engineered for 220 film exclusively. Additionally, I’ll provide a contact sheet displaying the entire roll of negatives from both magazines for film spacing review. Then, we will focus on each roll’s first, middle, and last frames, assessing film flatness and sharpness.