Photos from the Voigtlander Vito BL
I finally got my film developed. I tell you, after being so accustomed to the immediacy of a digital camera, the wait was agony. It must have been quite a novelty for the camera shop too, as I received a free film when I picked up the photos. Plus the photos were saved to a disc.
Opening the envelope brought back memories of the excitement, surprise and occasional disappointment of that first glance through a roll of film. I was also a bit of fearful that none of them would turn out. Of course, some shots were total disasters, but I expected that.
Taking the photos
Using the vintage camera wasn’t as complicated as I’d initially thought. In fact, I had a lot of fun. It was more a matter of remembering to set everything: the speed, aperture and then the distance. After that I was relying on blind faith to do the rest! With a bit more practice it will come naturally.
The results
As usual, my cats kindly modeled for most of the photos. Some photos were over-exposed. So I’ve taken closer notice of the hints from the manual. I don’t think I can blame this vintage camera for all my bad shots.
Good focus
These two shots of Lilah were a great surprise - she had been moving around so much, jumping from chair to chair. Eventually she settled down and she is perfectly in focus. The one directly above is almost portrait like with its noticeable depth of field.
Cordelia loves a back-scratch on the pavers in the backyard. Even though it might look over-exposed, this is the actual color of the pavers…and of Cordelia.
Over-exposed
Unfortunately, this one is disastrously over-exposed. It’s a disappointing result, as the sky was intensely blue and the kite was very colorful. Afterwards, I re-read the tip in the manual about slightly pointing the camera down when taking a exposure reading.
Blurry
With this one I hadn’t adjusted the speed aperture correctly and the result was a slightly blurry tree. Even though the camera felt steady, I had misread the setting. However, it really is a great tree. I’ll go back and practice this one again.
Bright
A nice shot to end on, in focus, if a tad bright.
August 20th, 2007 at 8:00 am
I think pointing the camera down when shooting the sky will lead to even stronger over-exposed sky. After all, you meter the for the darker ground and then take a photo of the bright sky. You could rather dial the exposure down a half stop or take two photos with different exposure and remember which was which. I know with digital it’s so much easier. I have a vintage camera as well and from time to time it’s fun to use it.
August 20th, 2007 at 8:23 am
Thanks for the tip, I’ll try this out on the next sunny day. I think I may have to write down the settings I use until I come up with a proper method.