Keeping Busy During Quarantine
I hope everyone’s staying safe and healthy. Here in Colorado, we’ve been trying to learn from other countries and our fellow states; Governor Polis has done a great job responding to and managing our Covid-19 response. Testing is still far too rare, but that’s not the fault of the governor.
So what does a photographer do while under a quarantine?
Just shoot, baby.
I’ve been planning another post about shooting pictures just for the sake of shooting pictures, without any expectation of them being good or using them later; I’ll often carry a camera around with me whenever I can just so I can practice composition, exposure, and to continue familiarizing myself with the camera system. I recently purchased an X-Pro 1 used from mpb.com (another potential post topic) so I’ve been spending a lot of time with it.
A couple of days ago we walked the dogs in our neighborhood, and I grabbed the X-Pro 1 with the 27mm f/2.8 pancake lens (also used). I’d already shot some pictures around the house with it, so I included a few of those, too.
On the X-Pro 1, I’ve created a few custom shooting options (again… this should be its own blog post); my two favorite right now are a black & white using the monochrome + yellow filter (adjusted to red filter when outdoors), and a color option using the Pro Neg Standard film simulation, but with the color bumped up. It creates darker, richer colors by combining the muted effect of the simulation with a color/saturation increase, as well as a bump in the shadows and highlights for increased contrast.
I’ve gotten rather spoiled with the X-T3’s ability to use the Acros, Classic Chrome, and Eterna film simulations — as well as the Color Chrome effect — which are missing from the X-Pro 1. It’s made up for, though, by the unique rendering provided by the X-Pro 1 sensor. Prior to purchasing the camera, I’d read and seen reports on how the results had a much more… tactile, analog feel to them. I definitely feel that the sensor has just a subtly different output than subsequent sensors, but I don’t know if I can put my finger on what it is exactly. That’s probably what makes it seem special.
On to the images.
Around the house, the huskies are always an easy subject to select. They’re so expressive, and their coats have rich and subtle variations in them which are fun to capture.
From the back patio, I captured a foggy night and a sunrise visitor on my neighbor’s roof.
Later in the day, we took a walk; I captured Pikes Peak behind some neighborhood houses, other families getting some fresh air, a few nature shots of trees and chopped logs, and my wife walking the huskies as we pass other families (providing, of course, a comfortable DMZ between us).
I’m shooting the X-Pro 1 as jpg-only, doing only very minor post-processing modifications to the jpg’s. (Yet another post I plan on writing: how I feel about post processing, how much is too much, workflow, etc.)
Well, that’s it for now; I’ll get to work on some of these other posts I’ve been planning.
Stay safe, stay smart, and do your part to limit the spread of this illness. Until next time.
