i have a new olympus epic (point n shoot), camera and i'm having a great time with it. i'm able to get shots with it that i can't get with my big noisy nikon. it's challenging because of it's limitations but can do a good job if you pay attention.

this was taken recently in a children's hospital, where around every corner were scenes of concern, frustration, exhaustion.

i've been using TMax 100 rated at 800 because i like the tones i'm getting with it... i think it looks like charcoal.(i have to "adjust" the DX coding on the film canister with a knife blade to scrape off the paint and black electrical tape to fill in some areas .... like i said.... the camera is challenging :o) )

-- susan daly (slascaux@aol.com), March 07, 2001

Answers

Wow, thats the real stuff- is that olympus one of the ones with a 2.8? I'd stay away from Tmax, just try Tri-x at normal or pushed one stop. You'll get tired of the lack of greys and burned out whites... send more-

-- Chris Yeager (cyeager@ix.netcom.com), March 07, 2001.

This is really good! You can even see the whites of the young boy's eyes. Mom is seriously worried about something that's very serious. Very good work at portraying a moment that we all might dread. I'm not sure if pushed tri-x will give the same effect here. I've not often heard of pushing TMX by three stops, but I'm intrigued by it and I might give it a try. The lack of subtle tonal gradations might be a lot of this photograph's appeal. Let's see some more, Susan!

-- Tony Rowlett (rowlett@alaska.net), March 08, 2001.

Hi Chris. yes the Epic has a 35mm f2.8 lens... definitely one of the things that interested me about it. i'm not convinced about the tri- x. i used to use tri-x exclusively, cooked in microdol x, but since recently trying tmax i'm loving it.

Tony... i first pushed a roll of tmax 100 to 800 by mistake in my nikon! i was so happy with the results i've continued to do it often, and it works great with this little epic.

thanks for the comments!

-- susan daly (slascaux@aol.com), March 08, 2001.

The sense of apprehension really hits you over the head. The whimsical patterns of the backrest really adds to the story.

-- Mike Dixon (mike@mikedixonphotography.com), March 08, 2001.

Looks like a Miro backrest....

-- Chris Yeager (cyeager@ix.netcom.com), March 08, 2001.

Pleeeeeease tell me about how you developed the film. I love it. I want to use Delta 3200 in my Epic at 1000 but don't know how to alter the DX coding for that. The TMax100 at 800 is wonderful...more data please!

-- Todd Frederick (fredrick@hotcity.com), March 08, 2001.

Hi Todd.

The DX code bar on film canisters is read by electrical contacts, so all that matters is whether there is shiny, conductive metal, or a painted or otherwise non-conductive surface. the black paint scrapes off the canister very easily with the edge of a knife blade, and i use a little piece of plastic electrical tape to cover any areas that need covering. there is a diagram here for the different codes needed.... www.shooter.net/dxcodes.gif

as for development, i'm using TMax developer, 1:4 at 75F and 10 1/2 minutes.

Tony... yes that backrest seems to visually tie the image together for me and add something needed. perhaps the pattern is needed since the rest of the image is mostly solid geometric shapes?

yeah Chris, it does look like Miro!

thanks everyone, for the comments. :o)

-- susan daly (slascaux@aol.com), March 09, 2001.

Susan...thank you for the information and the site link. I will try this. Your method sounds better than my trying to do 3200 at 1000 in the Epic. I am assuming that you turned off the flash! Todd

-- Todd Frederick (fredrick@hotcity.com), March 09, 2001.