1996

The original background you see above in the photo - i had originally sprayed with diluted black ink and a flower spray can back in the mid 90s, in my little apartment. I was tipsy I remember - and did it at night (not much light in the room). Sometimes, when I get an idea, i just run and do it - not always thinking of the consequences.

Well, more in my earlier days, less in my older days, of course. But it seem to be a character string of me... occasionally to jump into ideas and projects which really want to do - broad ahead. Right on.

BAM !

Kind of funny statement, given that i often also can be hesistant. Even pulling away from ideas due to second thoughts, or push things ahead of me, sometimes for years. Albeit... I always come back to it again, no matter.

Anyway...

Later I discovered, that I made a few errors when i sprayed ink onto the photo background; some spots turned out too dark and the overall balance was abit thrown off visually. So, days later, I tried to paint those spots over with various gray retouching colors.

The result was...

pretty ugly spots with different colored gray tones (making things look weird in color). It was totally fine for black & white photography - no problem. However, in color it wasn't always so pretty (dependent on if the spots where in the shadows or not). Occasionally they would be visible in photos, kind of disturbing.

In the digital age, that was no problem, given that you could clone those spots away. (As I did in the photo above with Mary & Sal). Let me see, if i have a photo, which shows those spots. Ah, here we go.

You can see those spots clearly in an original photo.

Absolute favorite background

This special gray background was for me the absolute favorite for Black & White portrait photography. the sprinkled ink also made the original background two notches darker - and had a classic, at times discreet feel to it. Without being too much, you know. Without being a boring plain background.

That's why I one night in 1996 got the impulse to do something about that plain gray background.

selfportrait, 1996

• Perry, 30 Nov 2003 (Canon EOS 10D)

Now really, Silly Billy !

So, the remaining paper that was left on that 11 meter roll back in 2020 - i totally fucked up - when I used acrylic spray paint.

The spray paint didn't fully stick to / onto the paper, and partially smeared off. Perhaps because I was gentle and sprayed it at greater distance (I didn't want to overdo it, you know). But it resulted into that the paper didn't really absorb or bond with the spray paint, and instead created just a layer of loose particles. Which of course, smeared off.

Or in other words: it was totally unusable for a permanent photo background. Silly as I was in my eagerness - i sprayed the thing indoors... without surrounding protection. So, i had black, acrylic dust particles just everywhere else, too (half of the room).

Smart, huh ?

Ever since

I have a new roll of medium-light gray paper background, but again boring smooth, and for my taste, too bright. Yet, I can't simply spray ink onto the paper indoors - because... well... Let's say, that I had a certain lesson from my previous attempt with spray paint...

Didn't turn out so well.

Photo Background holder

So. I bought one of those cheaper China tripods when you can hang up a background paper up to 3 meter length. I already have one, but that is too small. Yes, I know, those things are not the most stable... I only bought it, in order to bring that background paper roll outdoors, so I can spray it there with diluted black ink. If the tripods then still hold up - well, i can use them for temporary background. Or even for outdoor shooting, if necessary.

I have 1 liter black ink i had bought 6 years ago for that very purpose. So, that's already in stock - and should last more than well, once I dilute it a bit with of water - like I did back in the 90s.

I just hope I get the pattern right *LOL*

So, now that it is spring - I want this project going. for once and for all. Likely even better with help of Sal if he has time and wants to help. You know, one Sunday when the winds are calm, and the weather dry - so we can go out and spray paint that background.

Creating lovely portraits in the studio.

FINALLY !

For real. Gosh !

Get that thumb out of your ass, Ralf

I have Mamiya RZ67, Instax, And a lovely amazing Fujifilm GF 50s II camera (which i lately fallen in love with, as i use it more and more - and get the hang of it better). Imagine a (digital) mediumformat it in the studio !!

Freehand photography with the Fujifilm GFX 50s II is actually pretty amazing, I realize. I think the best way to do it - is in combination with native Fujinon lenses (instead of adapted lenses). The AF isn't super fast - but it is almost always spot on. It works more reliable than with adapted lenses. No real issues to report.

When you use the camera on a tripod, then of course, good adapted lenses (that cover the larger Fuji sensor) then too, work very well, when you use manual focus.

XPan panorama format - what a treat !

I absolutely LOVE to use the Fujifilm GFX camera in the XPan panorama mode. That's my thing right now... simply loving it. It is definitely easier and more flexible compared to a Hasselblad XPan loaded with ISO 400 film in brighter twilight !!!

So, I do use the Fujifilm GF 50s II handheld, even at lower light levels (twilight, artificial city light, etc ) - and the results are rewarding - and frankly - better than I remember with film, when I did the same thing. You know, I love night photography in cities. But the Hasselblad is too slow for that (it's lenses, I mean in combination with just ISO 400 color film).

Insight

Working with a digital Fujifilm GFX 50s II + 30mm f 3.5 lens in XPan panorama mode, is like working with a Hasselblad XPan on steroids.

Real springtime - really inspires !

Funny. How inspiring springtime and sunshine really is. Every. Single. Time. It really does something to the overall activity and inspiration. Well, the weather is amazing with temperatures almost up to 22°C today, albeit north of Stockholm, in place sprinkled across Uppland]

This morning however - it was sensitive cold, even at Högdalen. At Tullinge which lies further away from here, around 7 km, frost was registered with -0.8°C. again.

Bitch weather ?

Tomorrow - bad weather comes along, with 10°C lower temperatures during the day. While on Wednesday the 8th, SMHI threatened with snow showers... (American GFS never did, by the way)

So; are we getting another WTF moment, perhaps ?

Ah. No. SMHI took that weird prognosis away. Now they settle for Max 7°C on Wednesday. I always found it weird that they insisted on snow, for two days in the prognosis. When i looked at the expected weather situation, together with southeast winds, it wouldn't really allow snow to fall. I mean, it made no sense, really. Nevertheless, the outlooks is rather poor with general temperatures around max 10°C.

That would be quite cold for May, as the normal average Max lies around 15°C close to mid May.