We now return to the thrilling tale of my hasty purchase of a gorgeous Contax G2 and the various films I’ve shot with it!
I went to Shimokitazawa with yet more Fuji Color Natura 1600—despite my first roll being rather colourless and unappealing—since I learned that faster film was better for my sometimes less-than-steady movements. As it was a night event in a dim bar, I used the Contax TLA140 flash and ended up with some pretty typical party/event photography because of it.
Shortly after, I used the Natura yet again to shoot Yuko ‘Tigarah’ Takabatake in Harajuku one rainy afternoon. She was absolutely lovely to hang out with and her stylish monochromatic outfit popped nicely against the colourful graffiti backgrounds, though unfortunately, a good third of my shots were either unfocused or blurred, despite the faster film. One of the downsides of analogue photography, to be sure. As before, I got the rolls developed at Bic Camera, then scanned the film myself. The sharpness and colours are still questionable at best.
I next met Chiara, a woman from Italy, who was kind enough to arrive at my station in Ota Ward early in the morning for an otherwise relaxed photoshoot. Her garb was simple and dark, contrasting perfectly against the bright light and pale scenery. At this time, I used Kodak Ultramax 400 and Superia Premium 400. Luckily, due to the abundance of light, there were few blurry shots. Regarding my photography skills, however—if I’ve learned one thing, it’s that 9AM is already too long past the “golden hour” of dawn and the bright, washed-out light doesn’t work well with heavy shadows, especially with a pale subject and an already dull background.
Some six photoshoots later, and plenty of money spent on film and development, I find myself feeling somewhat disenchanted with analogue photography—specifically rangefinders. I truly wonder how any professional could use one, actually. How do we know what’s really in focus? By knowing the numbers in the viewfinder like the back of my hand? I’m not sure if I want to practice that much… But then, I suppose that’s part of the charm? I’m just going to keep working at it for now, I guess.
2021 Update: All photos scanned by my Epson GT-X830 have been replaced with new professional scans from Popeye Camera in Jiyugaoka, thus solving my tone/colour/sharpness issues.