LIN CHIACHENG

2020.07.05 · Minolta SRT101 · MC 50mm F1.4 · Fujifilm PRO 400H

Developing the film, finding the trip again.

Three rolls of film, developed months later. The pictures brought back a trip I had partly forgotten.

Shop lights along a night street
14 / PHOTOGRAPHS

Last month I finally developed the film from my Japan trip the year before. It had been so long that I had almost forgotten what I photographed. Seeing the pictures brought the trip back.

I used a Minolta SRT101, an MC 50mm F1.4 and Fujifilm PRO 400H. I shot three rolls and used a digital camera for the rest. The film holds just part of the trip.

Train and passengers on a platform
01 / Train and passengers on a platform
Walkways inside an open atrium
02 / Walkways inside an open atrium
Cherry blossoms against blue sky
03 / Cherry blossoms against blue sky
Tree-lined walkway leading to a building
04 / Tree-lined walkway leading to a building
City seen through blossom branches
05 / City seen through blossom branches

I rarely shoot film, and I missed focus in quite a few pictures. You can see it; there is no need to hide it. But missed focus does not erase the place in the picture. Looking at it can still remind me that I was there.

Blossoms beside water and distant buildings
06 / Blossoms beside water and distant buildings
Bridge and skyline across the water
07 / Bridge and skyline across the water
Ferris wheel against blue sky
08 / Ferris wheel against blue sky
Gondolas on a ferris wheel
09 / Gondolas on a ferris wheel
Night crowd outside a brightly lit building
10 / Night crowd outside a brightly lit building
People walking beneath illuminated signs
11 / People walking beneath illuminated signs

Seeing the pictures much later feels different from checking a screen straight after shooting. A scene I had forgotten can draw my attention to its overall light and colour, rather than only whether I got the focus right.

Night street with round lamps
12 / Night street with round lamps
Person at a stair landing
13 / Person at a stair landing
Elevated train above a crossing
15 / Elevated train above a crossing
Blossom trees and buildings at a corner
16 / Blossom trees and buildings at a corner
Lane between buildings and trees
17 / Lane between buildings and trees

I want to take my time with these pictures: look at the whole frame, then the details. Every one does not have to identify a landmark. There is something to see in how a place looks, even without a complete list of names.

Pedestrians in afternoon light
18 / Pedestrians in afternoon light
People gathered beneath the trees
19 / People gathered beneath the trees
Blossom branches reaching over water
20 / Blossom branches reaching over water
Small boats on water beneath blossoms
21 / Small boats on water beneath blossoms
People in a square surrounded by trees
22 / People in a square surrounded by trees
Softly focused blossom branches
23 / Softly focused blossom branches

Keeping only the technically successful frames would leave less of those three rolls. I would rather keep some imperfect ones too. They show what happens when I am less familiar with the camera and give me something to practise next time.

NOTES

I posted these on Mobile01 on July 5, 2020; the trip was the year before. Rediscovering what I had photographed after developing it was part of the pleasure. I do not use film every day, but I was still happy to see these after the wait.

Read the Mobile01 post ↗