Noah Addis / M9 Success

[hoppyman]

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Allow me to add my congratulations from Australia too, Noah (you turned up in my mail box yesterday). Very well deserved.

I found the article about the design origins of the X1 to be very interesting as well.

[Peter Lea]

I also thought it was the best picture of the top three. I hope Noah publishes a book of his images shot in Brazil. Peter Lea

[adli]

My gratulations also!

 

Still waiting for the magazine though.

[delander †]

Thanks for pointing to that thread which I had missed... very interesting discussion but not quite making my point here.

I think the vast material that participated in this competition did contain a huge variation of styles, subjects and moods, none of which are to be seen in the final selection.

 

Certainly a particular location can offer a particular look, but heck! I can take pictures in my kitchen and still come up with something particular, so I think that "exotic location" as an excuse, is not enough to explain why the chosen ten are so similar.

 

I'm afraid that I agree with you. Its as if only overly dark B&W photographs with very little in focus are in fashion so to speak.

 

Jeff

[noah_addis]

I'm afraid that I agree with you. Its as if only overly dark B&W photographs with very little in focus are in fashion so to speak.

 

Jeff

 

Sort of an ironic statement on a forum that often seems to be obsessed with large apertures and out-of-focus rendering. But I'm not disagreeing with you. In fact that this is an unusual photograph for me, mostly I prefer to shoot wider to show more background and more context, and I prefer to use smaller apertures for a more layered image. Though I am (or was, see below) guilty of liking dark black and white photographs.

 

I had intended on entering more photos but only entered a few as I was literally running out the door to catch a plane. I have a lot of experience in contests, and I know that no matter how sophisticated and talented the judges are--complex, layered and subtle photographs often don't do as well in contests. I entered this photo because it works well at a small size on screen. You don't need a 40-inch print to see it. I myself have judged contests, and it is very hard work when you're looking through thousands of photographs in a short time.

 

It is interesting that many of the finalists (I still don't have the magazine so I don't know the other two winners) are of a similar genre and style. I don't read to much into that though, perhaps these are the kinds of photos preferred by the judges. Of course leicas can be used for any type of work, but really they're very well-suited for documentary photography.

 

Finally, another twist is that shortly after I entered this contest, I had a major shift in my work. I was printing an exhibition and on a whim I made some color prints, and I far preferred them. I'm now working in color.

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[Marty]

Wow having seen the B&W print I must say I prefer this colour version MUCH more - so much seems lost in the conversion! But congratulations anyway

[Guest WPalank]

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Noah,

Thanks for going through your thought process. I'm hard pressed to pick a favorite, your monochrome or color version. At this point it is a tie. Congratulations.

 

Since you mentioned printing, I too am printing some color M9 and M8 images around A2 and B2. There really is something special I get out of taking an image from capture to print with my Leica systems.

[michali]

Noah- let me also add my congratulations, superbly done.

[noah_addis]

Noah,

Thanks for going through your thought process. I'm hard pressed to pick a favorite, your monochrome or color version. At this point it is a tie. Congratulations.

 

Since you mentioned printing, I too am printing some color M9 and M8 images around A2 and B2. There really is something special I get out of taking an image from capture to print with my Leica systems.

 

Interestingly, I'm probably going back to film for my personal projects. I'm having trouble getting the look I want out of the M9 when it comes to color without resorting to complex actions and processing and even then it lacks the grain and character of film. I don't mind adding noise or artificial grain for my wedding work, but my personal work is different and I'd rather be honest and let my chosen medium work the way it was intended.

 

Since I can get precisely the look I want by shooting 160NC and Portra 800, I may just do so. It saves a LOT of computer time. And I hate computer time.

 

I may keep the M9s for assignments and deadline work, or I may just go back to Nikon for those purposes since deadline jobs make up a small portion of what I do and it's a lot of money to have wrapped up in gear I won't use much.

[mustafasoleiman]

Wow having seen the B&W print I must say I prefer this colour version MUCH more - so much seems lost in the conversion! But congratulations anyway

 

I agree I like it much more in colour as well... And I think it better conveys the story behind it (as read in the LFI mag)

[chris_tribble]

Interestingly, I'm probably going back to film for my personal projects. I'm having trouble getting the look I want out of the M9 when it comes to color without resorting to complex actions and processing and even then it lacks the grain and character of film. I don't mind adding noise or artificial grain for my wedding work, but my personal work is different and I'd rather be honest and let my chosen medium work the way it was intended.

 

Since I can get precisely the look I want by shooting 160NC and Portra 800, I may just do so. It saves a LOT of computer time. And I hate computer time.

 

I may keep the M9s for assignments and deadline work, or I may just go back to Nikon for those purposes since deadline jobs make up a small portion of what I do and it's a lot of money to have wrapped up in gear I won't use much.

 

Noah - slightly worrying to hear this. Two thoughts at my end -

 

1/ How long will Fuji be making these films?

 

2/ Even if the film keeps on being available, how do you get the prints made? In my experience in London (which is pretty well endowed with labs) it's getting next to impossible to get reliable processing and printing with the kind of control I want to have - whereas I can get this if I hand a colour correct image file to a digital printer I know and trust - and these do still exist + are getting better (I can even soft-proof to the profile of the specific printer they're using.) Unless I was willing to put the money into a Flexight scanner, I'm at a loss to know how I'd get the results I want for COLOUR from anything other than digital capture.

 

Had you been talking about reverting to film for black and white capture I'd have been able to see the argument. For colour I find it tougher...

 

Very interested to hear your thoughts on this ..

 

But hey - it's an ill wind. You can now trade in your X1 for a used M6...

[Steve Ash]

Noah, congratulations. It is well deserved. Astonishingly, the color version is even better.

 

Regards

Steve

[mustafasoleiman]

Interestingly, I'm probably going back to film for my personal projects. I'm having trouble getting the look I want out of the M9 when it comes to color without resorting to complex actions and processing and even then it lacks the grain and character of film. I don't mind adding noise or artificial grain for my wedding work, but my personal work is different and I'd rather be honest and let my chosen medium work the way it was intended.

 

Since I can get precisely the look I want by shooting 160NC and Portra 800, I may just do so. It saves a LOT of computer time. And I hate computer time.

 

I may keep the M9s for assignments and deadline work, or I may just go back to Nikon for those purposes since deadline jobs make up a small portion of what I do and it's a lot of money to have wrapped up in gear I won't use much.

 

I am just now in the process of going through a few thousand Kodachrome slides that have been accumulating from 2000 to 2007... I have basically forgotten what is in there and I have already found a few nice surprises.

 

I agree with Noah about the look and feel of these film images (Kodachrome 200), very different from the M8... Am I tempted to go back?

 

Dunno... the time and effort to manage film, which includes scanning, which is for me really the only way to keep track of it, is quite substantial... and I can see myself falling behind again if I have another big project with a huge number of images coming all at once.

 

Then again... on one hand that would mean I already have a full frame M body, my M6s and I would not have to buy a couple of M9s... but then again, on the other hand, Noah... maybe you can help me here...

[Riccis]

Noah - slightly worrying to hear this. Two thoughts at my end -

 

1/ How long will Fuji be making these films?

 

2/ Even if the film keeps on being available, how do you get the prints made? In my experience in London (which is pretty well endowed with labs) it's getting next to impossible to get reliable processing and printing with the kind of control I want to have - whereas I can get this if I hand a colour correct image file to a digital printer I know and trust - and these do still exist + are getting better (I can even soft-proof to the profile of the specific printer they're using.) Unless I was willing to put the money into a Flexight scanner, I'm at a loss to know how I'd get the results I want for COLOUR from anything other than digital capture.

 

Had you been talking about reverting to film for black and white capture I'd have been able to see the argument. For colour I find it tougher...

 

Very interested to hear your thoughts on this ..

 

But hey - it's an ill wind. You can now trade in your X1 for a used M6...

 

First of all, congrats Noah! I don't have my copy yet but I look forward to seeing your image.

 

@Chris - While Fuji 160NC was just discontinued in the US, there is a replacement already being field tested. Portra 800 is from Kodak and, trust me, it's not going anywhere.

 

I know that film processing in the UK has become more difficult but in the US we are fortunate to still have decent labs at least in major cities like L.A. and NY.

 

@Noah - If you have any questions about a lab, please don't hesitate to contact me and I will put you in touch with my guys in L.A.

 

Cheers,

[melissah]

noah congrats!

well deserved.

i too like the color version and perhaps even better.

 

about your returning to film. let me preface by saying i would never discourage an artist path direction.

however in this case while its true computer time is sickening, it is a digital darkroom and all that.

 

perhaps you just need to spend alittle more time with pp and create some ways of automating

to speed things up. you know user presets for common conditions, actions (photoshop).

not only may film continue to become obsolete, it will most likely become more costly at every

stage.

still you like what you like and i understand that.

for me the idea of returning to film seems the long way around the block.

again congrats, and i so enjoy your work and contribution to this forum.

best,melissa

[zlatkob]

Congratulations Noah!

[delander †]

Hi Noah,

 

I do like your colour version, it's a great image. Congratulations on your success with the B&W version.

 

One thing that annoys me about the LFI printing is the fact that they have printed each of the winning images across a spread. To my mind it takes away a considerable amount of the appreciation of the images. Printing across a spread just about works in a magazine which is just saddle stiched (held by staples) but not in LFI where it is properly bound in the centre and cannot be fully opened.

 

In a photography magazine showing the photographs properly should take precedence over design constraints.

 

Jeff

[noah_addis]

The film I was referring to is Kodak Portra 160NC, not fuji. I haven't made any definite decisions yet, but I'm in the process of some test shooting and test prints. For my test prints I'm using my epson 4880 to print at-size sections with the film scanned by a local lab with an imacon.

 

Sometimes the long way around the block is the most rewarding, no?

[chris_tribble]

The film I was referring to is Kodak Portra 160NC, not fuji. I haven't made any definite decisions yet, but I'm in the process of some test shooting and test prints. For my test prints I'm using my epson 4880 to print at-size sections with the film scanned by a local lab with an imacon.

 

Sometimes the long way around the block is the most rewarding, no?

 

Noah - I can relate to this (and sorry for the mistake on Portra - a lovely film that I have used). I still have an M6TTL and have no plans to get rid of it. I'm keeping this for future B&W projects where I could do the processing and photochemical printing myself - but if you have the lab available, there's something very nice about setting off with a small M set up and a bag of film...

 

Hope you keep making good images which ever route you take - and I'm sure you will!

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[wattsy]

In a photography magazine showing the photographs properly should take precedence over design constraints.

 

Can't agree Jeff. Assuming LFI aren't going to deviate from the perfect bound format, the only alternative to a spread is to show the photograph on one page. I'd much rather have the photographs printed across two pages (and lose a little in the gutter) than have the photo printed without interruption but only half the size.