by Johnny Martyr Yesterday, long time photo buddy Brent Legum Levenson asked a really great question on my Facebook page. He was referencing my Leica M6 TTL cameras which have 0.85x viewfinder magnification. "Any reason you got the .85? I think I’ve only seen the .72 versions in person. Also, I liked that the Bessa R3s... Continue Reading →
Photographs from Capital Pride 2023
by Johnny Martyr I'm Johnny Martyr. My pronouns are he/him/his. Along with some other LGTBQIA2S+ allies, we had a fantastic time photographing the 2023 Capital Pride Parade in Washington D.C. last week. Just like Pride is a celebration of diversity, Stephanie and Ben are bringing some digital color to my normally all b&w film blog.... Continue Reading →
Oil On the Aperture Blades
I thought it might be useful to do a blog about a lens that I just sold on eBay this week. It was a Nikkor 135mm 2.8 AIS that I'd owned and used fairly sparingly for probably around 15 years. It was a useful lens but nothing I was ever in love with, hence the... Continue Reading →
Twins Are Even Better
If you're in the market for another camera but already have one that you love, my recommendation is simple. Get another copy of what you're happy with. Get a twin. When camera shopping, a common urge is to explore and try different things. And this is a good urge to have; it indicates curiosity and... Continue Reading →
My New Daily Carry Camera Bag – ONA Prince Street
I've never been one to care very much about stylish camera bags. As long as I had something durable that I could organize neatly, that has been fine. I justified my position by thinking that a cheaper, more tatty looking bag was less likely to attract attention and get stolen. And hey, cheaper camera bag,... Continue Reading →
Happy Birthday, Kodak Tri-X
Kodak Tri-X, as a concept, has been around since the 1940's when it was a 200 ISO b&w sheet film. Because it was their first fast film, when Kodak released the 400 ISO roll film version, the Tri-X name was maintained. Just like Kodak TMAX P3200 revolutionized low light photography in 1989, Tri-X was an... Continue Reading →
“Alexa, Process My Film!”
If you’re okay with giving inconceivable amounts and forms of personal information to Big Data, you may as well use your smart voice assistant to help you process your film too! And while there are no consumer AI's that have hands yet, they are still willing to help film photographers the best that they can.... Continue Reading →
These Photos Were Processed In Kodak’s New HC110 In Spite of The Product’s Single Flaw
In early 2019, the film community was pretty stressed out, and with good reason. The nearly two century old chemical manufacturer, Tetenal appeared close to shutting down. Many photographers have probably never even heard of this company, but Tetenal has been "the man behind the curtain" for many of Kodak's products for decades. The product... Continue Reading →
Autopsy of the Nikon F6
This time last year, photographer Thomas Eisl and I set out to dispel myths and to remind the world that we could still buy the world's last newly made 35mm SLR, the Nikon F6, brand new. Sadly, nearly exactly one year later, Nikon has officially announced that this important camera is being discontinued after a... Continue Reading →
Three Common Issues with the Nikon FM2n
by Johnny MartyrIf you currently own or are interesting in buying a Nikon FM2n, you'll want to know about the three common issues that I've found with these cameras. As previously noted, I'm a big fan of the Nikon FM2n. I've owned five and have whittled down to just two black FM2n's. I've been shooting... Continue Reading →