My Diana +

 

My Diana + camera and I have such a love hate relationship. It's so damn unpredictable you just never know what might come out.

The camera is plastic which makes it very light and it takes 120 film. It has two shutter speeds; N (normal) and B (Bulb, which stays open as long as the shutter release is held down) the ability to create multiple exposures and a shutter lock for extra long exposures

Dan bought it for me for Christmas quite a few years ago with a load of 120 film. The first film I got developed was appalling, I think maybe one photo might of had a half blurry boat on it. The rest were just plain crap. As you can't get 120 film developed in your local Asda I had to take it a specialist lab who charge me £10. I was gutted! I gave it another go though and took the film to the lab, only to find that it had shut down. Being in Stoke there was literally no where else to get it developed and I'm pretty sure that film is sitting in a bottom draw somewhere.

So the camera gathered dust for quite a while. Until one day I noticed Lomography had started selling the 35mm back, which when inserted into the camera allowed you to shoot any 35mm film! Yay, finally I could crack out my Diana again. The first few films were pretty hit and miss, because the shutter button is on the side of the lens its really easy to get camera shake.

As I shot with it more and more the images started to get alot better. You can see a few more successful ones here.

It's not the most reliable camera and I would never use it to capture any special moments. It's more a camera for experimenting. The images included in this post (apart from the first image) were taken up Mow cop. 

To be honest I'm abit meh about them, none of them make me go wow but I think they are quite fun. I used a home made splitzer on a few of them like the one above, I basically just placed a piece of cardboard over half of the lens for the first shot, then covered the opposite side of the lens and took another shot. So the image is split in two.

Do you have any of the Diana cameras? What do you think? I'd love any tips or tricks to try if you have any?

The Swan With Two Knecks

For mine and Dan's eighth year anniversary (which granted was a while ago now, but I've only just had this film developed) we decided to treat ourselves to nice meal at The Swan With Two Knecks. 

It's not far from Newcastle (under Lyme) and is little posher than your average pub. So the prices are abit higher than what I'd usually pay but it is totally worth it! I've been a few times now and every thing I've tried has been amazing.

We went on a Tuesday evening around about half past 6 and it wasn't really that busy which made a nice change as it's usually packed. To start off we both ordered a rekorderlig, I was totally impressed when the waiter bought along two glasses filled with fresh strawberry's, limes and ice. So yummy!

We decided to skip the starters so save room for desert. I ordered the "Homemade sausage wellington with sweet potato mash, Savoy cabbage and red wine gravy." It was very tasty, especially the sweet potato mash. For the price £10.96 you get alot for your money, there were three massive slices of the wellington I couldn't finish it all. 

Dan ordered the "Roasted sea bass fillets on pan fried potatoes, chorizo, peppers, olives, coriander and broccoli, served with lobster, tomato and basil sauce" He pulled his face when it came out as it didn't look like there was alot on the plate compared to mine (typical man) but by time he was finished he was full up and really enjoyed it.

For desert we both had the Homemade Sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream. I was to excited to take a photo but I can assure you it looked and tasted soooo good I could eat it again right now for my breki.

It cost almost £50 for everything which is much more than our usual tenner takeaway but fine for a special occasion every now and again. 

Urghh I'm really hungry now!

My little home

It's been one whole year since I moved into mine and Dan's little home. 

Time has flown by so quickly it feels like just yesterday we picked up the keys and excitedly began transforming empty rooms into a place to call ours. 

I've been photographing our little space for a while now, I know I'll be glad of it one day. When we can look back and remember the first ever place we got to call home together.....

 

Weekend walks..Mow cop

Living on such a pretty campus there's alot of places to wander and photograph, but it's left me feeling in a bit of a rut lately. So last Sunday I made the massive effort (yes it really is hard!) to leave campus and head up to mow cop for some fresh scenery.

If your not from Stoke you might not of heard of Mow Cop castle. It's basically a fake castle on a big hill. Sound's like a hoot right?

Well it's my kind of Sunday fun! Along with the "castle" it also has some stunning views. However it was pretty windy up there, safe to say my dress wasn't really appropriate and I'm pretty sure other people up there were just after a leisurely Sunday walk not a flash of my arse!

I shot these images on my Chinon and also took my Diana + out for a play to with a home made splitzer. So I'm very interested to see how they come out. I'm thinking blur blur blur. We shall seeee!

Snapshots & wise words

I'm a sucker for a good quote. I saw this article to the other day and some really jumped out at me so I thought it would be fun to share some of my favourites with a few snapshots taken over the last few months.

 “I never have taken a picture I’ve intended. They’re always better or worse.”
– Diane Arbus

“Photography is the story I fail to put into words.”
– Destin Sparks

 

 “The camera is an excuse to be someplace you otherwise don’t belong. It gives me both a point of connection and a point of separation.”
– Susan Meiselas

“I don’t trust words. I trust pictures.”
– Gilles Peress

“One doesn’t stop seeing. One doesn’t stop framing. It doesn’t turn off and turn on. It’s on all the time.”
- Annie Leibovitz

“The camera makes you forget you’re there. It’s not like you are hiding but you forget, you are just looking so much.” 

- Annie Leibovitz

“The best thing about a picture is that it never changes, even when the people in it do.”
– Andy Warhol

“I like to photograph anyone before they know what their best angles are.”
– Ellen Von Unwerth

 “Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever… It remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.”
– Aaron Siskind

 “A portrait is not made in the camera but on either side of it.”
– Edward Steichen

“A good snapshot keeps a moment from running away.” 

- Eudora Welty 

“Taking pictures is savoring life intensely, every hundredth of a second.” 

-Marc Riboud

“Photograph: a picture painted by the sun without instruction in art.”
– Ambrose Bierce

“Only photograph what you love.”

– Tim Walker

“To me, photography is an art of observation. It’s about finding something interesting in an ordinary place… I’ve found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them.”
– Elliott Erwitt