My ongoing project-de-jour at Nunhead Cemetery.
Today I was travelling light with the 55 year old Zeiss Ikon Super Ikonta 532/16 (6×6) with the Opton Tessar f/2.8 80mm lens.
Saturday was a glorious break between the incessant rain and generally crap weather. From a photographic point-of-view the light was somewhat challenging, intensely bright sunlight suddenly disappearing behind thick cloud leaving relative darkness, usually just after I had metered.
The cemetery is full of broken things and statuary in various states of decay and dilapidation and decomposition. Angels at angles.
I find it hard not to be drawn into imaginary life stories of the people in these graves.
Alice Maud Embleton who ”fell asleep” aged 28. Who was she and what did she look like? The shaft of light on her urn influences my imaginary backstory.
Another angel, only about 30cms high, overshadowed by an ugly memorial.
”Peace, perfect peace” is inscribed on the stone. I wish.
There are so many striking memorials and statues that it is easy to forget the more simple graves. The strong sunlight makes some of them stand out through the undergrowth.
The highlights are blown in the photo below but I like the randomness of the trees and the pillar:
I’m not sure why the area to these graves is restricted but I like the contrast between the fence and the chaotic background:
I’ve said this before, but the photographs of corroded stone monuments, graves and statues sometimes give the impression of softness but I don’t always think it is the lens or my lack of technique (sometimes). Even to the naked eye they look soft and crumbly but that is the surface texture. The photograph below of the coy foot illustrates this. The plinth is super sharp and is in the same plane of focus as the statue. The surface texture appears soft however, and I think it is because it really is soft. Lichen covered and corroded, possibly sandstone or limestone, it lacks sharp edges and definition.
I’d have preferred to use f/11 or f/16 but I had no tripod so (from memory) this was f/5.6 to enable handheld (no tripod today).
Because of the lighting and contrast I decided to stand develop the Fuji Neopan 400 (shot at EI200) in Rodinal 1+100 for an hour. I’m quite pleased with the results and like this ‘lazy’ way of developing.
by skinnyvoice
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