Finding my mojo in photography again

A holiday, 2008. Nikon F50, AF Nikkor 35-80mm F/1.4-5.6D. Fujifilm Superia 200.
A holiday, 2008. Nikon F50, AF Nikkor 35-80mm F/1.4-5.6D. Fujifilm Superia 200.

When I was young I didn’t have a camera. My father had a camera but I didn’t dare to touch it and he never let me try it. I remember a Olympus half frame and a small Rollei. In the mid seventies I got a 126 cassette film camera but I can’t remember the brand, I think Agfa. That summer we traveled for the first time to Spain and I did feel like a real photographer. Proudly showing my camera that I carried in a small etui fastened at my belt I felt great!

After that I visit every camera store I did see and I looked at the camera’s in the shop window and get inside for all the leaflets of brands as Hasselblad, Nikon, Pentax etc. With the little money that I had as a 14 year old kid far out of reach!

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Week 1, 52 rolls: Maastricht and Rotterdam with the Praktica CX-1 point and shoot camera

Week 1, 52 rolls: a fall sky over a plant. Rotterdam. 2019
Week 1, 52 rolls: a fall sky over a plant. Rotterdam. 2019

The camera, a Praktica CX-1, performed very well and surprised me with the color rendering and sharpness! I didn’t know this camera but when scrolling through the lists on a online market website I bought it. I liked the size of it and I like the brand Praktica! My first “real” camera, a SLR, was a Praktica B200 and I’m still very happy with that one!

On arriving I checked the camera, new batteries and a fresh Kodak film. Everything seems to work fine. So week 1 of this project52 was a learning week. I tried to free myself from the pressure to perform, make the best picture etc. I just took the Praktica CX-1 with me, on a walk, to work etc. and just look and click with a open mind. And I think it worked out.

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First roll with my Leica M4-2

The moustache lady. Bergweg Rotterdam. Leica M4-2 with 35mm Voigtlander Skopar.
The moustache lady. Bergweg Rotterdam. Leica M4-2 with 35mm Voigtlander Skopar.

After many books, websites, blogs and museum visits I wanted to be a credited and famous photographer. And a Leica is the camera for the ‘real’ photographer so I bought a very nice Leica M4-2. This is the first and testroll I shot with the M4-2. Guessing the light conditions is not so hard and using my Voigtlander 35mm thread lens with a adapter on the Leica worked great!

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City steps with the first camera I owned, the Praktica B200

Find your way in cameraland! I found Praktica!

Taken with the first camera I ever owned, a Praktica B200 with a Prakticar 50mm F/2.4 lens, loaded with Kodak Portra 400. Awaken after almost 15 years and working flawlessly. I decided to walk towards the river and back to home, city center. Early morning, nice light and a bit hazy.

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Neighbourhood steps with the Voigtlander Bessa R

The Voigtlander Bessa R and 35mm Skopar stayed safe outside the (former) prison walls while making this picture. Noordsingel prison, Rotterdam.
The Voigtlander Bessa R and 35mm Skopar stayed safe outside the (former) prison walls while making this picture. Noordsingel prison, Rotterdam.

I bought the Voigtlander Bessa R with the 35mm Skopar because it is an affordable and comparable rangefinder a la Leica in terms of image quality. The purists will say that these cameras are not comparable, but everyone has their own opinion! Using the SLR camera for years and now getting used to a rangefinder is quite difficult in the beginning.

Loading it with Ilford XP2 and fresh batteries was easy enough. Taking pictures another…

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