I love the little Minolta Freedom Vista (Riva Panorama) camera I scored in a $50 grab bag from Dad last year. I don’t always have a roll of film in it, but I should…
Upon my return from Denver, once all the random bits of rolls left in cameras were shot up and developed, I grabbed the first roll that fell to hand—one of two rolls of FPP Derev Pan 400 I picked up some time ago—and started shooting.
The first few shots went down at a Welcome to Texas party for my darling wife’s darling uncle. He and his wife moved here from NY/NJ a couple of months back and any excuse for cake is a good excuse for cake.
Later that week, Hana and I took a trip out to Grapevine Lake, and I took a few shots of our usual spots.
The next week, we took a trip out to the little Egret sanctuary over in the hospital district, what is apparently called the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (UTSWMC) Rookery. Back in the early part of the 20th Century, we humans almost drove the humble Egrets extinct due to our love of fancy hats. In the 1950s, if I recall the plaque I read years ago correctly, there were fewer than 100 breeding pairs in the US or something, and Egrets were put on the endangered species list and protected. Now, the little park at UTSWMC hosts dozens of birds, more and more each year. It’s really nice to visit when they’re all there nesting in the spring, but it’s also a nice quiet, smallish park to go wander in at any time.
And anyone that tells you panoramic pictures should always be horizontal needs to think again…
Overall, I quite like the way this roll turned out. The Minolta Freedom Vista did a great job, as expected, and the Derev Pan 400 returned some nice, inky blacks, brilliant whites, and pleasant grain, after 10.5 minutes in Ilfotec HC, dilution H (1:63). I should get some more one day, or maybe try and find a bulk roll… once I finish the 1.n rolls of Foma 200 I have (one in a loader, partially used; one full sealed in the fridge).
For those of you who celebrate, Happy Xmas, Kwanza, Hanukkah, and/or Festivus! If you’d like to give me a gift, *hint hint, I do have a Kofi to which no one has ever contributed… (Link below somewhere. I don’t mention it often, and will continue to limit the advertising.)
