UJC #12: You've Entered the Focus Zone!

The rain has finally stopped in the greater Chattanooga area (for now), and Kevin and Kelley Lane (otherwise known as the Shutter Brothers) are back with more film photography chat. It's been an exciting week for Kevin, as his elementary school film photography student project from last spring has come to the notice of every film photographer's friend, Michael Raso of the Film Photography Project, and he has published a blog post about it on the FPP website. The post features an interview with Kevin about how the project came about along with some of the photos the 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders took using the FPP Plastic Fantastic Debonair 120 camera. It's all about sharing the love of traditional photography to the next generation of film shooters

Sun paper prints from negatives shot by Kevin!s music students.

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Next, Kelley leads us in a deep dive about Depth of Field, and the first thing he wants us to do is to change what we call it from "depth of field" to (turn on the big reverb here:)  the Focus Zone! Once you have learned how to calculate and control exposure, you will want to know how to control exactly what will be in focus in your composition. Grab a camera and follow along.

Do you know how to use the depth of field scale?

As we said, the rain has let up some around here, and Kevin has been able to actually get out and do some shooting. In the process, he has found that all this rain has a silver lining:  opportunities for amazing waterfall photography. Listen as Kevin shares his tips on how to make better waterfall photographs.

Boardwalk Falls, near Altamont, Tennessee.
Taken by Kevin with his Minolta 7s on Kosmo
Mono Foto film (ISO 100), home processed.

With the rain letup, Kelley has been able to visit his favorite flea market. Did he come home empty handed? Of course not! Kelley found an interesting camera that neither of the shutter brothers have ever seen before, a Ricoh Singlex TLS. It's built like a tank and may well survive the apocalypse, but it also is a good picture taker, too. Listen as Kelley gives it an audio review.

Next, Kevin reads an email from honorary "nephew" and friend of the show, Jason Manriquez, about the arguments for and against "holding" cameras. Both the Shutter Brothers have had bouts with G.A.S (Gear Acquisition Syndrome), so listen as they share their opinions. We admit that we love cameras, and we feel that we are obligated to see that they survive so that the next generation of film enthusiasts will cameras to use. What's your opinion!

Finally, Kevin recommends a podcast he has discovered recently. It's called Matt Loves Cameras, and it comes from Matt Murray from Australia. Kevin loves his positive approach to photography and also hearing Matt's reviews of the cameras he owns and uses. Check it out!

The Uncle Jonesy's Cameras Podcast can be found here and at all your favorite podcast sources. We hope you enjoy show #12, and if you have any comments, questions, or tips, you can email them to us at unclejonesyscameras@gmail.com (we welcome voice memos as well!). You also can post on our Facebook page, which you can find here. While you are at it, follow us on Instagram at @ujcpodcast.

Happy Shooting!