Uncle Jonesy's Cameras Podcast #55: Flash Done Right (and Flash Done Wrong)

The Shutter Brothers are back! We know it has been a while (and Wayne and I have really missed you!), but I've had some family issues to work through, leaving no time for podcasting (or photography, for that matter) until now. So, we have some catching up to do!

Our show begins with a recap of our 2022 Uncle Jonesy's Camera/Safelight District Photowalk at Laurel Snow State Natural Area near Dayton, Tennessee. It was a complete success, and thanks to everyone who participated. We loved seeing your photowalk photos online, and Wayne and I hope to have ours out soon.

Next, I reveal my choices of cameras for my trip to Montreal and Quebec City the first week of December.  Yes, you heard right. I will be shooting my Panasonic Lumix LX-5 digital camera for color photography. However, I settled on my Minolta XE-5 SLR for black and white. Find out why in the show.

My Panasonic LUMIX LX-5, which I’ve had for years but
never really enjoyed using until . . .

. . . I got the LVF-1 live viewfinder. Now I can use the LUMIX 
as if it were a “real” camera. 😉

As for b&w, I’m going with classic tried and true.

Neither Wayne nor I shoot much flash photography, but there are times when flash is a must. Wayne has found a great flash option for his Plaubel Makina 67 medium format camera: the Olympus T32. It has all the functionality Wayne wants, and it looks good, too! Way to go, Wayne! However, over in this corner is Kevin, whose roll of blank film shows what happens when flash is done wrong. Listen to the show to find out how you can avoid making the same mistake.

Wayne's Makina 67 with Olympus T32 Flash

The T32 has a movable head that enables a full range of 
bounce capability.

Another cool flash is the Vivitar 283 with the sensor cord. Put
the sensor on the camera and place the flash wherever you want!

What Kevin was going for with his recent attempt at flash photography was musician portraits in the style of Francis Wolff, the co-founder of Blue Note records. While his main role with Blue Note was handling the finances, he also was an accomplished photographer. He shot over 100,000 frames at nearly every Blue Note session, and these photographs were used for the album cover art. He used a Rollieflex, but Kevin has replicated his style with the "plastic filmtastic" Debonair 120 from the Film Photography Store, which has a hot shoe. Put a flash on it and you can get portraits like this!

Believe it or not, if you put a flash unit on the
Debonair 120, it's capable of some cool portraits
in the style of Francis Wolff.

Finally, the Shutter Brothers discuss using Etsy as a platform for selling their prints. Does it work and is it worth the time? Listen to find out.

Kevin's darkroom prints can be found in his Etsy store, Chattalogphotography.

You can visit Kevin's Etsy store by clicking here.

As always, we love hearing from out listeners. If you want to contribute for a future show, you can send your questions, comments, tips, stories, and even voice memos to unclejonesyscameras@gmail.com. You also can follow us on Facebook and Instagram, and feel free to leave your feedback there.

Now load that camera and capture some holiday magic!