Cherry Blossom Season.
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Finally got around to processing a few rolls of @kodak film from the @dcfilmcollective Cherry Blossom meetup on the National Mall. It's one of my favorite times of year, when the skies above the lawn become a tangled mess of kite strings from young and old alike.
📷 Nikon F3 HP
🎞️ @kodak Gold 200, Kodacolor 200 and UltraMax 400
🧪 @cinestillfilm Cs41
🖥️ @valoi.co 360 + @sony A7RIII + @negativelabpro@dcfilmcollective
#scannedwithvaloi
Slide film test.
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Took a night this week to run 10 rolls of slide film through the @vintagevisual.eu AGO Processor using a box of E6 chemistry from @filmphotographyproject .
Thanks to submissions from a few colleagues in @dcfilmcollective I had everything from fresh @kodak Ektachrome in both 35 and 120 formats all the way through to some funky, very expired Velvia and Fujichrome. Even tried cross processing a roll of @reflx_lab Pro 100 as slide film and got some passable positives.
Also got a chance to mount my own first roll of Ektachrome. This roll I shot quickly that afternoon, using some of my standard test scenes including a sign, @metroforward , and my office plant. Borrowed some AP photo slides to mount the film after running each roll through my @valoi.co 360 system for digital copies.
📷 Nikon F3 HP
🎞️ @kodak Ektachrome 100
🧪 @filmphotographyproject E6 Kit
🖥️ @valoi.co 360 + @sony A7RIII + @negativelabpro@dcfilmcollective
#scannedwithvaloi
Running it back with @mtplantry for 4x4x5 Round 2 at @rhizome_dc .
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Great turnout for round 2 of 4x4x5 at Rhizome! This time we benefited from fantastic weather, ideal dev temps, and the introduction of timed entry so every person got the hands on experience we wanted to create.
Participants started out getting their photo taken in front of the signature Mt. Plantry backdrop on "the Goose" - aka @wsmelnick 's Polaroid 600 SE - which was kitted out with a 4x5 sheet film holder. We then walked through the basics of caffenol and other alternative process developers before having folks try their hand at agitating the tanks. With completed (and dried) negatives in hand, we headed outside for cyanotypes, before heading upstairs for teanol and "muddy" development in the darkroom.
📷 Nikon D610
@dupontphotowalk in black and white.
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These are the photos I set out to take starting out at Dupont Photo Walk, a gray, cold spring day. I've started setting my digital cameras to different color profiles with the fallback that I can always change color profiles later if I don't like the images straight out of the camera.
📷 Sony A7R III
@dupontphotowalk in color.
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Went in shooting black and white on a gray day - but wondered what a few of these (esp. those with off camera flash) would look like in color.
📷 Sony A7RIII + 24-105 F4 + Godox V100S
Light at the end of the tunnel? Dupont Photo Walk.
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Beautiful weather after a particularly bitter winter for a massive crowd at February's @dupontphotowalk starting at @procamera.us . I counted close to 100 faces. I brought along my Sony A7RIII and a new Godox V100 to try some off camera high speed sync flash during an otherwise bright day as I've seen other DPWs like @bfelch_and_everything_else do often. I learned I need to grow a third arm, preferably 8 feet long, to get some of the shots I envisioned, but having the help of friends like @marinamouraphotography and Grace helped greatly. Here's to more experimentation and more photo walks with friends in 2026.
4x4x5 with @mtplantry at @rhizome_dc
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Thanks to everyone who braved the cold and stuck with us through thick and thin (negatives). We had a great time showing folks how to do 4x5 film 4 ways, including developing the negative in a coffee based developer, and contact printing cyanotypes, tea-based prints, and “muddy” prints using ash and coffee grounds. Look out for more programming from us in 2026!
📸 Nikon D610
Film vs Digital.
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Picked up a Nikon AF-S 17-35mm f2.8 D to use on both my Nikon F3 and Nikon D610. Shot the bodies side by side over the course of an hour or so under challenging nighttime conditions to test both the lens and my F3s metering after cleaning out some carbon build up. Turns out Nikon's Monochrome in-camera filter from 2012 is a pretty close dupe straight out of camera to @harmanphoto Kentmere 400 in HC-110 1:31. These photos also confirmed my F3 is back in action. Metering was only a third to a half stop off from the D610 using its much newer matrix metering.
📷 @nikonusa F3 + D610
🎞️ @harmanphoto Kentmere 400
🧪 HC110 + @vintagevisual.eu AGO Processor
🖥️ @valoi.co Easy35 + Sony A7RIII + @filmlabapp@dcfilmcollective
#scannedwithvaloi
Afters.
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Pt. 2: After @jrmphoto.jpg gave the thumbs up, we headed up into the market, which has seen a major refurbishment since coming under new management. While some made a beeline for the stalls to find a new street angle, others took the opportunity to catch up, including folks like @steffresh and @teverett_ . Others, like me, were biding their time, snapping a few pics, until the "Afters" at @prost_dc . It happened to be @young0maker 's birthday, and @mileage_junkie had brought the Instax back for his Hasselblad to pass around the table. All in all, not a bad way to end the walk.
📷 Nikon F3 HP
🎞️ @kodak Kodacolor 200, Gold 200, and Ultramax 400.
🧪 @cinestillfilm Cs41
🖥️ @valoi.co 360 + @sony A7RIII + @negativelabpro@dcfilmcollective
#scannedwithvaloi
Third year.
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Pt. 1: This past weekend marked the start of the third year of @dupontphotowalk and the last walk of 2025. D.C. weather was bitterly cold, meaning many of us were seeing our breath while waiting for @jrmphoto.jpg to send us on our way. 2025 saw the release of a zine, our first gallery event, and many great walks through diverse neighborhoods across the city. New faces, old faces (like @rbrettparsons of @dcfilmcollective ), and some who have been with us a few walks all gathered in the morning sun at the U.S. Navy Memorial with the intent to explore the @downtowndcholidaymarket . Given the weather, John gave us the thumbs up to go ahead and dispense with the usual "ice breakers" and head up to the market.
📷 Nikon F3 HP
🎞️ @kodak Kodacolor 200 + Gold 200
🧪 @cinestillfilm Cs41
🖥️ @valoi.co 360 + @sony A7RIII + @negativelabpro@dcfilmcollective
#scannedwithvaloi
Edinburgh Misfires.
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Pulling photos in from our trip to Edinburgh and came across a few shutter drag misfires. Sometimes the mistakes end up being more interesting than the ones you sought to create.
📷 Sony A7R III
Another round of alternative developing w/ @mtplantry - this time with coffee + beer in the same batch.
You'd be hard pressed to tell the final product from a commercial developer.
We even scanned the film with the @valoi.co Easy35 system on Eric's patio table in broad daylight. No plugs, no darkroom, no problem.
This roll was shot rapid fire as a test roll while the group assembled. A few more Kodacolor coming at some point.
📷 @nikonusa F3 HP
🎞️ @harmanphoto Kentmere 400
🧪 Coffee + Beer Developer
🖥️ @valoi.co Easy35 + @NikonUSA Zfc + @negativelabpro@dcfilmcollective
#scannedwithvaloi
