SAD310: Burgermeister!

SAD310 - Nikon FM2n - Nikkor 50mm/f1.8 AF-D - Portra 400VC - September, 2009



Milkshakes: Serious business.

An American Family: The DarkTopo Review

It’s hard to review Pam Spaulding’s An American Family (National Geographic's Focal Point Press, $35) without using the words charming, touching, or poignant. And though it is all of those things, the importance of this book is much greater, and much deeper.

In 1976, John and Judy McGarvey answered Spaulding’s challenge: Allow a photographer into their lives for one year, their first year as parents, and the first of their child’s life. One year turned into thirty, and one child turned into three.

What Spaulding presents—with the consent of the McGarveys—is a record of an American family in the late 20th century. Child rearing, vacations, careers, holidays: The book could be one long brochure for the American dream, or one exceptionally well-rendered family photo album.

The most compelling aspect of this book is its duration: We see the eldest son David’s first Pledge of Allegiance in kindergarten . . . and his return from a tour in Iraq 24 years later. All three children appear as awkward, braces-laden teenagers . . . and successful young adults. And we see in black and white how John and Judy’s hair color begins to occupy a much higher position in the tonal scale.

Considered in a larger context, Spaulding presents much more than a record of a family. The bookjacket says that the images here capture American life for posterity, and that’s true, but there is also the fact that American life in this time period enjoys the highest standard of living the world has ever known. We can look at it as simple Americana, or we could speculate on a wider scale: This is the best it is has ever been, a world where there are two parents, school plays, trips to the Grand Canyon and the teenagers get their own cars, complete with sunroofs. Never before in history has life been this good.

Perhaps a little too good. Though the marketing compares the project to a reality show, it has none of the unforgiving surveillance we saw on The Real World. We see trials, hardships, and sadness, but we see nothing alienating, and very little failure. Perhaps the McGarveys are perfect people, or perhaps Spaulding is only sparing them embarrassment. . . but would so careful a journalist edit her work for such a shallow agenda?

Considering what is presented, and white is not, I think it's likely that Spaulding's edits make a purposeful statement about American life. As in any good documentary project, the content of that statement is left largely to the interpretation of the viewer. Is Spaulding telling us “this is how it is,” or “this is how it should be?”

In any event, she tells us “this is how it was.” We may speculate whether these images show us the whole truth, and if so, what meaning we may take from it. But in the end, after three decades of the poignancy and charm in a family’s life, “how it was” is a pretty noble thing to document.

SAD309: Impeach

SAD309 - Nikon FM2n - Nikkor 50mm/f1.8 AF-D - Portra 400VC - October, 2009

SAD308

SAD308 - Pentax K1000 - Pentax 28/2.8 SMC - HP5 - 200?

Rangefinder vs. SLR: The DarkTopo Shootout!

SAD307: Konica Auto S2 with Hexanon 45mm/f1.8 vs. Nikon FM2n with Nikkor 50mm/f1.8 AF-D - Lucky 100 SHD - October, 2009

Anyone who's followed the blog knows the sordid details of my photographic identity crisis. The photo world is full of egos, and those egos seem continually engaged in trench warfare over a few issues, chief among them the issue of camera design: Single Lens Reflex vs. Rangefinder.

I've tried to stay above this bickering, and, with a few notable exceptions, have done a good job. But then my dad started loaning me rangefinder cameras, seeding doubt beneath my solid SLR foundation. Pretty soon I was lying awake at night, asking myself guilty questions like, "Can I really hand-hold my FM2n at 1/15th when the chips are down? Will the retro-focus design of my SLR lenses keep me out of the New York gallery circuit?"

There's only one way to answer these questions once and for all: A super-scientific, impeccably performed, absolutely beyond-doubt DarkTopo test! Enough arguing, speculating, and posturing: From now on, anyone who's wondering which design is better can simply read this post. Think of the bandwidth we'll save! No need to thank me, just make your donations payable to "Guggenheim Museum of Amazing Photography, Cooper Wing."

The Theory

A Single Lens Reflex camera focuses with the aid of a mirror and pentaprism, allowing the photographer to see the image more or less exactly as it will be projected onto the film. Rangefinders focus through triangulation, and the lack of a mirror system means there is less internal vibration when the shutter is released--there is no mirror to move out of the way. Furthermore, a rangefinder's lenses can be placed much closer to the film, allowing for easier lens design and, thus, better optics.

Hogwash, I always said. The choice of camera system is about 1% of the makeup of a photograph, if even that. In any given image, the thing that matters most is the photographer's vision, and second to that are things like flash, film, and processing. Then comes the camera, and the most important aspect there is the glass, not how it's focused.

And while those things are still true, shooting the Konia Auto S2 raised some questions. Some rangefinder gurus claim they can hand-hold their cameras at shutter speeds two stops slower than SLRs. Legend has it that HCB could consistently hand-hold his Leica at 1/4th of a second (and if you believe that, I have some property to sell you). But for certain, the rangefinder is quieter and easier to focus in low light. I remember a Rob Amberg photo of some women in a dark bar, completely oblivious to his presence. "With an SLR," he said, "I'd have gotten one shot. With my Leica, I took three or four before they knew I was there." The photo was sharp as a tack, even in bar light.

So I decided to test the Konica against an SLR with a comparable lens. You can't test for ergonomics, handling, and style preferences, but I could sure take some photos and see if they were sharp.

Lens Performance

In order to test my ability to handhold these cameras, I first had to establish a control, and test the sharpness of the lenses. Unfortunately, all my MTF charts were lost in a freak paper shredder accident at NerdCon last year. However, my bookcase--rife with literary classics, theology, historical biographies, and zombie finger puppets--is very much intact.

First, the Konica. I mounted the camera on a tripod, focused on Hitler's ugly mug, and shot two frames at f1.8 and f8:





Whoa. Quite a difference, which is to be expected. What I didn't expect is that the camera's framelines are whack. To compensate for the extra 5mm of focal length between the two lenses, I simply moved the Konica closer, framing the exact same area in the viewfinder and counting on the Konica's famed parallax correction. This was unsuccessful, because--who would have thought?--the framelines in a 40-year-old consumer-grade rangefinder are a little off.

There's also a slight under-exposure on the f8 shots because neither camera can change speeds by less than a full stop, so there is no way to get an equivalent exposure between f1.8 and f8. The negatives are shown here with zero processing.

But the weirdest thing is the rendering of the CD cases at the top of the bookcase. It's not just that they are sharper and contrastier at f8, but that they have entirely different values. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, over? The only explanation I can offer is something to do with color rendition at the extreme edge of the lens. That, or the zombies rearranged my CDs between shots.









I'm going to make a statement here, and I have absolutely no data to back it up, but since I have a rangefinder now I can do that: This lens out-resolves the film at f8. I feel like there's detail there that is being lost in the grain. Of course, this is also really crappy film. But still.

Now the Nikon:





These two shots exhibit the same discrepancy between f1.8 and f8. Not unexpected. The center tests out pretty much as you'd expect as well. At the 50mm focal length, however, the extreme upper left corner was nothing but wood grain, so I took my sample from the extreme left edge. Not exactly scientific, but if you're really worried about the variations in sharpness on the left edge of an SLR's frame and you're the type of person to actually call some guy on the internet unscientific, I respectfully suggest that you get out of the house.









I have a feeling that the Nikkor is a tiny bit sharper at f8, but it's really too close to call. Of course, the last time I shot a normal length lens at f8 on a tripod was probably for a Photo I assignment that started with "Mount your camera on a tripod and set the lens to f8."

Clearly, the Hexanon is a better performer (Oh no. I just used the phrase "better performer" on my blog. Next I'll be talking about "illusive gradations between tones" and all my lenses will be Sumi-Nocti-Elmar-Luxes.) overall, considering the edge sharpness wide open. If I had to shoot a low-light scene and make a choice based on lens alone, I'd go with the Hexanon.

That said, I think the difference is pretty moderate. Not negligible, but not night-and-day, either. Other factors about the camera's operation would matter more to me, such as the famed "handholdability" of the rangefinder design.

Handholdability

In addition to the much-lauded lack of a mirrorbox that all rangefinders enjoy, the Konica also has a leaf shutter. In theory, the radial motion of the leaf shutter (I can't believe I'm even talking about this) induces less vibration than the lateral motion of a focal plane shutter. This definitely makes it quieter than the Nikon, and in theory should make it less susceptible to motion blur than even (gasp!) a Leica.

I'm not convinced that any of that matters in the grand scheme of things. Or even the little scheme of things. In fact, I think there's a strong possibility that the coffee you drank this morning is going to impact your handholdability more than the shutter design in your camera. But that's why I'm doing this super-scientific, completely indisputable test.

I hung an American flag in the window, because the simple, high-contrast shapes would be easy to focus on and clearly demonstrate sharpness (or lack thereof). I couldn't use the bookcase, because I'd have to stoop over to photograph it head on, and I wanted to use proper form for the most steadiness. For what it's worth, I'm a steady guy: I'm 28 with no motor-control issues, I limit my caffeine, and I can put five rounds in the ten ring at fifty yards. I stood the same distance from the flag for all shots, and I shot five frames at each shutter speed with both cameras.

I sampled the same star from each photo, and you can click these images for full resolution of the sampled area:

















The results: Not what conventional wisdom would suggest. I'd say the Nikon beats the Konica at 1/8th and is a pretty even match at 1/15th. At higher speeds, I see little difference.

There are some other factors: For me, the Nikon is easier to grip. Perhaps that makes it more steady. It also has a crisper shutter release. Plus, when composing, you brace your eyebrow against the center of an SLR, rather than the end of a rangefinder, possibly providing a steadier balance. But really, if you have to consider factors as minor as these, I'd say that makes the issue negligible. In the field, it will matter more which direction the wind is blowing.

The Shocking Conclusion

The Hexanon lens has wide-open edge performance blatantly superior to the Nikkor. Other than that, I could find very few significant differences between the image quality these two cameras deliver. There is no advantage in handholdability that I can see. This conflicts with my previous observations in the bookstore, but perhaps I just got lucky. In any event, it's not worth wasting film on further tests.

So the conclusion is a real shocker: Life is short, use the camera you enjoy.

DarkTopo wins BlogAsheville Best Writing Award

Yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you. And congratulations to Zenography for winning Best Art/Photos two years in a row. Well done, buddy. And by "buddy" I mean "arch nemesis."

So do I get one of those cool "BlogAsheville Winner" badges for my sidebar, or do I have to make one myself?

SAD306: Epic Fail

SAD306 - Konica Auto S2 - Hexanon 45mm/f1.8 - Portra 200VC - October, 2009

So since I was suddenly a rangefinder shooter, I figured I should try my hand at the HCB style. Perhaps the Konica would be the final step in cementing my ninja photo skills.

Too bad I suck at this game. The shot I saw three seconds before this was much better. And by "much better," I mean "actually good." If there's one thing I can't stand, it's "Street Photography" of the back of someone's head.

So, news flash: The camera ain't important if you don't have skills. Seems I read that on a blog somewhere . . .

Coming up tomorrow: The RF/SLR shootout. Let's put it to the test.

Everybody needs a hobby.

The first five rounds at 50 yards through my Marlin 981t. This is with a CenterPoint scope from Wally World and bulk Remington ammo. After a bit of zeroing, I was shooting bottlecaps off a fence post at 100 yards uphill. Nothing match-grade, but I had a lot of fun.

SAD305: Testing Parallax

SAD305 - Konica Auto S2 - Hexanon 45mm/f1.8 - Kodak Tmax - September, 2009

SAD304: A Rangefinder Walk

SAD304 - Konica Auto S2 - Hexanon 45mm/f1.8 - Lucky 100 SHD - October, 2009

At this point in the Rangefinder experiment, things were not looking good for my long held grudges. I decided to run some tests, to settle the issue once and for all. But first, Jes and I took a walk.



I am still much slower with a Rangefinder. I don't know if this has to do with the somewhat antiquated design of the Konica, or if I'm just not used to it. The question is: Is it worth getting used to it? Are there real benefits, or is it just hype?

I'll post the test results in a couple of days. But first, happy halloween.

SAD303: @ Mammacitas

SAD303 - Konica Auto S2 - Hexanon 45mm/f1.8 - Portra 400VC - October, 2008

SAD302: The New Guy

SAD302 - Konica Auto S2 - Hexanon 45mm/f1.8 - Portra 400VC - September, 2009

Things were not looking good. I had spent a week shooting a rangefinder camera and Kodak films. All of a sudden it was as if I had listened to everything they told me in photo school. I could hear a chorus of I-Told-You-So's wafting across the internet from the RFF and photo.net.

"Maybe I can just pretend I always used a rangefinder," I thought to myself. "I'll just go back and doctor all the SAD posts. And the posts about how Tri-X is for sissies."

Unfortunately, I think the LUGgers have already filed me under H for Heretic. My anti-rangefinder sentiment is documented as far back as SAD061.

To make matters worse, laypeople actually commented on the Konica when I was out and about. I mean, not hot girls or anything, but a few people actually did mention how cool it looks. And one of the things I really love about it is the "notch" in the frame. You can see it in this photo right beneath the right side of the shirt pocket. A quirk of the manufacturing process. The opportunities for nerdy camera worship abound. How did it ever come to this?

Oh well. At least I'm not on Pnet arguing about which camera has the smoother film advance.

SAD301: The Rangefinder Experiment, #5

SAD301 - Konica Auto S2 - Hexanon 45mm/f1.8 - Portra 400VC - September, 2009

SAD300: The Rangefinder Experiment, #4

SAD300 - Konica Auto S2 - Hexanon 45mm/f1.8 - T-Max 400 - September, 2009

DarkTopo's Greatest Hits

Alright, folks, DarkTopo has been going for almost three years. In that time, I've produced a daunting amount of content, and I worry that new readers will be a little overwhelmed by all the recent nerdiness and miss out on all the old nerdiness.

DarkTopo has been nominated for "Best Art/Photos" and "Best Writing" in the Asheville Blogapalooza Awards (VOTE HERE!!!), so I reckon the time has come to give folks a rundown of the best DarkTopo has to offer: The posts that made you laugh, cry, and wonder how much fixer you have to inhale before you end up like me.

So here they are, in no particular order, the Top Ten Best DarkTopo Posts EVAR!!!!1

10: Zombies

9: The Long November

8: Rodinal

7: Two Hour Delay

6: Sarah Palin in Asheville

5: Carriage Return

4: Senate Rejects Cooper as Secretary of Photography

4: Photography Paper Excerpts

3: Ektar 100: The DarkTopo Film Speed Test

2: Sam Abell: The DarkTopo Interview

1: The Wolf, the Snake, and the Bear






Yes, I know there were two 4's. I'm running for Best Art, not Best At Counting.