Wanderings with a Rangefinder: Colour
Following on from my previous post here is a sample of street photography images taken around Wellington using the Voigtlander Bessa R3A and 40mm Nokton lens. The film used was Kodak Ektar 100. These were mainly shot during my lunchtime jaunts around Wellington while escaping the confines of the office!
Wanderings with a Rangefinder: Black and White
Recently, for my personal photographic work, I’ve been getting into using film cameras (with the exception of projects where speed and accuracy are required) such as the 35mm rangefinder Voigtlander Bessa R3A and the medium format Mamiya 645. I really enjoy using these manual cameras when I have the time, as I find that it slows the whole process of photography down and it becomes more meditative as there is so much to think about as compared with the speed and immediate feedback of using digital cameras. Coupled with the costs involved with shooting film, I find I need to conceptualize and plan images ahead of time, and really think about the camera settings required to get the shot, and indeed, whether I even want to make a photo. It is a great way to learn how to visualise how to construct an image, rather than relying on the view screen of a digital camera. Don’t get me wrong, I love using digital for the ease, convenience, speed and accuracy, but I also find it can make me lazy photographer through having the immediate feedback on the view screen.
Plus I love using the Voigtlander (a Leica M would be great for convenience) as it is a very small, lightweight camera which I can carry with me all the time. The pics below were shot on a roll of Ilford HP5. Colour pics to come in the next post!
A few more pics from the Voigtlander…….
It’s been a while see I lasted posted anything. I have been working honest. I’ve been very busy developing two large projects – one portraiture and the other documentary – which are taking a rather large amount of time making contacts and organising shoots. More on this soon so watch this space…….In the meantime, here are a few images collected with my trusty Voigtlander Bessa R3A rangefinder. I carry this camera everywhere I go (it’s smaller and far lighter than the DSLR) just in case I come across something interesting……..
Wellington Street Photography
I’ve been planning to add some Street style photos for a while. I was hoping to upload them all together, but seeing as it’s already taken me 18 months to edit these two pictures, I’ll just gradually add them when I find a spare five minutes!
Wellington Harbour Market

I love the vegetable growers at Wellington harbour market. These guys make smoking look like an Olympic sport!
Old El Che!
Some images of the ill-fated Ernesto’s Cuba Street cafe. A Wellington icon until last years Christchurch earthquake which gave the Wellington City Council the required jolt, and they slapped it with a red sticker!
Builder, Geni Building, Willis Street
Here’s a few more Wellington Street photos which I’ve managed to dig out from the archive!
Library
Tradesman with a paper, Willis Street
Burger King
Lunchtime, Molesworth Street