Baby Belle – Olympus OM4 and Contax AX
I’ve taken a lot of family ‘snapshots’ over the years but photographs of people have never figured much in the more serious side of my photography hobby. Recently, mainly as a result of following blogs where people pictures figure quite a bit, I’ve become interested in adding this genre to my output. Unfortunately my ‘house’ model, though she’s become a keen photographer (digital) over the past few years, doesn’t like to be in front of the camera.
She has, however, a particular ability to engage very rapidly with children and takes some super pictures of youngsters so a neighbour asked her to take some photos of her 9 month old grand daughter – Belle. I asked if I could go along and take some shots on film.
I don’t have a short ‘portrait’ telephoto so I took the OM4 with the 50mm, f/1.8 Zuiko, and the Contax AX with the 50mm, f/1.4 Planar but also a Yashica 2x doubler. I know the Zeiss multipliers have a high reputation but they’ve always been a bit pricey for me, hence the Yashica. My impression is that it doesn’t do the Planar any favours. The Contax was loaded with Fuji Superia 200; the OM4 with Agfa Vista 200 (at £1 a pop from the Pound Shop) – not really Agfa at all but a bargain at £1 for a 24 exposure cassette.
Quite some lovely pictures of your daughter took of Belle. And isn’t it like that for all photographers, they never like to get in front of the lens?
Thanks for the comment ‘munchow’. You are right in a way but I don’t really mind having my photo taken though I don’t like broadcasting it to the world so it doesn’t appear in recognisable form on my blogs or other ‘social media’. I didn’t make myself clear I think, sorry. The pix posted are mine, on film. My reluctant could be in-house model who was the ‘commissioned’ photographer on this occasion (using a Panasonic GF1) is my wife, not daughter (though if you saw us together you wouldn’t be the first to think so!). I don’t think she’s posted any of Belle on her blog but if you want to see some of the other lovely pix she has posted her blog is ‘www.piterelu.wordpress.com’.
I guess I read the text a little too quickly. Thanks for clearing it up for me. Nevertheless the pictures are delightful.