An Easter Weekend with Kodak Portra 400
The delightful duo of my much loved Peugeot 205 and the stupendous Ferrari 296. One car was slightly faster than the other… 1/500s 50mm F8.0.
Owning so many film cameras I’m often having to come up with excuses to try and shoot the one that’s been sitting on the shelf the longest. Whilst I’ve recently been using my Nikon F100 extensively, another 35mm camera has been collecting dust as of late - my highly prized Kodak Retina iiiS. It was high time it saw a bit more action. Well timed as I had been hoarding Kodak film before the annual price increases and I really did need to start shooting some of it. So first up was a trusty roll of Portra 400, and with a full weekend of activities ahead there was plenty to capture.
Almost like white mist, the cherry blossom in Hitchin was a good sign for the following day’s Hanami. 1/500s 50mm F8.0.
Friday was perhaps the most thrilling as it’s not everyday your automotive journalist friend turns up in a brand spanking new Ferrari 296 from Ferrari themselves no less. The colour scheme is not exactly what I would choose but the important bit is the driving and boy did it drive. Sitting in the passenger seat it felt like I was riding a rollercoaster. Despite being the junior Ferrari with a V6 hybrid engine it still produces a mad 820bhp with frighteningly quick acceleration and G forces I’d never felt in a car before. It certainly made for a memorable pub out and I won’t lie, I wasn’t keeping up in my Peugeot 205. Must be my worn tyres…
Fueling ourselves up before a hearty drive out in the Ferrari. 1/125s 50mm F8.0.
Riding in the Ferrari 296 was a wholly new experience for me. Just imagine what this could do on a track! 1/500s 50mm F8.0.
Saturday was more relaxing but no less fun. After suggesting it a week or two prior I was out in Regent’s Park under the cherry blossoms for Hanami. This translates as ‘flower viewing’ from Japanese, something that that nation is very famous for and that all its residents are obsessed over in Spring. Thankfully the space for the picnic blankets is not so hotly contested on this side of the world, but the Japanese food and snacks are mightily more expensive (and of a significantly lower quality I imagine). There’s always a trade-off in life! Thankfully we had decent weather with clear skies and sunshine, the only precipitation coming from the flowers raining down our heads, sheared off the trees by eager parakeets. It made for an amusing spectacle.
I visited Ichiba for the first time to pick up food and drinks for Hanami. Supposedly Europe’s biggest Japanese food hall. There’s more here overall than the Japan Centre in Leicester Square, but whilst that one is geared up more for on-the-go snacks, this had more for grocery shopping. 1/500s 50mm F8.0.
A traditional Koinobori (carp streamer) hangs down from the ceiling inside. 1/60s 50mm F2.8.
If you fancy eating freshly cooked food then there’s plenty of opportunity here as well. 1/60s 50mm F2.8.
This series of decorations also caught my attention. 1/60s 50mm F5.6.
As did this upside down house display that was situated outside. One day I will have to go inside. 1/250s 50mm F8.0.
A lovely afternoon with Hanami under the cherry blossom. 1/125s 50mm F5.6.
I even managed to hand off the camera (after setting the focus) to someone else to have a photo of myself taken. 1/500s 50mm F8.0.
Spot the parakeet (and the flower it had sheared off). 1/500s 50mm F2.8.
Sunday was a day with the family. My aunt was over, and we could all enjoy the holiest day of the year with a good old fashioned Sunday roast, naturally followed by a hearty amount of chocolate. Speaking of chocolate, I’d certainly been on the Easter Bunny’s good list this year and I couldn’t resist getting down on my belly for a fun shot in the garden with the bounties of Spring. Thankfully the good weather continued to allow for a much-needed post lunch walk. Seeing as this camera was originally my grandfather’s it always makes me smile when I capture photos of family, much like he did all those years ago.
It wouldn’t be a proper Easter Sunday without a Sunday roast! 1/60s 50mm F5.6.
A post lunch walk with the family. 1/125s 50mm F5.6.
This year’s haul of Easter delights. 1/500s 50mm F11.
Finally comes Monday and unlike most people I was back to work (though thankfully nothing as strenuous as rising from the dead). St Albans Cathedral was holding its annual Easter Pilgrimage, but unfortunately the pre-event picnic couldn’t be held outside as the rain had finally reared its ugly head. Of course, being British everyone just ate the picnic inside the church instead! I was naturally on camera duty for the Diocese, and this allowed me to get into a couple of places that are normally off-limits to visitor. Having visited St Albans Cathedral a few times now it was neat to see it from a new (higher) perspective. I was very happy with the digital images I captured for work, as I felt they really captured the joy of the day, but it was good to sneak a few shots on film as well.
David & James tuck into some food before the Easter Pilgrimage service at St Albans Cathedral. 1/125s 50mm F5.6.
Being on official camera duty I managed to get up to an area normally reserved only for the organist. 1/60s 50mm F2.8.
The Bishop of Bedford led much of the service. 1/60s 50mm F2.8.
All in all, it was quite the weekend and I’m glad I’ve captured some of these memories on film. It does take a bit of discipline to make a single roll last across several days. I think sometimes as photographers we spend so much time chasing the big things, we forget to capture the little moments in our own lives. Sure, it may not win us an award in a competition but images like these give us plenty to smile about for years to come.
I love how the colours of this stained glass window have come out. Even colour negative film couldn’t cover the complete dynamic range of this scene, but the surrounding darkness help make the colours pop. 1/60s 50mm F2.8.
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