Actionsampler

The Actionsampler is the newest of my cameras; my parents got it for me at Christmas. This had been sitting in my wish list on Lomography for a while and I was interested in trying it out purely because it was so unlike any camera I’d used previously.

The Actionsampler has four lenses, so you press the shutter once and it’ll take a series of four pictures on a single print.  As I've never had a multi-lens camera before I felt I was changing my attitude towards taking a photo. Before, I was only taking photos of things that were stationary and trying to keep really still while I was taking the photo, but with the Actionsampler you’ve got to think about movement, so I ended up taking a lot of photos of things that were moving, or I’d be moving while I was taking the photos.

Of course, you can stand still and take photos of stationary things. That looks good too:

I’ve only used one film in here so far but I have so many ideas for it. I can’t wait to play some more and get some crazy shots of people being silly.

The film I used here was Lomography CN 400. It was the first time I'd used any Lomography brand film because I've always gone for the slightly cheaper and more easily available alternatives. I'm so happy I finally started using it as the colours are incredible.

I will eventually be doing a post about my Holga 135 and my first play with black and white film but I want to use another film in it before I post it.

Katy

Blue Skies

Went for a lovely picnic with my family in Mote Park on Saturday morning as the weather was absolutely gorgeous. It was so nice to explore parts of the park I haven't seen in ages.

There's something about this weather that makes me want to listen to a lot of Will Smith and really cheesy pop-punk all the time.

I love it.

That last one is my favourite.

Sometimes I do have to remind myself that I am in fact in Maidstone.

Katy

First Day of Spring

The first day of spring is one of my favourite days.

Goodbye winter blues!

Katy

Hipstamatic

I've fallen in love with vintage effect processing. Is that the real term or did I just make it up?

Toy Story Mania! Disney's Hollywood Studios. Orlando, Florida. 2009

On Wednesday I was looking around for free Photoshop Actions and came across a few sets of Hipstamatic/Instagram style effects.

 Gatwick Airport. 2011.

Brighton. 2011.

I thought they were a good find, particularly as I've been reading Elsie Larson's blog lately and was struck by this post and her ideas for what you can do with your Instagram photos. I thought it was such a cute idea and I'm determined to try this with my own photos when I have my own house.

Marc Jacobs. Las Vegas. 2011.

H&M. Las Vegas. 2011.

I don't have an iPhone but I do have a variety of film cameras which produce the lomo effect that the iPhone apps give you. Now, I'm not saying that an app or a Photoshop Action are going to be a worthwhile substitute for the real thing, however, as financial reasons prevent me from using all the film I want at the moment, this will just have to do.

Alice in Wonderland art (not mine, obviously). Orlando, Florida. 2007.

Star Tours. Disney's Hollywood Studios. Orlando, Florida. 2007.

Plus, it's only for fun anyway. I got to look through a ton of old photos I'd forgotten about and make them look a little snazzier.

Sunset. Lounge on the Farm, Canterbury. 2011.

Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant. Disney's Hollywood Studios. Orlando, Florida. 2009.

Puddles. Manhattan, New York. 2010


Katy

Nifty Fifty

I know I said I'd post more colour but then I started learning some different black and white/monochrome processing techniques and I'm now OBSESSED.

See I do colour too. I love blossom. 

I guess this post is a bit of a love letter to my 50mm f/1.8 lens. I rarely use it for self portraits out of pure laziness. The lens doesn't autofocus on my D40 which is a bit of a pain if you're trying to take photos but you're in a bit of a hurry (all the more reason to upgrade to the D90, I suppose).

I did use it the other day to take the above photo and I got some really cool results, I'm definitely going to start making more of an effort with it.

Katy

Leap Day

To celebrate February 29th, the lovely folks at Flickr asked people to submit photos of them jumping so I decided to join in.

I'd forgotten how exhausting jumping shoots are. They also make you look like an idiot but I don't really care about that.

It was fun though, I'd recommend it if you're feeling a little too energetic but can't be bothered to go for a run because it's raining or you don't like the idea of running.

I, clearly, got a little tired at this point.

Next post should probably be in colour. It is spring after all.

Katy