Category: Life in Frames

Why do we love photographing flowers?

Why do we love photographing flowers?

leica summilux 35mm 1.4 pre-asph

Watching the flowers bloom so beautifully, it seems that life should be so beautiful too, and all your worries will dissipate. Therefore, whenever I come across a beautiful flower, I stop to take a picture.

Many seasoned photographers don’t take these photos. They think it’s too easy, that anyone can take them, that it’s not worth wasting film. But I don’t think so. The purpose of photography is not to show how good you are at it, but to have fun and keep the original love of nature alive, at least for me. I don’t create exaggerated perspectives or standard compositions, just keep it as it is. My goal is not to take photos that look like wallpaper, but to take photos that I want to take.

Water stains left on the film

Water stains left on the film

leica summilux 35mm f/1.4 pre-asph

During the process of developing my black and white film, sometimes there are water stains left on the negative. It’s like, everyday life is calm as water, but even a small stone can make it ripple. Life is always full of dangers and even a drop of water can be magnified on film. Water stains can often be wiped away, but I’m still lazy. As long as it doesn’t ruin the picture, I don’t bother cleaning it up. Sometimes laziness is an open-mindedness. The water stains left on the film, I just regard as tattoos.

Use Leica ASPH lenses with film

Use Leica ASPH lenses with film

I have shot film with a summmicron 35mm f/2 asph lens and it is very sharp. But I use more of the older Leica lenses on film. About 80% of the film in my photo library was shot with non-ASPH lenses.

leica summilux 35mm f/1.4 pre-asph

For a long time I have been using the Summilux 35 f/1.4 first generation. In fact, it is so sharp from f/4 to f/8 that it is indistinguishable from an asph lens. Since the maximum shutter speed of a Leica film camera is 1/1000s, on a sunny day the aperture has to be contracted to f4 or even less and you have little chance to use the f/1.4 aperture. On a cloudy day or indoors, f/1.4 produces excellent three-dimensional images, although they are less sharp. To be honest, you really don’t need the sharpness of f/1.4 for film photography.

I have also shot film with the Leica Summilux 35mm f/1.4 asph lens and like it very much as well, it is an excellent lens. It is not only sharp but has good color contrast. I used to shoot with ND filters and f1.4 aperture. I mainly use ASPH lenses on Leica m9 digital cameras. Also the Summicron 35 asph, Summicron 28 asph and Elmarit 28 asph are very sharp and have higher contrast than older lenses. However, many of Leica’s non-ASPH lenses are very sharp, such as the Summicron 35mm f/2 v1 and Summicron 50mm f/2 v4, and remain sharp when used on digital cameras.

Interestingly, while we all love sharp lenses, I find that my favorite photos seem to be less sharp, especially with film photography. Maybe that’s why Leica’s classic lenses are still viable.

leica summilux 35mm f/1.4 pre-asph

Love film, beauty smile

Love film, beauty smile

It was a passerby conversation that I gave a record of:

leica_summilux_35mm_1.4pre-asph_135

“I like pictures taken with film because it carries the smell of sunshine.”

“If film becomes obsolete, will you still like film cameras?”

“Even if the film camera is history, the images it takes will always be there, and I still like it because at the end of the film is you”

“Then I like the sky today because it ends with you and me”

Getting back into photography

leica m6 + summilux 35mm f1.4 pre-asph

Getting back into photography

I’d like to take a new look at photography.

From film. From Leica. It’s what gave me the courage to go out on the streets.It’s what made me strong and gentle.

The slowest shutter speed is the speed at which the snow melts on my hands.

Which shutter speed should I use to capture the speed at which we grow old?

开

工

In my world, film photography has not gone out of style.

In my world, film photography has not gone out of style.

leica summilux 35mm f1.4 pre-asph

I still prefer to use film for my photographs. Images are carved out of solid material by light, just as our planet is carved out of time. The layers of grain remind me of what the human world looks like.
In today’s digital age, in the eyes of the average person, we photographers who use film are an apathetic bunch. However, indifference is not our true colors.
Tonight, in the fall rain, I am looking through old photos under the lamp, exploring time, the world, and myself.

Looking for spring in autumn

Looking for spring in autumn

leica summilux 35 1.4 pre-asph

I saw someone approaching with a camera and asked, “Where are you going?
The answer was, “First, I’m going to photograph the yellow leaves of the ginkgoes in front of the short wall, and then I’m going to photograph the red maple leaves in the western mountains.”
This fall is like spring, not cold, flowers and trees are full of life, and insects are roaming around.

Have you ever seen a photography book without pictures?

Have you ever seen a photography book without pictures?

leica summilux 35mm f/1.4 pre-asph

Walking Around

I just heard about an awesome photographer moving to NYC. Unexpected, but it makes sense. I like his work, they are interesting and you can see an independent thinker. His favorite camera is the Fuji x100 and I love the Leica Summilux 35mm f/1.4 and take my Leica everywhere I go. And I’m not going to New York, I’m in Beijing.

Interesting photography is more than just good looking photos. The photograph is just the medium. The personality of the photographer is deeply imprinted in the work. We think about life through photography and photography through life.

Photography Book Without Pictures

In short, don’t think that street photographers only have time to take pictures and get lucky. In fact, when not taking pictures, photographers are reading and thinking. One more thing, many photographers have never read a text-only photography book. Can a photography book be without photos? Yes, a good photographer must have read picture books without words and photography books with only words. Have you ever seen a photography book without pictures?

Compact Camera

Many street photographers prefer to use Fuji x100 cameras, while I like to use Leica film cameras. Of course, whether the photos are interesting or not depends mainly on the photographer, not the equipment. But one thing we have in common is that we both use small, quiet rangefinder cameras, which are actually more conducive to street photography. Cameras that don’t disturb other people are more advantageous in street photography. Therefore, sometimes the choice of equipment is also very important for the photographer. the Leica m3 and the Leica Summilux 35 f/1.4 pre-asph are my favorites. I learned this from a photography book without pictures, which was an interview with a photographer. Many street photographers choose cameras for street photography that are compact and don’t interfere with passersby.

The 10,000 Hour Theory of Photography

leica summicron 50 f2

Many people believe in the theory of 10,000 hours, but I used to suspect that photography does not exist this theory, photography is the need for talent, is the need for inspiration. But after 10,000 hours it feels as if the understanding of photography is completely different from the initial period, no longer pursuing good looks, no longer pursuing image quality, and even no longer pursuing the feel of the hand ……. However, if I believe in the 10,000 hours theory at the beginning, I can’t stick to it. So, beginners, don’t believe in the theory of 10,000 hours in photography, believe in their own talent, believe in their own inspiration, is the driving force of photography.