Tosh Tanaka

all sensitivities, all the time and old Leica M ethos

2010-05-02T16:51:00.000-07:00

So, in teaching students for three years now, I've moved away from film for this particular training application.

Yet, I'm still not quite sold on the idea that one medium is superior, although I lean toward film for storability; spinning media's life-span is too short. Two events have given me pause; speaking with anthropology graduate students about photography and recent acquisition of an 85mm f1.4 lens.

The graduate students are not photographers by any stretch, save two, so digital is easy. They aren't going too far afield, access to electricity, hard drives, computers and such will ease their digital equipment use. They'll be able to see their results and, if mindful, reflect on their day's photography and adjust the following day. Decisions about sensitivities, lens selection, exposure, depth of field will be taken care of by using cameras with automatic functions and a small amount of photographic knowledge; importance on returning with images that show something about their area of study and the people who live there.

Film photography has a longer learning curve for competence and confidence. There's also a feeling of wonder and angst that comes with the unknown. This sense of wonder may cause undue stress that immediate feedback would alleviate. But if one has the time and passion to do film, they will figure it out before they go into the field... or while they're out there.

The 85...

Was a lens length that I removed from my kit some fifteen years ago in favor of the 80-200 f2.8 (it was an autofocus f1.8 not the f1.4). I was working for a newspaper and trying to make my kit more useable for a higher percentage of assignments and 2.8 was plenty fast. It wasn't until recently that I see a need for a small 85mm lens as an alternative to a big zoom, less imposing, lighter weight. I wish there were a full working conversion of M lenses to Nikon bodies; they just won't focus to infinity, who wants that?

All sensitivities, all the time.

If we do the exposure calculations, it's difficult to shoot with film while using an f1.4 lens wide open. If we pre-suppose Sunny 16 then, one would have to use 50 ISO to yield an exposure of: 1/8000 at f1.4. So, using a shutter speed hobbled camera such as anything produced before the late eighties would prohibit f1.4 in bright sun and the shallow depth of field characteristics that accompany such a large lens aperture.

Now if we consider 1982, when this lens was introduced, the F3 was already two years old and had a top shutter speed of 1/2000. This meant that ISO 12 speed film would be necessary to make a proper exposure under bright daylight conditions, completely doable. Fast forward to the late 80s and the F4 and 1/8000 of a second shutter speeds, ISO 50 was necessary, again doable with little fuss.

In practice, how usable was a roll of 36 exposure ISO 50 film? Great if the roll would be exposed during usable light, however, what if one were to desire more depth of field? f16 at 1/60th of a second. Hmm that too doesn't sound out of the range of usability.

Enough of the SLR mumbo jumbo. I want a smaller rig! I want shallow depth of field under sunny conditions! Umm... my Leica M6 will only go as fast as 1/1000... sheesh already! So, to shoot a Summilux wide open under daylight conditions would require ISO 6, the last stop on the M6 sensitivity dial.... or ISO 12 with a Summicron. And i don't want some, "well the lens is sharpest at f4" lame tech/gear design/ designer's intent answer, who's making the decisions here? So, to shoot wide open under bright sun... right, neutral density filters! But wait... sharpness decreases, propensity for flare increases, image degradation isn't an answer either.

So those ISO 6 Kodachromes would be really cool to see! So, Panatomic X or Pan F and the right slow acting developers could have been used for black and white film. In the 80s this was the only solution.

Today however, to achieve short depth of field that we see so often with 1/8000 second SLRs is easy: use ISO 100 or pull to ISO 50 and expose wide open. But, with a camera limited to 1/1000 second, the closest it goes is f4, 1/1000, ISO 100, f2.8 at ISO 50. Which leads to Leica lens design and 'sharpness'. Or is that what the Elmarits were for?

I just realized that at ISO 50 there's four stops of hand-holdable shutter speed with a 90mm lens, five with some steady hands and one aperture stop, making six stops of exposure latitude. That's enough variation to go from outside to inside a bright room and still make pictures with a Summicron. I'll have to put this into practice!

I shot a play this weekend with an 85mm f1.4 manual focus lens at f1.4. I stopped action but in terms of sharpness, there was an acceptable amount. There are some that are tack and others with great moments that have acceptable sharpness at 800 pixels wide. I have seen this lens stopped down to f2 or f2.8 where contrast and sharpness increases. But when you need f1.4, there's no substitute: better to come back with images than none at all. So what if they aren't tack tack sharp? Rockin' images are often made under less than favorable light and situations. And there's a difference between tripod sharp and hand held manual focus sharp.

If I were to do the same with an M6, ISO 1600 film, I'm sure the Summicron would have been just fine. But when I left the theater and ventured into the afternoon sun, I couldn't continue to make pictures wide-open, f2 would exceed maximum shutter speed. Hmm. This is not to say that using an F5 or Eos 1 it would not have been possible. But again, I'm after a small kit. I guess I can't have my cake and eat it... I'll have more film speeds in my pocket instead.

Digital is flexible, so is film in the right camera body, but all sensitivities all the time can't be beat! M6 shutters just don't shoot that fast, they're small, precise, accurate, well-built... but don't operate inside the parameters: move from low light to bright light and continue shoot at f1.4 without changing film... couldn't do that with an F5 either.

I think an M9 is where it's at.

Negative round-up

2008-07-11T13:48:00.000-07:00

I am really thankful that beyond my family's safety, our collection of things weren't burnt or close to danger. It is convenient.

I've re-discovered my negative collection: Destruction Derby night at the Stanislaus County Fair, 1999. Wow! These weren't in tidy black negative binders with the others I packed off.

I was at peace with and resolved that our house would not be when we returned. All that was irrelevant compared to our safety.

I spent a week following our return unpacking and otherwise rounding up all of my stray negatives, a photographer's gold mine of images: China, Cambodia, Japan, France, Internment, thesis research, and these demolition derby images. I guess didn't even grab my 'important' Internment project pictures. It wouldn't have mattered that they were destroyed, a minor set-back, they continue to exist to be photographed again.

I came away from the experience with a new appreciation for our 'things' and am making with preparing for a future evacuation, much like our neighbors. I have also examined my attachment to material goods... I had everything I needed, even if we didn't return to pack; my family's safety was all that mattered. Everything in our house could be replaced, it's just stuff.

Just like these derby cars: repaired, repainted, destroyed. It's just stuff.

Close proximity of forest fire and photography

2008-06-18T10:26:00.000-07:00

Recent fires near the house, closest was the Martin fire, has given me a new appreciation for digital photography. We had about 20 minutes to evacuate our house: important stuff only (cats, kids, cameras, clothes, papers, wine, negatives, hard drives).

Our house was safe, as were my family and I.

However, this event has given me food for thought.

Upon sane review of my 'saved' materials, I got most of the goods but I found that the cream of my negatives were hiding out in the nooks and crannies of our funky mountain house. And I was immediately much, much more thankful that our house was spared any damage.

Our digital images, on the other hand, were ALL safe and sound in a big external hard drive. That thing took about 1.5 seconds to disconnect and put into a box, done; full stop. Just more to consider while I grouse about camera prices, sensor sizes, and drive capacities.

My final thought is one of thanks. Thanks to fire crews: air and ground for stopping the blaze; two houses lost is two too many, but lots fewer than could have burned. Outstanding effort folks!

The GTI: Little Rock

2007-11-15T11:01:00.000-08:00

Little Rock, AR; one of five state capitols based on the national... not sure about the big brass door though.

The GTI: Jackon, Mississippi

2007-11-15T10:50:00.000-08:00

I was on my way to Camp Shelby near Hattiesburg, MS to see where my Uncle Tsuk trained to go overseas with the 442nd RCT.

Stopped in Jackson for a bathroom break and headed out to Hattiesburg.

The South is an interesting place. My visit to Camp Shelby was enlightening. In it's years of disrepair after the War, many of the war-time buildings were sold or destroyed. Some of those buildings were where many soldiers were barracked including the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and 100th Infantry Battalion. All that remained were some over-grown dirt roads and concrete pilings similar to the ones I'd find at Amache, Colorado.

But what's more interesting was where the barracks were. Japanese soldiers who were released from segregated captivity were housed with white soldiers, not black soldiers. Ain't that a kick in the head?

The GTI: Montgomery, Alabama

2007-11-15T10:44:00.000-08:00

I did more photography in a few months during the Summer of 2005 than I had in the four years I lived in Carrboro, NC. The images of my car are proof of a coast to coast journey, driven by the question: "When's the next time I'm going to be here with my own car?". So, I made a point to drive to every traveled state's capitol on my way to California.

I headed out to Selma to cross the Pettus Bridge and follow the March Route. When was that stretch of road designated the DeSoto Trail and the Jefferson Davis Highway? Before the march?

After photographing a little bit of town and visiting the Voting Rights museum i sat in a small close-by park and ate lunch. I didn't have a definite direction or next destination. Like Yojimbo, I threw a stick into the air at the cross-roads: North West to Arkansas or South West to Mobile. Arkansas it was. Little did I know Hurricane Katrina hit the coast in those days I would have been in Mobile.

Hoops

2007-07-27T12:21:00.000-07:00

Hermosa Pier

2007-07-27T12:17:00.000-07:00

ice skaters

2007-07-05T17:21:00.000-07:00

lovers

2007-07-05T17:19:00.000-07:00

Bike Shadow in China

2007-07-05T17:00:00.000-07:00

Lorraine Motel

2007-06-22T12:46:00.001-07:00

Lorraine Motel, now home of the Civil Rights Museum, was saved from the wrecking ball by concerned citizens determined to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. after his assassination in April 1968. The mission of the museum is to ask visitors to explore the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement. Memphis, Tennessee. October 2002

Rondo at Walker

2007-06-22T12:35:00.000-07:00

Art installation “Rites of Way” by Nari Wardan commemorates, Rondo, a neighborhood lost to highway expansion and symbolizes ‘home’, outside the Walker museum in Minneapolis, Minnesota. October 2000

The Wall Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:42:00.000-07:00

General Cai Kai was assigned to supervise this part of the wall and was beheaded after being falsely accused of shoddy workmanship and slow progress. However, imperial inspectors determined this stretch to be solid and steep. Cai Kai was posthumously exonerated and memorialized. Huanghua, China. February 2000

Dali Cart Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:41:00.001-07:00

Province of Eternal Spring wasn’t so Spring-like while looking back toward the bus station, shivering, from atop a donkey cart heading into Old Dali, China. February 2000

Appomatox Fence Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:39:00.000-07:00

Interlocking-rail fence outside the courthouse at Appomattox, Virginia where opposing generals Lee and Grant came together to discuss terms of surrender leading to the reunification of the United States. June 2003

Amache Footings Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:38:00.000-07:00

Remains of watchtower pilings at Amache internment camp site near Grenada, Colorado, are now surrounded by grazing pasture, landfill, and rodeo practice ring. August 2005

Gila River Canal Camp Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:35:00.000-07:00

An inscription in wet cement memorializes Sawaki Horada, a testament to those who sired ponds in the desert. The internees at Gila River's Canal Camp forged green gardens that welcomed my father when he was born there. Canal Camp is the obliterated site at Gila. Butte Camp is the memorialized site, the characteristic symbol of Gila, bearing its half-circle memorial on the hill. The Gila River Indian Tribe objected to the building of the camp on their land. Gila River was designed for 10,000 internnes but held 13,348. Due to the overcrowding, some families lived in the mess halls or recreation buildings, using blankets for walls. At this time, Gila River was Arizona's fourth-largest city. It was one of the least oppressive camps. The signature barbed wire was removed early and it had only a single watchtower. July 2006

Devil's Tower

2007-05-21T13:34:00.001-07:00

Beyond its meeting place for extraterrestrials and American scientists in Close Encounters, Devil’s Tower has been a mystical place for Plains Indians. Arapaho, Sioux, Crow, Cheyenne, and Kiowa see this place as sacred and of legendary origin. August 2005

Hot Springs Arkansas Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:32:00.000-07:00

What if the premier gambling hot-spot was Hot Springs Arkansas? A good time is what they were looking for in Spa City: Bat Masterson, Cy Young, Carrie Nation, John F. Kennedy, Billy Sunday, President Herbert Hoover, Helen Keller, Babe Ruth, Jack Dempsey and even Frank and Jesse James. Al Capone may have stopped at this spring while staying At the Arlington Hotel, where he maintained a year-round suite. July 2005

Kill Devil Hill Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:31:00.000-07:00

The Wright Brothers, bicycle builders from Ohio, worked tirelessly to fly. This monument at Kill Devil Hill, North Carolina celebrates their achievement that changed the world on a blustery December day. January 2002

Poston School

2007-05-21T13:29:00.000-07:00

Evidence of animosity since the Poston school and its surrounding land area was returned to the Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) by the War Relocation Authority. The Colorado River Indian Reservation Tribal Council opposed the use of their land for a relocation center, because they did not want to participate in inflicting the same type of injustice they had suffered. The Army and the Bureau of Indian Affairs overruled the tribe. At its peak, Poston imprisoned 17,814 Japanese Americans. This is a mural at the Elementary School. The Auditorium was built by internees and was listed on Arizona Preservation Foundation's Most Endangered Property List in 2001, later to be destroyed by fire. Poston Internment Camp, Arizona. April 2006

Knights Ferry Bridge Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:27:00.000-07:00

The bridge at Knight’s Ferry was built by John Locke in 1856, a few years after the town’s namesake William Knight was killed in a gunfight. This is a rebuilt version of the original bridge that was destroyed when an upstream-bridge broke loose from its footings during the flood of 1862.

Hot Springs Arkansas Bricks Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:25:00.000-07:00

At the end of this walkway is the Arlington Hotel, Al Capone maintained a year-round suite in Hot Springs Arkansas. July 2005

Tetons

2007-05-21T13:24:00.000-07:00

Bricks Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:18:00.001-07:00

Blue Ridge Parkway Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:17:00.000-07:00

Bei Da Pinhole

2007-05-21T13:16:00.001-07:00

4th on the Mall

2007-05-21T13:14:00.000-07:00

Tosh Tanaka

2007-05-21T07:15:00.000-07:00

Tosh Tanaka
Originally uploaded by amenfoto.

"Friend and former co-worker Tosh Tanaka sits in the middle of 11th Street in Modesto after making a cross country trip by car and stopping by Modesto on his way back home to Southern California." - Adrian Mendoza