Analogue & Experimental Photography

In all honesty all my work is experimental, if somebody tells you they have nothing left to learn, they are a liar.

Or, in the very least, incredibly naïve 😁

My latest experimental stage seems to be (purely by fortuitous happenstance it would appear … underwater photography 💚)

I should perhaps add a section on that?

Underwater image of a woman in a Dartmoor river by Glavind Strachan Photography

I grew up when there was only film and I learnt photography in a darkroom mostly with cheap, affordable equipment.

I still use old film camera lenses today and although my equipment might be a little more expensive than previously, it’s still not even close to top end.

Photography is both art and science, but without the art the science is rather redundant.

You can create works of beauty with a £75 camera and a £22 CCTV lens 😍

I also still shoot and develop my own black and white 35mm film and 4x5 Large Format images and print them in my makeshift darkroom.

A close up of a MMP Field Camera - Large Format Film Camera - used by Glavind Strachan Photography.

Hex Bokeh Bracken - Shot with a home converted 75mm TV Lens

Wistmans Wood - Shot with a Cosmicar 25mm TV Lens

Enlarger Lens used to shoot by the River Dart

Analogue Reflection - Home Developed Black & White Film of the River Dart

I'm Late! Experimenting with props and artificial light in the woods

Merrivale Stone Row shot on on Colour Film

Gorse on Dartmoor - Shot with a Helios 44-2 with reversed front element

Badly home developed Black and White Film! Sometimes failing is learning

I still shoot and develop my own film and I love finding new lenses to try on my camera … I’ve even been known to hot glue a lens to an adapter 😁

Being creative doesn’t mean having to have the perfect tools, it means having the initiative to be innovative 😍

Colour Film - Push Processed and Developed in Black & White Chemistry 😜

Homemade Tilt-Shift Lens image of a friends horse

Pinhole Camera Experiment of a building in Buckfastleigh in Devon

Nettles shot on a Helios 44-2 With Reversed Front Element

In the forest with the converted TV lens

Holly shot on Black and White Film - Push processed and home developed

More Film Stuff …

Here’s some more random film work - I develop all my own black and white film and get most of my colour film laboratory developed for me.

Though I have used the brilliant BelliniFoto C-41 processing kit and loved it.

Mannequin in a shop window in Okehampton, Devon. Shot on black and white film and home developed and scanned

Clive Darke on Shelstone Tor. Four contact prints of images taken with the large format field camera. Film developed and printed by Glavind Strachan Photography

Colin the cat sat watching me and hoping for a feed. Shot on colour film and home processed with a Bellini C-41 Kit

The entrance way to a hut circle overlooking Tavy Cleave on Dartmoor - image shot on a large format MPP Micro Technical Camera 4x5. Developed and printed by Glavind Strachan Photography

Lisa - shot at The Royal William Yard in Plymouth on black and white film and developed and scanned at home - a New Wave Cinema vibe going on!

Sky looking amzazing under Hisley Bridge on Dartmoor - Shot on colour film and home developed by Glavind Strachan Photography

Black and white photograph shot on film on a walk near Dartington in Devon.

Street Photography, a suit of armour in a second hand store in Okehampton, Devon. Shot on film and home developed and scanned.

Holly shot on colour film, so much more difficult to shoot with a wide open aperture with film!

Black and white film at the cinema in Okehampton, Devon. Fomapan 100 developed in Ilford ID-11

A leaf underwater on the River Dart on Dartmoor. Shot and developed on film

Lisa with a daffodil, shot on colour film in Plymouth, Devon

Early morning haze on the River Dart shot on Fomapan and developed and scanned at home

Portraits of Okehampton people, shot on film (added light leak)

Colour Film image of brambles in the mist in Hembury Woods

Donna at Foggintor Quarry on Dartmoor, shot on colour film

Hippy vibe photoshoot shot on colour film

Charlotte in Simmons Park in Okehampton, shot and developed on black and white film

Cluster of mushrooms shot on film and home developed using a Bellini C41 Kit

Black and White Film image of the graveyard of Holy Trinity Church in Buckfastleigh, Devon

Inside the old barn, a black and white film image

Black and white home processed film image of a chicken on the farm

Band photography on colour film image at The Dingles Fairground Heritage Centre

Night time photography shooting on colour film

Okehampton portraits, shot on black and white film, home processed and scanned.

Dartmoor Phonebox shot on black and white film

Lisa on Dartmoor - experimenting with black and white film, push processed to create grain and contrast

Lisa getting all 1960's spy in Plymouth on colour film

Ivy encrusted tree, black and white film study

Chelsea in a vintage car, trying to recreate a nostalgic feel by shooting on black and white film

Jules in a steampunk shoot using colour film

Lisa being a bit crazy, shot on film and edited digitally

Black and white film used for a street shoot in Plymouth

Lemmi looking amazing in black and white. Fomapan 200 developed with Rodinal

Author and broadcaster Sophie Pierce shot with my large format film camera

More Projector Lens & Enlarger Lens adaptations …

I say “adaptations” what I really mean is cardboard tubes and gaffer tape - if it works why fix it?

Single small green leaf on a thin branch against a blurred yellow and brown background.

A barren tree on a rocky hillside with moss, set against a backdrop of rolling hills and a cloudy sky.

Close-up of a white flower with yellow stamens, soft-focus background with green and warm tones.

Close-up of a small yellow flower with dark-tipped petals, blurred background.

Forget-me-nots shot with a projector lens adapted to a digital camera

Projector lens capture of Tavy Cleave on Dartmoor

Sunlight streaming through branches and holly leaves in a wooded area.

Close-up of a small green tree branch with delicate, bright green leaves against a blurred yellow-brown background.

Close-up of a dandelion seed head with some seeds dispersing into the air on a green background.

A close-up of a small plant stem with a green, textured bud in the center. The background features soft, circular bokeh lights in warm tones, creating a dreamy, abstract atmosphere.

A grassy hillside at night under a cloudy sky with a faint rainbow

A low-angle view of a grassy forest floor with purple flowers and green foliage, blurred trees, and a pinkish-purple sky in the background, taken through a fisheye lens or with a wide-angle effect.

Close-up of three brown fuzzy seed heads on thin green stems against a yellow and green blurred background.

Close-up of small white flowers with yellow stamens growing among green grass blades.

Green leaves and small white flowers with a blurred background of bright, circular light reflections.

Close-up of small yellow flowers amidst green grass, with a warm, blurry background.

Close-up of moss-covered tree bark with tiny white flowers growing in a narrow crevice, illuminated by warm, soft light.

A solitary standing stone surrounded by rocks on a dark, moody landscape with distant mountains under a gradient sky.

Some “Freelensing” & a half assed attempt at a Tilt-Shift Lens …

There’s absolutely nothing more inspiring than making it up as you go along. Be prepared to get terrible results, and then learn from those … then, maybe, just maybe, use what you’ve learnt to take better everyday photographs 😁

Free lensing on Dartmoor - near Black-a-tor Copse

Home made tilt shift lens photograph of a horse -closeup

Close-up of small white flowers with dark anthers, surrounded by tiny black insects, under warm lighting.

Close-up of a green fern leaf on a dark forest floor with blurred trees and sunlight in the background.

Close-up of a metallic saw blade with sharp teeth, with a blurred outdoor background featuring trees and greenery.

A close-up of yellow daisies in a garden, with the photo taken through a blurry, pink-tinted glass or lens.

A small plant with green leaves growing between weathered wooden planks.

Close-up of a horse's face with a flowing blonde mane and dark eye, set against a dark blue background.

Close-up of purple and white flowers in a garden with a house in the background, blurred and brightly lit by sunlight.

Dense green forest with moss-covered ground, tall trees, and sunlight filtering through the canopy.

Close-up of a thin plant stem with tiny buds or seeds, illuminated by warm sunlight, with blurred green foliage in the background.

Close-up of a moss-covered tree branch with sunlight filtering through blurred leaves in the background.

A rainbow over a landscape with leafless trees in the foreground and dark clouds in the sky.

A muddy rural road at sunset with dark clouds in the sky.

Close-up of grass and plant stems at dusk with blurred background and warm lighting.

A few odd lenses …

If you’re not aware, you can adapt most old film camera lenses to work on your digital camera - there tends to be a menu section on your camera that allows for “Shoot w/o Lens” (Without) basically the lens has zero electronic connection to the lens, however things like the viewfinder and the sensor work normally and you easily use the built in light meter to adjust how you want your images to look.

I tend to like to have control over my depth of field, so I adjust the lens to the aperture I want to use and allow the camera to choose the shutter speed. I can override settings and under/over expose when I want to … Google using manual lenses on your camera!

A barren tree on rocky terrain with a cloudy sky and setting sun in the background.

A glowing yellow fern leaf on a dark background with blurred yellow and purple light in the background.

Close-up of tall grass and plants illuminated by sunlight with a bokeh background of trees and sky.

Sunlight filters through green tree leaves in an outdoor setting.

A person with dreadlocks, glasses, and tattoos sitting on a moss-covered rock in a forested area, surrounded by trees and rocks, with a small stream nearby, and bright sky visible through the foliage.

Abstract image with light and shadow, featuring green leaves, a white flower, honeycomb-like shapes, and pink and yellow light streaks.

A woman with blonde and dark hair, standing outdoors with sunlight filtering through trees in the background.

Close-up of a butterfly perched on a mossy green plant, with a blurred dark background and soft pinkish-orange light.

A row of large, twisted trees with lush green grass underneath, open countryside, and a partly cloudy sky in the background.

Close-up of a pink flowering plant with a blurred natural background, backlit sunlight filtering through.

A rocky landscape with a grassy terrain and large stones and boulders. A hill or mountain is visible in the background under a cloudy sky with sunlight breaking through.

Bowerman's Nose on Dartmoor - shot with an old Pentax 110 lens adapted to my Sony a7r

Ancient stone circle in a grassy landscape under ominous dark clouds

Clothespins hanging on a clothesline with sunlight or warm light shining on them.