Bill Smith's Photography

Rollei Retro 400S is a unique film, made by Agfa in Belgium (yes they are still around but they make for other companies like Maco Direct), it's super contrasty, you don't need yellow filters and it's almost an infrared film really. Originally an aerial survailence film Retro 400S is great for the gloomy weather Toronto gets between October and April. I've never used it on a sunny day. It rocks, and I should try printing with it in the darkroom. Camera: Canon F-1, FD SSC 50 f1.4 lens, FD 35 f2 chrome nose lens. Film: Rollei Retro 400S, ID-11 Stock.

I belong to a small group of photographers from the Toronto Photowalks Community with really flexible schedules. We seem to visit the western edge of Riverdale, the Don Valley and Cabbagetown a fair bit. It is full of photographic inspiration. We started at the Rooster on Broadview (a great coffee house) which across the street you have one of the best skyline views of the city. The path took us through Riverdale Park. My Canon F-1 (first Gen.) was brought out for a workout, I don't use it often, I should, it's a great camera. I did find something unsettling, it might be the thin polyester base of Retro 400s, I was getting random wide spacing between frames. I had this camera overhauled a year and a half ago,   so I'm going with another roll of film with a thicker conventional acetate base to rule the film out. Camera: Canon F-1 (first Gen.), FD 50 f1.4 SSC lens. Film: Rollei Retro 400S, ID-11 Stock.

Hi everyone, I figure this is an opportune moment to re-introduce myself for those recently discovered my blog. My name is Bill and I’m a photography geek, this medium is a personal passion of mine and thankfully I don’t earn a living at it.  Checking out previous posts, you’ll notice I still shoot with film and use mostly manual focus 35mm and medium format cameras stretching from the mid 1950s to the 1990s. As a byproduct, I collect cameras from this time period, in particular Nikon, Leica and Rolleiflex, not a cheap hobby but a lot cheaper than collecting and restoring vintage Porsches.  People ask why, film it’s simple I like the workflow besides I spend enough time in front of the computer with work as a marketing communications consultant. That being said there are few digital camera systems I have my eye on but I’m not in a rush to invest just yet.  I process my own black and white film. I’m partial to Ilford’s HP5 400 and Delta 100 ISO films a...

The Magic Image This is not a perfect image, it's not totally razor sharp but I love it. I wanted to give the impression you are on Bay St. downtown Toronto in the middle of the crowd and I nailed it. I used my last roll of Efke 50 in my Leica M3, the perfect film/camera combo. I can hand hold at slow shutter speeds and I get a really cool vintage look because the manufacturing process with Efke films has not changed in 50 years.