Scanning Negatives vs Photographing Negatives (Trying Film Out)

December 16, 2019

Earlier this year, my uncle gave me his old film camera. The Olympus OM-1n. I’ve been practicing photography for about 7 years now, I’m self-taught, and of course I started with a digital camera. Due to my style of shooting leaning towards the photojournalist side of the photography spectrum, the look of film images always appealed to me. So after 3 digital cameras since starting photography, and countless lenses and equipment, I decided to dive in and experiment with shooting some film work. Here’s how it went…

I brought the OM-1n with me on a vacation trip to California for my sister’s high school graduation. I used Fujifilm Superia X-Tra ISO 400. My dad had to show me how to load the film in the camera (true story). Going from my A7iii which is regarded as having the best autofocusing system available to manual focusing and no electronic viewfinder for exposing shots was a big change of pace for me. The experience is completely different, but in many ways, I was forced to be more tactical and mindful with my shots while I was shooting film.

After going through my 1st roll, I went to CSW Film in Chicago to get it processed. They don’t do any scanning, so for that part, I had a few options:

Find a lab
Get a scanner
Photograph the negatives and convert them with software

I tethered my camera to avoid camera shake

I ended up doing options 2 and 3. Unc let me borrow his scanner, and I photographed them with my A7iii and brought them into Capture One to play with. There’s all kinds of ways people photograph negatives. I used a tripod and pointed the camera down on top of them. I used the scanner’s slides to hold the film in place, and lit the negatives with a long light that I use in my studio.

I don’t have a macro lens however, so I couldn’t get in as close as I wanted to while doing the photographing method. This resulted in me having to crop in a lot in post to frame the shot, which takes a hit on sharpness of the images. The flexibility that the RAW file gives you was a nice bonus while I was testing these methods out.

The scanner provided a larger image file, and the colors from the images gave me a good starting point for how to edit the negative files. I found myself going back and forth with the negative RAW files because I didn’t have a reference point initially. The scans and the RAW files surprisingly looked similar after converting them in my editing software. I was able to get a good neutral color look out of the RAW files. I honestly think I prefer the photographing method simply because you gain more control in post. The results would be even better with a macro lens.

I tried out some film street photography at the end of the roll, very different than what I’ve gotten comfortable with over the years but it was rather refreshing. Check out some of street shots in the gallery below.

How Many People Do You Matter To?

December 15, 2019

What do you say to a man who's accepted his fate?

That question kept circulating in my head as I wrestled with the reality that my father in-law was going to be making his transition a few days after his 63rd birthday. The end of a loved one’s story is something that no one wants to think that much about, but the thought is always there subconsciously. I couldn’t help but remember all the laughs over the years, the Wednesday nights at Lakewood Bowl ($1 game night), the lessons learned and the great person that he was to friends and family. And that’s when it hit me…

Rob G mattered to a lot of people.

In a world where so much emphasis is placed on one’s online presence, the genuineness of showing love to people beyond a glass screen is often lost. Pops didn’t have that problem. He cared for everyone and those who knew him, loved him. He wasn’t a stranger to anyone after he met them at least once.

The more I thought about our interactions, and the stories that others had about him, I slowly started to put together the words that needed to be said in my mind. I saw how his loved ones surrounded him during his final days. A life full of moments that will be shared for generations to come.

I told him that he was loved and that he mattered. I told him that his legacy and story will proceed him… that alone, is something a lot of us won’t be able to say when we’re gone.

When he passed, I brought my camera with me to the services, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with it, but I did know that I wanted to have it just in case I saw another chapter of his story that could be documented and shared.

I’m glad that I didn’t leave it at home. With any good story, there’s an ending that leaves us fulfilled. The imagery that I did end up getting illustrates some of the feelings that he provided to us. The feeling of love, the feeling of joy or humor… the feeling of confidence. He will be missed, but hardly forgotten. We all have memories and stories that we can reference whenever we need a reminder…

On Saturday, November 23rd, 2019 my father in-law's life was celebrated in grand fashion. The last few weeks have been an emotional roller coaster as we all got prepared for his transition. Pops was just a cool ass dude, through and through. His legacy is cemented and will live on through the people that knew and loved him. I recorded a few moments of his Home Going Ceremony, truly a special send off, highlighted but his Grandson Rob Gueringer's (Instagram @freakyrob_music) musical rendition and tribute seen in this video. Rest well and Chillax!

Different Playgrounds Gallery

October 07, 2019

Different Playgrounds is a visual experience that explores expression during moments of leisure. Our environments determine the playgrounds that we gravitate to throughout our lives. One's perspective of "fun" evolves with time and knowledge, there's no denying it.

This collection highlights the variance of spaces that people feel free in. Different Playgrounds sets out to preserve authentic frames of joy with images. This series will either evoke a sense of nostalgia (if you can relate) or cognizance (if you can't).

The universal feeling of enjoyment however, will hopefully resonate with everyone.

GALLERY 1:

GALLERY 2:

Lena's Graduation

June 22, 2019

My sister graduated HS a few weeks ago. A lot of family came out to show love and support. The trip turned into a family vacation. I grabbed some footage and images while I was there and put this video together. Til next time!

Peace,

Ken

Branding Babies: A Generational Wealth Opportunity or a Form of Exploitation?

March 15, 2019

As I scroll through my social media feed, sifting through the smorgasbord of content for my consumption; it’s easy to become indifferent to everything that’s thrown at you. With the endless number of memes, viral videos, sponsored ads and political debates all jockeying for our attention… the one thing that seems to always work engagement wise is - the cute kid.

Want some likes? Throw a cute kid in frame!

I don’t know what it is, but it works. It works so well in fact, that somewhere along the line, the idea of creating a persona for a child on social media was born. We’ve all seen it (for reference: McClure Twins; Asahd Khaled; AnaisMirabelle; ForeverandForava). The adorable little kid living life and experiencing precious moments vicariously through their parents’ words. The pages linked above are on the extreme side of popularity for comparison’s sake, but there are plenty regular people doing this with aspirations of their child reaching ‘Insta-Famous’ status one day as well.

Society has taken the innocence of a child growing up and figured out how to monetize it.

As a parent of a toddler and a content creator, I’ve casually kicked around the concept in my head over the last 2 years. Asking myself questions like… How would I go about building a brand for a carefree child? Who would be my 2 year old’s target audience? How would I curate the content on her social media pages? You know… the usual questions that most business owners ask themselves. The goal would be to grow a specific following and then use that following as leverage to broker deals with brands, companies and organizations etc etc etc.

From a business perspective, it makes a lot of sense; from a parenting perspective, I’m conflicted.

I guess it’s a matter of authenticity for me. Personally, the idea of fabricating my kid’s life to the public for attention just feels, for lack of a better word - weird. However, at the same time… my understanding of how powerful social media’s influence is on everything makes me completely ‘get’ why people do it. The process for talent discovery has been completely transformed due to the accessibility of social media. Agencies and brands are looking for the next big ‘thing’ from their cellphone screen’s right now. And the sooner you have an established audience the better!… right?

Imagine the opportunities one could have growing into an Instagram account with hundreds of thousands (in some cases millions) of followers? In a lot of ways, this scenario could be a great head start for a kid becoming a young adult. It could be the beginning of a Social Media Empire! They would have a portfolio, use cases, a brand with a network to leverage. Their fans and supporters would have a deep connection with them due to the fact that they’ve watched them grow up… literally. The power of influence has always been profound and undeniable, and it’s even more prevalent right now.

Parents would be putting their kids in a position to inherit some invaluable things that takes most years to develop - experience, brand awareness, and relevancy.

With all that said… do we as parents really want to accelerate the process of our children needing instant digital gratification before they can even manage a social media account on their own? Social media is designed to keep us coming back for more. This post titled “Dopamine, Smartphones & You: A Battle for your time” is a great read and breaks down how Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram leverage the very same neural triggers used by slot machines and cocaine to keep us using their products as much as possible.

I realize that the times are different.

My child will be exposed to tech as a toddler that wasn’t even thought of until I became an adult.

Hell, she learned the alphabet via Youtube and her colors with Philip Hue Smart Lights for example. During my childhood, the internet was a novelty for most of it. High speed internet was a luxury until I went to college. Now? It’s an essential part of my life. And honestly, it’s challenging finding a good balance for it while raising a child. On one side of the spectrum, you can see how carefree a 2 year old’s life should be… and on the other side, you see how in a lot of ways, social media represents the exact opposite.

Ultimately, we dictate what’s morally right or wrong for us in this ever changing world. We do a lot for ‘likes’ and attention on the internet. Whether it’s right or wrong is an endless discussion… I’ll just say, that I’m going to just try and enjoy the precious time I have right now with my daughter while none of that other stuff matters to her. She’s fine just being happy and getting excited when her loved ones show affection. And I’m cool with that for the time being… but I know it doesn’t last for long. Life gets immensely more complicated once the innocence of being a child eventually wears off - And I’d like to prolong that feeling for her for as long as possible.