I'm Martin, a amateur photographer from England that likes to shoot street photography, landscapes, seascapes and odd image of dogs on film and occasionally full frame digital.
Minster on Sea, England. 2021
I took this last year on a very early morning walk with my dog. The curve of the shoreline looks so surreal but I can assure you this how it looked on this sunrise.
Leica M-P (Typ 240) with the Summilux 50mm f/1.4 ASPH lens.
Isle of Sheppey, England. 2021
Leica M-P (Typ 240) Summicron 35mm ASPH.
Click image for larger view.
Finally the cold weather has arrived in the UK. For some ice and snow, for me biting cold winds and rain …not great holding a brass camera with bare hands!
Following morning, calm but very cold on the island. One lonely brave soul walking along the top of the shingle bank in the icy weather to work.
This has to be my favorite image. The storm is brewing over the other side of the Thames Estuary, heading south towards me. The sea is getting rougher, clouds darkening, beginning of hard rain and sleet, Storm Arwen is coming.
Click to enlarge above image
Leica M-P (Typ 240) with the Summilux 50mm f/1.4 ASPH lens.
While visiting Headcorn village yesterday, on the drive in my wife pointed out this young lady painting the front of this old grade two listed building. I believe it was an old Inn but now houses a couple of small businesses, one of which I think is a ladies hair salon. I managed to get an informal portrait of her on what was a very hot day for us all in the south of England. To be honest I’m surprised the paint wasn’t drying out before she could apply it with the brush!
Both images taken with Leica M-P (Typ-240) Summicron 50mm f/2.
September 2021.
Isle of Sheppey, England. August 2021
I couldn’t resist taking this shot, the light this particular morning was beautiful.
I’m finding using the M-P built in meter a bit troublesome to use and I’m finding I am going back to using my handheld Weston Euromaster V light meter. Problem is having shot so long without a integral meter, I’m shooting without it and when I do disagreeing with it’s readings. The picture above I ended up taking by guessing the exposure as with the camera’s meter I could not get it right.
I do wonder how many others find the same issue and resort back to using an external lightmeter?
Leica M-P (Typ-240) Summicron 50mm f/2 plus digital yellow filter.
I’ve shot this sort of image before but this time the clouds where just right covering the whole of the sky giving very soft low light when sunlight wasn’t breaking through the cloud bank.
Picture was taken the following morning after Storm ‘Evert’
I just love the way our Met Office has for the past couple of years have to name these weather fronts we have from time to time here in the UK. Think they’ve got jealous of the United States and other parts of the world with the cyclone, hurricane and typhoon names.
Taken with my Summicron-M 50mm f/2, digital yellow filter preset and shot in Minster on Sea, England.
Finding my feet with my new Leica M-P, I have been a little concerned about colour images being too rich. I discover there two colour film presets built in to the camera. Not wanting to get too deep into digital manipulation of any kind the original JPG image below was taken without ‘smooth’ film setting. This might look ok to some but me looks wrong, missing detail and doesn’t represent what observed this morning when I shot this image.
On the one hand I wonder if this is cheating but on the other realise it a get way of toning down the colours which would be in my eyes over saturated. Shot with the film Smooth setting, I still had to bring down the levels within Gimp to get the picture below just right though.
Taken with the Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH at Bartons Point Coastal Park.
Reading the Leica M-P operating manual while walking around and using this camera I feel like the German officer played by Gert Frobe in 1956 film ‘Those Magnificent Men
in their Flying Machines‘
In the film having never flown a flying machine, he said “there is nothing a German officer cannot do” …later you see him reading the aircraft flying instructions while flying the aeroplane!
Image courtesy of forgottenfilmcast.wordpress.com
Hope everyone keeping well out there.
While out with the dog before the current curfew, I heard children playing on the beach below the seawall. It was then I noticed the two scooters and a child’s bike resting against the railings.
Taken on my Leica M4-2, Summicron 50mm f/2 and shot on Fomapan 100 @ 800 ISO using sunny sixteen rule at Minster seafront, Kent England.
Minster Leas, Isle of Sheppey, England.
After shooting my image ‘Only the Bones‘ you can see some old posts in the background which I think maybe part of an old pier or even for a floating pontoon as these old structures are some eight feet in height. Maybe the old barges where part of the pier, who knows?
Taken using my Leica M4-2, with a Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH on Fomapan 100 Classic film rated at 400 ISO and a B&W yellow filter.
I could never get this scene quite right but this is my third attempt and I happy with the result. A hazy, overcast day at the far end of Minster Leas, Isle of Sheppey, England there is what remains of these old metal barges of which I think there’s seven or maybe eight hulks slowly succumbing to the sea. Also the posts in the background maybe part of an old pier as they are too tall to be old groyne posts.
Note to self and other dog owners, don’t let your dog take his ball with him when you go to the location of your shoot… as the little monkey wouldn’t stop barking for me to throw his soggy ball!
Taken using my Leica M4-2, with a Summicron-M 35mm f/2 ASPH on Fomapan 100 Classic film rated at 400 ISO and a B&W yellow filter.
You can view a larger image of ‘Only the Bones’ here; flickr
The 35mm Shootist 