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  #1  
Old 2nd August 2010, 06:36 PM
Obtong Obtong is offline
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Default Greetings from Olympia, Washington!

Hi Everyone,

I grew up in Birmingham, England, and moved to the US in the 1980’s. My first 35mm camera was a Halina Paulette which my parents had bought as a kit but had no idea how to use. I quickly outgrew the Halina so I got a job at a restaurant and saved all my money to buy a Canon AE-1, which I think cost me 200 pounds. In those days 200 pounds was a lot of money in those days, especially for a teenager. A couple of years later I bought myself a Zenit enlarger which was quickly upgraded to a Durst M605 Colour. My parents let me have the under-the-stairs storage area which I converted into a darkroom. It was small, stuffy, but I dare not complain because it was that or nothing. I dabbled in colour for a little while, but most of my work was with black and white.

It literally broke my heart to do so, but when I moved to the US I had to sell all my darkroom equipment. I was young and did not have enough money to ship it over to the US. I emigrated only with my passport, one suitcase, and my AE-1 around my neck. In the late 1990’s I picked up a Durst M601 enlarger at a yard sale (car boot sale) and started to dabble again into developing my own negatives and prints, but put ended up putting my tongs away when I began shooting digital and when the demands of work made it difficult to spend hours in the darkroom.

I got back into the darkroom about four or five years ago after I went through all my negatives (colour and B&W) and realised that my love of the silver halide process was still strong. Although I enjoy the convenience of shooting digital, I find there is something relaxing, more focused, and more intentional about shooting with film and going through the darkroom process. I look at my contact prints from my film days and most pictures on the roll of 36 exposures are different, and most pictures are keepers. My digital shoots today run into the hundreds of shots, and most of the time it is the first shot that is the best one anyway. So it’s back to film for me, and digital for when needs must. Horses for courses, I guess.

Anyway, I am excited to be back in the darkroom and to become a FADU forum member. I do have a darkroom, in the cellar/basement (under the stairs!), and I am now using a Durst M605 Colour which I bought off ebay for a song! (PayPal only does money transfers, so I actually kept the song and sent cash instead.) My main film cameras include a Canon A-1, Leica M-6, and a Kowa Super 66. I have several other cameras which I have bought at charity shops or have been given that I keep for display purposes only on my bookcases. They look nice perched on their shelves and often make for a great conversation with guests about the good old days when film reigned supreme!

~Dom

Last edited by Obtong; 2nd August 2010 at 06:51 PM.
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Old 2nd August 2010, 06:40 PM
Mike O'Pray Mike O'Pray is offline
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Hi Dome and welcome to FADU. We have spoken elsewhere where I go by the name of pentaxuser. I hope you enjoy it here

Mike
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Old 2nd August 2010, 06:51 PM
Obtong Obtong is offline
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Thanks for the welcome, Mike. (Gosh, it only took four minutes!) Good to see you on FADU. It looks like a great forum!

~Dom
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Old 2nd August 2010, 07:14 PM
mpirie mpirie is offline
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Hi Dom, Welcome to the forum and back to the dark slide ;-)

Mike

PS. Apologies, but i've been waiting to use that pun for ages ;-)
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Old 2nd August 2010, 07:25 PM
Richard Gould Richard Gould is offline
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H Dom and welcome to Fadu,I still use many of these old cameras from when film was king,Rolleiflex and cord, varity of folders both MF and 35mm and some old Voightlanders and a newly aquired Werra, They look better being used than on the shelf,Richard
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Old 2nd August 2010, 08:24 PM
Neil Smith Neil Smith is offline
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Hi and welcome to FADU


Neil
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Old 2nd August 2010, 08:47 PM
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B&W Neil B&W Neil is offline
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Hi Dom and welcome to FADU. I enjoyed reading your introduction and thanks for posting. I also remember the Halina and my wife used to sport one! Enjoy the forum :-)

Neil.
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"The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance." Aristotle

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Old 3rd August 2010, 02:33 AM
Obtong Obtong is offline
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Thank you all for the warm welcome. I'm looking forward to getting to know FADU's forum members!

~Dom
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Old 3rd August 2010, 07:44 AM
Paulographic Paulographic is offline
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Hi Dom.

It was a car boot sale purchased enlarger that got me back into the dark after a very long time.
Long live car boot sales.
Then of course the bug grew stronger and I discovered the camera fair and it was downhill all the way. :-)

Paul
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Old 3rd August 2010, 10:24 AM
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photomi7ch photomi7ch is offline
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Welcome Dom.
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If you eliminate the impossible whatever remains no matter how improbable must be the truth.
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