Analyzing my favorite roll

(and why it worked)

I’ve been thinking about what makes a roll feel great - and what doesn’t. For me personally, I know the outcome will be better when I take my time (makes sense, doesn’t it?). This one was shot over the course of a month which is rare for me, usually I finish a roll in a week or two. I’m always torn between acting fast and doing things perfectly - but acting fast usually wins. That’s why I like to have a place to gather all my ideas (I use Notion for this). When inspiration hits, I can pick something from that list. I recently came across the work of Gilbert Garcin and was instantly inspired by his photos, in particular the one with a dandelion. I don’t think his image is a double exposure though, if I remember correctly he used a small cut-out of himself.

One of these will definitely be a print as soon as my darkroom is up and running!

I like for each roll to feel like a visual collage when I go through the scans - very rarely do I shoot the same scene twice, so there’s variety between all the frames. I guess I also like to maximize each roll as it’s an expensive hobby - I simply can’t afford to shoot six frames of every single scene.

Another thing I’ve considered is that I really like the mix of indoor shots (self portraits, silhouettes) layered with outside shots (clouds, water, flowers) in my double exposures. They really represent how I felt when I was shooting this roll - stuck inside, but wanting to explore the world outside.

How do you approach shooting a scene? Do you move on after one shot, or do you work the same scene until it feels perfect? Let me know in the comments!

Shot with Nikon FE - Kentmere Pan 200

x Linda

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Double exposure - I shot both with a 50mm lens, for the close-up I used a macro attachment that works like a filter. You just screw it onto. the lens!

II thought the room would be a bit darker, but I like how it captured my silhouette perfectly - exposure can be difficult to balance in high contrast situations!

A triple exposure with paint, my hand and the sea

I remember seeing a print in a Francesca Woodman book and it gave me this idea

Double exposure using a Cokin multi image prism filter

The exception where I shot the same scene several times

I’ve gotten into the habit of underexposing these silhoutte shots too much, probably because I set exposure before actually standing in the frame.. In the roll I just finished I’ve corrected this. Looking forward to see how that turns out.

Water and flowers are a recurring theme, as you can see

as are clouds

First time back in Mozart’s (my little dog) favorite forest since he passed in 2024

One frame is underexposed, and the other is overexposed in both of these

Another mystery shot - not quite sure what I did here but it’s at least a double exposure