TexasGirl Photography

A couple of weeks ago, a fellow Film Shooters Collective member (Katya) mentioned she was taking part in the Frugal Film Project and invited the rest of us to check it out. Of course I had to do this! Have I ever met a project I didn’t want to participate in, especially a film project? I did a little investigating to get a hold of a suitable amount of cheap film and jumped on board.

I wanted to use the new Kentmere Pan in 120, but I couldn’t find any to buy, so Holga it was (this is rebranded Foma film, by the way). It’s kinda fun having it all so matchy-matchy, anyway, and this is still a new film for me so I’m happy. The description said it was well suited to “toy cameras.”

Basically the project requirements are that you use a kit that costs less than $75 altogether and the cheapest film you can get a hold of, exposing one roll a month for a year. Sounds doable, right? I used to participate in 52 rolls, but I always fell behind. A roll a week was a lot to stay on top of, even for an enthusiast like me.

To kick things off, I decided to photograph the stand of trees near my house. Not only is this one of my favorite places to photograph, it’s also easy to get back to quickly in the event of a failure. Fortunately, no failure occurred! I processed the film in D76 stock for 8 minutes, and while I think the highlights turned out too hot I was still able to make adjustments in Lightroom and even print a couple of the frames on some RC Pearl paper in the darkroom. (Cell phone shots of the prints are below)

Overall the photographs came out in usual dreamy Holga fashion, so I am happy! I can hardly wait to get to work on the next roll. COME ON FEBRUARY!

The very last photograph below is my favorite. I’m always stalking the great blue heron that live around this lake, but they are always wise to me and fly off loudly protesting my intrusion. When I rolled up on my bicycle, the heron was on that perch but made a hasty exit. By the time I made my way back, I saw it flying in that direction over the water and left my bike, approaching quietly on foot. I was able to creep pretty close to get that photo, and it makes me happy. Finally! Now maybe next time I’ll have something with me that focuses better than a Holga.