11ª Bienal de Fotografia de Vila Franca de Xira - 6 Nov / 12 Dez 2010

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Catalogue of this year's Biennial of Vila Franca de Xira

My contribution to the exhibition in the town of Vila Franca was photographed in 8x10 inches. The images that you see on this post, are actually reproductions of (second choice) contact prints, made the traditional way on photographic paper.

The color of the images was obtained with traditional toning methods: I used Agfa Viradon. I find that the real prints look somewhat more brown, than they do on my monitor, where they look a little reddish.

Who knows how do they look on yours?

Gandolfi Precision 8x10 + Rodenstock Apo-Sironar W 210mm

Fomapan 100 in Rodinal 1+50

Alcochete, May 1, 2010

Gandolfi Precision 8x10 + Schneider G-Claron 305mm

Fomapan 100 in Rodinal 1+50

Alcochete, April 26, 2010

Gandolfi Precision 8x10 + Rodenstock Apo-Sironar W 210mm

Fomapan 100 in Rodinal 1+50

Alcochete, April 26, 2010 (Mr. "Mota dos Touros")

Gandolfi Precision 8x10 + Schneider G-Claron 305mm

Fomapan 100 in Rodinal 1+50

Cruzamento Quinta da Barroca, April 26, 2010

Gandolfi Precision 8x10 + Rodenstock Apo-Sironar W 210mm

Fomapan 100 in Rodinal 1+50

Lugar das Hortas, April 26, 2010

Gandolfi Precision 8x10 + Schneider G-Claron 305mm

Fomapan 100 in Rodinal 1+50

Praia do Samouco (Baía das Mocas), May 1, 2010

Preparing the camera for the last two shots...

Now you understand why I drive a pickup... That I can look a little more crazy than I really am!

(Both location photographs courtesy of Maria Helena, who was kind enough to also give a helping hand).

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Flor da Rosa, Crato - Carrilho da Graça (Wasted Project 2)

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When I came back to Portugal in 1990, after living in Germany for many years, the first architecture photographs I made, were assigned by the architect Manuel Tainha. I should photograph his just built Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação, Universidade de Lisboa.

It just so happened that the publisher, and also architect, Luiz Trigueiros from Editorial Blau, saw the images and liked them. He subsequently asked if I wanted to work for his magazine "Architécti" (by that time a really fine publication), and offered me two assignments: the above mentioned work by Tainha and the Piscina Municipal de Campo Maior, by João Luís Carrilho da Graça.

Photographing the works of these two master architects, I got started in Architecture Photography. Not a bad start, I could dare to say...

Around 2004, I thought about doing a White & Blue book on the recovery and conversion of the Flor da Rosa Monastery in Crato, Alentejo, into a Pousada, by Carrilho da Graça.

On my mind, it would be a fabulous companion book for my other publication about Santa Maria do Bouro, also a conversion of a Monastery into a Pousada, in Amares, by Eduardo Souto de Moura. Both are outstanding works, having their origins in historic buildings.

Well, I do love that!

The necessary steps were undertaken: I met João Luís who agreed to colaborate on the project, permissions and arrangements to photograph the building were granted, film was ordered, and so on and so on...

After many images were shot in 2005, the excellent designer Francisco Vaz da Silva, from Aveiro, made an interesting mock-up. Everything was looking good, and I thought that I could soon publish another book!

Then the wheel of fate started turning the other direction, things started going bizarre, and for many reasons I don't wish to detail, sometimes I don't even understand myself, the book never took form.

One more wasted project!

My loss, for sure!, nobody's gain, I guess...

Some fellow photographers claim that they don't like to talk about their equipment or methods. Some even say that they don't care about technical issues. How grateful they must be!

These fellows often excuse their relutance on talking about technic, with the explanation that only the image counts, and nothing else matters. While I might understand that point of view, with some of them I have to ask if they have technical knowledge at all...

I permit myself to be silly and disagree: yes, equipment and technic count!

I am not a magician and I don't have tricks upon my sleeves, I don't pull secret rabbits out of my hat!

I am a photo-freak with nothing to hide!

Are you perhaps eager to learn more about what kind of gear I used to make the above photographs? Look at the list below (I hope that I won't forget something important, I very often do!):

- Gandolfi Variant with 6x12 Horseman roll film back, and Linhof 6x7 Rapid Rollex (as the names imply, 6x12 and 6x7 formats); Schneider lenses.

- Horseman SW612 Pro (6x12 format, also doubles duty as 6x9 camera); Rodenstock lenses.

- Corfield WA67 (6x7 format) with fixed Schneider Super Angulon 47mm.

- Hasselblad 500 C/M (format 6x6); Carl Zeiss lenses.

- Film: Kodak Ektachrome 120.

- Light meter: Gossen Variosix F.

- Color meter: Gossen Color Master 3F.

- CC and LB Filters: Rodenstock.

- Tripods: Gitzo and Manfrotto.

- Lighting equipment: Hensel.

Got an idea?

Now a little joke, and food for thought, for imaginary clients: would you find it correct to pay me the same for this kind of service, as if I only took my Canon digi and a little tripod along?

No? Well, a lot of people do...

Oh, by the way, where was my digi-ding-a-dong-dings-bums?

P.S.: A very special thank you goes to my son Luís who assisted me on the photographic sessions and all the people involved, mainly the staff personnel at Flor da Rosa, who were always very kind and helpful.

Have fun!

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Chicago, The Loop - Summer 1999 (Horseman SW612Pro)

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The Loop seen from the South Side, IIT Campus in the foreground

Riding the train from O'Hare International Airport into the Windy City, we soon started to have the funny bitter feeling that maybe we made the wrong decision when, wanting to save some bucks, we left the expensive cabs behind us and rushed to the train station.

As the city got nearer and nearer, numerous strange and peculiar looking people seemed to feel a certain kind of special attraction for all the crazy bags and cases that we transported.

Who knows, maybe it was just simple curiosity?

I bet that all the gangsters in Chicago must have gotten scared of that two little funny creatures coming maybe from the outer space, carrying only-God knows what kind of secret weapons on their metallic cases...

Strange robot cops out of nowhere going to everywhere? Who dares to ask?

In fact, we are loaded with cases of precious photographic equipment: 4x5 inches Gandolfi Variant, Horseman SW612Pro (both of course with the necessary lenses), exposure meters, color meter, filters, roll film holders, tripods, film, and so on and so on.

Did I mention our wallets, credit cards, passport, money, clothes, sleeping bags and the like?

My son Jorge, by then in the beginning of his twenties, looks like asking if we will ever get out of there alive... I try to look calm and reply that he should pretend that we are at home, that we are just doing the most natural thing in the world, we are hardcore Chicagoans and no one can do us no harm, no matter which hellbound train we ride!

Truth is, we are for the first time in our lives walking on american soil...

Chicago Transit Authority was kind enough to offer us the very first cheap emotions!

Chicago, here we come!!!

As possibly some of you know, I was in Chicago on assignment, photographing the works of Mies van der Rohe for Editorial Blau. I have posted some material before, so people familiar with this blog should know what I am talking about.

This time around, the talk won't be about Mies, but about the "few times in between", the few times that I took the chance of photographing something else. Looking back, I understand that in a way it was a lost chance, as I realize that I should have made much more images than I did on my spare time.

Photographing for a book on Mies' architecture obliged us to be focused on our task, also losing countless hours on burocratic stuff like permissions and the like.

Chicago is a fantastic city and Lake Michigan is just unforgettable, you can find millions of motives to photograph and a lot of music to hear! Maybe I will be back one day shooting on my own, without pressures and obligations. I will then maybe find the peace of mind to do my own stuff at my own pace, with my own rhythm.

If chance happens, should I do it in Large Format? Leica? One lens, ten lenses?

Color, black and white? Sheet film, roll film? Square, panoramic?

I guess that I better do it all and then some more...

And I promise that I will try some other pizzas, not only Luigi's world famous (in IIT Common's... He invariably asked if we wanted one - paper - plate or two plates... You understood right, for both of us! Wanna get Luigi fucked up? Ask him for a napkin... And then maybe some salt... You better run soon!).

And I won't forget the world's best chicken wings, and the world's dearest donuts, and the world's funkiest McDonald's, and the world's best blues, and the world's nicest everything...

Yes, that is Chicago too!

All photographs made with Horseman SW612Pro + Rodenstock lenses

(Faraway view with Gandolfi Variant and Schneider lens)

All images shot on 120 film (6x12 and 6x9): Kodak E100S and E100VS

On this trip I had the chance of testing the then new Ektachrome E100VS. I found it a touch too saturated and with a little bit too much contrast.

I know that it is supposed to be saturated...

It just happens that I am an old dog, and old dogs not always like to change their food...

As I said before, my son Jorge was my assistant on this trip. God knows that I would have gone mad for sure without his help. Jorge happens to be a very nice guy, taking it easy... His patience and good nature made me do it with a smile, very often even with a loud laugh.

Once again "thank you, my son. In the end, we did have a really good time, didn't we?"!

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Álvaro Siza, Terraços de Bragança, Lisboa, 2005 - Wasted Project (1)

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This could have been a beautiful White & Blue book, about a beautiful architectural project in Lisbon downtown by Álvaro Siza. Mr. Siza was kind enough, as always, to guarantee all his collaboration, but somehow the book never came to life.

Feeling pity that it remains wasted, I don't want it to be a completely lost project, so I let you enjoy the photographs, while it's publication keeps on waiting for a better opportunity.

Film cameras were used exclusively on the documentation shown above:

- Sinar F2, with Rodenstock and Schneider lenses, for 4x5" and 6x12 (Horseman back);
- Horseman SW612 Pro, with Rodenstock lenses, for 6x12.

- Corfield WA67, Schneider Super-Angulon 47mm, for 6x7.

- Hasselblad 500 C/M, with Carl Zeiss lenses, for 6x6.

Light meter and color meter by Gossen.

Film by Kodak.

Tripods by Gitzo and Manfrotto.

Transparencies and b&w negatives scanned with Epson Perfection 4990.

Assistance by Luís Morais de Sousa, my son.

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