Zed
@behindthebluemotel.com
Too many cameras, not enough painting.
https://behindthebluemotel.com
Flickr:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/behindthebluemotel/
https://behindthebluemotel.com
Flickr:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/behindthebluemotel/
Bender Photographic, Schneider Tele-Xenar 360mm, Ilford Ortho (I think, didn't make a note so I'm just using the notch code)
February 4, 2026 at 12:36 PM
Bender Photographic, Schneider Tele-Xenar 360mm, Ilford Ortho (I think, didn't make a note so I'm just using the notch code)
Reposted by Zed
this is about billionaires
February 3, 2026 at 11:28 PM
this is about billionaires
Reposted by Zed
thinking about that "(x) could kill a victorian child" trend and how the more interesting thought is "which eras of history could you make significantly worse by introducing original formula 4loko"
February 4, 2026 at 1:09 AM
thinking about that "(x) could kill a victorian child" trend and how the more interesting thought is "which eras of history could you make significantly worse by introducing original formula 4loko"
(I do think I will still add one sometime, but, I'm penciling it down as a longer term purchase and made when I find a truly nice copy at a decent price)
February 4, 2026 at 1:18 AM
(I do think I will still add one sometime, but, I'm penciling it down as a longer term purchase and made when I find a truly nice copy at a decent price)
Tired: I shouldn't buy a second 4x5 just because maybe I want to shoot some more wide-angle LF urban shots.
Wired: For the same price I could shoot 90 frames on the 8x10 with the Wide-Field Ektar I already own
Wired: For the same price I could shoot 90 frames on the 8x10 with the Wide-Field Ektar I already own
February 4, 2026 at 1:17 AM
Tired: I shouldn't buy a second 4x5 just because maybe I want to shoot some more wide-angle LF urban shots.
Wired: For the same price I could shoot 90 frames on the 8x10 with the Wide-Field Ektar I already own
Wired: For the same price I could shoot 90 frames on the 8x10 with the Wide-Field Ektar I already own
Reposted by Zed
🚨✝️ BACK IN STOCK ALERT ✝️🚨
Issues 1-3 of Steeple by @badmachinery.com are now back in stock! Get them while they're hot! Or lukewarm. They're delicious at any temperature, really.
topatoco.com/collections/...
Issues 1-3 of Steeple by @badmachinery.com are now back in stock! Get them while they're hot! Or lukewarm. They're delicious at any temperature, really.
topatoco.com/collections/...
February 3, 2026 at 8:51 PM
🚨✝️ BACK IN STOCK ALERT ✝️🚨
Issues 1-3 of Steeple by @badmachinery.com are now back in stock! Get them while they're hot! Or lukewarm. They're delicious at any temperature, really.
topatoco.com/collections/...
Issues 1-3 of Steeple by @badmachinery.com are now back in stock! Get them while they're hot! Or lukewarm. They're delicious at any temperature, really.
topatoco.com/collections/...
Bender Photographic 4x5, Chas A Gump & Co Orthograph Rapid Rectilinear 5x8, Ilford Ortho
February 3, 2026 at 11:58 PM
Bender Photographic 4x5, Chas A Gump & Co Orthograph Rapid Rectilinear 5x8, Ilford Ortho
Bender Photographic 4x5, Chas A Gump & Co Orthograph Rapid Rectilinear 5x8, Ilford HP5 Plus
February 3, 2026 at 11:50 PM
Bender Photographic 4x5, Chas A Gump & Co Orthograph Rapid Rectilinear 5x8, Ilford HP5 Plus
I don't know who needs to hear this (other than a specific Suburban around the Bishop-Chatard area) but you actually can't pass -anyone- at a stop sign, including cyclists.
February 3, 2026 at 11:44 PM
I don't know who needs to hear this (other than a specific Suburban around the Bishop-Chatard area) but you actually can't pass -anyone- at a stop sign, including cyclists.
My point is that conversation has never been easy, just before most people didn't get the kind of intimate, public knowledge of what artists were up to that the internet has enabled until long after the artists were gone and the issues academic. Living artists still getting paid hits different.
February 3, 2026 at 9:55 PM
My point is that conversation has never been easy, just before most people didn't get the kind of intimate, public knowledge of what artists were up to that the internet has enabled until long after the artists were gone and the issues academic. Living artists still getting paid hits different.
It's not like Picasso wasn't an absolute shit-heel. And Duchamp may or may not have stolen his most famous piece from a woman whose advances he constantly spurned. And there's the.... everything... about Gauguin. And...
February 3, 2026 at 9:08 PM
It's not like Picasso wasn't an absolute shit-heel. And Duchamp may or may not have stolen his most famous piece from a woman whose advances he constantly spurned. And there's the.... everything... about Gauguin. And...
Since we're doing the whole song-and-dance again, I maintain that what's unique about our struggles dealing with people who make good art can be terrible people and where that leaves the art is entirely because now we get to find out how terrible the people are while they're still alive.
February 3, 2026 at 9:08 PM
Since we're doing the whole song-and-dance again, I maintain that what's unique about our struggles dealing with people who make good art can be terrible people and where that leaves the art is entirely because now we get to find out how terrible the people are while they're still alive.
Frankly if they manage to set that intersection on fire they deserve applause and recognition, especially as snow-bound as it currently is.
February 3, 2026 at 8:33 PM
Frankly if they manage to set that intersection on fire they deserve applause and recognition, especially as snow-bound as it currently is.
The bad news, of course, is that anything I've been finding myself researching and considering for more than a couple of days rarely escapes ending up a purchase.
The good news is I very rarely have buyer's remorse, and many such purchases become routine tools in my kit.
The good news is I very rarely have buyer's remorse, and many such purchases become routine tools in my kit.
February 3, 2026 at 8:01 PM
The bad news, of course, is that anything I've been finding myself researching and considering for more than a couple of days rarely escapes ending up a purchase.
The good news is I very rarely have buyer's remorse, and many such purchases become routine tools in my kit.
The good news is I very rarely have buyer's remorse, and many such purchases become routine tools in my kit.
TOP talks sometimes about how shopping can be as much a hobby as using cameras to take pictures, and given my career I can 100% confirm that. But, I can also say while it leads to a lot of perversity, it can also be a good vector for learning. A lot of info is easier to process when it's relevant.
February 3, 2026 at 7:54 PM
TOP talks sometimes about how shopping can be as much a hobby as using cameras to take pictures, and given my career I can 100% confirm that. But, I can also say while it leads to a lot of perversity, it can also be a good vector for learning. A lot of info is easier to process when it's relevant.
I am no closer to making up my mind on the ultra-light 4x5 view (which is good, at least I'm not just running on impulse which is a concern in the dead depression of winter), but, I have certainly got in a bunch of research and self-examination so that's also nice.
February 3, 2026 at 7:52 PM
I am no closer to making up my mind on the ultra-light 4x5 view (which is good, at least I'm not just running on impulse which is a concern in the dead depression of winter), but, I have certainly got in a bunch of research and self-examination so that's also nice.
Yeah, right now the two biggest points are:
Against: I own too many cameras and I want to be good
For: I could shoot a wide-angle ever, which my current 4x5 is adversarial to
Against: I own too many cameras and I want to be good
For: I could shoot a wide-angle ever, which my current 4x5 is adversarial to
February 3, 2026 at 6:23 PM
Yeah, right now the two biggest points are:
Against: I own too many cameras and I want to be good
For: I could shoot a wide-angle ever, which my current 4x5 is adversarial to
Against: I own too many cameras and I want to be good
For: I could shoot a wide-angle ever, which my current 4x5 is adversarial to
"Someone should love me for just who I am" dude YOU don't even love you for just who you are start there
February 3, 2026 at 5:42 PM
"Someone should love me for just who I am" dude YOU don't even love you for just who you are start there
I had a conservative upbringing, anger issues from undiagnosed social anxiety and ADHD that also made it impossible to try dating without it feeling fight-or-flight, my -mother- gave me all the bad dating advice I ever got—trust me when I say that being an asshole is always a choice you keep making.
February 3, 2026 at 5:40 PM
I had a conservative upbringing, anger issues from undiagnosed social anxiety and ADHD that also made it impossible to try dating without it feeling fight-or-flight, my -mother- gave me all the bad dating advice I ever got—trust me when I say that being an asshole is always a choice you keep making.
LRT: all of the weirdo loser dorks I know (myself included) managed to find partners and procreate if they desired to. There's no such thing as an "incel" they just don't want to recognize that refusing to address that who they are is the problem is a voluntary action.
February 3, 2026 at 5:38 PM
LRT: all of the weirdo loser dorks I know (myself included) managed to find partners and procreate if they desired to. There's no such thing as an "incel" they just don't want to recognize that refusing to address that who they are is the problem is a voluntary action.
Reposted by Zed
Every time this comes up I wonder if we're ever going to shift the conversation to why women are avoiding them.
📢 “A huge amount of men between the age of 15 and 50 will not pass on their genes. They will effectively die out of the gene pool ... Should society intervene?” Steven Bartlett asked last year.
Two top podcasters have identified a global decline. The problem, they say, is women
www.smh.com.au
February 3, 2026 at 3:47 PM
Every time this comes up I wonder if we're ever going to shift the conversation to why women are avoiding them.
Damaged bellows will drive the price down fast because they drive the repair costs up equally fast. In the case of these models, quality replacement bellows will about double the bargain price and put it within $50-ish of just buying one that's already in serviceable shape.
February 3, 2026 at 5:19 PM
Damaged bellows will drive the price down fast because they drive the repair costs up equally fast. In the case of these models, quality replacement bellows will about double the bargain price and put it within $50-ish of just buying one that's already in serviceable shape.
I am always weak to discount cameras and that's generally how I acquire things (other than my Leicas, where even at a discount is a relative thing), but, I'm also pretty good at getting a feel for the market on things and in this case I'd be unlikely to drive the price much lower w/o costly repairs
February 3, 2026 at 5:13 PM
I am always weak to discount cameras and that's generally how I acquire things (other than my Leicas, where even at a discount is a relative thing), but, I'm also pretty good at getting a feel for the market on things and in this case I'd be unlikely to drive the price much lower w/o costly repairs
I'd really love to get into more environmental portraits, because I think the background really adds a lot of impact with the shallow rendering at larger formats. It's just been more difficult to get models on board with, everyone's so used to my studio.
February 3, 2026 at 4:57 PM
I'd really love to get into more environmental portraits, because I think the background really adds a lot of impact with the shallow rendering at larger formats. It's just been more difficult to get models on board with, everyone's so used to my studio.
I'm just saying I tend to work in a binary—either I need to be reactive (in which case any 35mm is going to be better suited than MF system cameras) or I have a bit more time to set up, in which case I've found the movements make being stuck on a tripod a lot less frustrating for fine framing.
February 3, 2026 at 4:54 PM
I'm just saying I tend to work in a binary—either I need to be reactive (in which case any 35mm is going to be better suited than MF system cameras) or I have a bit more time to set up, in which case I've found the movements make being stuck on a tripod a lot less frustrating for fine framing.