I recently took a tour of Russian River Brewings’ Windsor, CA location. The release of Pliny the Younger was coming to an end and I wanted to have a taste before it was all gone. I have discovered that you can try Pliny while on the tour, along with two other beers and you don’t have to wait two to four hours to make it happen.
I brought along my Leica Q2 to document the day. I love high contrast and have a preset on my camera that gives me a preview of what the images will look like. I edit from the raw files in Lightroom and use the provided black and white with red filter preset and then some minor adjustments depending on the image. I’ve been shooting Kodak black and white film for over 30 years and love the look of TriX. My digital work has always leaned toward the TriX look. I thought of purchasing the Q2 monochrome but didn’t want to be limited. I am tempted by the M10 monochrome but would have to sell a kidney to make it happen.
Without color, light and shadow is most important. Over the years I have learned what colors are darker or brighter in images. Seeing patterns of light and understanding gray scale took years. Shooting film over the years, with no electronic viewfinder to show the me the way, I learned with each roll. I remember my first mirrorless camera, the Fujifilm X100T. Seeing the digital image through the viewfinder, being able to make changes and see the results before making the image. It felt like cheating but loved it all the same. I’m jealous of photographers just starting out as the learning curves is drastically shortened by new tech. Well, new relative to my scale.
I’ve captured this staircase on more than one occasion. I would love to see what it would look like closer to sunrise or sunset. The tour doesn’t allow you to just linger. In addition, you have to hold your tasting glass throughout the tour. I could spend hours in this room making images. The metal tanks, staircase, hight ceiling. So much fun and so many angles and subjects.
People ask me why black and white? There are several reasons. The first is that it reminds me of when I was a kid, with my first camera. I was spoiled that my middle school had a dark room. Watching my film turn into an image in the chemistry, was magical. The second reason is that I see in black and white. I know that sounds strange. As I stated earlier, shooting black and white film over the years has taught me what an image will look like. I can see the image in my mind. Lastly, the distraction of color. When you look at an image, you see it differently because it is black and white. It has an old timey feel, taking you back in time. For me it is more emotional to capture images this way.
I hope you have enjoyed these images. I’ve made a short video regarding this shoot. Click here to check it out.
Until next time,
John