Some more views at Tsim Sha Tsui.
Leica M3, 50mm Summicron Rigid, Tri-X
Some More Tsim Sha Tsui
Tag: Tsim Sha Tsui
Leica M3 – First Roll
So – I finally bought a 1960 Leica M3 with my wife’s blessings and paired it with a 1957 “feet only” rigid Summicron.
There’re a few places in Tsim Sha Tsui within walking distance you could go to when you’re in search of a film Leica.
There’re generally 2 price ranges. The insane one is for collectors looking for pristine shrink-wrapped Leicas with original boxes and papers. The saner, within-reach price range is for cameras with some signs of use. Let them know you’re a user and you’re sorted.
I bought a clean-looking “user” camera.
My other lens, the Voigtlander Nokton 35mm SC f1.4, now lives with the Leica M6 which I’ve been using for the past 9 years.
Do I need a Leica M3? I don’t need it. Any camera is good enough for street photography.
The Leica M3 is a few steps backward from the M6 (and hence a step forward in terms of the skill required.)
It’s about not having a built-in meter and having to rely on my judgement.
In my writing and work and all that, I need something to push against so as to stay sharp.
Of course, all I have to do is remove the battery from the M6 to disable the meter. The M6 then becomes an M4.
You can see I had this conversation with myself many times, prior to buying the M3.
Taking pictures without a meter is easier than expected, if I keep in mind the Sunny 16 rule.
If in doubt, overexpose by a stop and we’re still fine. From what I’ve read, you can underexpose by a stop and overexpose by 3 stops with film in general, so there’s some leeway.
The Ilford XP2 Super film is very accommodating.
As I wear glasses, I can’t fully see the 50mm view in the M3 viewfinder but that’s fine.
The 50mm focal length allows for comfortable distance from people and it includes their environment.
I’m noticeable but not in their faces.
I thought the texture was nice.
I like to shoot photographers.
At rest.
I looked up.
I looked ahead.
I’m the shoot shadow master. (That’s the Chinese characters for “photographer”.)
Hong Kong as Meditation
Thinking.
Waiting.
Joy.
Future.
Possibly.
Haiphong Road Temporary Market at Tsim Sha Tsui
Sonny boy has this great idea about trying out the beef ball noodles at Haiphong Road Temporary Market which has been there for 30 odd years.
So yes – I’ve an excuse to whip out the camera. The scene was quiet at first, with a guy eating quietly and a lady appearing on the left.
Then I looked again and the scene changed in a matter of minutes.
Such drama suddenly, quietly taking place.
The beef balls were great, with a tinge of citrus.
Tsim Sha Tsui Waterfront
At the TST waterfront.
A bubby tent thing for kids I think.
Dreamy hazy glow.
Cultural Centre with a ghostly look…
A clearer view of the waterfront.
Where are we going?
The ice cream mobile.
The obligatory Orientalist shot of Chinese junk ship sail.
Watch your step!
Buskers … argh … someone’s finger got in the way. Still, I think it’s nicely flawed.
Nice architecture.
Tsim Sha Tsui at Night
So here’s TST at night.
Everyone has a place to get to.
Spotted.
Someone’s waiting.
Someone’s looking.
Someone’s packing.
Someone’s unloading.
Boxes that have lost their purpose.
The mannequins and model are more alive than actual people.
We’re all shadows in a cave of our own making.
Geocaching and Street Photography
So, my ten-year-old son is into Geocaching.
It’s basically a game where you hunt for hidden caches – you could then sign your name in the booklet in those canisters/boxes hidden or buried in various places in Hong Kong and the rest of the world.
We’ve found magnetic canisters stuck behind signposts, or hidden under piled-up logs full of ants and spiders.
You could then announce your success to the whole world and leave a few clues via the Geocache app.
So you see, it’s killing two birds with one stone.
I get to do a spot of street photography, and my son gets to do a bit of geocaching.
That’s what I call father-son bonding.
It doesn’t matter where I go as long as I’m on the streets.
We could meander and come back to the same place – it doesn’t matter.
Some people fish, others are into street photography, and of course, some are into geocaching.
And we’ll have a late lunch after a morning of running back and forth.
I suppose it’s another day in Hong Kong.
We do what we can to preserve our sanity…
Camera: Leica M6
Lens: Voigtlander Nokton Classic 35mm 1.4 SC
Film: Kodak BW400CN
Inexhaustible Hong Kong
The range of imagery in Hong Kong is breathtaking.
You look.
You think about things.
There’s a mental itch you can’t get to and a glimmer you’re aiming at.
When will Godot arrive? You look again.
At things we do.
At how we live.
Our ambitions.
The road not taken.
We have an apparatus for looking.
They look back.
This is something we look for.
Sincerity.
Attitude.
A kind of mental space.
We work and rework.
And hope everything comes together at the end.
Some images are available here as open-edition prints at my Saatchi Art page.
Work, Work, Work
I am back in Hong Kong after a 3-week break in Singapore.
I’ve 7-8 rolls of film and probably about 50 usable images from a digital camera. Am looking through the lot now.
In the meantime, here’re a few images that sum up my mood at this moment, even as I’m catching up with work.
The 2 images above were taken in the Tsim Sha Tsui area, while the rest below are scenes from Shamshuipo.
I’m tempted to say that these images represent the “can do” spirit of Hong Kong which accounts for its economic success.
On the other hand, we need to remember the harshness of the Gini coefficient that is operating here.
The above 2 images represent a personal triumph.
This is one of 2-3 stalls along Apliu Street that sells vintage film cameras.
It’s difficult to take their pictures with stealth because every time I walk by, the stall owners’ film-camera-detection senses are alerted and they would look up at me (or my camera).
I walked by for the third time that day and managed to finally do it.
Thanks for reading, and check out my prints!
Not Shopping at Tsim Sha Tsui
All images here are shot at Tsim Sha Tsui with the Contax TVS II loaded with Fuji Venus 800 film.
The Contax TVS series of film cameras are gorgeous, with titanium bodies, aperture priority and P modes.
There’s a 28-56 focal length zoom which is ideal for street photography.
For me, they are the more nimble younger siblings of the Contax T3.
Which explains why I went out the other day with the intention of not buying that Contaxt TVS II I had seen, complete with the databack.
This person saw what I was about to do, and smiled.
Check out that SLR camera-thing his buddy behind him was carrying.
Hong Kong people work really hard.
We keep saying that Hong Kong is a shopping paradise.
Of course, we need people to service the economy.
There are shoppers just as there are delivery people.
A salute to the people who keep things going.
Sometimes they are invisible to the shoppers, often faceless and anonymous.
We should make it a point to notice people more …
To see the difference between glamour and real people.
Otherwise, we’re nothing more than mannequins looking at other mannequins.
For collectors: open edition prints from this post are not available here.
I suppose that’s my (ironic) gesture of commitment to the push and pull of capitalist logic…
Hong Kong Lucida 