2012: The first contact with Yashica Electro GSN

The first Yashica Electro GSN was a gift from one of my students.

With the wrong roll (ASA 100 sorry I can’t remember if Fujifilm or Kodak) I was in Downtown trying to figure out how to use a rangefinder…it was a sort of photographic disaster. But I decided to pick up that first roll of film and after a small review I decided to share on my new blog for my readers the images that I think are still interesting, in my opinion. It is a challenge and I love the challenges.

I want to say one thing before moving on to the images: I love seeing scenes in Mexico City from almost a decade ago. For me it is an experience of mentally retracing what the city was and what I was. Unconsciously I often forgot that I had a 100 asa roll, photographing as with a digital camera, almost without stopping to take and in fact many photos are blurred. And the images are pretty far to be good or memorable. But I think photography is an imperfect medium, where the sensations and the personal experiences have a relevant value. The memory is fundamental in photography. In these digital times we tend to forget that photography is first of all for ourselves and not for sharing on social networks.

For any photograph I will try to write a comment, in order to give you a little bit of context.

I like how the shadow cuts the frame and the earthiness of the scene that reminds me of certain photos taken at the zoo when I was a child.

Trying to make Street Photography expressing the energy of the moment is one of my constant goals and it can be appreciated on this photo where the subject gave me that dynamism I was looking for.

By shooting with a rangefinder you must be quick to load the next shot by pulling the lever before pressing the shutter button. After all these years I am happy that my vision is pretty the same. Of course the experience improves, the technique now is much better than 10 years ago, but still I look for similar things on the streets and this makes me happy.

OK, this is completely blurred but…I really like it. I think that magazine cover Hola is just perfect and the energy is respected through the blur. It is a picture with a question mark. For me this is a keeper.

The juxtaposition between the two women, the main subject and the reflected one with both protecting their faces with a magazine…

A massacred image in this proposal? Yes, why not? This is the unpredictability and mistakes that can be made with a film camera. And I did a lot.

A quieter composition that respects the form. I like to see this gentleman riding a bike. A particular one too.

Oh, yes…this is a leit motiv of my street visual research when I photograph angles of the buildings, but usually I make it using a 28mm or a 35mm, in this case I made it with the 40mm of my Yashica.

In 2012 I was still inexperienced in the city and when I went to the historic center I didn't know many streets like today. And that turns out to be an advantage also for those who take the workshops with me. The frame is nothing fancy but still i like the quiet atmosphere. It is a photo that relaxes me when looking at it. Like a quiet afternoon.

I think this is the best image of all made with this roll. The Kessel Building in Madero Avenue is an historical one…and I managed to capture this fun scene that again expresses energy and I think now you know how much important is to me to have energy in my street shots.

I made 2 shots of this situation. The second shot is forgettable because there is not the woman and despite the dog look at me I prefer this one, and despite the parallax error did not allow me to center the scene perfectly. I think the naked feet , the water adds interest to the shot. And no it is water, not dog piss, but you know…street photography is ambiguous many times.

In this scene I was trying to include more situations inside the frame. It is something that still interests me as a street photographer.

Maybe my second fav from this roll. I don’t care really that is not sharp. I like the eye contact with the 2 girls and I like to see how is represented Madero Avenue.

What’s Up on his t-shirt is the reason I photographed. I know that is a frame completely unbalanced with the right side completely boring, but I told you not to expect excellent photos in this post, right?

Another eye contact…this time we arrived to Zocalo, the main square of the city that was the background of many shots I made all over the years.

I like to see how in 10 years the photos appear already of another era. Is it due to the film or do we live completely different years? Look at the gesture of the man…in my opinion is simply perfect and I judge interesting the image.

Bruce Gilden said that is risky and most of the time a waste of film photographing reflections, because failure is more likely. I agree. And yet I try. This is a failure, but I would share it with you.

It is forbidden to photograph these mannequins. Yes, right.

Conclusions

I am happy to have shared with my readers the result of my very first experience with a rangefinder. Anyone who knows me knows how much I love to expose myself in my imperfections and even in photography I do it. Because photography is a constant challenge as in life. A constant process of evolution or who knows even of involution. I hope also that this post encourage someone to take film photography. Maybe buying a Yashica Electro that is a cheap alternative to Leica if you want to try a rangefinder. I invite you to let me know your thoughts on the photos or your experience with this camera, by posting a comment here.