First rolls with my F6

It’s me, hi, I’m here with more film scans!

As I mentioned before, I bought a Nikon F3HP a few months back, and that’s the film camera body I had been using primarily, until…my Nikon F6 came in the mail last week!

Am I crazy? Probably, yeah. But the Nikon F6 is considered by a lot of folks to be Nikon’s best film camera ever. Nikon actually only recently stopped mass producing this specific camera in 2020.

Because they’re widely loved in the film community, finding an F6 body that’s not insanely pricey is tricky. I knew I’d make the jump someday and buy one, even if it was more than I’d hoped to spend, but I got lucky. I was making my weekly search on KEH (an excellent second hand/refurbished camera gear website) to see if they just maybe happened to have gotten one in stock since I had last checked, and…there she was. An F6, rated in excellent condition, ready to find a home. The price wasn’t shabby at all.

So naturally, I adopted her right then and there! I didn’t waste any time. I felt like it was fate since my film modeling sessions with some of you all start later this month! The F6’s autofocus is wonderful, and loading film is easier and a smidge more reliable than my F3HP, which will make using it at sessions somewhat simpler than I anticipated.

Here’s some of my favorite images I shot last week in the days following the arrival of my cherished F6. All of these were taken with Fujifilm Superia X-Tra 400 film, developed by Mpix.

At a recent family session, they requested using some of their dad’s old cars in the background. The answer was obviously a big yes. I had to snap a few film shots on our way out to our next shoot!

I underexposed this one a little for my liking, but I still dig it. Here are the two cars side by side! Ironically, these lovely folks are our studio neighbors! Life is so cool.

Same for this one, maybe a little underexposed. But I still like this.

Y’all already knew Cam couldn’t pass up a ride.

The garage for the vintage cars was incredibly charming. The Uncola sign caught my eye.

Just a pretty tree branch at sunset. My weakness.

I was so excited to get out and shoot this day I couldn’t wait until we were actually outside. So I took a picture of my window. Honestly, kind of a vibe I think.

Headed out to a shoot here – I liked how our dash flower was in line with the yellow lines on the road.

Cheesy mirror selfie with one of my favorite shirts.

This is Ron Jon, outside for a little restroom break. He’s a nervous guy so he wouldn’t really be still long enough for me to take his photo looking right at me. That’s okay, though.

My Valentine’s flowers from Cam and Xavier. Legos, so they never die. I love these, so of course I needed a photo of them.

I was heading home from the studio and the electric lines against the saturated sky after sunset looked so…oddly beautiful and interesting.

This tree at my mom and dad’s house is a spot I enjoy to take pictures at in the late spring all the way through fall. It’s still not really lush yet, but it’s always gorgeous at sunset, regardless. The curve in the road behind it is satisfying to me, and I like the fence, too.

I adore this Japanese maple in the front yard, but I remember disliking it as a kid. I don’t really know why I felt that way about it. It’s intricate, intense, and odd. That’s why I love it now; maybe I just didn’t appreciate it at the time.

I’m really pleased with how vivid these colors are here, the contrast, everything technically speaking. And once again, I’m a sucker for a dogwood and pretty tree branches at sunset.

Does anyone else think about trees this much or am I just weird?

My strong Mario boy. I’m pleased with how this shot came out considering the low light in the living room. I also like the color grading of the shadows.

Tumble out of bed
And stumble to the kitchen
Pour myself a cup of ambition
And yawn and stretch and try to come to life

The shadows of my monstera’s leaves were the focus/goal here. I overexposed a wee bit, but I still like it.

And last but certainly not least, a small peek at my first official time using the F6 during an actual session. I have a few more I want to share once I know their wedding invites are out and they’re able to have first priority of sharing on social media. They’re actually using one of the film shots for the actual front of the invite itself and I cannot get over it!!!

If you’ve been tuning into these blog posts, and you’re still reading, thank you for sharing in my nerdy film euphoria. You are epic. ✨

Until next time!

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