Outbreak: "Respiratory Outbreak" (unspecified pathogen)
Facility: Alexander Place
Facility Type: LTC Home
Unit/Floor/Area: Home Area 1
Location: #Waterdown #Ontario
Date: 2025-03-27
Public Health Unit: #Hamilton Public Health Services
Facility Tracking Hash: #HPHS0021
PHU Tracking Hash: #OnObHPHS
Click or follow tracking hashtags to see data for individual facilities or a specific public health unit.
Hamilton police charge Alberta man with murder in killing of Waterdown father of 2
An Alberta man has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of 55-year-old Dirk Nyhuis who was found dead in his Waterdown home on March 6, Hamilton police say.
#crime #murder #police #Alberta #Waterdown #Hamilton
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/hamilton-waterdown-homicide-alberta-man-charged-1.7489923?cmp=rss
Hamilton father of two killed in Waterdown home, police say
Dirk Nyhuis, often called Jeff by friends and family, died of a gunshot in his Waterdown home, Hamilton police said Friday. The 55-year-old is the city’s third homicide victim 2025.
#crime #death #police #Waterdown #Hamilton #News
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/homicide-march-6-1.7478880?cmp=rss
Outbreak: #COVID-19
Facility: Village Manor
Facility Type: Retirement Home
Unit/Floor/Area: Facility Wide
Location: #Waterdown #Ontario
Date: 2025-01-17
Public Health Unit: #Hamilton Public Health Services
Facility Tracking Hash: #HPHS0043
PHU Tracking Hash: #OnObHPHS
Click or follow tracking hashtags to see data for individual facilities or a specific public health unit.
Outbreak: Norovirus
Facility: Alexander Place
Facility Type: LTC Home
Unit/Floor/Area: Facility Wide
Location: #Waterdown #Ontario
Date: 2024-12-30
Public Health Unit: #Hamilton Public Health Services
Facility Tracking Hash: #HPHS0021
PHU Tracking Hash: #OnObHPHS
Click or follow tracking hashtags to see data for individual facilities or a specific public health unit.
Outbreak: COVID-19
Facility: Village Manor
Facility Type: Retirement Home
Unit/Floor/Area: Facility Wide
Location: #Waterdown #Ontario
Date: 2024-10-01
Public Health Unit: #Hamilton Public Health Services
Facility Tracking Hash: #HPHS0043
PHU Tracking Hash: #OnObHPHS
Click or follow tracking hashtags to see data for individual facilities or a specific public health unit.
Outbreak: COVID-19
Facility: Alexander Place
Facility Type: LTC Home
Unit/Floor/Area: Facility Wide
Location: #Waterdown #Ontario
Date: 2024-08-28
Public Health Unit: #Hamilton Public Health Services
Facility Tracking Hash: #HPHS0021
PHU Tracking Hash: #OnObHPHS
Click or follow tracking hashtags to see data for individual facilities or a specific public health unit.
Outbreak: COVID-19
Facility: Alexander Place
Facility Type: LTC Home
Unit/Floor/Area: Facility Wide
Location: #Waterdown #Ontario
Date: 2024-07-23
Public Health Unit: Hamilton Public Health Services
Facility Tracking Hash: #HPHS0021
PHU Tracking Hash: #OnObHPHS
Click or follow tracking hashtags to see data for individual facilities or a specific public health unit.
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Film Review Blog No. 76 – Fujifilm Velvia 100
When it comes to the name Velvia, most photographers will often latch onto the cult classic Fuji Velvia or its modern form, Velvia 50. But Fuji also released a one-stop faster version, Velvia 100 or 100F, which offers everything you like about Velvia 50 but in a slightly faster form. While I've shot plenty of slide films, Velvia 100 is one that I have far less experience with; again, I'm more likely to shoot Provia, Ektachrome, or Astia (RIP) when shooting a 100-Speed slide film. But Velvia 100 is an interesting animal and one that I'm not likely to shoot again. So I wasn't too put out when on the 8th of March 2021 that Fujifilm announced the discontinuation of Velvia 100. The reason for the discontinuation of both the sale and commercial processing of Velvia 100 in the United States due to the presence of the chemical phenol, isopropylated phosphate, sources at Fujifilm state that 0.0003% trace amount of PIP is contained in the layers of the film, but even that trace amount has resulted in the discontinuation of the film stock in order to comply with the Environmental Protection Agency. While this announcement does seem to only affect the sale in the United States, but I will continue to monitor and update as needed.
Film Specs
Type: Colour Reversal (E-6), Daylight Balanced
Film Base: Cellulose Triacetate
Film Speed: ASA-100 Latitude: +/- 1/3 Stop)
Formats Avaliable: 135, 120, Sheets
Discontinued: 2021 (USA only)
Hasselblad 500c - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoHasselblad 500c - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoHasselblad 500c - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoHasselblad 500c - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire Photo
Colour Rendition
If you liked how Velvia 50 rendered colours but were turned off by the slow speed, Velvia 100 might fit your photography style. The colours are rendered in the same rich saturation and high contrast manner. Your blacks are deep, and whites are bright. The film does tend to lean into the warmer tones, so the reds, greens, and yellows, so that is something you'll need to watch for when digitizing your slides. While not as rich as Velvia 50, Velvia 100 works as hard to bring you a good 95% of the slower film stock. You could probably do well with landscape and architecture work with these colours, but portraits are well within the realm of possibility with various skin tones, but again, it wouldn't be my first choice.
Mamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 45mm 1:2.8 N - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 45mm 1:2.8 N - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 45mm 1:2.8 N - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 45mm 1:2.8 N - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire Photo
Image Quality
Suppose there's one thing that Velvia 100 doesn't lack in image quality. Honestly, I could not tell the difference between Velvia 50 and Velvia 100 at a glance. Velvia 100 offers up clean positives, with excellent edge sharpness and separation of colour and tones. And it does have a good fine-grain; you have to zoom in close to catch your first glimpse of grain. This helps make for clean scans and excellent projection. And that is what makes Velvia 100 edge out Velvia 50 slightly; it projects far cleaner and provides a much better visual image on a screen with even a dimmer projector bulb. Like any slide film, you have to watch your exposure; there's little in the way of latitude, so to get the best results, you want a good meter, either external or internal, because any over/underexposure or hard contrasty light will make your life miserable.
Pentax 645 - SMC Pentax 645 35mm 1:3.5 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabPentax 645 - SMC Pentax 645 35mm 1:3.5 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabPentax 645 - SMC Pentax 645 35mm 1:3.5 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabPentax 645 - SMC Pentax 645 35mm 1:3.5 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo Lab
Scanning
Like most slide films, modern scanners do struggle a bit with Velvia 50 and Velvia 100. And I was nearly pulling my hair out when scanning the two rolls of Velvia 100 using my Epson V700. Unfortunately, I could not get a roll of the stock in 35mm to see how my Nikon Coolscan V handled the film stock. Because of the deep contrast and hyper-real colour rendering, both the Epson scanning software and Adobe Photoshop had trouble locking onto the levels and colour balance using any automatic tool. Most of the time, I ended up having to take care of these manually, which is always a struggle in my post-processing world. Like any slide film, you do have to expose them properly, and in a couple of cases, I think my exposure was off slightly, which with the latitude of a stiff board, can cause problems. I found that the software tended to overcorrect towards greens and cyan, and with a bit of fine touch, I could correct them. Thankfully the film did not scan with too much aberration and required little additional sharpening and colour noise reduction.
Rolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabRolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabRolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabRolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo Lab
Overall Impression
There's nothing wrong with Velvia 100; it's a good film that will deliver excellent images in the right conditions; in fact, I would have to say that I would prefer to shoot Velvia 100 over Velvia 50. That little extra stop of film speed does help while still delivering the same image quality and colour from the Velvia series. But like those films, Velvia 100 requires an exacting exposure, so either make sure your handheld meter is calibrated properly, or your internal meter is dead-on accurate. And it also helps to have a good hand at colour correction in post-processing or a superb scanner and software that handles colours like a boss.
Further Reading
Don't take my word on Velvia 100, check out these other reviews of the film stock!
Emulsive - Film Stock Review: Fujifilm Velvia 100
The Darkroom - Velvia 100 Film Review
Blue Moon Camera - Film Friday Review: Fuji Velvia 100
Ken Rockwell - Fuji Velvia 100 Review
Filter Grade - Fuji Velvia 100 Film Stock Review
#filmreviewblogs #canada #film #filmreview #fuji #fujivelvia100 #fujichrome #fujifilm #hamilton #harborsprings #hasselblad500c #mamiyam645 #media #medium #michigan #oakville #ontario #pentax645 #review #rolleiflex28f #rvp100 #unitedstates #waterdown
Film Review Blog No. 76 – Fujifilm Velvia 100
When it comes to the name Velvia, most photographers will often latch onto the cult classic Fuji Velvia or its modern form, Velvia 50. But Fuji also released a one-stop faster version, Velvia 100 or 100F, which offers everything you like about Velvia 50 but in a slightly faster form. While I've shot plenty of slide films, Velvia 100 is one that I have far less experience with; again, I'm more likely to shoot Provia, Ektachrome, or Astia (RIP) when shooting a 100-Speed slide film. But Velvia 100 is an interesting animal and one that I'm not likely to shoot again. So I wasn't too put out when on the 8th of March 2021 that Fujifilm announced the discontinuation of Velvia 100. The reason for the discontinuation of both the sale and commercial processing of Velvia 100 in the United States due to the presence of the chemical phenol, isopropylated phosphate, sources at Fujifilm state that 0.0003% trace amount of PIP is contained in the layers of the film, but even that trace amount has resulted in the discontinuation of the film stock in order to comply with the Environmental Protection Agency. While this announcement does seem to only affect the sale in the United States, but I will continue to monitor and update as needed.
Film Specs
Type: Colour Reversal (E-6), Daylight Balanced
Film Base: Cellulose Triacetate
Film Speed: ASA-100 Latitude: +/- 1/3 Stop)
Formats Avaliable: 135, 120, Sheets
Discontinued: 2021 (USA only)
Hasselblad 500c - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoHasselblad 500c - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoHasselblad 500c - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoHasselblad 500c - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire Photo
Colour Rendition
If you liked how Velvia 50 rendered colours but were turned off by the slow speed, Velvia 100 might fit your photography style. The colours are rendered in the same rich saturation and high contrast manner. Your blacks are deep, and whites are bright. The film does tend to lean into the warmer tones, so the reds, greens, and yellows, so that is something you'll need to watch for when digitizing your slides. While not as rich as Velvia 50, Velvia 100 works as hard to bring you a good 95% of the slower film stock. You could probably do well with landscape and architecture work with these colours, but portraits are well within the realm of possibility with various skin tones, but again, it wouldn't be my first choice.
Mamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 45mm 1:2.8 N - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 45mm 1:2.8 N - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 45mm 1:2.8 N - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire PhotoMamiya m645 - Mamiya-Sekor C 45mm 1:2.8 N - Fujifilm Velvia 100 @ ASA-100 - Processing By Boréalis Laboratoire Photo
Image Quality
Suppose there's one thing that Velvia 100 doesn't lack in image quality. Honestly, I could not tell the difference between Velvia 50 and Velvia 100 at a glance. Velvia 100 offers up clean positives, with excellent edge sharpness and separation of colour and tones. And it does have a good fine-grain; you have to zoom in close to catch your first glimpse of grain. This helps make for clean scans and excellent projection. And that is what makes Velvia 100 edge out Velvia 50 slightly; it projects far cleaner and provides a much better visual image on a screen with even a dimmer projector bulb. Like any slide film, you have to watch your exposure; there's little in the way of latitude, so to get the best results, you want a good meter, either external or internal, because any over/underexposure or hard contrasty light will make your life miserable.
Pentax 645 - SMC Pentax 645 35mm 1:3.5 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabPentax 645 - SMC Pentax 645 35mm 1:3.5 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabPentax 645 - SMC Pentax 645 35mm 1:3.5 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabPentax 645 - SMC Pentax 645 35mm 1:3.5 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo Lab
Scanning
Like most slide films, modern scanners do struggle a bit with Velvia 50 and Velvia 100. And I was nearly pulling my hair out when scanning the two rolls of Velvia 100 using my Epson V700. Unfortunately, I could not get a roll of the stock in 35mm to see how my Nikon Coolscan V handled the film stock. Because of the deep contrast and hyper-real colour rendering, both the Epson scanning software and Adobe Photoshop had trouble locking onto the levels and colour balance using any automatic tool. Most of the time, I ended up having to take care of these manually, which is always a struggle in my post-processing world. Like any slide film, you do have to expose them properly, and in a couple of cases, I think my exposure was off slightly, which with the latitude of a stiff board, can cause problems. I found that the software tended to overcorrect towards greens and cyan, and with a bit of fine touch, I could correct them. Thankfully the film did not scan with too much aberration and required little additional sharpening and colour noise reduction.
Rolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabRolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabRolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo LabRolleiflex 2.8F - Carl Zeiss Planar 80mm 1:2.8 - Fuji Velvia 100F @ ASA-100 - Processing By: Old School Photo Lab
Overall Impression
There's nothing wrong with Velvia 100; it's a good film that will deliver excellent images in the right conditions; in fact, I would have to say that I would prefer to shoot Velvia 100 over Velvia 50. That little extra stop of film speed does help while still delivering the same image quality and colour from the Velvia series. But like those films, Velvia 100 requires an exacting exposure, so either make sure your handheld meter is calibrated properly, or your internal meter is dead-on accurate. And it also helps to have a good hand at colour correction in post-processing or a superb scanner and software that handles colours like a boss.
Further Reading
Don't take my word on Velvia 100, check out these other reviews of the film stock!
Emulsive - Film Stock Review: Fujifilm Velvia 100
The Darkroom - Velvia 100 Film Review
Blue Moon Camera - Film Friday Review: Fuji Velvia 100
Ken Rockwell - Fuji Velvia 100 Review
Filter Grade - Fuji Velvia 100 Film Stock Review
#filmreviewblogs #canada #film #filmreview #fuji #fujivelvia100 #fujichrome #fujifilm #hamilton #harborsprings #hasselblad500c #mamiyam645 #media #medium #michigan #oakville #ontario #pentax645 #review #rolleiflex28f #rvp100 #unitedstates #waterdown
Camera Review Blog No. 136 – Minolta XD
I'll admit, I have a soft spot for manual focus Minolta cameras. And the Minolta lineup is a unique cross-section of camera technology through the post-war 20th Century. All my early experience with photography came in various Minolta cameras, from my family's Riva Zoom to my first personal camera, the Hi-Matic 7s and the first SLRs in the SR-T 102 X-7a. More recently, the XE-7 has been my Minolta SR-Mount of choice. But the XE-7 lead me down the rabbit hole of the 1970s of Minolta's technology-sharing agreement with Ernst Leitz because, of course, there was something better. And that something better is the Minolta XD, or in this case, the XD-11. The same camera, only a different market. While they are a bit more expensive on the used market, thankfully, when you're in a good group of film photographers, there is always someone who has the camera you want to give a test run. Thanks to Bill Smith for loaning this beautiful camera out for its review!
Camera Specifications
Make: Minolta
Model: XD (Japan), XD-11 (North America), XD-7 (Europe)
Type: Single Lens Reflex
Format: 135 (35mm), 24x36mm
Lens: Interchangable, Minolta SR-Mount (MD)
Shutter: Metal Verical Travel Focal Plane, 1/1000″ - 1″ + Bulb
Meter: SBC Centre-Weighted TTL EV1 ~ EV18 @ ASA-100, ASA-12 - ASA-3200
Year of Manufacture: 1977-1984
Background
The XD is a camera with a rich history and is seen as the next step forward in Minolta's marked improvements of their SLR cameras and technologies behind them. Minolta's first entry into the SLR world came in 1958. The SR-2 and SR-1 cameras used a bayonet lens mount known as the SR-Mount. Minolta made several advancements on the SR line through the next five years, with the last camera being released in 1962, the SR-7. The next step for Minolta was implementing TTL or Thru-The-Lens metering, which came in 1966 with the SR-T line of cameras. But it wasn't only TTL metering; Minolta mounted two metering cells one through the lens, the other on the body calling the system CLC or Contrast Light Compensation. CLC is held up as the first semi-intelligent metering system for SLRs. To achieve this, Minolta had to modify its lens mount to allow aperture settings to be mechanically communicated to the camera body while still an SR-Mount; these new lenses are often called MC-Mount. The SR-T line of cameras is a bit of a rabbit hole, with various versions of models and parallels running all the way to the 1980s. But by the end of the 1960s, Minolta was already looking ahead to an improved CLC and a professional system camera, the X-Series. The X-1 (alternatively the XM or XK depending on the market) featured various modifications and customizations in line with Nikon and Canon's offerings from earlier decades. One of the features was a semi-automatic exposure metering prism along with a motor drive and other accessories. In 1972 Minolta would enter a technology-sharing agreement with Ernst Leitz, and in 1973 did release the X-1 to mixed reviews. But they were already moving forward with a proper aperture priority camera in cooperation with Leitz and Copal. In 1974 they released the XE (or XE-7) that featured the new Letiz-Copal Shutter, expanded use of microprocessors and a design based on the X-1. Leitz's version, the Leicaflex R3 is more of a cousin to the XE. The two cameras share a similar look and shutter but are two completely different cameras with different metering systems and lens mounts internally. Production of the XE ended in 1977 with the release of the next entry in the X-Series, the XD (XD-11 or XD-7 depending on the market). The XD saw a few improvements over the XE; first, it had three modes, two semi-automatic and one manual. In addition to the standard aperture priority, it also features a shutter priority mode. Giving the camera shutter priority required Minolta to modify the SR-Mount again to give the lens the ability to receive the aperture settings from the camera based on the selected shutter speed. These new lenses are technically still an SR-Mount but are denoted by MD. The XD is not a full program (auto-exposure) camera. Leitz's version is the Leicaflex R4; the two cameras are more like cousins than brothers. A version with fewer features, the XD-5, was also released that removed six features found on the XD. The XD also had a special 50th Anniversary version. In 1981 Minolta would release their first full auto-exposure camera, the X-700 taking the lessons and using the same MD lens as the XD. But the X-Series would be one of Minolta's most prolific camera lines, with the XG series being added on and production lasting well into the autofocus age.
Minolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 45mm 1:2D - Ilford Delta 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 45mm 1:2D - Ilford Delta 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 45mm 1:2D - Ilford Delta 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 45mm 1:2D - Ilford Delta 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20C
Impressions
I'll admit, the XD is a handsome camera, all black and metal construction with a handsome leatherette covering the body that gives the camera the flavour of old-school wealth. That should be of no surprise given its Leicaflex cousin, the R4. Designed around the smaller SLR form factor that at this point gained popularity after Olympus released the OM series of cameras back in 1972, something Minolta missed out on in the XE. But the camera may look small, but it has a decent weight behind it, making it well balanced. The controls are well placed, and having the shutter speed dial slightly sticking out from the top plate makes it easy to manipulate without removing your eye from the finder. The camera's viewfinder is bright for its age, and the dual option scale is well illuminated with red LED lights and switches between aperture and shutter speeds depending on the auto-exposure mode. Physical windows will display your aperture and shutter speeds in manual mode, with the LED illuminating the recommended shutter speed. These windows will also show up in the auto-exposure modes, with shutter speeds displayed in Shutter Priority with an auto aperture scale and vice versa in aperture priority mode. The XD also includes options to attach the Minolta Autowinder D or Motor Drive 1. The one control I have an issue with is the EV adjustment, a small leaver around the rewind knob and film speed dial. I'm sure that it will lock in place in the new condition, having to push it in and adjust the EV, sadly. In this example case, there is no safety lock, and on my first roll through the camera, I found that the leaver adjusted itself on several occasions. It would not be the first time I encountered this particular annoyance, the other being on the Contax G2 that had an easy to adjust EV compensation dial.
Minolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 45mm 1:2D - Ilford Delta 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 45mm 1:2D - Ilford Delta 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 45mm 1:2D - Ilford Delta 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 45mm 1:2D - Ilford Delta 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20C
Experiences
If you're used to working with the small format SLRs of the era then the XD is a perfect fit. It does have a similar size and weight to cameras like the Nikon FE or Olympus OM. Despite the small size, the camera carries a good weight in hand without it being overly heavy. Loading the film is no different from the XE, but that first frame does pop up quickly, so once you have that first pull, get the door closed and advance from there. Thankfully you don't have to worry about opening the back accidentally, as Minolta included their film indicator, although it is far smaller than on the XE. Mounting and dismounting the lens is easy with the release button on the side of the lens mount and has an easy red dot indicator. The viewfinder is excellent, bright and has a clear split prism for focusing. Bright red LEDs indicate either the shutter speed or aperture selected by the camera in the two semi-automatic modes, with the scale changing depending on that mode. You also have physical windows to show your aperture or shutter speed (or both). The shutter speed wheel is easily adjusted without removing your eye from the viewfinder as the dial is slightly out from the top of the camera body. The film advance is short and smooth. Accuracy on the meter is decent, but you do have to watch out for that EV compensation switch; the copy I was working with did change easily, and I did shot on all three rolls a couple of frames where it had been adjusted.
Minolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 50mm 1:1.7 - Rollei RPX 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 7:30 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 50mm 1:1.7 - Rollei RPX 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 7:30 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 50mm 1:1.7 - Rollei RPX 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 7:30 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 50mm 1:1.7 - Rollei RPX 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 7:30 @ 20C
Optics
When it comes to optics, you cannot go wrong with Rokkor. Also, by this point in the life of Minolta and Rokkor glass, you're starting to get a handful of lenses that are based on Leitz optical designs. And to be honest, I have not bet a Rokkor lens, both fixed and interchangeable, that I thought was a terrible glass. I'm sure they're out there; I have not encountered one. Like the previous SLR offerings from Minolta, the XD uses the SR-Mount for their lenses. But like the Pentax K and Nikon F, the SR mount on the XD is an updated version of the original mount found on the SR-2. As the XD offered two different semi-automatic exposure modes, aperture priority and shutter priority. Changes to how the lens interfaces with the camera were needed on both the camera side and the lens side. While Minolta already had the means to allow the aperture to be communicated to the camera, they needed a way to send aperture information to the lens when in shutter priority. These new lenses are noted with the term MD. They will allow you to run the camera in both aperture and shutter priority (MD will also work in the auto-exposure mode in later model X-Series Cameras like the X700). Now you can use the older MC lenses, but you will be limited to manual and aperture priority modes. Some of my favourite lenses to work with on the camera is the Rokkor-X 45mm f/2 and W.Rokkor-X 28mm f/2.8 these are smaller low-profile lenses that allow you to keep that small form factor presented by the XD.
Minolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 50mm 1:1.7 - Rollei Paul & Reinhold @ ASA-320 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 50mm 1:1.7 - Rollei Paul & Reinhold @ ASA-320 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 50mm 1:1.7 - Rollei Paul & Reinhold @ ASA-320 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20CMinolta XD11 - Minolta MD Rokkor-X 50mm 1:1.7 - Rollei Paul & Reinhold @ ASA-320 - Adox FX-39 II (1+9) 8:00 @ 20C
Lowdown
I do have to admit; I like the XD11. It is a solid step up from the XE-7 without going to the fully plastic later models of the X-Series; I'm again talking about the X-700 and other X variants along with the XG models. But I'm not about to rush out and buy one, but if my XE ever dies, I will probably replace it with an XD11 or look for the feature reduced XD-5. The one thing about these cameras is that they have probably the greatest range in prices on the used market. I've seen some that are under 100$ and ones in the 200-300$ range. If you are looking to buy one, make sure to buy it from a trusted source and have a chance to try out the camera first to make sure it is fully functional. Try and get one in the price range of 170-200$ and if you are going through eBay, look for cameras from Japan. While they are getting old, their electronics are still stable, but if something does go wrong, see if you can get your hands on a parts camera with the part you need before sending it off for repair. In closing, the XD11 is an excellent camera, no matter which version you get.
Further Reading
Don't just take my word on the Minolta XD, you can check out the reviews by other awesome camera reviewers!
Mike Eckman - Minolta XD11 Review
Down The Road - Minolta XD11 Review
Casual Photophile - Minolta XD 35mm Camera Review
Japan Camera Hunter - Camera Geekery - Minolta XD11 Review
Lens QA Works - Minolta XD Review
Michael Wernburg - Review: Minolta XD
Frozen Wasteland - What I Learned Shooting #3 - Minolta XD-11: A Tribute
Digital To Film - Minolta XD11 Review
678 Vintage Cameras - Minolta XD: An Ode to the Endling
Shutterbug - Classic Cameras - Minolta’s XD-11 - Wait 'Til You See How Good You Can Be With Minolta
#camerareviewblogs #adoxfx39ii #brantford #camera #camerareview #canada #gear #hamilton #ilforddelta100 #milton #minolta #minoltaxd #ontario #review #rokkor #rolleipaulreinhold #rolleirpx100 #waterdown #xd11 #xd7
Foma:52 – Week 35 – Smokey Hollow
I never considered the village of Waterdown a good spot for photography, sure I knew about the trail and the waterfall at Grindstone Creek, better known as Smokey Hollow. But a chance morning to get out and do some photography landed me in this historic village, and I immediately knew that I had to include it for this project as more than the waterfall makes for good photographs.
Nikon FM - AI Nikkor 28mm 1:3.5 - Fomapan 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 9:00 @ 20C
The area where Waterdown eventually grew has been occupied by humans as far back as 7,500 BCE. Still, the first known peoples were the Chonnonton Nation, one of the many civilizations known collectively as the Neutral Nations. They were driven from the region by the deadly Beaver Wars through the 1650s as the Iroquois from the south were driven to battle by Colonial Powers. Additionally, French missionaries introduced new and unknown illnesses that ripped through the people. The Haudenosaunee would establish their own village, Tinawatawa, one of the few permanent settlements in conquered territories. In 1669, the first European arrived in the area, French explorer Robert de la Salle. But they also moved on, and the Mississagas established their own presence in the region. The Mississaugas ceded the territory under the 1784 Treaty with the Crown and further confirmed under Treaty No. 3 in 1792. Initial surveys laid out the township of Flamborough as a single township but would be split into East and West. The area's earliest European settlers were loyalists fleeing from the Thirteen Colonies, Lieutenant Alexander McDonell of Butler's Rangers, who purchased a lot but never took possession instead of selling eight hundred acres to Alexander Brown of the North West Fur Company 1802. Brown constructed a cabin and sawmill atop the great falls on what is today Grindstone Creek in 1805. The presence of a mill quickly gained a following, and soon other lots were purchased and settled; Brown constructed a school in 1815, hiring one Mary Hopkins, the school sat where the pub "The American House" sits today. In 1823, Ebenezer Griffin purchased some 400 acres from Brown and began surveying a proper townsite that took form in 1830 and 1840, a post office arrived. Local myth points to Griffin as the community's founder and for the name Waterdown. A prohibitionist, Griffin disapproved of the consumption of alcohol, which in the Victorian age was consumed in vast quantities. During the christening of a new mill, usually done with whiskey, someone asked Griffin to 'thrown that water down' the owner of the sawmill promptly named his mill Waterdown and it stuck. The Great Falls and Grindstone creek offered a rich power source, and soon mills filled the valley; and as steam power supplanted water, the coal-burning mills and factories filled the air with smoke earning the nickname Smokey Hollow. Waterdown was incorporated as a village in 1879. Industry only grew through the 20th Century, but many mills and factories were closed by the second decade of the 20th Century. The natural features came back, and the smokey hollow quickly cleared and now offers up a beautiful (if not technically difficult) trail. Despite its industry, Waterdown never broke into the town status and instead was re-absorbed into Flamborough Township in 1974 and 2001; the township was absorbed into the City of Hamilton.
Nikon FM - AI Nikkor 28mm 1:3.5 - Fomapan 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 9:00 @ 20CNikon FM - AI Nikkor 28mm 1:3.5 - Fomapan 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 9:00 @ 20C
While I wanted to include more images from around the falls, there was far more foliage cover than expected. Having already shot most of the roll earlier at ASA-100, I could not bump up the speed without drastically changing how I developed the film. The problems with film photography, eh? Either way, I ended up getting one decent shot of the gorge that you can see the waterfalls or at least the creek at the base of the falls. From there, I filled in with a selection of historic buildings throughout the village, the original West Flamborough Township Hall, which looks more like something you'd find in New England than Ontario (save the original Woodstock Town Hall), the American House a historic hotel and tavern, and some houses and businesses.
Nikon FM - AI Nikkor 28mm 1:3.5 - Fomapan 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 9:00 @ 20CNikon FM - AI Nikkor 28mm 1:3.5 - Fomapan 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 9:00 @ 20C
I was shooting primarily in an urban environment, so I went with my trusty 28mm f/3.5 lens. But given the small area where I was shooting, I also included my 135mm f/2.8 lens to get some details and a natural feature (the waterfall) which was harder to get in closer. Sadly it was far too dark to get a good shot with the 135mm, and the only images included here were shot on the 28mm. I was presented with an excellent day but still decided because of shooting down in the valley and with a longer lens, I shot the film at box speed of ASA-100. Developing, I went back to an old favourite, Adox Rodinal, at the 1+50 dilution, might as well end the Fomapan 100 run with a trusted and favourite developer. However, I did use Ilfotec HC more with Fomapan 100. Even without the Yellow filter, I got some decent results, mainly because there was some cloud cover while I was out.
Nikon FM - AI Nikkor 28mm 1:3.5 - Fomapan 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 9:00 @ 20CNikon FM - AI Nikkor 28mm 1:3.5 - Fomapan 100 @ ASA-100 - Adox Rodinal (1+50) 9:00 @ 20C
Next week, we're heading back to the Halton parks system and taking a trip up the Niagara Escarpment to one of the easiest trails, Mount Nemo and the old quarry it's based around.
#foma52 #52rollproject #adoxrodinal #brucetrail #canada #fomapan100 #hamilton #nikonfm #ontario #smokeyhollow #village #waterdown #waterfall
