Photography Chat with Merlin

A most excellent chat with @jesshobbsphoto we talked about her farm and how she got started with photography. Got into social issues in Canada ranging from the discoveries in indigenous communities and the battle against the homeless. We talked about community and it’s importance and upcoming projects that Jess is working on. Heres a bit more about Jess in her own words.

“Hey everyone! I’m Jess, and I’m a film photographer based in and around Montreal. My favourite place to shoot is in the woods on the family organic farm, Mamiya RB67 in tow, but I can also be found wandering the streets of Montreal, or even at a festival or two! As well, I love taking long drives to explore new and old farmscapes in the countryside around me, although the dirt roads do get a little sketchy in the wintertime.

I love film cameras, and I one day strive to own them all… I’m only like 40 in (I think, I’ve lost count!), so I have a long and bright future of camera collecting ahead of me. I love all formats and film types, but my current favourite thing is to shoot Polaroids on my RB67 with a conversion back. I haven’t yet gotten into large format, but that is hopefully going to happen sometime this year, I can already picture an Intrepid 4x5 set up in front of my favourite trees in the woods!

I shoot primarily on film, with the exception of a few smartphone pics, because that is simply the medium that I connect with the most. There is so much history behind film that attracts me, and I find it the best way to unleash my creativity, but I am a big advocate for shooting whatever makes you happy. Anything that gets you out of the house and into the great outdoors is fantastic in my book, as long as you find the tool you need to be creative.

Photography might not save the world, but it has saved me in so many ways, and I am always grateful for the support of the wonderful community.”

Follow Jess at https://www.instagram.com/jesshobbsphoto/

Photography Chat is a weekly Instagram Live @merlindb hosts every Thursday at 5pmPST/8pmEST

Give me a follow if you want to see the episodes live https://www.instagram.com/merlindb/

It was a lot of fun chatting with Ariela. We discussed scanning and soviet cameras and also residential schools here in Canada. Her cat made an appearance and stole the show. Here’s a little blurb from Ariela herself.

“Ariela is a hobby film photographer based in Vancouver, BC. She has an affinity for tinkering with things, mostly because of her genuine curiosity about how things work. As much as she loves capturing light with film, she has a deep and profound love for cameras. She runs a small local food business as her day job, as she loves food and fermentation just as much as photography. Her background is partly in chemistry (she’s just a huge nerd tbh), so for her, film is where science and art intersect in the most perfect way. The pandemic has really integrated photography into her daily life: when she’s not out on a photo walk, she develops and scans all her film at home.”

Follow Ariela at https://www.instagram.com/arielaaaaaaaa/

Photography Chat is a weekly Instagram Live @merlindb hosts every Thursday at 5pmPST/8pmEST

Give me a follow if you want to see the episodes live https://www.instagram.com/merlindb/

A most excellent chat with Kevin. He is a lover of instant film, a filmmaker, screenwriter, film photographer, and councilman. We met during Instant Film Society Polacon V. Trigger warning for some folks we did have some deep talks on race, depression, and the general state of our countries and how it relates to being a creative trying to survive. Wrapped up with some chat about instant film and community and then some Nick Cage.

Follow Kevin at https://www.instagram.com/codename_leon/

Photography Chat is a weekly Instagram Live @merlindb hosts every Thursday at 5pmPST/8pmEST

Give me a follow if you want to see the episodes live https://www.instagram.com/merlindb/

Chris Wu is a film photographer who hails from the sunny shores of Toronto, Ontario. Typically she can be found with an instant camera in her hands, but, on occasion, she has been spotted with a 35mm point and shoot. She is also part of Classic Camera Revival this was a rad episode. We talked about community and about the indigenous issues plaguing Canada. It was a solid chat, some fun light stuff with a bit of heavy discussion.

Follow Chris at https://www.instagram.com/wutography/

Check out Classic Camera Revival at https://www.instagram.com/classiccamerarevival/

Photography Chat is a weekly Instagram Live @merlindb hosts every Thursday at 5pmPST/8pmEST

Give me a follow if you want to see the episodes live https://www.instagram.com/merlindb/

Eric and I got into some great conversations about photography and life. Discussed issues with the world and indigenous and poc communities and reminisced about being 80’s kids.

Here are some words about Eric from the man himself.

“I am mostly a travel photographer - that is I generally only shoot when I'm on the road. I prefer deserts and prairies to forests and cities. I prefer solitude, and want my photos to express that above almost anything else.

I shoot vintage cameras ranging from 1900 to a modern 4x5. Much of the film that I shoot is well expired - some from the 50s, but most from the 80s and 90s. Though I'm quickly being priced out of that market. I shoot 120 and 4x5.

While black & white is my primary focus, I also shoot color, developing it with my own ECN-2 kits.

When taking the photo, I try to capture how the place made me feel. I'm much less concerned about how it looked. I strive for my work to seem timeless and unplaceable.

I publish two zines: Conspiracy of Cartographers and In This Land. I'm also the co-host of the All Through a Lens Podcast.”

Follow Eric at https://www.instagram.com/conspiracy.of.cartographers/

Check out All Through a Lens at https://www.instagram.com/allthroughalens.podcast/

Photography Chat is a weekly Instagram Live @merlindb hosts every Thursday at 5pmPST/8pmEST

Give me a follow if you want to see the episodes live https://www.instagram.com/merlindb/

Check out Brandon and Brian Wright (AKA The Brothers Wright) on the chat. They are the photographers and creators behind CineStill Film. Their creative work has spanned from music and wedding photography to experimental photography using one-of-a-kind processes and hand-crafted cameras.

Follow The Brothers at https://www.instagram.com/bwrightphoto/

Check out CineStill at https://www.instagram.com/cinestillfilm/

Photography Chat is a weekly Instagram Live @merlindb hosts every Thursday at 5pmPST/8pmEST

Give me a follow if you want to see the episodes live https://www.instagram.com/merlindb/

In this episode of the chat, we’ve got my oldest friend and one of Vancouver’s best personal and business branding photographers. I’ve known Dawn since we were kids in a sleepy mountain town in the Rockies. She cut her teeth in photography in the darkroom at our high school and then went pro when she moved to Vancouver. Check out the episode to hear about her experiences travelling the world to gain experience and build her photographic business.

Follow Dawn at https://www.instagram.com/dawnstenzelphotography/

It was a real honor to have one of my best pals and creative partners on the chat. Tune in for this special episode with @becccashootsfilm founder of @northernfilmcollective and a fellow film fanatic. She is a lover of all things retro and seeks to document the world and urban decay as she sees it. Armed with her Canon T90 or Bronica SQ-A she creates vulnerable images that reach inside of you. Becca is a brilliant creative that you should really pay attention to.

Follow Becca at https://www.instagram.com/becccashootsfilm/

Check out NFC at https://www.instagram.com/northernfilmcollective/

Brian is my photographic brother from another mother. Half of my favorite instant film photography duo and an all-around awesome human. I met Brian and Mary at Polacon 3. I had no idea that day that I met someone who would become family to me. Here’s a bit more about Brian in his own words.

“Brian Garbrecht is an artist from Elgin, IL, who is currently an undergrad student at Northeastern Illinois University. He is working on a long term project about being an adopted person and the search for one’s family and self identity, told through the mixing of original photographs, family archives, and important documents. For this project he received the Society of Photographic Education’s 2020 Student Award for Innovations in Imaging. Most recently, an image from this series received 1st Runner Up in the LENS International Juried Exhibition at Perspective Gallery in Evanston, IL, curated by J. Gibran Villalobos of the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago.

Brian has been interested in photography since childhood but didn’t start creating on his own till 2014 when taking a darkroom photo class. Since then, he has shot with every analog film format he could get his hands on, including Polaroids, and wet plate (tintypes), as well as mixing mediums with screen printing. In 2019 he curated an instant film exhibition titled “Before My Eyes”, featuring artists from around the world who use instant film in their work.”

Follow Brian at https://www.instagram.com/theoryofbrian/

It was awesome chatting with the magnificent @nikawiatr she’s been a long-time insta homie and real-life pal for a few years now. Here’s a little bit about her.

“USE THIS ONE:

Monika is a photographer/designer/art director/image maker. She is also co-manager at Doris studio (@dorisisaplace). Cameras are a special force for her synthesis of vision and storytelling, in her work and experience of the world—she’s come to regard them as ways of finding, instead of tools for capturing. In her other spare times, she plays records for herself and others, rides a bicycle, and collects flowers.”

Follow Monika at https://www.instagram.com/nikawiatr/

Check out Doris is a Place at https://www.instagram.com/dorisisaplace/