I started exploring Route 66 again today. If you've been following my blog for a while, you should be aware that I followed the full length of Route 66 from Los Angeles to Chicago last year. This time around, I'm not making a big effort to stay on Route 66 all the time... instead, I've looked through my previous shots and a few guide books and picked out specific spots where I felt I either missed something, or didn't quite get the shot I needed.
I started shooting with a PhaseOne P45+ 39 megapixel digital back on a medium format camera today. I only shot one setup with it since I haven't really found the optimal HDR setup yet. This camera is limited to a three shot bracket with a maximum of a single stop difference between exposures. I'm used to having my Canon camera setup to do a three shot bracket with two stops of a difference between shots. That means I'm being forced to work in manual mode on the medium format camera and manually changing the settings between each shot. I'm sure I'll get the hang of everything over the next few days.
The image above was shot at around 7:30pm tonight. It was taken in the parking lot of the Bagdad Cafe in Newberry Springs, CA. While I was there, I was lucky enough to meet Andrea who owns the place. I gave them a print of my "Lost Capsule" image that I shot there last year. That photo is of the same airstream trailer pictured above along with the motel sign framed up in the window. She was very happy to see me and seemed to really enjoy the print.
Tonight, I'm parked right across the street from Roy's Cafe in Amboy, CA. I plan to shoot that spot in the morning and then make my way to Kingman, AZ where I might spend a full day shooting.
Hi Ben, You mentioned the medium format camera your using only has 1 stop bracketing. Is there any Exposure Compensation? If you had that you could extend by setting up your bracket, then dial in say a -2 compensation. shout your three shots. Then dial in a +2 compensation. Shot those three. More than likely, you have already tried this option.
Posted by: David McLaughlin | October 29, 2008 at 09:43 AM
David,
Oh, I know about exposure compensation... the camera was limited to three stops of it, which didn't allow me to swing wide enough for the shots I was taking. It looks like there is a custom function that will allow for five stops, which might make it work for me.
-Ben
Posted by: Ben Willmore | October 29, 2008 at 09:43 PM
It's going to be fun to see the evolution of how you want to capture these places again on your second trip. I'm looking forward to future posts. I would also love to see some 100% crops from the Medium format digital so I can feel completely jealous.
Posted by: Patrick Tipton | October 30, 2008 at 12:44 PM
As an Airstream owner and full-timer I really enjoyed your last take on the Airstream, and this take on it as well.
There's another interesting Airstream right on the edge of Seligman, AZ. It has a scare crow hanging out of the window near the door. It would be interesting to see what your vision of that one would work out to be.
Enjoy the trip! My Airstream has sat idle too long.
Posted by: Rich | October 31, 2008 at 09:42 AM