I’ve been trying to find a way to use this Revolog Tesla 2 film, to make a picture that will stand out and impress. So far I’ve shot vintage signage with it… I’ve shot ghost signs with it… I’ve shot baseball pitchers with it.
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And no matter what I’ve photographed, the pictures are okay – I guess – but they’re just not working for me. I want to find some way to make this film work for me. (Yes, I’m pounding my fist on the table when I say “work for me,” can’t you tell?)
There has to be some way to use this pre-printed electric-sparked film to create an image that is both impressive and competition-worthy. There has to be a way. There just has to be. Think, brain, think! No use. I can tap my temple like I’m Winnie-the-Pooh and I’m getting nothing. Well, tapping my temple as opposed to banging my fist on the table…
Oh well… maybe I should just get some sleep. That’s it. Sleep will help me.
Time for a little shut-eye. Night, everybody… fluff the pillow, grab the blanket, roll over…
It’s not working. Maybe if I cover my eyes with the pillow…
Still not working. Damn insomnia, piercing through my brain like a neon sign, flashing OPEN or VACANCY or an oscillating, pulsating arrow into my subconscious…
Wait a second. Don’t drift off to sleep yet, Chuck. Neon signs. Yes. I’ve done it before, I’ve photographed neon signs. And if I photograph a neon sign with this prepared film… maybe… just maybe…
Head off the pillow. Neon signs. There are plenty in the Capital District. I’ve photographed them, off and on, for years.
That’s right. I’ve shot neon with my “Single Shot: Half Shot” technique (one roll of film in two cameras), I’ve shot neon with my “splitfilm” technique (two rolls of film running parallel in one camera), I’ve even shot it with an “open shutter” technique (advancing the film while the shutter is in bulb mode).
So what’s stopping me from trying this technique with the Revolog Tesla 2 film?
The only thing that’s stopping me is that I’m still in bed. Get out of bed and get shooting!
Nikon F100 at the ready. Vivitar 19mm f/3.8 ultra-wide-angle lens on the chassis. One twelve-exposure 35mm pack of Revolog Tesla 2 loaded.
Let’s go.
There’s some neon. Right there, that florist shop. Thankfully, they didn’t turn off their neon sign. I mean, why bother with turning off the sign, you might get a customer at midnight. Well, it is near Albany’s red-light district, so who knows what kind of “customer” one would get at that time of night?
Nice. It almost looks like the neon sign for a tattoo parlor. Of course, I had to turn my camera at a Dutch angle to get the flowers as they appeared here… plus the lightning strikes from the Tesla film makes this a very electric picture. No pun intended.
A few blocks down, and I find Colonial Cleaners, a tailor and dry cleaning emporium. I angled my camera so that I could pick up the neon signs in both of Colonial Cleaners’ windows, and then I just let the film and the camera do their work for me.
Wow. It almost looks as if either the lightning strike either powered the neon, or the neon had so much electricity that it sparked out to the sky. Either way… works for me.
I still have to make this film work for me, most of the shots are dependent on where the lightning appears on the film; and I can’t control that. But for now, I’ll take what I’ve got and build on it.
And if nothing else, I’ve added to my neon photography collection. Which is fine by me.
Chuck The Writer 