troy bradford instant photos: explore your world

Showing posts with label explore your world. Show all posts

off the beaten path...

Always amazes me the things you can come across if you just take the time to get off the beaten path and explore the backroads. Most of the time I am in a hurry to get somewhere and I take the fastest route which usually involves Interstates. Not exactly the scenic route. Saturday was such a refreshing day in that I had an open schedule to do whatever I wanted with no reason to be in a hurry. I spent some time in downtown Denton to visit with Armand at Denton Camera Exchange and then headed north to Dennison, Sherman and Celeste on my way back to Greenville. Didn't really find the "fall landscapes" that I was looking for, but definitely found my share of stops. I caught a couple of the stops on some Polaroid 690 expired film that ended up being my favorites for the day...

the allure...

An older photo from one of my trips this past Spring to San Diego. Not for sure what it is about this photo that appeals to me, but I just keep going back to it. Probably has something to do with the allure of the ocean. My hope is to be able to go back someday...

no lifeguard on duty...

More from my trip to Oceanside Pier. It always amazes me how the simplest of scenes can make such a unique instant image. Many of these images will end up in frames on my walls...

sun bathing...

A couple of images from a stop after work at La Jolla Cove California a few weeks ago. The blue in the images is a bit overwhelming, but at the same time it compliments the water beautifully. Nothing like getting close up to take an instant photo of a sea lion. After I pressed the shutter and the picture ejected, the sea lion's eyes opened and then slowly closed back. Wasn't the least bit phased by me. Gotta love that calm attitude...

staying after class...

Ended up taking my Leica M6 and one of my Polaroid SX-70s on my trip to Carlsbad, CA. This was my favorite capture from the short time that we had on the beach before sunset. I often take images without people, but I always stray back to taking images that somehow include people in them. I shot this one while walking back from taking a photo of the Oceanside Pier from the beach. The students were going over some post-surfing class pointers with the surf instructor. To me, this image is perfect on black & white instant film. It makes the image timeless and I really like that...

soft light...

A shot of Sadi from yesterday in the City Place Starbucks in the West Village. Exposed using available light through the windows. The soft light increases the likelihood of a properly exposed shot on Impossible black and white film...

beautiful decay...

A house in my hometown that is in a definite state of decay. It is such a treat, when I am visiting, to get to drive around and capture memories of the past. I grew up riding my bike on the same streets of this town not knowing that I would someday come to appreciate the stillness and state of the neighborhoods that I once lived...

laguna beach in black and white...

The black and white shots from my trip to Laguna Beach seem to be my favorite. The dark, gloomy mood makes the photo something that I keep coming back to time and time again. After going through several packs of the new Impossible black and white film, my opinion is that it is best used for landscapes. The contrast, and tendency to go darker than expected, makes it a terrible portrait film but a fantastic landscape film...

laguna beach silhouettes...

Sometimes removing the colors brings out the shapes. This is definitely one of those times...

laguna beach sunset...

The result of getting a chance to travel to California the day before a business meeting. Not a bad end to a day in Laguna Beach. Impossible instant film renders the sunset quite a bit different than a digital image. More of a pastel tone and darker shadows, but defintely still a breath-taking view that I will never get tired of photographing...

red river views...

A few more images from our trip out to the Red River...

snow caps...

A view out of our hotel window while we were visiting family in Childress, TX over the holidays. It was a cold dreary day, but the closest thing that we had to snow caps in the flat plains of Texas...

winter cactus...

A little over-exposed, but it was my own fault because I accidently moved the exposure wheel to lighten without noticing until after I had taken the photo. Still a beautiful winter photo of the rugged terrain in West Texas (near the Red River)...

roadside attraction...

A roadside attraction on Hwy 287 South of Vernon, TX...

Over the last 20+ years, we have passed this car many times on the way to/from our hometown of Childress, TX. The owner of the car and mannequins often dresses these girls in festive attire to match up with the season. This year was no different. If you are ever out that way (and the car is out), make sure to stop and get your own original picture...

ready to shoot...

Tyler and I got a chance to get out an explore a new area of Childress this year. We try and get at least one afternoon to photograph the town and the surrounding area. This year we headed out North of Childress on highway 83 to the Red River. I took several images that I will post over the next few weeks, but this one was a favorite from the day. Probably didn't have to travel all the way out to the Red River to get this one, but that's where it happened...

broken view...

A partial success in taking an instant photo in downtown Greenville the other night. I posted my iPhone photo of the same view a few days ago. An almost dead chemical pod left only a small part of the building on the left side. After my initial disappointment, I realized that I really like the "flawed" image...

troy bradford instant photos