New Minolta XE7 (Summer '25)

My workhorse SLR was washed away by a rogue wave in Hawaii circa Spring 2023 - Minolta XE-7

I went without an SLR for the intervening years...with my fellowship upon me and other changes as well I put the film photography part of my life aside. I did some minor instax work and maybe a widelux at some point. Then when Pantea got a 35mm point and shoot camera as a white elephant gift over the 24-25 holiday season, my appetite for film photography was re-sparked. Back at Freestyle photo supply in East Hollywood I noticed a small display selling refurbished used cameras from a place called Canada Camera... way out east eat LA in Montebello.

Long story short, I paid a visit and simply replaced my old Minolta XE-7 with a nicely refurbished one. Same cam, new era. 

This is the first roll through that camera, Illford HP5 - 

Physicians entrance at Arcadia... summertime arriving here at 7AM, with the sun rising, the grass green, warm but crisp morning air, sometimes a little misty coming out of the mountains...this was always a nice start to the workday. Very calm and serene. 

"Baguette on Baguette" 

Soft opening day

Johnny's

Pantea behind the lens

Wind n' Sea

Cousins 

  

selfie w Observatory

<----Bedroom View---->

burst of creative energy this night - felt awesome 

East Side Billboards

little double exposure action at home

Pantea appreciating the little things changing on our rooftop...

WIDELUX Big Sur/Buzzfest Halloween

I underexposed this whole roll in Big Sur, somehow over estimating how much light there was. I suppose the trees really provide a canopy and block out most of the direct light, just leaving a muted glow. This wasnt enough for my standard widelux setup of ISO 100 film, 1/250th at F11. Just a couple actually came out, like this one of early morning at the campsite:

Dark dark dark. 

Buzzfest roof before the party at dusk. I opened this up to the max settings with the same ISO 100 film. F2.8 1/15th. Which really takes between 2 and 3 seconds for the swing lens to make it all the way around. Here is Kenji dressed as Dracula's Butler getting ready for the party:

Honeymoon WIDELUX Roll #2, Santa Margarita Ligure (Grand Hotel Miramare)

 Back in our favorite place. Major tanning time. 

This first day here was like a childrens pool. There were so many families and lots and lots of kids.

The beach club. 90% local guests. These signified by blue subeds. The hotel guests were yellow, scattered here and there. 

This mirror has the best color and vibe. It perfectly frames the beach club. It also is a little warped and gives a fun clown-house vibe. 

There were so many school-aged kids running around playing. They were so capable. We watched two of them launch a small inflatable boat from the shore, row out using the big ores several times longer than their whole body, and catch a fish with a net and bring it back to shore all within the span of a few minutes. It was so cool. 

Here they were playing rock paper scissors on the diving deck, and with each hand lost, they would inch closer and closer to the edge of the deck - loser falls in. 

Lat picture from our hotel near the train station in Milan - this was just before our 1 star michelin dinner and just after our mcdonalds big mac. 

Honeymoon WIDELUX Roll #1 - Ischia

 

View from our spot on day 1, by the sea at Mezzatorre. 

Pantea relaxing under the "Mezza torre," or half tower. This hotel was originally a watchtower that was never finished. Thus, the half tower was born. 

View from the main attraction of Ischia - Castello Aragonese. 

The view from our spot at Giardino Eden, a small beach club and restaurant on the west side of the island. Essentially only accessible by taxi boat, which is what we took.

This was down and to the left of our spot. The club was essentially built around a rock centered within a collection of 4 or five large rocks just off the coast. The central rock housed only 3 or 4 spots (one was ours), and all the rest were on wooden decks built around the rock. 

View from the coast where we were eating lunch. 

This is the little area where all the hotel guests (and outside guests) collect for the early evening aperitif. Each drink came with a little amuse bouche (on the house). This along with olives and chips and all that. It was stunningly beautiful and always with a pianist and the nicest service and bartenders who quickly picked up on your orders and habits. 

Last stop on the last day before leaving for SML was Baia di Sorgeto. This is a moderately sized bay accessible by about 100 steps down from the windy island road above (or by boat). The main attraction is a natural thermal spring that drains directly into the sea. So there are some rocks and planks organized in such a way to collect this water along the waterline. The thought is to have a nice contrast between the super hot thermal water and the cool sea water. This day the water was actually quite rough. There was an onshore wind and actually decent sized waves and swell, so there wasnt too much room on the beach. There was a small simple cafe and beach club (just a few sunbeds and chairs for rent). I could have spent all day here, but we didnt have the time sadly. It was a beautiful little natural cove with everything you could need - food, beer, sun, shade, sea, and interesting people coming and going to observe as the hours pass. 

Final shot at Mezzatorre prior to departure. I love these umbrellas...