Author Archives: Tom (Admin)

South African Safari – Addo Elephant Park

I previously posted about Ironman South Africa last April.  Well, naturally you don’t go all the way to South Africa for a sporting event and then go back home.  Nope – safari time! There are a number of parks and … Continue reading

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A Barefoot (?) Ironman South Africa

I’ve been a runner for about four decades.  I was never especially good at it, but I’ve managed to pull off nearly twenty marathons and uncountable 5k, 10k and other distance races.  About twenty years ago I thought I’d give … Continue reading

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Shooting with the (1949-1959) Kodak Pony 828

I finally got around to shooting with a camera I’ve had for quite some time, the Kodak Pony 828, a bakelite camera produced from 1949 to 1959, as a transition between rollfilm and 35mm film. I have actually owned two … Continue reading

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My Entries in the #ShittyCameraChallenge

I laughed when I saw the announcement on Twitter: As I am known to use shitty cameras to make shitty pictures, this seemed perfect for me.  I decided this would be a great opportunity to try out this camera I … Continue reading

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Testing Silberra’s New Film

Tell most people there’s a new kind of photo film and they’ll think you’re crazy.  But there have been a number of new film types over the last year or two – some reboots by companies like Kodak, new film … Continue reading

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Test: Three Plastic Cameras

If you’ve spent 20 minutes clicking around on my blog, you’ll know that one of the things I enjoy doing is loading up old, often inexpensive, but working cameras with film and taking them out for a spin to see … Continue reading

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Mauritius: Like a Slice of Southern India…and More!

We love Madagascar but from time to time we need a break – a change in scenery, a change in pace.  Mauritius is great for that.  It’s green, with a pleasant climate, and…nice.  Mauritius has come a long way in … Continue reading

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Favorite Film, Favorite Camera

I finally got around to trying something a photographer friend suggested a couple of years ago.  At the time, I was new to film photography and not trying anything too fancy, beyond simply getting the 50, 60, 70-year-old cameras I … Continue reading

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Kodak T-Max P3200: My First Roll

A notification from 35mmc today with Hamish Gill’s review of Kodak’s re-released P3200 reminded me that I, too, recently shot my first roll of P3200 – I just hadn’t gotten around to sharing my results.  I’m a little bit late … Continue reading

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Droning with the Dolphins

They were so majestic.  About a half-mile out, I would swim directly overhead a pod of dolphins swimming directly beneath me, maybe 7 or 8 meters down.  They’d swim slowly, all most like they were “letting” me keep up.  Then … Continue reading

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More Ilford Delta 3200

I posted awhile back about my first experience with Ilford Delta 3200 film – or any high-ISO film, for that matter.  I was initially disappointed, but later the results grew on me.  I had no idea just how much grain … Continue reading

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Antananarivo’s New Road

Last year in November, Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo unveiled a new road, from the northwest of town to the airport.  Within three days, workers were filling potholes, and within a week, the road was closed. In the year since, there have … Continue reading

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Help Wanted: Adding a Shutter to a 115-Year-Old Camera

I picked up this old camera and I want to make it work.  It’s hidden inside a nondescript, beat-up box, which happens to be made of mahogany and covered with cowhide.  But after 115 years, it looks like this: When … Continue reading

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“Pushing” Film: Ilford Delta 3200

cows and bananas and canals…all on my run route between home and the office! I’m not a dumb person, but I’ll admit I’ve always managed to confuse myself when reading or speaking about “pushing” or “pulling” film.  Now that I’ve … Continue reading

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Monsoons in Madagascar: a Blessing and a Curse

Madagascar’s rainy season normally runs from November-ish to February or March.  Last year, we hardly even noticed it – beyond a handful of late-night, pretty intense, rainstorms, there was very little rain.  And everyone was worried – rice yields were … Continue reading

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Madikwe Game Reserve – One of South Africa’s Best Kept Secrets!

For most people, going on a safari is the trip of a lifetime.  And there are numerous well-known game parks and reserves, in many African countries, where you can do just that.  But if you decide to take the plunge … Continue reading

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Mahajanga, Madagascar: Antsanitia Resort – View from the Sky

We’re doing much better at seeing the country to which we’ve been assigned early in our tour, rather than late, rushing, and ending up with a list of “places we wish we’d gone.”  Of Madagascar’s noteworthy destinations (really the list is … Continue reading

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Let it Develop 365

The main reason I returned to film photography, after years of shooting digital, was the feeling of nostalgia – remembering the washed-out square prints from my Kodak Instamatic, with the colors that weren’t quite right, and the horizon that sort … Continue reading

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Trip to Nosy Be

I knew we had chosen the right place when the owner/manager greeted us in shorts and bare feet.  No snooty welcome drinks and wet towels here!  Although when I think back, I think there were actually welcome drinks and wet … Continue reading

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Found Film: Horse Sense

Recently I bought a few lots of cheap plastic point-and-shoot cameras – the kind we all had in the 90s – where you slide open the front, the lens comes out with a buzz, integrated flash pops up…  I’m planning … Continue reading

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Soaring over Kitesurfing Country

Up at the tippy-top of Madagascar sits the world’s second-largest natural bay,  The main city there, commonly known by its former name, Diego Suarez, is called Antsiranana since 1975, and the area served as the entry point for the Battle of … Continue reading

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When Madagascar played host to NASA

If you drive down the highway about 32 km southwest of Antananarivo, you may be surprised to see a giant white satellite dish next to some abandoned buildings not far from the road.  This is a relic of the American … Continue reading

Posted in Aerial photography/videography, Madagascar, Random Thoughts, Observations and Weird Stuff | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

DJI Mavic Pro: First Flight! (Antananarivo, Madagascar)

Finally, it has arrived! Back in mid-October, I heard that DJI, the company that manufactured the first drone I owned, was releasing a small, foldable drone with an integrated camera.  In other words, one that would allow me to carry … Continue reading

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Madagascar: Solar Eclipse at the Pangalanes Canal

I got an email from somebody at some point, soon after we arrived in Madagascar:  there was to be a full solar eclipse, and we were invited to stay at the “Bush Camp” on the Pangalanes Canal, wherever that was. … Continue reading

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The strangest animal you’ve (probably) never seen!

Meet the bizarre, but wonderful aye-aye.  It’s an odd nocturnal lemur with a kind of creepily long middle finger and a bizarre, wild and wide-eyed expression.  We were lucky enough to see a few of these in the wild and … Continue reading

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