I love watching Nick Carver’s videos; though, I’m not currently shooting film (or even digital much right now — though that should change).

This is about trying something new, and gracefully dealing with $15 mistakes. I posted this comment about the bee invasion:

Really enjoyable to watch your experience! Maybe the bees were attracted to the selenium in the chemicals, which is an essential trace mineral that many people are low in. Not sure, but I think it’s the fixer in dark room chemicals that is high in selenium.

Photography On Location: New55 Film

Oct 3, 2019

Nick Carver

4×5 peel-apart film is back…again. That’s right, New55 (who several years back revived the long-dead Polaroid Type 55 monochrome film, and who then stopped production a little while after, and who then came back again quite recently) is now making 2 versions of their peel-apart film: New55 PN100 and New55 PN400!

Check out all the details at New55’s website: www.famousformat.com

When New55 first hit the scene, I wasn’t into polaroids, so I didn’t have the urge to shoot a revived version of Polaroid’s legendary Type 55 film. But, of course, I eventually got bit by the instant film bug, and sure enough, I began to feel the urge. The urge for instant 4×5 prints. Unfortunately, though, by the time I realized my affinity for polaroid, New55 had closed shop.

I missed the boat and I thought it was never coming back.

But then! Lo and behold! Just a few months ago I get an email from Famous Format saying they’re back! So I jumped on the interwebs and ordered myself 3 boxes of New55 along with a shiny new Polaroid 4×5 film holder. I’ll be honest, it hurt a little bit to spend that kind of cash on 3 boxes of film (each exposure costs $15!), but I knew I’d be kicking myself if I never tried New55. After all, who knew when they might have to close shop again?

So with fresh New55 in hand, my 4×5 view camera, a bottle of fixer, and a whole lot of potential frustration, I headed out to the desert to try it out. And since I’ve never shot this type of film before, I knew I’d probably make a mistake or two. And if I did, I figured you guys would like to see that.

So here it is. My first attempt with New55 PN100. Enjoy!

Website: https://www.nickcarverphotography.com

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/nickcarver

Metering course: https://www.nickcarverphoto.com/metering

And a quick side note: After watching this video you may be wondering what light meter I use and what my metering process is. Well, it’s a Pentax Digital Spotmeter and I recently released an online course all about my metering process for film photography. The course includes 10 in-the-field demonstrations and you can check out a free preview anytime at the link below. If you’re interested in learning more about the course, visit https://www.nickcarverphoto.com/metering