Yesterday I spent the day wandering around Mount Vernon with my photo buddy Marcia and my new, super-cool custom-skinned Polaroid SX-70 camera.

Can you believe I won this fab camera (AND a pack of The Impossible Project's PX70 Color Protection film) in a Film Photography Project giveaway? Woo hoo! A big thank you Michael Raso!

Marcia stands in front of the main house at Mount Vernon, October 25, 2012.

I've only been to Mount Vernon once before, sometime around 1991 or so, and boy has it changed a lot since then.

The gardens are still beautiful, but there have been some interesting changes. For example, all the buildings on the estate are now an off-white color, not bright white like they used to be. One of the interpreters told us that they recently came across a letter George Washington wrote to his estate manager about using sand in the paint. They obtained sand from nearby areas and it's a light tan color.

Marcia and I ate lunch at the Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant. We both had the Virginia Peanut and Chestnut Soup and the Colonial Turkey Pye. It was delicious, and perfect for a fall day.

The rest of the instant film photos from Mount Vernon are on my Flickr page: Mount Vernon + FPP + TIP.

The photo above is from Provincetown, Massachusetts. I loaded a roll of Konica 220 in my vintage Diana camera for the first time. I didn't count clicks to advance the film, I just rolled it until I felt like stopping and I ended up with a fat roll and lots of lightleaks. But that's okay -- I don't mind at all!

Want to know more about fat rolls and how to avoid them? Check out this post on the Smithsonian Studio Arts blog: Fat Film and Light Leaks.

My friend Marcia and I are spending eight Wednesday nights at the Arlington Career Center working in the black and white darkroom. Offered through Arlington Adult Education, the sessions are open to photographers of all levels.

There are quite a few old hands developing and printing, and at least one person is a complete film beginner! She's had a fair amount of experience with her digital camera, but feels compelled to learn to work with film. Good for her!

I shot and developed six rolls of Kentmere 400 in perparation for the Wednesday open darkroom. I've never used Kentmere before and I have to say I love it. I'm very happy with the way the film turned out.

The photo above is from my trip to Ohio in September. My parents' neighbor John has an unbelievable garden and every year his sunflowers are gorgeous.

Recently I met up with Frank and Brandon for a film photowalk around Washington, DC.

Armed with our Polaroid cameras and lots of Impossible Project film, we walked from one end of the District to the other - and back again. The weather was perfect and we had a great time.

I used a Polaroid Spectra camera I picked up from the Film Photography Project Store and I broke into my stash of Impossible's PZ Silver Shade Cool film. 

To see the rest of the photos from the photowalk, check out the set on Flickr.

You'll notice I wrote "cameras" in the headline. That's because as someone afflicted with G.A.S., a.k.a. Gear Acquisition Syndrome, one camera is never enough to document a trip or an event. One camera isn't even an option! (Thank you Film Photography Project for giving a name to what I always thought was just plain hoarding!)

Days - sometimes weeks! - before I travel the agony usually begins. I think about the destination or the event and how I "see" it. Do I see it in black and white or color? 

Heading to the county fair? In my mind I only see it in color. Going to Paris? For me that's a black and white, architectural details kind of place.

Next, I consider which cameras and film would be the best tools for what I'm visualizing. Am I looking for a dreamy, plastic camera effect or do I want everything sharp? Yes or no to lightleaks? Should I do multiple exposures? What about low light? Will there be neon? (I love neon!)

And how much do I want to carry? Will I be with other photo nuts or will I be spending time with people who don't have a clue as to what I'm doing. (Yes, sometimes I get stuck with people who roll their eyes and say things like, "Hurry up and take the picture.")

In the great scheme of things choosing cameras isn't a big deal, but all of these questions are still racing through my mind as I write this post. I'm going back to Provincetown, MA, this weekend. And believe it or not, I'm only taking two cameras!

My last blog post was a month ago! Yikes!

What have I been doing? Hmmm.... Well, I just got back from two weeks in Ohio. While I was there, I shot loads of 35mm film and lots of instant film from The Impossible Project.

Gravestones

When I was a kid, I used to go with Grandpa to walk the dogs in Woodland Cemetery. My grandparents lived just a block down the street from the entrance to the cemetery and I loved going with him. 

I didn't know it at the time, but Woodland Cemetery was founded in 1841, and is one of the five oldest rural garden cemeteries in the United States. It's also an arboretum. The cemetery's website says that

Over 3,000 trees and 165 specimens of native Midwestern woody plants grace the Arboretum's 200 verdant acres of rolling hills. Many of the trees are more than a century old and nine have been designated "Ohio Champions" by the Ohio Forestry Association.

There are a number of famous people buried in Woodland, too, including Wilbur and Orville Wright; poet Paul Laurence Dunbar; humorist Erma Bombeck; and Levi and Matilda Stanley, King and Queen of the Gypsies. Oh, and Loren M. Berry, the guy who invented the Yellow Pages around 1910. (This might come in handy on Jeopardy! someday.)

As a kid, I had a great time looking at the gravestones, reading the names and dates, and thinking about these people who were born, lived, and died a hundred years before I came along. My favorite headstones were the ones with the little metal hinged cover that lift up to reveal a photo of the person occupying the grave. I only saw one of those on this visit. 

Possibly the most unusual tombstone in Woodland Cemetery is Johnny Morehouse's.

According to legend, Johnny fell into the Miami & Erie canal and froze to death, despite his faithful dog's efforts to pull him out. After he was buried, the dog laid on his gravesite and wouldn't move. Eventually the dog died from starvation and sadness. A special stone was made in 1861 to commemorate Johnny's dog's devotion. Visitors to the gravesite leave toys, candy, and other small trinkets on the stone.

Now that Johnny and his dog are reunited in the afterlife, so the story goes, their ghosts are roaming the cemetery and barking can sometimes be heard near the gravesite.

Unfortunately I didn't experience anything remotely supernatural the day I was there.

Sunflowers

The sunflowers above are from John's garden. He lives next door to my parents and he's got two big green thumbs. This year his garden was overflowing with tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, cabbage, squash, and peppers. I made a nice ratatouille and some babaganoush. I've never eaten so many delicious tomatoes in my life.

Garrett

Garrett, the family lab, posed for a few photos. He doesn't really like having his picture taken. Most of the time he'll turn his head away and pinch his eyes shut as tightly as he can. But there's something about those old Polaroid cameras I've pointed his way. He doesn't mind those so much, even when the flash on the Spectra goes off.

For this trip I used an SX-70 with Impossible Project PX70 film, both expired and fresh.

So that accounts for how I spent some of the last month. All I know is that time flies.

Photographer friends of mine know that I suffer from a mild case of G.A.S., also known as Gear Acquisition Syndrome.

Last week I acquired a gorgeous Polaroid SX-70 Land Camera from a very good friend of my husband's family. I'm thrilled to have it and will definitely give it a good home!

I shot some expired Impossible Project PX70 instant film in the backyard last night. Every camera is different and it takes a little time to learn the quirks. But that's part of the fun!

Why not join me?! Dig out your old Polaroid cameras and give Impossible Project film a whirl. Check out Justin Goode's Ten Reasons to Shoot Impossible Project Film. 

Oops!

I had the Holga set on the bulb setting by mistake, but I like the way it turned out. Think I should do more with it set on bulb.

Here are a couple more photos from the same roll.

I've been on a medium format film kick for the past couple of months. Recently I developed a few rolls of black and white and it's always a surprise to see what's on the film. Usually there are a few frames I completely forgot about shooting.

The image above, Old Town Alleys, is from a one-day shoot where took my black-and-white-film-only Holga and wandered through some of the alleyways in Alexandria, Virginia. Alleys are always interesting. They're kind of like a secret world.

I haven't been to Old Town since the hurricane came through. It's a flood-prone area and I'm wondering what these alleys look like now.

I was in Missoula, Montana, last year for a photography workshop at the Rocky Mountain School of Photography. We were so busy during that week I didn't have a chance to explore the area as much as I would've liked.

Last week I headed back to Missoula with Wendell to have a look around. In reading up on Missoula and that part of Montana, I discovered Garnet Ghost Town: "Montana's Best-Preserved Ghost Town." And it IS very well preserved.

There are two routes that'll get you there from Missoula, and one of them is a heck of a lot easier than the other, something we found out the hard way.

Once you arrive, you walk down the path toward the town, which sits below the parking area. There's a self-guided tour of the buildings that are still standing, and the setting is beautiful. The Well's Hotel is particularly interesting because of the peeling wallpaper, decrepit furniture, old beds, and other objects inside. It's difficult to imagine living and working in that little town, mining the gold and enduring so much hardship.

If you're ever in the area, Garnet Ghost Town is definitely worth the visit. Just be sure to take the easy road.

Carlin Hall is a school and community center built in 1892 in Arlington, Virginia.

I got one of my vintage Dianas out and took her for a spin. It was the first time I've used this particular Diana since I bought her in 2005 or so. I think she did okay!

I like to shoot into the sun to get some flare. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. This time it didn't overwhelm and blot out the scene.

I sent the film to Old School Photo Lab and they did a fantastic job on the developing. Check them out! http://www.oldschoolphotolab.com/