Welcome back to FOMATIK. Photography doesn’t always go the way you planned, but that’s part of what makes it worth doing. In this issue, I’m sharing what happened when a shoot didn’t go as expected, and how that turned into something better for my creative rhythm.

The idea was simple. Take two lo-fi cameras out for a morning shoot: the Holga 120CFN and the Paper Shoot digital. Both are stripped-down tools that invite a slower, more intentional style of photography. I headed to downtown Noblesville to capture interesting buildings, shapes, and textures with both cameras side by side.

That was the plan.

The Holga showed up and did what Holga’s do best. The Paper Shoot didn’t quite cooperate.

Even though the memory card felt like it was installed correctly, the camera recorded nothing. Not a single image. Whether it was user error or a finicky connection, I still don’t know. The comparison shoot turned into a solo spotlight for the Holga.

Oh, and by best I mean that I totally forgot how still you needed to be for a Holga shot. I thought I was being stable, but nope. There was so much movement. I loved the colors on the CineStill film. The B&W was excellent. But it was a total and abject failure. Oh well. Will try again, that is kind of the point of this. Re-awakening that memory. So instead I will share some iPhone photos from a recent trip to Colorado.

So, as I said above, the plan has gone out the window and now its time for the iPhone to pick up the slack here. Recently we went on a family vacation to Granby, CO. This was just around the corner from Grand Lake, which is the foot of the Rocky Mountain National Forest. Now, I will say this is a place to visit if you get the change. Three massive lakes, a ton of water sport activities. Plus Grand Lake is this really cool town with a board walk filled with shops and restaurants. So this post is now a bunch of shots taken on the iPhone 14 Pro.

I wanted to get some edits in, and I felt that the iPhone photo app just couldn’t meet that need. So a bit of Google searching and I cam across Snapseed. It is a free app that has some pretty powerful editing options. You can of course crop images, but then you can spot edit, kind of like burning and dodging. It is a little clumsy as you are using a finger on an iPhone as opposed to using mouse with variable brush sizes. But overall I like how these images came out.

You really can overdo it a bit, so be careful with that. I mean, I am sure I could use a lesson in edition on a phone. There is a lot of that ideal lighting scenario stuff for sure. Editing under full sunlight, in the interior lighting of a hotel. Maybe back home you have daylight rated bulbs and that helps. But in the end, does it look good to you.

With that I say. Go out and shoot. Make a plan, let the plan fail due to weather, equipment failure or just old muscle memory failure. Shoot with purpose and find those fun and exciting images.

Well I am just going to have to wait and find out. I will go and shoot something. Or maybe a couple of somethings. I will edit and post. I will do some walks, maybe go see a but of nature.

What do you want to see in future issues? Let me know at r/fomatik

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