#holgamydear

from TWTGE the lomography issue, January 2013

One from Rome, recently transplanted in Berlin, the other one from the beautiful Veneto. It’s thanks to people like them if films and analog photography continues to exist. Holga my dear and Pretty in Mad are two great young photographers that make photography with their experiments! This great passion, plus the one for cameras and blogging, has made them friends. We’ve decided to make a double interview to let you know them better. 

Hi, please introduce yourself. 

S: Hi, I’m Silvia, I’m 26 years old and I like analog photography a bunch. I’m known as “biondapiccola” on the web, it’s a nickname I’ve always had. E: Hello, my name is Erika, I like to define myself  with a term coined by the good Mijonju: a “Camera Lover“: I love any type of camera as long as it’s analog– I like to collect and use them. I like England, Japan and hairpins. I love to shoot with faulty film and experiment with new effects. I have a blog of analog photography but I haven’t decided if it is good enough to be heavily followed. I’m confused about it and I think I might be for some time. What is your relationship with nature?

S: I like to think it’s good, and I hope that it’s mutual! In all seriousness, I find nature to be a  refuge. I love the city but for me it’s necessary that large green spaces exist where I can go to ground myself from the hustle and bustle. In the summer, I usually go camping and mountain-hiking to put me back in a state of peace with the world. E: My relationship with nature is strange: I don’t like wide-open spaces, I’d prefer to be closed away somewhere forever if I could. Contradictorily, nature is what I love most about photography. I remain enraptured by the shapes in nature, the beauty of its colors, its violence and its sweetness. I have to thank photography for the hours I spend in the nature, it’s the only reason I spend time outside (unless you’re talking about the beach, in that case I could live there, I mean outdoors). What is “Holga my dear”?

S: Holga my dear is my blog where I share my experiences with analogue photography. I deal primarily with Toycameras and Instant Photography in the Italian language.

What is “PRETTY IN MAD”?

E: The right question should be Who is? I’m Pretty In Mad.

When and how was “Holga my dear” born?

S: The blog was born as a personal need, at a first-built. I had been given a Diana Mini as a gift and was completely unfamiliar with photography. So to bring order to the large amount of information that I recognized from the network, I decided to create the blog. I secondly found that sharing my experience with everyone was helpful not only for my growth but also for those who – like me – found the beginning to be difficult and wanted to know more about Lo-Fi  photography.

When and how was “Pretty in Mad” born?

E: Never ask a lady her age.

Why did you choose “Holga my dear” as name of your blog? 

S: There isn’t any serious reason.  I was humming “Martha My Dear” by The Beatles and I thought about my Holga and I made one plus one. 

Why you choose “Pretty in Mad” as name of your blog?

E: I decided to give my blog this name ’cause I like the idea that it was my namesake. It’s a personal blog, first and foremost, so I thought it was good. I had these three words tattooed on my left arm before leaving Manchester, so the meaning is there and it’s very accurate but also very personal—just like the blog!

Silvia, "Holga my dear" has just turned two, how do you feel? Are you satisfied with your work?

S: I’m very satisfied, of course. Firstly, I’m satisfied for this finish line…to maintain consistency for the same interest and an enthusiasm for people who ramble as much as me is a big deal. Plus, I had great success and a follow-up that I never expected, especially in the beginning! 

Which are your favourites and why: Lomo Camera, Film, Toycam, Technique. 

S: It’s a hard choice. I would say: Holga 120 GN with Kodak Tri-X 400, developing and printing contrasted. A classic. E: Lomo camera: Diana F+. It’s the most versatile and equipped of all lomo cameras and primarily a medium format. I have three of them and I love them all!

Film: I’m really into tampered film right now, especially the homemade kind (manipulation through dishwashers, heating and other spoiling methods) and Revolog. If I had to pick my favorite normal film I would say Ferrania Solaris 200.

Toycam: Eminflex WidePic 

Technical Photography: Multiple exposures. There’s no greater satisfaction than studying the first snapshot before you take the second one, and after developing your film you see that it came out just like you wanted!!!

What is Photography?  

S: Damn. That’s a really difficult question. I hope I can get by with this quote: “I really believe there are things which nobody would see unless I photographed them.”  ~ Diane Arbus. E: Photography is an aspect of my life that makes me happy. It fills my days and gives meaning to what I do even when I’m not photographing. What is Lomography?

S: Lomography, for me, is low-fi analog photography. Is it a category?  It can be. Is it Art? I can’t tell. I’m convinced, however, that to be able to really get the best out of it you should have a general knowledge of photography beforehand.   E: Lomography is nothing but a funny game, a verrrry funny game. Plastic is…

S: …a very useful material… (just joking!) When I think of pastic I think simplicity, flexibility, low-fi. E: Plastic is a new B&W disposable point-and-shoot camera by Ilford that surprises you. It reminds us that there are people out there who believe in film and still want to produce it. How is your relationship with the camera?

S: With each and every one of my cameras I have a relationship of love and desire. I had searched, wanted and lusted to use every camera I now own.  E: Symbiotic–almost like the relationship with my cat. An your personal Lomo rule…

S: Grain & contrast. Down with wimpy gray.

E: Toss a roll in the dishwasher and enjoy the result! 

For those who don’t know, what is the SWAP?  

S: A Swap (also known as “double”) is an exchange of the same roll of film between two photographers. The result is a film that has been exposed twice and shows the look of two pairs of eyes creating one very different perception. It’s very interesting in my opionon. 

E: Swap is a process where two people shoot the same roll of film and overlap their shots. How did the idea of doing a swap with Pretty In Mad come about? 

S: We’re both passionate about these things and the timing was perfect. So we said “let’s try it”. The experiment went well and we split the swap in two parts: the first film was shot with a Supersampler and a Olympus XA2 and the second with an Actionsampler and a Lomo LC-A. 

How did the idea of doing a swap with Holga My Dear come about?

E: I have a section on my blog that is titled “SWAP: a double with…” where I publish the swaps I do. I simply asked Silvia if she wanted to do one with me. 

Erika, please tell us about your PIMhole. 

E: PIMhole is a pinhole camera that I built following several tutorials until I created my own model. The tutorial can be found on the blog, or, if you are too lazy to assemble the camera yourself it is available to purchase on my online shop. Once you take some photos with the camera you can send them to be published on PIMholers, a blog exclusively for PIMhole shooters. 

Do you have any future projects?

S: None at this moment! I just hope I can keep doing what I’m doing and improve, of course!  E: Yes, I do! I think preparing a pizza for dinner. Where can people find you and your works?

S: My Photos on Flickr or on the blog. Other content, instead, on the Facebook page.

E: The right question should be “Where we can find Pretty in Mad?”  because you won’t find Erika anywhere online (I deleted my Facebook a while ago). Pretty in Mad is the only place I reside online and I’m more than happy with this choice. My photos are available on the blog, its Facebook page, Flickr and Tumblr!   Do you want to say something that I don’t ask you?

S: I want to tell the world: Relax.  E: Yes, I would like to say to everyone: shoot one roll of film, only one roll! Take the trouble to develop one single frame and print your photos. Afterwards, go back to your digital camera. Can you do me this favor, please? What would you like to ask Erika?

S: I’d like to ask her: When are we going to pick up something together? What would you like to ask to Silvia?

E: Are we gonna scarf down a ton of currywurst together when I move to Berlin?  

www.holgamydear.wordpress.com

from TWTGE the fashion issue, April 2012

Holga My Dear is Silvia Ianniciello, an Italian photographer who likes to play with cameras, it’s thanks to people like her that the world of photography grows more and more. After “Polaroid, a brief introduction” and “Impossible Emulsion” that she wrote for our first two numbers of TWTGE, we now know her well, she is a friend and, above all, we know her passion for toycameras, lomos and polaroids. This time Silvia tells us about her beautiful project Prague in Low-Fi through the wildness of plastic lens, and of her first time in the darkroom; hoping that one day she will explain better how it works. PRAGUE IN LOW-FI is a personal journey in the beautiful east City, all done with low-fi cameras and film, precisely, all processed and printed homemade, in the teeth of those saying that for doing beautiful photos we necessitate an expansive equipament! Silvia shows us the real photography, and tells it through this project.

Hi Silvia. Please introduce yourself.

Hello to all the friends of TWTGE, I’m Silvia Ianniciello, I was born in Rieti in 1986 and I currently live at Rome, where I study philosophy at La Sapienza University. I’m keen on analog photography and toycameras;  since more than a year I run a blog that talks about  low-fi photography, Holgamydear.

How  was “PRAGUE IN LOW-FI” born?

The project PILF was born by chance, I would say. In December 2010, me and my boyfriend planned to do a weekend in Prague, during the holydays season.  To avoid bringing home the same souvenir-photos, I decided to put in the case my favorite toycameras cause I knew they would give me a different result, more personal.

Why do you choose Prague as your first (official) project?

I would say that it was not a mediat choice. It just happened to join two of the things I love most of all: photography and travel. At that time my destination was Prague.

Which cameras and films do you use for this project?

I used a Holga 120 GN with a Fuji Neopan 400 and a Ilford FP5+ films; with the Lubitel 166U, instead, I wanted to get the effect of sprocket holes, so I mounted a 35mm Fomapan 400 (Yes, I always carry a roll of insulating tape with me?). Then a LC-A with a colorslide film to crossprocessing, a Fuji Velvia 100 exposed to 200. I choose these cameras just to emphasize the magical atmosphere that reigns in Prague, especially during the holiday season. Before leaving, I was informed about this beautiful city and I wanted to bring home some of that strange magic; moreover, I knew I could trust in the plastic lenses.

Why did you choose B&W?

I chose B&W cause the main idea of the whole project was that I did everything by myself: from the development of films to the print in the darkroom. I practiced the monochrome development for several months, even though I wasn’t very expert (as you can see from some smearing), while I have never done printing. However, a few months ago I found a  Meopta darkroom enlarger with a head for the black and white, so for that the choice has been forced.

and the colorslide film for the LC-A?

The LC-A was also a new purchase and I wanted to try it in colors, with the cross-process technique.  The development of Velvia was home-made with the C41 kit by Tetenal. I chose the color film simply trying to give a little of liveliness to the project.  However I did the prints of the LC-A digitally ‘cause I couldn’t really do that by myself.

For those who don’t know, what’s the cross-process?

The cross-process is a technique that exchange the chemical development of color film. In practice, a positive film that normally develops in E6, would be developed in the bath of the negative film, or rather the C41; and vice versa. This type of technique helps to have hyper-saturated colors and strange tonings, these effects change according to the film used.

Which films do you use for the polaroid?

Yes, I use also a Polaroid. I brought my beautiful SX-70 Sonar Onestep  with Polaroid Artistic TZ. At that time I wasn’t so practical with the Impossible Project’s films, I trusted more to use the TZ. However, the Polaroid I took became greenish!

What do you think of the Impossible Project films?

I think they are a breakthrough! I mean: I realize that this films are difficult to use and they are not cheap; but, I’m totally in love with the output they can give and I’m always inquiring about the best way to use them. [http://www.the-impossible-project.com/ourfilm/] For Italian readers, I suggest you to follow the Polaroiders.itforums, where a lot of where many fans report their experiences using these films in order to share all the right tricks.

What are the fascinating aspects of Prague that your camera wasn’t able to keep in the click? 

Prague fascinated me cause time never seems to pass, as if it is not running. Although there is the famous astronomical clock marking the passing hours,  the city seems freezed. Walking through the alleys of the center, in the Jewish ghetto or in the castle, It is like being in a period not well defined, in which anything can happen or not happen at all. I don’t know if I could account it in my shots.

Is there some moments that you regret for not having take the shot?  

Unfortunately when I visited the castle the Golden Lane was in restructuring , it’s a particularly beautiful place, where the alchemists sought the formula to turn base metals into gold. At number 22 of the street lived a certain Franz Kafka … well, just one of many reasons to return back to Prague. If I’ll have to redo everything, however, I would make some photos differently. One of the positive aspects of this project was, after one year, to see how has changed my way of photographing.

Some funny anecdote during the trip…

Do I really have to tell it? Ok, but I will probably lose in a moment that little credibility I’ve reached till now. Just landed in Prague, I was so excited to go around the city that I forced Alessandro, my boyfriend, to left the suitcases at the hotel and go out. As we walked through the Old Town Square, full of stalls and stand where they serve the famous Prague ham cooked on grill, taken by the enthusiasm I shouted: “Look, a turning pig!!!” and BAM!, I fall to the ground ‘cause the ice on the road. I took a really big crash, but I couldn’t do anything for helping myself but laugh at the ridiculous scene that I made.  Sometimes it happens to me to look so foolish…

Do you visited some photo shops?

Yes, only one and it was really pretty. I was hoping so much to bring home an old analog glory, but I haven’t found it. I must to confess, though, that I haven’t tried so good, I was really into taking photos and enjoy every minute of light!

Now we talk about the homecoming, was it for you the first time in the darkroom?

Yes, it was my very first time in the darkroom. I knew nothing, I had no idea at all what it meant to see the image appear in the paper while it still immersed in the developer. It’s something moving, it is like you moulding your photo from nothing.

What did you use for development and printing?

For the development of B&W I used the R09 OneShot in 1 +50 dilution, for the color I used the C41 kit by Tetenal;  and for the paper, however, I used the Ilford Multigrade.

How did you get that strong vignetting, blur at the edges and sharp contrasts that every new lomographer wants but hardly achieve?

Actually the blur and vignetting are a typical effect of the Holga and toycameras in general. But I think that it was more emphasized by deliberately contrasted development of black and white. Even in print I have chosen to emphasize particularly the contrasts.

After your two articles on TWTGE and this project we  know your love for analogue photography, so I want to ask you a question so frequently in our interviews, do you think that digital technology is destroying analogue or creating nostalgia and bring him back?

I simply think that they are two different worlds and it’s fair that everyone has the opportunity to choose their ways for expression and having fun. I don’t know if there is some nostalgia for the analog, it seems instead that the market is realizing that there are people who prefer the film and others who prefer digital, they simply trying to satisfy both. It’s a like a dress, everyone chooses those ones looks best on you. Personally, I prefer analogue because I enjoy it very much, satisfies my desire to create something, to botch, to change without being in front of the screen of a PC.

Do you have some future project?

I have several ideas that are buzzing in my head, I would to realize them all immediately! But it takes patience, we must be able to wait for the right time.

Where people can find you and your works?

Mainly on my blog and Flickr; furthermore, I’m keen on updating my Facebook page lately

Last question, Do you want to say something that I don’t ask you?

I just want to thanks the person who stands beside me and encourages me in this great adventure. Without him, I couldn’t do anything.