In keeping with my new practice of getting the pictures out as quickly as I can, news is new, as they say, this was last weekend. Drop party is a celebration of music and art; it’s been hosted at a bunch of different spots over the years, but we keep coming back to the same central themes. Usually one or more DJs, always at least DJ OTHA, and at least one community painting; this year they had three easels going all night, and someone was swapping out canvases when they got done (when is a painting done? who knows?)
I was in and out, shooting the whole night. My photos from last year weren’t the best, but this year I just sort of relaxed and let whatever happened happen? You can’t really push these kinds of things, or at least I can’t. When I’m shooting, people definitely respond to whatever energy I’m putting out, and respond in kind; if I’m nervous or anxious and fumble or screw up, it definitely puts people off being photographed. Or maybe I’m projecting.
It was a pretty experimental night, for me; I haven’t been to a party since February (still have those pictures in the pipe, at some point I might get them out). I took a bunch of lenses I hadn’t used and got to mess around a bit. The 21mm I really like but I feel like it needs some kind of shooting tweaks to make it work properly; as it is I can’t really see to focus in the live view, the optical VF isn’t wide enough, and the other finder I have doesn’t have any focus indicator. I suppose I could just always use it at f/8, which would make it focus-free.
I also got to use the Noctilux a bit. It’s been mellowing on my shelf so I could forget some of the bad feeling I had about its focus issues. I fixed them some time ago, but so much of what I do with a camera is by feeling, any nagging doubt will throw me off. Yes I’m a sensitive little baby like that.
Enough about me and my camera shit thought. Me and Sophie went over in the middle of the afternoon to set up, then went to Bronco Billy’s to get everyone pizza. The Bull Durham there is still one of my favorite pies in the Bay Area.
