Rolleiflex Challenge 5: Amsterdam Analog Photowalk
ABOUT THE SERIES
Welcome back to my year-long Rolleiflex Challenge — an analog photography project using my grandfather’s vintage camera from the 1960s. This series celebrates the nostalgia of medium format film through a modern lens.
Every month, I follow a theme and shoot at least one roll of 120 film using my Rolleiflex 2.8F. Then, I share a personal story, reflect on my artistic journey, and review the photos.
I launched this project to encourage mindful creativity and push my own creative growth. Along the way, I hope to inspire others to connect with the world around them and discover their own mindful, creative habits that spark joy. Thanks for following along!
To support this self-funded series, you can share this post with a friend or donate a roll of film.
GETTING OUT OF MY COMFORT ZONE
During the second quarter of my Rolleiflex Challenge, I'm exploring the theme of creative connections. In April’s challenge, I connected with three other freelance women for vulnerable conversations and photo walks.
This time, for May's challenge, I swapped up my usual style of wandering solo in nature and I tried something totally different — connecting with a group of 60+ film photographers during a walk through Amsterdam's city center. With a group this big, we took over Amsterdam streets with our film cameras. What an experience! This event was hosted by local photographers Wesley Verhoeve and Barry from Analog Club Amsterdam.
Seeking light and shadows in the Jordaan.
INSPIRATION
For this month’s challenge, my goal was to engage in the experience of joining a large group, make new connections and capture reflective images and contrasting shadows.
As someone whose personal work is often created alone, I've recently had the urge to connect with something bigger than myself. The purpose of my Rolleiflex challenge is to push myself with creative boundaries, and I'm proud of myself for stepping out of my comfort zone. Conceptually, a photowalk is great — a bunch of film photographers gather to connect, explore and create. But in all honesty, group photowalks are not really my thing. A few past experiences were full of mansplaining, weird vibes, and people trying to compete for the same shot. No thanks. Because of this, I kinda wrote off the idea of photowalks with strangers. But this time, I had a lot of fun and was reminded why trying new things is important.
Joining a group photowalk was a great opportunity to learn new techniques, observe how others shoot, and tap into the camaraderie of our shared love for film photography. This experience gave me a more positive outlook on joining meetups in the future or arranging my own. I'm so glad I took a chance and did something out of my routine.
I love that my Rolleiflex 2.8F always sparks curious conversations, and of course, film photography people always have fun anecdotes about our gear. It was great to see a range of unique vintage cameras up close. Ro brought along their homemade pinhole panorama camera, which gives such an interesting result!
Double exposures created in camera.
THE STORY BEHIND THE LENS
It was a gorgeous, sunny spring afternoon. Our massive group of camera lovers gathered at the iconic Brouwersgracht before venturing through Prinseneiland and back through the Jordaan. With the sunshine illuminating every scene, I set my objective to shoot window reflections and shadows. What a treat to have enough bright sun to cast shadows! Amsterdam is usually overcast, which is excellent for portraits, but I appreciate some deep contrast now and then.
We ended our walk at the Vrij Paleis, a cultural center that just debuted Doka 107, a brand-new darkroom. Downstairs, Wesley took half-frame portraits for his own project, 48 portraits in 48 minutes. I spend so much time looking through the lens, and it's fun to step in front of the camera once in a while. Thanks to Wesley, I now have a diptych portrait of my beloved Rollei, check it out at the end of this story.
One of my favorite moments was visiting the dark room; it sparked excitement, and I've been eager to start printing my own work again. Did you know I took my first photography course over 20 years ago? Funny enough, back then, shooting film was the only option. That's when I completely fell in love with the tactile process of film photography, from shooting, developing and printing my photos. I want to start printing my work again; there's something about the hands-on experience of working in a dark room and printing your photos. This mindful practice completely draws me in — connecting with my image in the enlarger, watching it slowly develop in the tray, and the final result of so much hard work and patience is incredibly rewarding!
Spring scenes in the Jordaan
ROLL REVIEW — Kodak Gold 200 120, shot at box speed
Aware that a lot of my energy during the photo walk would be given to connecting with others, I intended to only shoot one roll of 120 films. This way, I could balance capturing 12 frames while engaging with our group. Since we had incredibly bright light, this was my chance to capture shadows and make window selfies, a classic Rolleiflex shot. You may recognize this style from Vivian Maier's work. A few of the reflection shots came out great, although the composition of some frames are off balance. With so many beautiful historic windows in Amsterdam, I've noticed that some are wavy with less clear reflection than others, so I will keep an eye out for the smoothest surfaces and keep trying this reflection theme. I also tried a few double exposures and love how the portrait of Elise turned out; she blends in perfectly with the wisteria.
Portrait by Wesley Verhoeve
Thanks for following along, I appreciate your words of encouragement and love to hear that my analog adventures have sparked your curiosity!
Please support this self-funded series by sharing this post or donating a roll of film.
With the rising price of film, it costs €50/month for a roll of film, processing & scanning. Your contributions help cover the cost of keeping this project alive all year long. Thanks for your support!
