Portraits at Limoncello

Limoncello Delicatesse is a small Italian shop downtown Szentendre (Hungary) named after a lemon flavored liqueur for some reason. They sell  really good coffee, ice-cream and a wide sort of premium Italian grocery.

I visit the place quite frequently because of the truly remarkable coffee they make which is quite unusual in Hungary unfortunately.

I have quickly realized that this place is really good spot for portrait photography as many nice and interesting people  used to come together here. On top of it a huge white wall on the opposite side of this narrow street acts as the perfect reflector many times during sunny days. As I almost exclusively shoot using available light, this is a really nice feature to have.

I shoot people only who I know enough as I don’t want to ruin the business by acting as a paparazzi. Still I have managed to put together a small pile of portraits already I shoot there. I think the shoots can reflect a bit of the atmosphere of the place as well as the emotions and personality of these lovely people I asked being model back.

This time all images are digital, but as usual you can find names of some manual lenses among the descriptions of the images.

Péter (Limoncello, Szentendre, Hungary) Canon EOS 450D, CZJ Pancolar 80mm f/1.8 @ f/1.8

Péter (Limoncello, Szentendre, Hungary) Canon EOS 450D, CZJ Pancolar 80mm f/1.8 @ f/1.8

Eszter (Limoncello, Szentendre, Hungary) Canon EOS 450D, CZJ Pancolar 80mm f/1.8 @ f/1.8

Eszter(Limoncello, Szentendre, Hungary) Canon EOS 450D, Canon 50mm f/1.8 II @ f/2

Péter(Limoncello, Szentendre, Hungary) Canon EOS 450D, Canon 50mm f/1.8 II @ F/1.8

Ferenc (Limoncello, Szentendre, Hungary) Canon EOS 450D, Hansa 135mm f/2.8

Ferenc & Péter (Limoncello, Szentendre, Hungary) Canon EOS 450D, Canon 50mm f/1.8 II @ f/3.2

Ferenc & Péter (Limoncello, Szentendre, Hungary) Canon EOS 450D, Canon 50mm f/1.8 II @ f/2.8

Ferenc & Péter (Limoncello, Szentendre, Hungary) Canon EOS 450D, Canon 50mm f/1.8 II @ f/4

The following collage is published here in color for the reason that colors are really contribute to the overall look and sensation of these images which I missed so much when I tried to make good a B&W version. The matching colors of her eyes and the scarf as well as the warm tone of the hair light on the left image were obliviously  last at every attempt of B&W conversion.

Eszter (Limoncello, Szentendre, Hungary) Canon EOS 450D, Hansa 135mm f/2.8 @ f/4

Jupiter 8

Jupiter 8 50mm f/2 LTM and Contax version

The Jupiter 8 is undoubtedly a magnificent piece of glass! To me it is more than a great lens it is a magical item like an exotic rare wand which can be really powerful in the hands of a trained wizard. What makes it so special is the underlying optical formula at the first place which is the pre-war Zeiss Sonnar 50mm f/2 [1] developed by Ludwig Bertele in the early 1930s.

In other words the Jupiter 8 is a post-war Soviet copy of the pre-war Zeiss Sonnar initially made for the Contax copy Kiev cameras like the Kiev 4 I have already wrote about. The optical formula alongside the Contax II camera  was acquired after the war by the Soviet Union as well as machinery and technical personal as part of the war compensation.

So let’s look at the formula itself!

Jupiter 8 (Zeiss Sonnar) formula

The Jupiter 8 is a 6 elements in 3 groups partially glued anastigmat. The first group is a separate meniscus, the middle group consists of a meniscus, a two times convex and two times concave lenses glued together and the third group is a composed of a two times convex lens and a meniscus.

The sonnar negative triplet consisted of a high-index outside and a lower-index element between. The design uses less elements than Planar, so when coating tech was primitive, the lens had much less flare due to less surfaces in design. Simpler than Planar, smaller and comparatively inexpensive. Good contrast at edges at all apertures. Exhibits some softness at wide apertures. Sharp when stopped down.[2]

Interesting fact that the name Sonnar was derived from German word “Sonne” (Sun).

Six element Sonnar shema (Jupiter 8)

Seven element Sonnar shema (Jupiter 3)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With the addition of more lens elements the lens speed can be further increased like the Zeiss Sonar 50mm f/1.5 or the Soviet counterpart  Jupiter 3 50mm f/1.5 which contains 7 elements in contrast to the 6 elements only f/2 version I am writing about here.

Naturally as anything can be advanced even further,   the Sonnar formula can be modified to achieve aperture greater than f/1 like in the case of the Tachon. But this is really a different story and I should not get that far in this post. So let’s go back to the starting point (Jupiter 8 and Zeiss Sonnar 50mm f/2 formula).

To make you more excited (I know you are already itching because of the Sonnar formula ) here is a photo where I “accidentally” inserted THE mighty Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 180mm f/2.8 Pentacon Six mounted lens into the frame as comparison. This lens is not mine (Thank you László for lending it to me!) but you can expect exhaustive writings about it at some point as well

Jupiter 8 lenses vs CZJ Sonnar 180mm f/2.8

My Jupiter 8 lenses

I have got my first Jupiter 8 with my beloved Kiev 4 camera from a Hungarian auction site. I was so pleased with the results I have got from this lens that I have picked up two more instances with L39 thread mount for my screw mount rangefinders (Fed 3, Fed 5).  I have got them in one package from the same auction site for a real bargain. One of these will go to a friend who will hopefully enjoy it  a lot on a digital mirror-less system camera. Yes, these lenses can be great fun on MILC cameras and here is an excellent article of what can you achieve.

Jupier 8

Jupiter 8

Jupiter 8 L39 screw mount

The Jupiter 8 was made originally for the Contax copy Kiev cameras with the matching bayonet mount, but later it was made in many different versions for L39 (Leica thread) mount rangefinders and for M42 (Pentax/Praktica) thread mount SLRs.

The advantage of the L39 screw mount version over my original Contax mount lens is the ability to focus with the lens itself. On Contax system cameras the focusing is done by a mechanism integrated into the camera body and the lens has nothing to do with it. The only thing you can do with the lens is set the aperture.

Focal length:	50mm
Construction:	6 elements in 3 groups
Angle of view:	45°
Distance scale:	1m – infinity
Diaphragm:	Manual; f/2 – f/22
Filter size:	40.5mm thread
Length:	±45mm
Weight:	±130g
Fitting:	L39

Specification table [3]

Construction and handling

My M39 Jupiter 8 lenses (1960, 1963) are made of aluminum alloy, therefore they are very light but at the same time vulnerable too. I never drooped any lens so far, and I hope I will keep this good habit.

The aperture rings on both lenses are a bit dry and have no stops or clicks therefore the aperture must be set with great care. The focusing rings are nice and smooth on both lenses, which gave me the impression that these lenses were lubricated once after their production. What I do like the most is the metal lens caps though.

The overall build quality is fair but nothing outstanding, yet pretty good for Soviet lenses. By the way the Jupiter 8 is one of the most reliable FSU (Former Soviet Union) lenses in terms of quality. Most instances are focusing good and have a nice optics while Jupiter 3 instances are  real gamble.

How do they look like

Jupiter 8 L39 mount

Jupiter 8 L39 mount aperture shapes at f/11 and f/2.8

Jupiter 8 L39 mount

Jupiter 8M Contax mount

The Jupiter 8M differs from the Jupiter 8 in only one thing! The 8M has stops/clicks while setting the apertures. This is a nice improvement indeed although some videographers might prefer the original version.

As I mentioned the Contax mount type has no focusing mechanism on the lens therefore it never needs lubrication and probably it was a bit cheaper to produce for the more complicated and expensive camera body.

Construction and handling

My instance (1965) is made of steel which makes it heavier than the screw mount aluminum versions despite the simpler mechanical construction. It also feels much more solid and the clicky stops on the aperture ring are very welcomed additions. Overall, this version just feels and handles better for me and does suggest a higher quality because of the steel barrel.

How does it look like

Jupiter 8M Contax mount

Jupiter 8M Contax mount aperture shape at f/4

Jupiter 8M Contax mount

Image quality

So what is the big thing with this lens (and any other Sonnars)? Of course the way it renders the image is the thing for me. Many claims that the contrast is a bit lower than the Tessar type lenses and Sonnars are not outstandingly sharp wide open but fast apertures can be achieved,  they deliver a wonderful creamy bokeh and less resistant to flare due to the few glass to air  transitions. All this sounds like a great portrait lens especially because Sonnars are typically short and medium telephoto lenses.

Well this is the theory, but let the samples talk.

3D-ness and charcter

The following image is taken by me with the lovely Kiev 4 rangefinder and it was on the very first roll I have ever shot with that camera.

Eszter (Nagymaros, Hungary) Kiev 4, Jupiter 8 M, Fuji Superia 200, Canosacn 9900F

First of all I really love the 3D like character of this image, the backgrounds falls to be blurred slowly while the model is quite sharp. I don’t remember what aperture I used but it must had been around f/4, so in theory this effect could been even more emphasized by a wider setting. On the other hand I like that the background is recognizable.

I have not done any serious post processing apart from crop and a tiny bit of contrast increase, so this lens/film combination is capable to produce similar images without any super scientific computerized evilness.

Note the flare effect on the top right corner of the frame! I know Sonnars must be less prone to flare but in reality these old lenses have got a not too effective coating compare to modern standards. Therefore the lens hood is a must if you (like me) prefers to shoot in back-light.

Flare

Heavy flare (Lens hood is a must)

Flare can be a real issue but not because of the formula rather the ancient coating used for these old lenses.

This example (left) shows what could really happen when the sun shines (almost) directly into the lens. Although the sun is not in the frame (It was upper a bit) it did ruined the shoot by this ugly flare. This could have been way better by the usage of a lens-hood or by shooting from a different angle.

I know I have already wrote down here a couple of times but it is never enough to emphasize: Always use lens-hood for vintage lenses when possible unless you want to get more flares (which could be fun for some).

Sharpness and contrast

The next two images are supposed to stand here as examples how nice sharp, contrasty and colorful images can you get when the conditions are appropriate and of course you don’t mess up with the exposure.

Church (Szentendre, Hungary) Kiev 4, Jupiter 8M, Fuji Superia 200, Canoscan 9900F

Designer's chairs (Girona Spain) Kiev 4, Jupiter 8M, Fuji Superia 200, Canoscan 9900F

The second shoot with the chairs is done trough the glass of a showcase and you can even see my reflections on it, but still I am very satisfied with the result especially the colors which I like the most. Fuji Superia is a consumer level “cheap” film, yet what it delivers is simply lovely to my eyes.

Portraits and bokeh

The Jupiter 8 being a 50mm “standard” lens is quite versatile and can be used for many different purposes and portraiture is not an exception. It is just long enough to take nice upper torso portraits while showing some of the environment around the model thus giving a little bit of context. Also as you can see, it can produce a nicely blurred background which is essential for separation of the model.

Yolanda (Catalonia) Kiev 4, Jupiter 8M, Fuji Superia 200, Canoscan 9900F

PepLluis (Catalonia) Kiev 4, Jupiter 8M, Fuji Superia 200, Canoscan 9900F

These portraits were taken in a restaurant in mixed light and with maximum f/2 aperture. The depth of field is certainly shallow enough and the background is pleasant in my opinion.

The next photo has been already published in my Kiev-4 post but with heavy post processing including black&white conversion. The original version looks like this and notice the character of the bokeh at f/2.8.

Pista bácsi(Szentendre, Hungary) Kiev 4, Jupiter 8M, Fuji Superia 200, Canoscan 9900F

I didn’t like the photo because of the dark foreground, so I created this processed version in black and white with aggressively increased contrast.

Pista bácsi (Processed) (Szentendre, Hungary) Kiev 4, Jupiter 8M, Fuji Superia 200, Canoscan 9900F

Final words

All in all I really love these lenses because of their great character, bokeh and overall image quality which together leads to a unique classic look. It is true that  they are not the only and probably not the best Zeiss Sonnar type of lenses ever made but surely the Jupiter 8 is the cheapest to start with.

You can find many more advanced versions made by Zeiss, Nikon, Canon and others. Even today you can find new Sonnar type lenses  by many manufacturers and of course you can get a new Zeiss Sonar T* 1.5/50 ZM which was reviewed by Ken Rockwell here.

These lenses are not perfect but they have a unique fingerprint on the images and it is only a matter of taste to love or hate. I am definitely will carry this or similar lenses with me all the time.

I hope I could transfer a part of my excitement related to the Jupiters, Sonnars and their siblings and you will have great moments with them too.

 

Morning lights (Girona, Catalonia) Kiev 4, Jupiter 8M, Fuji Superia 200, Canoscan 9900F

Links and references

• Ludwig Bertele (Designer of the Sonnar formula)
• Camerapedia (Jupiter 8) [1]
• panix.com (Contax lenses) [2]
• Alfred Klomp’s Jupiter 8 page [3]
• anticcamers.com (Sonnar lenses)
• Zeiss (New Sonnar lens)
• Ken Rockwell’s Sonnar page
• Dr Sevecsik Jenő FÉNYKÉPEZÉS (6 elements Sonnar shema)
• Nico Foto (great article about Jupiter 8 on digital camera)
• How to avoid Zeiss Sonnar fakes

Underpass music

I admire very much photographers who are able to do street photography of any kind either shooting invisibly or by asking strangers for a photo. Although I love these kind of photographs I was not dare to do anything like this therefore. As you have probably noticed already I shoot my friends and relatives most of the times as the same persons appear many times on my blog. All in all talking to and taking photos of strangers is somewhat natural for some but for most of us including myself it is a challenge.

This is fine actually, but I always try to do new things and find challenges in my photography and the temptation of getting wonderful shoots on the street raised so high that eventually I asked someone for a photo and hopefully I will keep doing this practice.

It was easier than I thought, nothing bad have happened, he was very friendly and allowed me to take the shoots below. As you can see he is a musician playing guitar at many places like this underpass  I used to walk trough regularly.

I know this is not really a traditional street shoot but can be considered as a street portrait similar to those Ade used to shoot with his medium format Pentax and publish on STREET PORTRAITIST blog I really like.

The camera I used is the latest member of my collection an Olympus OM 4Ti with a stellar Zuiko 50mm f/1.4 lens. It was the very first roll of film I moved trough of this little thing and I am quite happy with the results.

 

Gábor (Szentendre, Hungary), Olympus OM 4Ti, Zuiko 50mm f/1.4, Kodak Gold 200, Canoscan 9900F

Gábor (Szentendre, Hungary), Olympus OM 4Ti, Zuiko 50mm f/1.4, Kodak Gold 200, Canoscan 9900F

Gábor (Szentendre, Hungary), Olympus OM 4Ti, Zuiko 50mm f/1.4, Kodak Gold 200, Canoscan 9900F

Zenit 3M

Zenit 3M silhouette

Little bit of Zenit History

The Soviet Union had a colossal internal market and the demand for a simple, affordable  yet reliable SLR was just as huge. Despite the need there was no such camera in the Soviet Union even after the Word War II apart from the East German products (Contax, Pentacon, Praktina, Praktica, Praktisix, Pentaconsix, Exakta, Exa) but these cameras did not fulfill the requirements for simpleness and they were pricy too.

Therefore KMZ constructors  became a bit of Frankenstein and built the camera they needed. They took a Zorki rangefinder camera, thrown away the rangefinder, added a mirror-box and a prism so the first Zenit was born.

The Zenit is a real descendant of the Leica IIc. I know this statement is a bit harsh to hear at first but here is why. The Soviet Union had officially bought the license of the legendary Leica IIc in 1932. All the early FED and Zorki models were based on this license and as I mentioned the first Zenit was the direct modification of the Zorki. Even the lens mount was inherited from Leica being a M39x1 thread mount but because of the mirror the rangefinder lenses although fit but unable to reach the infinite focusing distance.

So the first Zenit (Zenith for export) were introduced in 1952 with Industar 50 (50 mm , f/3.5) lens which was manufactured for Zorkis as well. The proceeding version was the Zenit C which featured synchronization for single-use flash bulbs with the adjustable synch timing advance (from 0 to 25 ms). This camera was extremely reliable due to it’s simple construction, it was so simple that the mirror was lowered  by a single string.

The next in the row was the Zenit 3 (1960-1962) which was mechanically a very similar camera to the original Zenit and to the Zorki, but it introduced the advance lever as a huge improvement over the less convenient advance knob.

You would suggest that the Zenit 3 was the direct predecessor of the 3M, but there was another camera called Crystall which has much more in common with the 3M. The Crístall was the first KMZ SLR with a hinged back, film could be loaded and removed with ease compare to previous bottom loaded models. The Crystall was short lived and many says because it was extremely ugly (tracktorlike) of a camera due to the ridges  on the top of prism.

Finally we have reached the camera (this post is about) the mighty Zenit 3M in the story. It was manufactured between 1962 and 1970, designed by N. Marienkov and the M in the name probably stands for modernized. The camera had all the technological advancements of it’s predecessors such as built in flash synchronization (1/30s), standard shutter speeds, hinged back and film advance lever. But the mirror was still not a returning type,  there was no auto-aperture support on the body and the shutter speed dial did rotate during exposure. In other words the camera was modernized indeed, but was still many year behind the rest of the word.

This camera had got a new kit lens, the Helios 44 (58mm f/2). This is an excellent lens with the exact the same parameters as the pre-war Zeiss Biotar. This lens was much more stable in terms of quality compare to the Tessar like Industars as most Helios’ are very good but the Industars could vary between fantastic and horrible.

The story of course continues and Zenit cameras are being made even today, but for the rest you have to wait until the next post featuring some of the more advanced evolution steps of the Zenit line!

Style vs robustness

We all know that Zenit cameras are traditionally tank or tractor like and because they are all full mechanical constructions, it is literally impossible to destroy them.  Soviet engineers didn’t have to face with the lack of materials but the lack of quality materials. That is why they simply made everything more robust to prepare the mechanics for the worst possible materials. The result is more like a weapon than a camera at first glance, but at least it can be used for self protection without risking the photo taking ability.

Generally I agree with the opinions that these are not the most beautiful cameras (to be modest) ever made, but actually in my opinion the Zenit 3M is a pleasing exception. I really like how the Zenit 3M looks like, this is much much smaller than later models and to me the front plate with the engravings and the shape of the prism is very appealing.  To prove the point, here is a little montage about my Zenit 3M. In addition I have found a very stylish photograph on this blog about the legendary Weegee holding this camera taken by Richard Sadler. In my opinion the camera looks very good in Weegee’s hand.

My Zenit 3M with Helios 44

Weegee with a Zenit 3M in Coventry England in the 1960's © Richard Sadler

Weegee was the pseudonym of Arthur Fellig(June 12, 1899 – December 26, 1968), a photographer and photojournalist, known for his stark black and white street photography.

Richard Sadler is one of the UK’s leading portrait photographers, shooting the famous ‘Weegee’ picture that was featured in the 2011 NMM exhibition ‘The Lives Of The Great Photographers’.

My Zenit 3M

I have found my Zenit 3M on an antiques fair in Miskolc, Hungary. This fair is held at the first Sundays of every month and usually it is a very rich and colorful occasion attracting many people even from the surrounding countries. The camera belonged to an old man trying to sell very few things and I knew  he was the first and only owner from the way he showed it to me. The camera itself looked quite well and I was really touched by the lens at the first place as it was and it is as clean as new. The second thing grabbed me was of course the shape of the camera. I hadn’t seen such an old Zenit before and my preconception of a tractor-shape were gone as this camera was very pretty. Finally the original box and the lens cap was part of the deal so I simply couldn’t resist.

The original price can be seen on the box (2800Huf) which must have worth way more at the time this camera was sold in 1965 (At least the production date is 1965).

Zenit 3M data sheet

• Produced 1962-1970
• Producer KMZ
• Frame size 24x36mm
• Lens mount L39 screw mount
• Lens Industar-50  50mm f/3.5, Helios 44 58mm f/2
• Shutter cloth curtain (traveling horizontally), mechanically controller
• Shutter speeds 1/30s, 1/60s, 1/125s, 1/250s, 1/500s + B
• Sync speed 1/30s
• Mirror not returning type
• Viewfinder pentaprism with simple matte screen

Repairs

I did not checked all the shutter speeds correctly when I bought the camera and as it turned out the shutter is not in the best shape. The slower speeds looks very inaccurate and overall I don’t trust in any speeds enough to risk film and moments. I haven’t even tried this camera yet. So the shutter needs a repairmen to clean and set it up, and there will be a day to come for this. The trouble is, the repair would cost more than the camera worth itself.

Otherwise all features including self timer works properly, the lens, prism and mirror are clean and free of fungus so it is really a joy to look trough the system especially after the viewfinder of my entry level Canon DSLR which has a dim and tunnel like finder compare to the old Zenit.

The way it looks

Zenit 3M box

Zenit 3M ever-ready case

Zenit 3M top (really small little camera)

Zenit 3M back

Zenit 3M back opened

Final words

Although I have not used this camera I have enough experience from other FSU cameras to see how this would handle. This camera offers everything needed for photography but nothing more. You can have reasonable shutter speeds, a bright viewfinder,  self-timer, a truly magnificent lens, flash sync and convenient film loading and advance mechanisms.

Yes there are things which you would miss like self returning mirror and the support of auto aperture lenses. You have to pre-set the aperture on the lens and the body does not closes the iris when you push the button.

If you can live with this limitations and you don’t care of the L39 lens mount, this little elegant camera could be a great fun to use or it would look great in the collection and surely this one will not make you bankrupt.

Test shoots

I have not used this camera because of the unreliable shutter of it, but I did mounted the lens to my Canon body and I used another Helios 44 on another Zenit a few years before. Eventually the lens what matters here and not the camera as it uses film anyway.

In general I very like the image quality of the Helios 44. I compared it with my Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens I use on my DSLR and although the test was not scientific it seems that the Helios actually beats the Canon lens in some cases wide open in terms of sharpness and contrast. I am going to repeat the experiment in a much more planned and controlled way to approve or confute it. It seems sure that the two lens are quite close in performance. Probably the Helios is less coated and I suggest the results will be different when I will test challenging back-light situations. We will see, until that here are some test shoots.

Helios 44 Digital

The following shoots are taken with my Canon 450D with a half-self made DIY adapter. I used my M42->EOS adapter and used the lens mount of the Zenit plus some tape to securely put this two together. The Zenit mount (L39 thread in a  aluminum ring) is attached to the body with four small screws. The mount almost firs perfectly into the M42->EOS  adapter. Luckily with some tape these could be connected tightly enough without the risk of damaging the M42 thread thanks to the rubber tape.

I don’t recommend to do it for anyone and it was not really stable in fact, it was really hard to focus without ruining this evil construction. So I did better move with the camera back and forth instead of screwing the focus ring. On the other hand it was good enough for some tests, but I need to get a real adapter for more serious tests or even for portraits. Alternatively I am thinking to get an M42 mounted version of this lens.

These shoots have been taken wide open f/2 and I did not process them at all apart from basic raw->jpg conversion and resizing for the web. I think the bokeh is very pleasing and I am happy with both the sharpness and contrast of the images.

Canon 450D, DIY adapter, Helios 44 58mm f/2 @ f/2, L39 mount

Canon 450D, DIY adapter, Helios 44 58mm f/2 @ f/2, L39 mount

Helios 44 Kodak 100 film

These were taken with a Helios 44 and  a Zenit E camera so the picture quality must be very similar. In fact these were one of my first shoots on film ever.

Zenit E, Helios 44 58mm f/2 (M42), Kodak Gold, Fuji lab scanned

Zenit E, Helios 44 58mm f/2 (M42) with extension ring, Kodak Gold, Fuji lab scanned

Zenit E, Helios 44 58mm f/2 (M42) with extension ring, Kodak Gold, Fuji lab scanned

Zenit E, Helios 44 58mm f/2 (M42) with extension ring, Kodak Gold, Fuji lab scanned

Links

• Nice Zenit 3M page
• Fotosuli.hu (Zenit history, Hungarian)
• Sovietcams.com
  
• Camerapedia (Helios 44)
• Camerapedia (KMZ factory)
• Little by Little blog (Weegee portrait)
• Richard Sadler Photography

Light pollution

After the rather technical post about the true beauty Exakta Varex II, I thought it is about time to come up with something easier to digest.  I looked into my photostream on Flickr and found these shoots I took back in 2009. I had such a great fun by doing these I decided to share them again here.

I was in Girona (Spain) and I did many night shoots by the time so I waited for getting dark and I climbed up to a small hill nearby the town. I was pretty much amazed by the colors of the sky painted by the lights of the city.  The sky must have been covered by clouds and most of the light was reflected back to earth. This combination resulted this deep orange glow which I liked so much and gave me the sensation of walking on another planet.

In the meantime there was a big celebration in the city because as it turned out the Football Club of Barcelona won an important match that night. Therefore at some point strange sounds, sirens of alarming cars, voices of yelling people and violent explosions of fireworks broke the inner peace of my faithful photographic ritual. I am not a huge football fun so I had no idea what was going on. I thought that these people must had gone crazy down there which increased of my strange experience a lot.

Next day I thought the whole story over and I realized that I was not a tiny bit less crazy than the football fanatics. I was out alone at night on an abandoned construction site relatively far from the city  in a foreign country armed with a crap tripod and a compact camera. It sounds not so safe despite the fact that I was not really attractive and the place is generally very calm and peaceful. Well, who is crazy is always just the matter of the point of view, right?

Just seconds before the rise of the zombies. Ricoh GR Digital

Ricoh GR Digital

Ricoh GR Digital