L T E U N N S E
Does shooting with mostly mechanical equipment
hinder your workflow? Or does it allow you to become
more creative and focused?
I feel that mechanical and analog equipment do allow
one to be more creative and focused. Especially with large-
format cameras, they strip away any distractions relating to
configuring the camera as they are simply a “light-tight”
box where you don’t need to think about activating the
high-speed shutter or setting the HDR mode, or adjusting
the focus area, etc. It allows me to really focus more on the
scene, to decide if it is really worth shooting or not.
Do you process your own films or send them to a
lab? If you send them to lab, how do you ensure that
they will get the look that you want?
I send my film to a local lab called the Analog Film
Lab. They’re actually run by a group of large and medium
film enthusiasts who so loved the processes behind film
development that they set up their own darkroom and film
lab. Because they’re film photographers like me, I can work
closely with them to get the look and quality that I want
because they understand it as well.
Which film do you use?
I mainly use Fujifilm Provia 100 for the majority of my
color works, although I have used Velvia 50 occasionally
in the past as well. There’s something about the vibrancy
and punch of color reversal film that I just prefer over color
negatives, and among the various brands for color reversal,
Fujifilm gives me a cooler palette than Kodak which works
better for the environments that I shoot.
How long does it take for you to shoot one frame,
especially when using large-format film? How many
sheets of film do you spend on a subject before you
move on?
I would say it takes me about 10 minutes of analyzing
a potential scene before I finally decide if it’s worth
setting up the tripod and large format camera. From
there, I roughly know what needs to be in the shot, but I’ll
spend maybe another 10 minutes or so to focus, compose
and ensure that the desired elements are within the frame.
This might take longer if movements are needed, especially
when using tilt and swing.
What would you say is the overall message you'd like to
convey in your depictions of the urban environment on
film? Would it have worked if taken digitally?
The overall message I’d like to convey is that the
seemingly random complexity of the features and
structures in urban environments can sometimes give
rise to unintended arrangements of spatial conformity.
And yes, I believe it would have also worked if it was
taken digitally, as film or digital simply affects the
look, which is just an aesthetic layer over the message
and intent.
What observations have made a mark on you about
the urban environment we now live in, about how
our cities are planned and run?
As cities grow and renew, different sets of urban
planners design different sections of the city in their
own time frame. As I move through them to shoot, it
almost feels like moving through time as well. The age
of the environment is laid bare to us if we just learn to
look for it.
What other photographic subjects and mediums are you
keen to explore?
I’d like to explore more intimate or abstract views
of the urban environment, given that I’ve been shooting
it very environmentally. Also, I think someday I’d go
back to digital for some projects as well, because it opens
up different avenues of shooting that you can’t do with
large and medium-format film.
Telok Blangah I, 2015 Opposite page: Bukit Merah, 2015
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