Back to the beach with Ilford HP5+

For nine years, I lived on a little sliver of land in Northern California between the Pacific Coast Highway and the beach. I never took one second of that time for granted because I knew, deep down inside, it would not be my forever place. And I was right. A new job opportunity in 2019 took me just far enough inland to make daily commuting impossible...so I moved. And even though now, I live only an hour and twenty minutes from the coast, I find I can only get back to the beach a few times a year.

A few weeks ago, we grabbed our dog Jazz and took her to the beach to play in the surf and sand. I had a few rolls of Ilford HP5+ that I wanted to try. This was my first time shooting this film, so I was excited to give it a try. I fitted a Zuiko 100mm f/2.8 lens to my Olympus OM-1n.

Olympus OM-1n with Olympus Zuiko 100mm F/2.8 Auto-T

The light that day was hazy sun. I recently acquired this camera and I’ve run two rolls through it, one color and one black and white. Both rolls looked under exposed, so I am pretty sure the meter is off. I am going to send it back to the shop I bought it from and ask them to re-calibrate.

Spending some time at the beach was good for my soul. And Jazzy enjoyed herself immensely.