“Winter is coming, and when the Long Night falls, only the Night’s Watch will stand between the realm and the darkness that sweeps from the North.”

― George R.R. Martin

Autumn is the quickest season. Summer and Winter seem to go on forever, while Spring is like a long wake from a cold nap. But Autumn shows up like a lion - its colors appearing slowly, then suddenly. And then just as quickly, a cold wind and rain show up to take them away.

Novembers are always difficult for me. Like most people, the time change at the beginning of the month means that its suddenly dark before I even get home from work, and the daylight hours continue to wane until the Winter Solstice. The current mood in the country post-election doesn’t help, and fills me with even more fear for the future. The Game of Thrones quote I used above - “Winter is coming” - is a euphemism for 'troubled times are ahead'. Being Stark words they convey a sense of foreboding, acting, as a way of life to be lived, always careful, keeping loved ones near and being ready for the worst.

So it was fitting for for the November FFP roll I chose to go a little dark on the theme, trying to get out and shoot only on dreary, rainy, overcast days. The EZ400 (Fomapan 400) film is great for a certain moody look in images, and the weather that I shot in influenced that even more. I developed the film in Rodinal 1:25 mixure @ 68F for 5.5 minutes, then followed by a water stop bath and Ilford Rapid Fixer. Images were scanned on my CoolScan V with minor dust-removal in Photoshop. My favorite images from the roll are below - click on the first image to open in a larger window and scroll through.

Nikon F80 w/50mm f/1.8D lens on EZ400 (Fomapan 400) film.

This is the 11th month for the 2024 Frugal Film Project, and I am looking forward to my last roll in December. I’ve already been contemplating what I am doing for next year’s challenge, which means this year has been fruitful and enjoyable for me.

Look for a wrap-up next month after December’s images and info regarding what camera, film, and techniques/themes I’ll be shooting for 2025.

As always, thanks for reading.

Jeremy