Photo Essay: Shooting with Lomography Turquoise film

“The difference between false memories and true ones is the same as for jewels: it is always the false ones that look the most real, the most brilliant.”
Salvador Dali

The big empty landscapes and long shadows of Dali and de Chirico are huge inspirations to me which is why I’m drawn to false color films. For me false color photography is about composing in a world as it might be recalled through a distorted memory.

Both B&W and color IR films give you intense dark skies to work with, but with Lomography Turquoise film, for me anyway, it’s all about the tangerine skies.

There’s a beautiful graphic feel to the palette of this film. I like the skies even more than the blue shift for which the film was originally intended.

I found to get the most intense color it’s best to shoot between 200–400 ISO, and you’ll need good light! Lots and lots of light. The most important thing is that the light should be behind you, either directly, or at least at a sharp angle from the center of your picture.

I like a faster shutter speed in bright light. If you want more of a light pinkish color in the sky use more exposure or shoot at a smaller angle to the sun.

In any case, between the blue shift in the subjects and the tangerine to pink skies you end up with a whole new palette to compose with.