In this 'Behind The Film' interview, we head back to R&D to speak to Kieran Collings who joined the company in 2023.

WHO ARE YOU? WHAT’S YOUR JOB TITLE HARMAN TECHNOLOGY AND HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED HERE?

Hi my name is Kieran Collings, I am a Scientist II in the Research & Development department. I joined in August 2023 straight from University.

TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR DAY TO DAY ROLE.

I work in the early development team, specifically on sensitising dyes that are needed for the films to be sensitive to different wavelengths (colours) of light and affect the ISO speed. In a standard week I will be researching dye structures, synthesising new dyes, coating these dyes in test films and then analysing the performance of these films to determine whether the new dyes provide any improvements and have viability for future products.

SHARE A FAVOURITE PHOTO THAT YOU SHOT ON ILFORD / KENTMERE FILM AND TELL US WHY IT’S YOUR FAVOURITE.

Behind The Film - Kieran Collings. Sepia image of a football pitch.

Scarves Twirl at The Racecourse. Fyny Y Dref. HP5+ Shot on Olympus OM10. Wrexham, Wales, March 2024.

I shot this photo on HP5+ film, it was an overcast day so I’m glad I picked HP5+ due to its robustness with variable conditions. I attended Wrexham vs Accrington Stanley at the Racecourse; The image captures the togetherness of the team with all 10 outfield players in shot, framed by the waving scarves of the jubilant fans celebrating their team. The game I attended was featured on the documentary ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ (on Disney+) and on one of the crowd shots you can see me with my camera (for 1 second).

HAVE YOU ALWAYS SHOT FILM, OR DID YOU GET INFECTED WITH THE BUG WHEN YOU STARTED WORKING HERE?

I am old enough (barely) to have used disposable cameras, but otherwise no. Since joining here, I now shoot film probably about once a fortnight. One weekend I went to Oulton Park racetrack on the Saturday and a baseball game on Sunday and shot 9 rolls of film, so I guess you could say I have been ‘infected with the bug’.

WHAT SUBJECTS DO YOU LIKE TO PHOTOGRAPH AND HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR PHOTOGRAPHIC STYLE?

Sports, Sports and Sports. Like most people I love shooting things I have an interest in. I have started travelling the country to attend as many different football games as possible, one day I might be able to go to all 92 teams in the football league. Since working here I’ve been to 15 stadiums around the North West, Midlands and Yorkshire, I usually take my camera with me. I don’t usually shoot action shots because I am normally higher up in the stands, but love taking photos of crowds, stadiums, statues and murals I see at the game.

I vary the sports I shoot, getting the camera encouraged me to go to more events. In addition, I have also shot film at basketball, ice hockey, baseball, American football and motorsport. I took my zoom lens to race meets at Oulton Park and Donnington Park, I got some lovely photos of retro F1 cars. My favourite sport to shoot was the ice hockey, I was able to stand right by the glass and got some great action shots. It was a challenge shooting high speed action (that required high shutter speed) at an indoor event, focusing was also a challenge because the high paced action 1 second would be ~20 m away and in an instant they’d be checking into the boards less than 1 m away from me (the boards flexed so much I would have to step back!).

Behind The Film - Kieran Collings. Black and white picture of an ice hockey match.

A Moment Frozen in Time. Manchester Storm Ice Hockey. Kentemere 400 Shot on Olympus OM10. Altrincham, April 2024

WHAT MISTAKES HAVE YOU MADE SHOOTING FILM THAT YOU ARE NOT TOO EMBARRASSED TO SHARE?

My first month here I borrowed a camera and went on a walk around Liverpool to practice, I didn’t rewind properly and accidentally fogged some of the film. It wasn’t a disaster, but it did ruin a few exposures. I went to Budapest when I first got my current camera, I didn’t do a very thorough job of loading the film into the take-up spool meaning it failed to wind on properly. Rookie error but thankfully I took photos on my phone and loaded the film correctly for the other days I was there. All part of the learning experience. After a trip to Bolton Wanderers, I used clips to dry the developed film but carelessly clipped one of the exposures, not realising it would leave holes, ruining the best shot I got of the outside of the stadium.

Behind The Film - Kieran Collings. Black and white image of graffiti on the side of a building.

My Experience Shooting Film, Mural of Ringo Starr & The Beatles. HP5+ Shot on Nikon 901. Liverpool, August 2023

HOW MANY DIFFERENT FILM STOCKS HAVE YOU SHOT?

I mainly shoot Kentmere 400/100 and Phoenix. I often shoot HP5+ and occasionally Delta 100 and 3200. Once I tried Cinestill 800T but that is the only film not made by ILFORD/Harman I have shot.

Behind The Film - Kieran Collings. Black and white action shot of a baseball game.

Manchester Giants Basketball Game. Kentemere 400 Shot on Olympus OM10. Manchester, March 2024

DO YOU DEVELOP YOURSELF OR TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE STAFF DISCOUNT AT HARMANLAB?

Black and white film I will always develop myself, sometimes I will wait until I have multiple of the same film to be efficient. Usually I will scan them myself, but if I have too many I have previously gotten Harman Lab to scan them for me. I regularly shoot Phoenix 200, so I use the staff discount to get them developed, I haven’t attempted a C41 development yet.

HAVE YOU EVER PRINTED YOUR NEGATIVES IN THE DARKROOM?

When I first joined the company as part of the training, I shot some practice films (I went on a walk around Liverpool), developed them and printed. However, since then I haven’t done any printing, it’s primarily a time issue. It’s easier and quicker for me to get them scanned and edit them digitally. I have some photos of special events that I will eventually print to give as gifts to people.

Behind The Film - Kieran Collings. Black and white shot of a football statue.

My First Experience Shooting Film - Statue of Bob Paisley Carrying Emlyn Hughes in Front of The Wall of Champions. HP5+ Shot on Nikon 901. Anfield, Liverpool. August 2023

WHAT FILM CAMERA(S) DO YOU OWN AND WHICH IS YOUR FAVOURITE?

When I told my family I got the job at ILFORD my Gran dug out my Grandad’s Olympus OM10 (+50 mm lens) and gave it to me as an ‘inheritance’. My Grandad loved shooting film, Gran even found some old films and asked me to get them scanned.

I was struggling to shoot large buildings (including sports stadiums!) and I was having to keep stepping back in order to get everything in the shot. I looked on eBay and found a seller offering a 28mm lens along with a 70-120mm zoom lens, which has made a huge difference to how and what I shoot.

My Dad found a Pentax MZ-7 but unfortunately it needs to be repaired. To be honest I wouldn’t want a different camera, using my Grandad’s OM10 feels deeply personal. When I travelled to Hungary it suddenly hit me that when he bought the camera (early 1980s) he might not have been able to travel there, no matter how much the world changes we still have connections to the past and the revival of film is testament to that. My grandad cared deeply about wildlife, specifically birds, so I will try and photograph any interesting birds I see when I am out and about.

Behind The Film - Kieran Collings. Black and white shot of boat on water.

Dunbrody Ship Serves as a Poignant Reminder of the Past. Kentmere 400 shot on Olympus OM10. New Ross, Ireland. March 2024

WHICH IS YOUR FAVOURITE FILM IN OUR RANGE?

HP5+ gives the best results but I use Kentmere 400 more due to price.

Behind The Film - Kieran Collings. Black and white sepia shot of a football stadium.

Sir Tom Finney Statue at Deepdale, One of my Favourite Stops on my Travels Around the Football League. Kentmere 400 Shot on Olympus OM10. Deepdale, Preston, April 2024

 

Images ©Kieran Collings