Brett Allen Smith: "Neon Licorice" with the Daguerreotype Achromat Art Lens

Lately, Lomographer and portraitist Brett Allen Smith, a.k.a. brettallensmith has acquired a fascination for neon portraiture. The portraits aren't simply just aesthetically-pleasing neon portraits – they're part of a larger narrative series as well.

Recently, he uploaded an album named Neon Licorice, which is part of a bigger series he's working on about Tel Aviv's nightlife. Having been based in the Middle East for almost five years now, he wants to document the colorful life he's witnessing there. Hence, he started a multi-series that juxtaposes staged portraits with documentary and long-exposure city landscapes. The title Licorice refers to his model Bar Ackerman, one of the actresses helping Brett create the series.

Brett's no stranger to the Daguerreotype Achromat Art Lens, having built a repertoire of photographs taken with the lens already. However, he was curious about how the lens would perform at night, and on film. He personally found that the Daguerreotype demanded a lot of light for the best results, hence looking for the brightest, well-lit places at night. However, his favorite art lens surprised him once again, along with Lomography Color Negative 800 – his most-trusted film:

"..though half the time I wasn’t sure there would be any exposure at all. But the lens performed wonderfully wide open, and whenever there was extra light I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked the bokeh effects from the aperture plates. I think that kind of fits the vibe. The Daguerreotype is always full of surprises, but this time even more than usual... When in doubt, just shoot wide open at 1/60 and hold the camera very very still! You’d be amazed what 800 or 3200-speed film can capture. Don’t hesitate too much and learn from your bad rolls."

Lately, Brett's been into printmaking and zine-making. He's also shooting a part of his second feature film and attending a selected workshop in the Amazon jungle along with known filmmaker Werner Herzog, one of his all-time heroes:

"He’s taking us to the Colombian sector of the jungle for twelve days, mentoring a group of us as we make little films and documentaries with the local tribes. But you can be sure I’ll be bringing at least one film camera and a ton of Lomography CN 800 with me!"

Brett's a true analogue adventurer and we can't wait for what he'll be up to next!

Loved Brett's photography? Visit his LomoHome, website and Instagram for more of his works!

written by cielsan on 2020-03-16 #people #lomography-color-negative-800 #daguerreotype-achromat-art-lens #brett-allen-smith