Coffee at De Mello by Peter | Prosophos

November 8, 2016 Daily Inspiration, Guest Post, Human Condition, Leica, Mirrorless 71

Coffee at De Mello

by Peter | Prosophos

Hi Steve and Brandon,

For the last few months, I’ve had the privilege of photographing for De Mello ( http://hellodemello.net/ ), which is a local cafe here in Toronto, Canada.

The vibe here is quite nice, and the staff really make you feel welcomed. Oh, and the coffee is fantastic!

This all makes for great photo opportunities.

I’ve put together a few of my images from De Mello for your Daily Inspiration segment.

(For the gear-interested, the camera used was a Leica M9).

1-prosophos

Thanks Steve and Brandon, and keep up the great work you do for the photography community!

Peter.
www.Prosophos.com

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71 Comments

  1. I really like the look and feel of this set, the colours on #7 are why I still experiment with portra 400, when I can find a roll. The dark blue grays and natural tones are idealistic – well done.

    As for De Mello, great coffee! Living just north of the 401 from there, I’ve been known to drive out of my way to pick up a tasty americano on the way to work – only to arrive late with a smile on my face.

  2. Peter –

    Wonderful images. Really.

    But, nothing that could not have been produced by many other cameras by many other creative talents like yourself.

    Why do you continue to denigrate your talents by subjugating your talent to a certain type of sensor electronics. Reminds me of my film days when some had a religious-like connection to certain films like Tri-X? And, Tri-X is good and the M9 is good (I had one for 3 years), but time marches on.

    Technology marches on,

    Rick

    • Thank you, my good Rick.

      No denigration or subjugation intended. Simply stating a preference, which is well-informed by experiences with many other cameras. My conclusion is simple: I prefer the sensor in the M9.

  4. Peter,
    I have been following your blog for some time. Of all the photo blogs online, yours is the work and tone that I have always enjoyed/respected the most. I shoot with an M9 and a first generation Monochrom, so I share your love of the CCD sensor and appreciate your efforts to have Leica come back to it. Thank you for sharing your thoughtful work.

  5. Nice shots. They always say this camera has poor low light sensitivity, but it always looks darn good to me.

    • LOL, In dark environments I just shoot at ISO 640 and crank up exposure in LR… the M9 CCD files can withstand a beating and provide a much more natural look as compared to other cameras.

  10. My opinion:

    First photo with very interesting and rarely successful use of negative space in the middle of the picture is excellent.

    Others while technically good are not so eye catching.

  21. This ongoing series is terrific. I think you’re exactly the right person for this project. The contrast is worth noting, between the charmingly rough character of the place and the delicate style with which you approach it.

    In general, I appreciate how you understand b&w as something more than merely the absence of colour.

    Some folks would think there isn’t much to explore in a café, but they’d be wrong! If I ever have the pleasure of visiting Toronto I’ll surely drop into this place.

  22. Peter as usual a very nice collection. They all live together very well and love those black and whites in particular.

  23. So pretty! Great coffee + beautiful cafe interior + skillful Barista + excellent photos of these all = formula for a wonderful day.

    • Thank you!

      I process all of my images. Many of these have run through VSCO filters with my own modifications to the presets.

      Sometimes I spend a considerable amount of time processing, but that’s because I’ll try a few things and then backtrack a little… it’s an iterative process.

      The goal is to strike the right balance. Over the years, I’ve realized that the “less is more” approach to processing is the best (for me anyway). The trick is to choose carefully and experiment constantly.

      • I was lookining hard already for the VSCO film packages. Would you mind telling wich VSCO film package package or film simulations you prefer for color and B/W with you M9? Thanks a lot!! Peter

          • Thank you Peter, I greatly appreciate it.
            Seeing what you get out of your M9 is truly inspiring for me.

    • Thank you Shaun! I didn’t realize how biased I was towards the B&W images until I put the collection together for Steve. I guess there’s something about cafe environments and B&W photographs.

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