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Michael Kenna

 

Michael Kenna is deeply associated with a quintessential — yet minimalist — analog setup that reflects his artistic vision. Here's a breakdown of the gear he uses:

Main Camera: Hasselblad Medium Format (since the 1980s)

  • Kenna primarily works with Hasselblad medium-format cameras – fully manual, mechanically reliable, and ideal for his long-exposure landscapes.

  • He typically carries:

    • 2 bodies : from the 500 CM Series

    • 2 viewfinders (metered pentaprism + waist-level)

    • 2 film backs

    • 5 lenses, often Schneider Kreuznach primes: 50 mm, 80 mm, and 135 mm.

  • This gear lives in his backpack (tripod excluded) as he hikes and shoots over long hours.

Hasselblad 500 C/M

Exposure Style: Ultra Long Exposures

  • Typical exposures range from 10–30 minutes, and he’s known for even eight-hour night shots.

  • His goal: embrace unpredictability—fog, cloud movement, lens effects—as part of the image.

Toy Camera: Holga for Experimentation

  • Kenna also carries Holga plastic ~medium-format cameras, using them for spontaneous, whimsical shots — and to break from his meticulously planned work.

  • These yield square, soft-focus prints full of irregularities—adding a creative foil to his precision work.

Tripod & Accessories

  • He uses a lightweight graphite tripod with a ball-head, cable releases, and a handheld meter—designed for the rigors of night and dawn shooting

Film & Darkroom

  • He shoots square 120 film, favoring Kodak Tri‑X 400.

  • All printing is done by hand in the darkroom, using variable contrast paper, dodging and burning for layered tonal control

Philosophy Behind the Gear

  • Kenna believes in the power of ordinary, manual tools—“like asking a painter about their brushes,” focusing on vision over equipment.

  • His choice of gear supports solitude, slow composition, and embracing chance—core elements of what he calls “the decisive 12 hours”.

Books by Michael Kenna

Photographs & Stories : see it on Amazon


A 20 Year Retrospective : see it on Amazon


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