I’ve posted a lot of rather soft-focus pictures featuring attractive models recently, so time for something different. On the recent holiday Monday (Simcoe Day in Toronto) I went down early to one of the Toronto Transit Commission streetcar maintenance yards with my Mamiya M645J, loaded with Rollei Pan 25, a very sharp, fine-grained film. It was a bright morning, but even so with this slow speed film I needed a tripod to get the sharpness I wanted.
Another final image for my Women and Cameras series, this time a real Cyanotype of Memento Mori.
And the good news? Beginning in January of 2012, my Women and Cameras Series will be on display at The Wild Oat Bakery and Cafe in Ottawa. I will also be giving a presentation on how I create these Cyanotype and Van Dyke Brown prints. Details to follow!
This is one my favourite pieces of photography gear, a “Seneca NoSlip” splt-back contact printing frame from the early twentieth century. I use this device to sandwich my negatives with paper coated with either Cyanotype or Van Dyke Brown chemistry. The term split-back refers to the ability to unfold part of the back to check on the exposure, while the paper is still held securely in place; this feature is crucial for the kind of prints I am doing.
In addition to its utility, I like the rich colour of the wood, and the patina of the brass fittings; it exudes history and tradition in a way only an analog device can.
The latest image from my Women and Cameras series features Memento Mori, an example of a model who understands the important of having a story behind the image, On our shoot in High Park last week, one character after another appeared, as a story out of a Lewis Carroll type fairy tail appeared. In the image below, we have a puppet without strings.
The only response I have to the hatred that led to the massacres in Norway is to post a picture about love.
Another image in my Women and Cameras series, and the second to feature a friend who is not a model. My friend Jo-Anne is holding a Kodak Duoflex, a simple camera made from the mid 1940’s to mid 1950’s. To me it seems like a “friendly” camera, and I think Jo-Anne’s warm expression suits it to a T.
This image is from my antique lens 4×5 portrait series, but is definitely different from most of the others in the series so far. Instead of a dreamy soft focus look, I felt that for Lauren (a bass player in a Goth band) a grittier, tougher look would be a more honest portrayal, so in post processing of the negative scan that is what I emphasized.
Typically, photographs that are noted for texture tend to be sharp, with a lot of detail. The image in this post is from my brass lens portrait series: the combination of the old lens, long (4-5 second!) exposure ensure that these images will not be sharp. Also, the photo paper that I use for the negatives in this process tends to emphasize skin blemishes, so in post I need to further smooth things out a bit, further reducing detail.
However, I still like the texture in this image, particularly in the hair, and the way the light plays on it.
In a perverse sense, it is refreshing to get a sense of adventure with this film project, not being sure if images will even turn out. Such a change from the bland perfection of digital. Another session where I got one barely usable image, requiring a lot of work in post. Still very happy with the image; amazing eyes!
Another image from my Vintage lens portrait series, of model Memento Mori, shot on a 4×5 paper negative, an exposure of about 4 seconds or so. I only have 4 film holders for my 4×5 view camera; with each holder two taking sheets, that gives me 8 shots before reloading (in the darkroom!). I’m happy that with eight images, I got three, perhaps four keepers. I never get that ratio with digital.
My Third Eye 