This image is a cyanotype of an image I took a bit over a week ago at Niagara Falls, from a spot called Table Rock. I took this image on a Friday morning, very close to the spot where a couple of days later, a young woman would slip and fall into the river and over the falls, to her death.
Today’s image has quite a story to it! I made this picture in Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada in 2007 while on vacation with my family. A couple was getting married on the rocks, and everyone around got to be a temporary member of a congregation, although the little flower girl in the right side of the image spent most of her time dancing around the rocks instead of paying attention. At the end of the ceremony the couple kissed, people applauded and the ceremony was over. End of story until this morning. So why am I posting an older image, taken using a digital camera (my old Digital Rebel) and in colour?
Today I received an email from a man in Germany, who was the groom, who found the picture and was very happy to have it, as he did not have many pictures of the ceremony. Little online miracles like this make me smile 🙂
This picture was taken this past weekend at Fort George in Niagara-On-the-Lake with a new (to me) camera: a Pentax 6×7. This is a beast of a camera, shooting 6×7 cm negatives (400% of the area of a 35mm negative) on 120 film. I’m in love 🙂 The 6×7 is the love child of a camera and a tank.
Today’s image is from my first photo shoot involving a nude model a few days ago. I used my Mamiya M645J medium format camera and Delta 400 black and white film, with some post processing in Aperture. I’ll have to admit I was a bit nervous but once the session started, it was like any other photo shoot; getting the image via a fruitful collaboration was the goal. The model was an artist herself, who works in sculpture using bronze and the “lost wax” technique, and it was fascinating to hear her talk about her process and artistic vision.
This picture is certainly unremarkable at first glance, but there is a story behind it: it was taken with a Detrola E camera (made between 1938-1940). This camera took film in the 127 film format which rather difficult/expensive to get today, but the roll I shot expired in 1965! I would not have been too surprised if the roll did not turn out at all, but apart from low contrast (easily fixed) the pictures were fine, and also much sharper than I expected!
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.
My Third Eye 