the last word

The biggest differences between chemical and digital photography occur after the image is captured. I found it instructive to go through the exhaustive – and exhausting – details of the chemical and digital photographic processes in the previous posts.  Going through the exercise of writing and reviewing the descriptions leads me to the following conclusions:… [Read More]

Having figured out from the proofed images which ones I wanted to print, here’s what I is to do (toward the end, I have elided a great deal of the detail so as to minimize boredom – both mine and yours): Turn on the safe light; let it warm up while doing the following. Dilute… [Read More]

Here’s the way I used to proof 35mm B&W negatives (I used plastic pages as a negative storage and proofing device, tolerating the loss of proofing sharpness and eliminating several potentially negative damaging steps using methods that permit direct negative to proofing paper contact): Turn on the safe light; let it warm up while doing… [Read More]

Okay, now the images are captured, either on film or digitally. The next step is to get them ready for proofing. Sticking with the mainstream process of 35mm black and white roll film, a typical set of steps is as follows: Dilute the developer to working strength. Run a 68° water bath. Put the developer,… [Read More]

Before we leave the capture phase, we should consider a film art photographic genre that is, arguably, photography at its most right-brain: box camera (or toy camera) photography. Cameras like the Holga and Diana offer limited or nonexistent user control over exposure, and don’t allow focusing. All it takes to make a picture is to… [Read More]