Adventures in research,
learning film processes and large format - DYCP
A Visual Diary
DYCP
This will enable me to able to carve time out to research print process, and will support a focused period of research, training, mentoring and experimentation to gain a confident grip on large format film, Collodium wet plate & tintype and other print processes, reflect on my work and make new connections resulting in a practical and theoretical understanding of these methods of photography.
This will enable me to slow down and have time to learn and develop new skills based around traditional historical process, that will have direct influence on my future work and practice.
Getting to grips with my Large Format Camera
I really wanted to be able to use my large format camera. Understand how to set it up, how to load the film confidently into film holders. Get to grips with the step by step process and learn to record the results, and get the images processed and scanned.
I spent two wonderful days with Alys Tomlinson, who kindly shared her process in a practical way with me. How to setup , and focus the camera on location, how to use my light meter for this purpose. How to record each image taken.
It was invaluable - and I left with a desire to continue making portraits.
Taking the camera - a Wista 45 into the field
Learning to Process Film and Scan
After sending my exposed film away to a lab and realising how expensive it would be to send all my exposed film to be professionally processed and scanned, I decided that to learn how to process the exposed film my self would be much more sustainable and I would have more control, and it would be far less costly.
I spent a day with Martin Henson, an expert in processing and scanning large format film.
He took me through all the steps and we looked at the chemistry and equipment I would need to be able to do this a smaller scale in my own studio. It was such a productive day. It took me a while to feel confident about processing - but now I do it myself and love that my workflow includes this.
I also wanted to scan and was as part of the DYCP grant going to buy a big scanner. After research I discovered it is possible to digitally scan the negative on a light box, using my Nikon camera, and a macro lens. It seemed to make much more sense than purchasing a scanner and now I am able to do this myself. I purchased a Pixl-Latr frame, and can do it pretty confidently. I also purchased software that I can use in lightroom specifically for scanned negatives. Negative Lab Pro - this works beautifully.
Having the time to be so immersed in the film processes, from loading film, to making photographs through to processing, scanning and later on printing has really brought me so much joy, and by gaining an understanding on a deeper level, enables me to connect to photography in a way I hadn't been able to before
Portraits
Significant People by their Front Doors
Guy Bellingham
As a thank you for my portrait I took Guy out and made a few portraits with my LF camera. I particularly like this one.
Working with Negative Thinking Lab and Jonathan Turner from LensLab exploring Wet Plate Collodium Process
The real magic of photography can be seen so clearly when learning the Wet Plate Collodium Process, and then with Jonathan at the wonderful Lens lab, doing tin type portraits, and also looking at using light in this process.
I spent time in Bristol with Negative Thinking - this was my first experience of using wetplate.
Preparing the glass plate and tin plate - first taking the edge off the glass with a whet stone, Cover plate with collodium solution - allow to dry -Submerge the plate in the silver nitrate solution. This is where the emulsion becomes light-sensitive when it forms silver iodide. Close the lid on your silver box and leave the plate to sensitise for 3-5 minutes.
Then in the dark after remove the plate. Place in film holder - and expose image in LF camera .
Then develop in the darkroom.
Great info here. https://intrepidcamera.co.uk/blogs/guides/rikard-osterlunds-guide-to-wet-plate-collodion
Such a beautiful process
See Video and images below .
Adventures in Wetplate
The Belle Vue Studio Archives - Visits and Research
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See some of the images below
Research at the National Collections Scotland with Geoff Belknapp
A trip to Edinburgh to see the archives and the National Collections Scotland with Photographic Historian Geoff Belknap and Julie Gibbs really gave me an insight into how photographic processes developed. We looked closely at portraits - my particular interest.
Explored Talbots engraving process - By making images directly onto a photo-sensitised zinc or copper plate, Fox Talbot demonstrated the potential of photo-engraving. The principle was simple. A gelatine and bichromate mixture was coated onto a metal plate, then it is exposed to light through a photo-positive or actual object.
Then Photo chemicals 1840's onwards with glass plate etc.
Photo mechanical process used by Karl Klik for newspaper illustrations from 1890's.
Ambrotypes, Degurotypes. I was fascinated by the pictorial portraits from the collections.
All this feeds my minds, inspires me and gives me a much deeper understanding of not only the history of photography but the applications that I can incorporate into my work.
Images from National Museums Scotland Collections
Cyanotypes, Photograms and Print Process
A wonderful two days spent with artist Angela Charmers. I wanted to be able to explore in a practical way, the origins of the photographic process. So spent time with Angela, learning about how to prepare paper and cloth to prepare Cyanotypes. I made photograms, but what I really loved is that I used some of the large format negatives I had already processed - and the transferred them by printing onto transparency paper, and used this to create the cyanotype prints.
From there is was about washing and toning and fixing the image.
As part of the process we spent time doing tests on how much light was needed for this particular negative. For the photograms under strong ultra violet light, it only needed 6 minutes, but for this particular image, it was over exposed so I needed 11 mins for it to work well.
It is amazing to feel I have had the time to learn about these processes - from using my largeformat, through to processing and scanning the negative, and now printing.
Do see the images below
Also I am spending time experimenting with Chlorophyll prints - printing directly on to leaves using positives converted to BW and printed on transparency - then attached to leaves- the idea being to create a print that is made from the sun/uv light and chlorophyll.
Learning and Artistic Development
To slow down and feel connected to the artistic process of making photographic work, has changed the way I feel about photography. I feel connected to the process. In an interesting way - when I get my large format camera out, and put a film holder in, and continue with the portrait - I actually love the process so much, the slowness the way the person in front of me really feels connected and is working with me. In many ways this in itself is more important to me than the developed negative.
Having time to look through significant photographic and historical archives, from the BelleVue Studio Archives through to the National Collections in Scotland, with experts and academics like Photography Historian Geoff Belknap and Archivist John Ashton, has given me a more profound understanding of the history of photography and the development of the photographic processes. This is invaluable in my new stage of work - re-imagining archives using film and digital. Creating far more nuanced reflective work.
Learning to develop the negatives, to not only scan the negatives but also to work in a dark room to print from negative, has been an extra-ordinary opportunity. I didn't learn photography in a formal way - so felt this was missing from my own toolkit. It has made me feel far more self sufficient and creative.
Cyanotypes and Chlorophyl prints