John Conway
12-Jun-2013, 16:33
Lately I have been experiencing a creative period in my photography. My large format cameras are out and being used regularly and my Digital Nikon slr cameras are being used , but at a more serious level than before. What is happening is the digital work is inspiring me to work more with my large format cameras. One of the key factors here is my discovery of very cool Sony digital printing machine at a small pharmacy that I pass every day on the way home from work.The machine is tucked into a corner that is out of the way and hardy used, until now , since I started using it. People don't seem to be printing pictures from cameras much these days. I guess it is the camera phone craze. Anyway, this beautiful little machine is basically my own little digital darkroom. I do everything with it. I'll average about 15-20 minutes working on an 8X10 print. I crop, work with contrast, tone and anything else I want to create my final image. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that these prints are comparable to my 4X5 or 8X10 prints, but they are very nice looking prints that I am creating myself from start to finish and it feels good. Since I'm not wired for spending long periods of time in front of a computer, this works out well for me. I know it sounds a little strange, but the digital work is making me work much more with my Large format cameras. Since all my large format work goes to the lab, the reality is setting in, and I'm realizing that I need to dig my enlarger out of the attic and do my own developing and printing. But there is a self taught lesson here, no matter what method of photography or printing is used, the finished print deserves equal respect. I still feel that traditional darkroom developing and printing, along with alternative methods such as wet plate etc , do require a higher level of skill , but I'm enjoying the creative process of making my own prints digitally, and it is giving me inspiration to get back into the darkroom.