Self Portraits

[Maris Rusis]

I had a small epiphany when taking this photo today, and I thought I'd share it. Here goes:

The photo below is rather unremarkable. No, really. Take a look. It is. Even when making it I pretty much knew this wasn't going to be one of my winners. But this begged the question: then why make it? And not only that, why go through all the trouble......
Jonathan

Wow! The picture is stunning all right but I reckon it deserves even more trouble invested in it than you have already put in. Unless I misread your post the image I see on my monitor is a map of an electronic file synthesised by inversion from a scan of a negative. A picture this good deserves material form, a platinotype, a gelatin-silver, something precious to celebrate its excellence.

[welly]

Well, why do people climb mountains to get to the peak instead of being helicoptered in near the top (for those mountains whose peaks are heli-accessible, of course)? I don't know, but I think it has something to do with the process of getting there being as important, if not moreso, than reaching the end point. You could argue that getting dropped off near the top gets you a shortcut to all the good stuff: the view, the dizzying heights, the clean, cool air, the snapshot of yourself giving the thumbs-up to the camera at the peak. I mean, it sure saves a hell of a lot of time and trouble versus climbing up there yourself. (The same goes for driving versus hiking somewhere, or baking your own cake from scratch versus buying one, or hunting your own game instead of shopping for meat at the supermarket, etc.)

The other methods I could have employed to achieve the same result you see below would only make sense if the end result were the most important thing to me, but it isn't. I know I sound like a simpleton when I say the journey is the goal, but I've realized for a while now that that's true. If my goal were to have the cleanest, fastest route to making photographs, I would have different gear entirely. But in shooting this photo today I realized, mostly while standing still for three whole minutes and staring at myself and the camera the whole time, that using this rickety old camera, feeling the finger-worn patina of the lens barrel, securing it into an old iris clamp, etc.--all this makes me happy and satisfied. It puts a smile on my face. And this is true whether the final image is a winner, or a mediocre (at best) shot like this one. Making photos I'm proud of is icing on the cake, but just making them in my own way and in my own time is the reason I bother to do it at all.

Kodak 2D 8x10, 8 1/2" Gundlach Perigraphic convertible, Kodak Low Contrast Aerial Duplicating Film (SO-277), 3 minute exposure.

I think it's a great shot and thank you for sharing your thoughts. I think most of us probably feel the same, certainly I do, about shooting with these cameras. I was out on Saturday shooting with a group of people on "Scott Kelby's World Wide Photowalk". I was not only the sole large format photographer there, I was the only one shooting film. Many of the people there didn't have a clue what my camera was (a Cambo 4x5 monorail), which is fine. Five years ago, I wouldn't have known either.

But they were fascinated by it and thought it was a wonderful piece of equipment. Near the end of the day, one of the girls there asked if it was really worth the effort to set up and take the shot with my camera when I could have got it in less than half the time with a digital camera. I told her it gave me time to think about the shot and whether it would be worth shooting but clearly there's more to it than just that and you summed what I should have told her (if she would be willing to hang around!) up perfectly.

[jcoldslabs]

I feel a bit sheepish because I wasn't fishing for compliments, but I appreciate the kind words. For me it was a disappointing final result compared to the magic I thought I saw on the ground glass, but it was an interesting contrast to spend so much time carefully crafting an image that turned out to be lackluster in my eyes, yet the experience of making it was still quite satisfying. When the final result meets or exceeds my expectations I am all the more pleased.

I too have found out that in photography, the way, the process, the feelings experienced while setting up our clumsy and slow cameras is at least as important as the result...

Indeed. And I have really enjoyed your tree series lately. Fine work!

Wow! The picture is stunning all right but I reckon it deserves even more trouble invested in it than you have already put in. Unless I misread your post the image I see on my monitor is a map of an electronic file synthesised by inversion from a scan of a negative. A picture this good deserves material form, a platinotype, a gelatin-silver, something precious to celebrate its excellence.

Thanks for saying so and yes, I would prefer to see this or any of my negatives wet printed, and I am getting close to being able to do contact prints in the near future. Enlargements will be a bit farther off due to space constraints. Don't worry, I'm sure I will be tooting my own horn and sharing the enthusiasm of seeing my negatives as prints rather than scans once that happens!

I think it's a great shot and thank you for sharing your thoughts. I think most of us probably feel the same, certainly I do, about shooting with these cameras.

I'm glad you could relate. I figure I wasn't the only one hauling around heavy gear simply for the pleasure of making a photo or two in an hour's time.

Jonathan

[bobwysiwyg]

. It puts a smile on my face.

This says it all... for many of us I would guess.

[life_in_sepia]

Plaubel Peco Profia 4x5/Symmar 150/5.6 320TPX@1600 asa

Fun to go through these -- this one is great!

[Laurent L]

Last sunday after having checked my bank account, I felt the urge to make this silly photo dressing like a hobo.



Sinar F2
Tele Xenar 360
Agfa fix self timer
HP5 4X5
Epson V750 (my print is too big to fit in the scanner)

Take it as a "the light side of european crisis"

Laurent

[Eric James]

That's is great Laurent - brought a laugh.


Dog Pile, Arctic Circle by Neanderthal EAJ, on Flickr

[Laurent L]

Thanks Eric, that was made for this purpose !

Yours is great, friendly dogs in the artic circle...

My brother is a musher so I know a bit about these dogs.

[Hugo Zhang]

Very hard to do. One with Dallmeyer 2a and one with a Derogy 12" lens.

[Jac@stafford.net]

The story behind this self-portrait might be telling. I was nearly broke. Had no darkroom, but I did have some sheet film, developer and fixer and suntan lotion. I covered my face with the lotion, and in daylight pressed the film to my face, then developed and fixed it. (light areas are where lotion protected film from development.)

Voila. Self portrait sans camera and darkness - to make a very dark image.

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