New Wet Plate Collodion Camera & New Formats

I've got a new camera - an 8x10, Black Arts Camera - that Steve Silipigni built for me. The camera is new and I've chosen to work with some new formats, too.

For the duration of my project, and for the upcoming exhibition, I've decided that the square format and the landscape (4"x10") format will serve me better in what I want to do.  

My new setup includes: 4"x4", 4"x5", 5"x7", 6"x6", 6.5"x8.5", 8"x8", 8"x10" and 4"x10".

The history of the square format in photography begins in 1929 with the introduction of the first Rolleiflex. The Rollei’s designers, Francke and Heidecke, had been producing various rectangular format cameras since about 1920. Their decision to make the Rollei a square format camera rather than a rectangular one was based on considerations specific to the twin lens reflex (TLR) configuration, rather than aesthetics. The elegant waist level viewing system of the Rollei would have been miserable to use sideways when a horizontal picture was desired.

Around the middle of the 20th century, talented photographers such as Richard Avedon, Robert Doisneau, and Irving Penn used the Rolleiflex camera in their portraiture and editorial work—choosing the Rollei. Diane Arbus, one of my major influences, made her incredible portraits with a Mamiya TLR. In all cases the resulting negatives were square.

Today, I made a few images. I made some 4"x4" images and 6"x6" images. Here's the most successful image from today.

I'm looking forward to working with these new formats and this new camera! We'll see what happens!

 

 6" x 6" (15cm x 15cm) Black Glass Ambrotype

Self Portrait: Collodion & DNA

I have a couple of really important goals that I want to accomplish in the next few months. One of them is to make work for my project, exhibition and book.

I thought I would get creative with my time and my commitments. We are leaving Thursday for ten days and wanted to post the October Video Podcast on Chemical Pictures before we left. I also had an image in mind that I've wanted to make for a few weeks. I thought, why not make a few plates, create an image for my project and cover the podcast, too? So that's what I did today.

These image are about numbers, labeling, skulls & sockets, history, evilness, genetics and otherness. I distressed plate #3 a little bit. I varnished it shortly after making this copy and it cleaned up quite a bit - I was a little disappointed about that but I still like the image. I look so different in each image, it trips me out a wee bit.

It took four plates to get two that I really like.

"Self Portrait #3 - Jewish DNA" - 8"x10" Alumitype - Viernheim, Germany 2009 
Self Portrait #1 With Y-DNA Sequence Backwards (written by hand)

Göteborg, Sweden Wet Plate Collodion Workshop

Thanks to everyone that attended the workshop: Aron, Manuel and Sara, Bosse and Alfia, and Anna and Markus. And a big thank you to Henning (www.timeunit.se). His kind heart and wonderful space made it all happen - he organized and provided space and shared his expertise on the process with the students.

I'll post more photos and tell you a story about these images later. I'm really tired and need to rest for a couple of days!

"Nordic Man" - 8.5" x 6.5" (Whole Plate) Black Glass Ambrotype September 6, 2009 Gotheburg, Sweden 
"Roger - From the Streets of Göteborg, Sweden" 4" x 5" Alumitype September 6, 2009

September Video Podcast: Exposure

For all of you Chemical Pictures members, I just uploaded the September Video Podcast. It's all about exposure: Over, Under and Spot On. I show some working examples using my Cigar Box Guitar, and yes, I play a little bit, too - I hope you enjoy it.

 

Exposure: Making A Good Image

Exhibition In Paris, France

The website of Centre Iris Gallery for photographyI’ve had three photographic dreams my life. The first, to have a photographic exhibition of my work in Paris, France. The second, to have a book of my photographs published (a very nice 12” x 12” tri-tone, spot varnished images). And the third, to own and operate a (historical) photography school - the first three processes - Daguerreotypes, Calotypes and Wet Plate Collodion.

I’m happy to say that the first dream has come true! I’ve been invited to do a show in the center of Paris at a gallery called, “Centre Iris Pour La Photographie”. This is an incredible high for me. Paris is the birthplace of photography and the French, for the most part, really love and appreciate the art.

My exhibition will run from 9 March to 19 June, 2010. I will be doing a live demonstration of the process; I call them “performative lectures”, and a full-blown, two-day workshop during the exhibition, too.

This will be my second solo exhibition with my Wet Plate Collodion work. The show will consist of 50 – 60 pieces; Ambrotypes, Tintypes, Alumitypes, and Albumen prints (singles, diptychs, and triptychs). I’m going to exhibit both the, “Portraits from Madison Avenue” work and the, “Vergangenheitsbewältigung” work.

Wish me luck! I hope you can make the opening!

Whole Plate Collodion Negatives

Whole Plate Wet Collodion Negative - August 2009, Viernheim, Germany
Whole Plate Wet Collodion Negative - August 2009, Viernheim, Germany - (the streak is from "lens flare")
Wet Collodion Negatives are intense and a lot of fun. They take some pratice and there's no "high-wow" factor for the public, but they are really special for personal work and for POP (Albumen prints/Salt prints) prints.

Making Albumen Prints from Wet Collodion Negatives

Albumen printing is tricky, but pays off once you get it down.

Today, I was having issues with sensitizing the Albumen paper. I wanted to check the difference between the single coated and double coated paper that I made a coupe of weeks ago. I'm going to be floating a bunch this weekend and wanted to make sure that the double coated paper was worth the effort (it is!).

I used a Hake brush to sensitize (brushed the silver nitrate on the Albumen paper) and got some "measles" on one of the prints and "weakness" in areas of the other print. Tomorrow, I'm going to use the 3 minute float on the AGNO3 - it's much better.

So far, my German Albumen paper is "da bomb"! The final images on Albumen paper will be much better than these, but I wanted to show you the process - as you can see, it's not for pussies.

 

Checking the print in the contact frame. You can see I have some "brush strokes" there - weak silver from a previous batch in the brush - and my technique wasn't perfect either. Just some quick prints for testing.
Here, you can see those "measles" - other than that, it's okay. Keep in mind, these are "in camera" negatives, or foundation negatives, they have not been intensified or re-developed (yet). That's my next step - I'll compare Albumen prints - before and after.

 
This negative was a bit more dense (maybe 1.75) You can see the "silver issue" in the bottom right. Both of these images are gold toned.

Collodion Negatives & Waxed Albumen Prints

I’ve been working through making Albumen, Albumen paper, and started making negatives today. I really enjoy making work in my studio -  in my space. I feel completely in control and can get on the plate what’s in my mind more efficiently (lazy and scared, huh?).

Today, I was fortunate to have some very interesting sitters that were very cooperative. I only made four negatives, but I’m very pleased. I wanted to share one of those with you. I’ve been after these kinds of images in the negative form for a long time. The problem with making them, is keeping the sitters interested. I usually get them fired up after the first (positive) image. With negatives, however, there’s no “high wow” factor. It’s difficult, and it’s kept me from making this happen. No more, this is what I’m going to concentrate on for the foreseeable future (negatives and Albumen prints).

There a lot of things I like about this image; texture, light, expression, but most of all, I like what the image implies. It’s disturbing, or disorienting, and interesting to me.

4"x5" Wet Collodion Negative - Waxed Albumen Print