Gum Bichromate for the win!

Just another quick post, putting up some non-silver work.
I love working in non-silver, large negatives, contact prints, and most importantly the ability to get hands on with a print and really affect the way it turns out.
I used a foam brush while this image was developing to brush off some of the gum, and get lighter tones in the background as well as creating a sense of motion. This is just the first layer of the print, I have a second version that I am working on, but it went AWOL after class yesterday and I'm hoping to find it. I just coated it with a gorgeous shade of red purple, and I would really like to find it.

Another great part of gum bichromate is the endless color options it provides you, even the ability to print on black, using white pigment of course. I had some positives of a few of the images I had been printing in other processes and decided to give it a shot.

Subtle.

I can cook food

I am by no means a master chef, but when it comes down to it I can whip up a nice meal for myself with what I have lying around. although sometimes the results can be a little strange..

Like this for example, some lovely bowtie pasta (farfalle?), with non linear hot dog (I mean ground pork) which was cooked in apple cider vinegar, and sprinkled with copious amounts of nutmeg.

It actually turned out pretty good. A bit too strong on the vinegar, but it was all I had. I think I need to start actually cooking more, not just throwing things in the microwave (I can only take so much soup and oatmeal) But things the stars are starting to align so hopefully I can buy more ingredients soon. Swedish meatballs are rad, and not just for the holiday season. Until then I've got some lovely yams waiting at home which after and hour and half in the oven (and not just because it takes forever) become mouthwatering, syrup dripping bundles of pure awesome.

I just ate lunch but all this talking of food makes me want to grab some more....

Night Life!

I suppose calling this night life is a bit deceiving, since I don't really party, and the photos were technically taken in the morning...

However they do capture how much I love exploring at night, and how different things can seem once the sun has set. Another benefit is that there aren't many people to run into, and thoughts can wander just as one can wander aimlessly around the streets.

Ordinary things appear differently

The mundane can become interesting

Somethings appear, other remain elusive

But it's still all about the light

Four by Five

Last week was the first time I got to work with a view camera. While very exciting and intimidating, I waited until today to develop the film, and finally see my results. Which unfortunately weren't all that great. (I blame the film guides!!! I will never use them again!) Although its mostly my fault that they got screwed up, the camera shifted as I was loading film, and one sheet wasn't in the film holder all the way.

On the bright side the exposures were pretty good, and the focus was spot on. So now I give you the first 4 4x5 images I've ever shot. They're like my babies, well the kind only a mother could love. (That is of course not a reflection on the models, they were awesome)

OH NO! There is an umbrella in the frame!

This was supposed to be the "zeroed" shot, and it was.
The camera just got turned a bit while I was loading my film,
so it was now zeroed, and off center ever so slightly.

AHH! Jesus is getting swallowed by vignetting!
Er.. well a scene of bellows that were tilted too far...
I'm not that big on vignettes, they're nice, but not like this.

Finally, my last shot, which almost turned out perfectly,
except I didn't have the film all the way in the holder.
I did like the image despite its "unintentional cropping"
So I applied some tones in Lightroom for fun.

It was still lots of fun to work with the 4x5 camera, even if my shots didn't turn out thanks to the guides that pinched the film and prevented parts from getting developed.

I suppose you can't win them all, or in this case, any of them...

On the plus side I now get to go shoot four more 4x5s before the end of the semester, hurrah!

I love to print Palladium

I always find it amusing that despite being a photo major my favorite place to work is over in the printmaking department. Maybe it is my affinity for being surrounded by noxious chemicals, poisonous liquids and acids, but I really enjoy working over there.

Its a break from the hum drum world of silver prints, which frankly don't get me very excited any more. I enjoy the hands on nature of working in non-silver, the lack of an enlarger, cutting your paper to any format, and the freedom it allows. I can paint on the emulsion however I like, the brush strokes add to feel of the final piece.

Like this image for example I coated to emphasize the brush, and then sought an appropriate image to go along with it. I used a positive of a tree for the negative and it turned out quite well. One response I received was that it resembled the wrinkles of the brain. I'd like to continue with that motif of trees and brains, but I've been very unmotivated as of late.

The cold weather saps my will to explore, Philly just feels so drab, and overcast days don't create exciting light. I don't feel any affinity with the city anymore. It is an environment foreign to where I came from. While I do enjoy the walking and the occasional scene, I feel I would be much happier with easier access to nature. My favorite pass time is to wander around taking photographs, but wandering the woods is far more fun than walking the grid of the city. Maybe I just need to explore more, its 1 in the morning, frankly one of my favorite times to shoot in the city, possibly because it doesn't feel like a city. At any rate I need to find a new subject. I would love to shoot more portraits, but as it is right now I usually shoot anything but that.

I am in a rut.

But recycling older images by printing them in palladium certainly makes me feel awesome.

I need to go exploring...