New Year Resolution

Doesn't every blog have one of these entries?? Well, mine is to keep the photographs on my website a little more up to date. Currently, the latest image uploaded was the 29th March - exactly 9 months ago. I have shot a lot in between, but never seem to have time to upload material. Part of this process has to be taking some of the old material down - it is amazing looking at some of the dates on this material that it is so old - time has past really quickly.

One thing I will look at next year is shooting material in a series - something that I have not done a lot of so far. Many of the shots you see on the website are single prints and I haven't put a lot of effort into constructing a series of images.

Cyanotypes

Having had a certain amount of success with the Fotospeed Cyanotype kit, I decided that it was a technique worth exploring more. I particularly liked the idea of producing cyanotypes from a "digital negative". This option seems to open up a whole new realm of possibilities.

I have ordered the raw chemicals so that I can make up my own sensitizer. This is a lot cheaper than buying it ready made. It is a bit more hassle, but it will save a fortune. Well, let's see.

I have already acquired additional Watercolour paper from a local art shop, so that should be all that I need for now.

Digital Cyanotypes

One of the biggest drawbacks with Cyanotypes is that they need to be made as contact prints. This means that the print has to be the same size as the negative. Unless you have a large format camera handy, this is going to be a problem.

The cyanotypes here are produced from normal 35mm negatives. A print has been generated in the normal way which is then scanned. The scanned image is then inverted in Photoshop to produce a "negative image". This negative image is then printed (using a laser printer) onto a sheet of A4 acetate. This method then generates a large, digital negative which can then be contact printed in the normal fashion.

The image above was produced by contact printing the acetates for about 30 minutes under the cold, overcast, English sun. The print looks a lot less exposed than the prints from a couple of days ago - maybe, it was more overcast today. Still, if you use the levels in Photoshop you can start to see what a properly exposed and developed print is going to look like.

I am also getting better at getting an even coat of sensitizer onto the paper. With a little more practice, I should be able to get a fairly even coat.

I am really impressed with results - they are a lot better than I expected given the apparent quality of the acetate negative. Worth persevering with this as a technique.....

More cyanotypes

OK, time for another go at improving on these cyanotypes. Instead of using a small syringe to dispense the sensitizer onto the paper, I used a small eye dropper. This made putting the sensitizer onto the paper a lot easier and I ended up with much more even distribution. This becomes pretty apparent once the sensitizer has dried.

Next improvement was to increase the exposure time. First two exposures were 8 and 20 minutes - this one was 70 minutes! I kept an eye on the colour of the paper around the outside of the negative and it really didn't darken down much more after about 20 minutes, but I left another 50 minutes just to be sure.

While the print is darker than the 20 minute print from yesterday, it isn't that much darker although it does have more in the midtones. I am going to have to look at other alternatives for improving the dMax than just simply increasing the exposure time.

You will find a straight silver print from another negative from the same series here. These Type 55 Polaroid negatives were very contrasty (which was why I picked them for these experiments).

It is winter and the weather is overcast, so the amount of UV in the atmosphere is going to be fairly low. Maybe a suntan lamp (which is UV based) would produce better exposed prints. The exposure would certainly be easy to control.

Other than that, there aren't a lot of other options. One option is to use more appropriately exposed and developed negatives. An experiment for another day.....

First cyanotypes

Well, inspired by the Eddie Ephraum's book I thought I would give producing cyanotypes a whirl. I think the easiest way to get started is with a ready made kit - I opted for the Fotospeed kit and it arrived last week (just haven't had time to use it yet). I am working on the principal that if I can produce some half decent images with a kit, I will give mixing up by own chemicals a go. But first things first, let's see what happens.

I used one of the glass rods to coat the paper (it is possible to use a brush, but rods should produce more even coverage). The first attempt was a bit hit and miss - the sensitizer produced puddles on the paper (mainly because the syringe was difficult to control), but a couple of wipes with the glass rod sorted this out. But coating the paper in safelight conditions is far from easy.

I used a couple of test 5x4 negatives to produce the images. I exposed the negatives by contact printing under a sheet of glass. The first sheet was exposed to the sun for 8 minutes (above). It is hard to make out the image. The second attempt was exposed for 20 minutes. I also used a more contrasty neg - opting for a Polaroid type 55, hence the interesting edging. The image is stronger, but still underexposed. I used the sun as the UV source and placed the paper out on the garden table. The print visibly changed from a grey/green to a navy blue.

According to the instructions supplied with the kit, the prints are meant to darken down when the paper dries. I didn't find this to be the case and, if anything, the midtones seemed to get a little lighter when the print was washed.

Checking my dMax against the examples in the book, it becomes obvious that the prints are under-exposed. This is no doubt due to exposing the prints in the cold winter (and very overcast) sun in London. Now I know that the colour of the print doesn't darken down very much once exposed, I will use this as guidance when exposing the next prints.

Bob Carlos Clarke

It was with great regret that I read about the demise of the late Bob Carlos Clarke in this month's Black & White Photography magazine (December 2006, no. 67). He died earlier this year when he stepped in front on a train.

I had been an admirer of his work ever since I went to his "Dark Summer" exhibition in the Mid Eighties. I have always regretted not buying his book ever since I went to the exhibition. Today, they are collectors items.

His work was always very distinctive; often pushing the boundaries of what was acceptable. One of his last books, "Shooting sex", was no exception. However, read through the text of this book and you get to understand a little bit more about the man behind the lens.

Along with the magazine article is a set of photographs of knifes and forks from the early 90's. Not some of the images that he will be remembered for, but stunning none the less. You will find more information on www.bobcarlosclarke.com, but probably the most extensive range of images will be found at www.panicpictures.net.

Studio Harcourt

I came across a glossy magazine at the weekend in W H Smiths. It is a compilation of 1930's style portraits by the French studio - Harcourt. Although it is in French, it looks as if it is a periodical. I have never seen it before, but the images are fantastic. There is no ISBN/ISSN number that I can find, but try looking in the "Foreign" section of WH Smith's magazine (I was actually looking for the French version of Vogue when I came across it).

I must admit that I have always been fascinated by this style of portraiture - mainly due to the exceptional control over the lighting. I have only seen one photography technique book dedicated to this style of photography (by Roger Hicks listed on my main website).

The thing that inspires me the most is that many of the portraits are modern - taken in 2006 - just showing that the art form is far from dead. You will find some examples of Studio Harcourt's work here.

Nude photography notebook - Eddie Ephraums

This book features the work of Allan Jenkins who is well known for his fine art nude and still lifes.

There are photography books and there are art books. This is definitely an art book. It follows a notebook type format and very much reminds me of Colin Blakemore's Photography Workshop. It is about art as a journey - as a means of feeling and expression. And again like Blakemore, the photography exhibited here is about photographing and rephotographing - constantly evolving your work - until you arrive at your destination. As Jenkins puts it "Accumulate, dissect, repeat and innovate."

The pages are laid out as if you are looking through Allan Jenkins' own notebooks. The photographs are inspiring. They are mainly Cyanotypes and have a very soft, gentle feel to them. The lighting is simple, but exceptional. The only drawback with Cyanotypes is that they are made using contact prints so their size is limited by the size of the negative. Using my large format camera, this means the prints are a maximum of 5x4.