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Back to the Dark(room) ages
Randy Vanderveen, Photographer
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Grande Prairie | AB | Canada | Posted: 6:46 PM on 08.03.11 |
->> Interesting read. Brings back some memories about starting out in the business. Things like editing with a blade and line gauge, double rolling film onto a spool, printing directly to half tone and the smell of fix.
http://journoterrorist.com/2011/08/02/paperball2/ |
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Erik Markov, Photographer
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anywhere | IN | | Posted: 6:55 PM on 08.03.11 |
| ->> I understand 20 years ago and I remember developing film, developing it in bathrooms during away basketball college games.... but what is with the Schoolhouse Rock design theme they have going on there? Yikes. :) |
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Mark Loundy, Photo Editor
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San Jose | CA | USA | Posted: 8:29 PM on 08.03.11 |
->> I so do not miss the old days.
--Mark |
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David Seelig, Photographer
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Hailey | ID | USA | Posted: 12:22 AM on 08.04.11 |
| ->> We made more money back then as every person who owns a digital now thinks they are a photographer. Hell I would love to take away autofocus. |
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Doug Pizac, Photographer
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Sandy | UT | USA | Posted: 12:53 AM on 08.04.11 |
->> Contrary to Mark, I miss the good old days and enjoy them on occassion in my darkroom printing b/w on my 8x10 enlarger. The smells of dektol, stop bath and fixer are intoxicating to this old timer. And the old school ways are a heck of a lot less stressful because one has to slow down, concentrate and think about what you're doing. It's my form of yoga. There is no history brush or layers that can be tweaked or deleted altogether. You have to get it right the first time or start over with a new piece of paper.
One of my first experiences doing a remote darkroom for AP in the late '70s was in a men's bathroom. The reeled film was washed in the toilet with multiple flushes and the prints were washed in the urinal with a couple swishes. Those were the days!
I teach photography on the college level now and one of my exercises is to have the students experience the ancient ways. When I take them to a sporting event I allow them to set their digital cameras for color balance whereupon I then pull out my painter's tape from Home Depot. I put a strip across the back screen so they can't chimp, tape down their auto-focus switch to manual and set the motor drive to single frame. I then hand them a 128-meg memory card which gives them about 35 raw image files. They are then told they have to come up with 6 usable images from one half of a basketball game, one quarter of a football game or three innings of a baseball game. It doesn't take long for some of the students to start freaking out. |
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Tim Casey, Photographer
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Gainesville | FL | USA | Posted: 1:47 AM on 08.04.11 |
->> Thanks for posting this.
I'm with Doug on this, I have fond memories of the process of working in a darkroom. It felt more like a craft than what we do today. I'm not saying I'd want to go back it though.
These students got a great experience. I shoot alongside student photographers all the time. It seems that anybody younger than 30 has never developed a roll of film or made a print, so they have trouble understanding why there is a ISO setting on their camera.
I was very fortunate to start working in a darkroom in fifth grade. |
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Chuck Liddy, Photographer
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Durham | NC | USA | Posted: 2:06 AM on 08.04.11 |
| ->> One man's trash is another man's treasure. I find it hard to believe ANYONE old enough to have developed film in bathrooms, closets, construction trailers, their car or in a changing bag in the middle of nowhere would wish "for the good old days"....if they are a working professional...screw that nonsense. I latched onto the digital world when it first came out. it's made me a better photographer. I take chances I NEVER would have attempted with film. Waxing nostalgic about film is nothing short of nonsense if you are a working professional. It's the same as wishing a T-Rex would wander down your street. |
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Chris Large, Photographer
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Okotoks | AB | Canada | Posted: 2:19 AM on 08.04.11 |
->> It sort of scares me but I do have totally agree with Chuck.
I love my art but this is how I pay the bills, put my sons through university and build up a retirement fund. Digital allows me to shoot more, experiment more, control my output and make more money. Period. |
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Doug Pizac, Photographer
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Sandy | UT | USA | Posted: 3:34 AM on 08.04.11 |
->> Hey, I'm in full agreement that digital pays the bills. But old school b/w in a darkroom is still a fun thing to do and a great change of pace. It also hones one's skills to be thinking proactively and anticipate your shots versus shooting machine gun style like prosumers do and then relying on one in a thousand being good.
As to working in bathrooms, trailers and such they were great times. I fondly remember doing a Super Bowl in San Diego a couple decades ago when color prints took 30 minutes to transmit. At the end of the day the wall of transmissions looked fantastic -- not just from the photography, but the editing. If there was a sack, the key BEST photo went out -- not a half dozen from various angles like nowadays.
Back then one had to have the skills to shoot efficiently because only so many rolls fit in the soup at a time, and editors edited. |
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Chuck Liddy, Photographer
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Durham | NC | USA | Posted: 11:23 AM on 08.04.11 |
->> "As to working in bathrooms, trailers and such they were great times."
well some of us just aren't masochists I guess.
"like prosumers do and then relying on one in a thousand being good"
geez I know PLENTY of professionals who rely on that standard.
there have always been photographers who shoot "movies" even in the film days. one other thing not mentioned in this discussion....the quality. go back and look through some of your film negs. it can be pretty scary when you scan them in and compare the quality of a "great" negative with the files that a D3 or MarkIV shoot. |
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Marty Price, Photographer
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Concord | NC | USA | Posted: 2:00 PM on 08.04.11 |
| ->> I'm with Chuck, I have fond memories of the old days, started in newspapers 29 years ago, but I would never trade it for the ease of today. The availability to shoot and transmit "live" within minutes of recording, beats the stress packed, crazy methods we had to use in the old days. |
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Gary Gardiner, Photographer
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Westerville | OH | USA | Posted: 2:27 PM on 08.04.11 |
->> I have several SenRacs in travel cases and a Leica enlarger if any ones to make an offer. Shipping extra.
I'm saving up for a bucket of chicken at KFC. |
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Kevin Udahl, Photographer
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Calgary | AB | Canada | Posted: 3:14 PM on 08.04.11 |
->> Hey Randy... thanks for posting this thread.
I also look back to the "old days" with some fondness, but am grateful for the ease, convenience, and speed of digital.
One thing I do miss about the film days is the communication and camaraderie one had with their fellow photographers back at the office after a day of shooting. It was a chance to "slow down" and decompress a little bit with your colleagues - have a coffee, and talk about the days' assignments while souping your film, making prints or scannning the negs.
This seems to be lost in some shops as there's little need (or incentive) for shooters to go back to the office at all. |
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Nick Wass, Photographer
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Wheaton | MD | USA | Posted: 10:44 PM on 08.04.11 |
| ->> i for one would like to see that T-Rex walk down my street... |
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Jeremy Harmon, Photo Editor, Photographer
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Salt Lake City | UT | USA | Posted: 11:20 PM on 08.04.11 |
| ->> This is like taking a day off from regular classes to teach geography students the earth is flat. |
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Jeff Stanton, Photographer
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Princeton | IN | USA | Posted: 11:31 PM on 08.04.11 |
->> I loved the old days as well. Experimenting with different developers, fixers, papers, it really separated the pros from the amateurs.
Doug, I've washed film and prints in a lot of different situations, but c'mon man, the shitter and pisser? Yuk! |
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Doug Pizac, Photographer
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Sandy | UT | USA | Posted: 12:06 AM on 08.05.11 |
->> Jeff...
We had the cleaning crew coming in and sanitize everything first. Once that was done, water is water. And if it's good enough for your dog to drink from, it's good enough for prints.
We also used to fix prints in a double concentrate for about 20 seconds before a double swish and hair dryer drying. The prints literally started turning brown after 15 minutes which was fine because they only had to last 8 for the transmission.
Former great staffer Wally Fong did so much lab work using super concentrates during World Series, Oscars, etc. that his fingers were permanently stained brown from the chemicals. Tongs got in the way and weren't fast enough. We also had heated straight Dektol that we rubbed into the highlight areas of the prints with our bare hands to increase detail. Hardly anybody used rubber gloves and latex ones like today didn't exist in our world. This is the way it was back then. |
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Jeff Gammons, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Niceville | Fl | USA | Posted: 12:47 AM on 08.05.11 |
->> I haven't rinsed negatives in a toilette or prints in a urinal, its crazy what yall used to do.
I do though still load and shoot my own film, and tinker in the darkroom. But I was born in '91 so I have some more learning to do. I'm still debating picking up a jobo though. Would make working with my color stuff a bunch easier. |
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Nick Wass, Photographer
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Wheaton | MD | USA | Posted: 1:24 PM on 08.05.11 |
->> i loved the fixer and blix stains on my clothes .....
anyone seen that T-Rex yet? |
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Doug Pizac, Photographer
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Sandy | UT | USA | Posted: 1:59 PM on 08.05.11 |
->> For those who see money only through digital means, here's an example where old school film and prints can pay big.
The Catholic church's cathedral in Salt Lake City celebrated its 100th anniversary two years ago. I contacted them about covering the event for them. They were opening a time capsule that had been placed in a corner stone and they were going to put a new one in for opening in another 100 years. I was told they were planning on doing the photography themselves and put a DVD of images and video in the box. When I told the PR person what makes them think that the DVD is still going to be good in another century let alone a DVD player to view it -- pointing out that 3.5 inch floppies, Zip drives and other technologies are already gone. The person went silent. Their plans died with my dose of reality. I then offered my services with tried and true methods. I would do their key photography of group portraits that included a Cardinal from the Vatican on b/w film and produce archival toned fiber-based prints that will last well over a century. I got the job at a very good fee because there are very few people still around today who can do that of type of work.
My photos are not only in the time capsule, but copies are at the Vatican and a church supporter funded me doing a 16x20 museum quality framed print for hanging in the church office hallway which should last at least 150 years. With with the images being shot on 4x5 sheet film, they easily outmatch digital files.
So while some may poo-poo old school techniques, don't count us oldies out quite yet. |
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Scott McCall, Photographer
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Orlando | FL | USA | Posted: 3:10 PM on 08.05.11 |
->> Nice job Doug!
I dabble in the old school techniques whenever I get the chance. I love producing platinum and palladium prints using negs from my 8x10 Deardorff. |
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Jesse Jones, Photo Editor, Photographer
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Gainesville | Fl | USA | Posted: 3:26 PM on 08.05.11 |
| ->> Having the ability to have the right tool for the job is always an asset. I still shoot quite a bit of film for my own personal projects. Using digital is how I make my living but that doesn't mean that I am going to turn my back on traditional processes. There are situations and times when having that ability and knowledge is an asset. Doug's anecdote is a perfect example. I am currently getting my funds together to pick up a pair of Leica M6's and several lenses. Will they re-earn the money I am going to invest in them? No. But I will enjoy using them and that is good enough for me. |
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