When I first fired up my darkroom, I had an expectation that there would be a slight difference in between a scanned image, a wet printed one and an outright digitally shot and printed one on the same scene, the digi was with a D800 no less. This perception of *slight* difference was based solely on what I had seen and heard over and over again on the web. I did not care either way because I knew my heart was in film and that was where I was going for better or worse.
Well I was wrong, the difference made me almost teary eyed, the wet print simply looked deep, almost 3D like and seemed to have a life of it’s own, like an artistic being. The way that a well lit, well printed silver gel print looks in person is amazing in terms of tones, the way they related to one another and bound out of the print because of that. This is especially true in medium format fine grained films and is astounding in large format. I own an 11x14 of
this print by John Sexton and it is truly an immersive experience to view it in person, a masterful example of a full tonal range well represented, the way it looks in this web representation is *very* telling of why one should view a print in person.
As far as film with young people being a fad, well that remains to be seen. Young people can set wheels in motion that last a lifetime, so it is a little on the “stodgy” side to assume they will not stick with it. Some will leave it after awhile and some will use it all their life and take it places we have never seen. A hobby makes one feel well rounded in how they spend their time. An artistic pursuit that one lives day to day in the fullest makes one want to live to be 200-300 years old…..I know I do.
What is missing from this film? Nothing, because it should not be the only one made on the subject now should it. In fact it should inspire one to be even more creative in developing whimsical narrative in how they too, love film. What a wonderful opportunity it would be to show a creative duality between a chef and a devout darkroom printer…it honestly feels the same to me. Lots of prep work, things being ripe or going out of date, stirring, temperatures....flipping the print in the tray and flipping the omelet in the pan…delicious results await the fan of the great “Chef” of either concoction.
Oh…and to those like Ansel and thebelo who are claiming to be waiting for digital to be good enough, I can report now, I have used it professionally for 20 years. It was good enough years ago and it will never be good enough…if you catch my drift. Because digital will never be film…digital is a computer and film is film, so you have to decide how you want to “live” your imagery.
When ever my wife goes away for more than a few days for a business meeting, I get caught up on my film processing and do some explorations of new negatives in the darkroom…it’s kind of an all-in bender. I don’t do it while she is away because she does not approve, I do it because I love her and time is precious with her. This week I cranked out 22 rolls of 35mm, 37 rolls of 120 and 130 sheets of 4x5. Tomorrow I get to throw the ingredients I grew into the pan and see what I come up with…
Cook on folks, cook on….
