Greetings and Happy New Year, 2023 !!
I love metaphors, so why not start 2023 with one! I’ve chosen this Back Story to “come out of the dark”, on several levels. There has been a building inner struggle I’ve dealt with for several years now, all coinciding with getting on in age. The sheer weight of the large film camera and equipment I use together with the time to simply be ready to make the image has become frustrating at the most inopportune times. The mysteries of the wet-process black & white analog form of photography are not providing as many challenges as they once did. Add these all together and the advancement of hand-held recording devices has ignited a search to simply make imagery that up to this point, I have not been willing to embrace.
For 25+ years I coached youth baseball at a high level where my competitive side was on clear display night in and night out. I loved the challenges of out thinking another coach, putting my players in a position to out duel the opposing players. Baseball is much more cerebral than other reactionary sports and that aspect has always drawn me to the game. To some degree the Black & White wet-process doesn’t offer the same challenges for my competitive drive that it once did during my formative years. When I add up all the checkboxes in favor of this significant shift in my photography interests. About the only one in the column to NOT “combine” newer technology and the general visual exploration that awaits me is tied up in “but this is not what I am known for”. At its core, it’s an obstacle that I have created myself, which leaves it wholly on me to move forward. The passion and appreciation for a well crafted wet-processed silver print will never give way to pushing a button to output an ink print, color or otherwise. The two mediums are far apart, not one better than the other but different. The Silver print will always be hand-made by the artist and simply has a more life-like look and feel, where the machine-made falls short. My only interest in digital photography is exploring and mastering the art of a “digital negative” so that it can be printed in the wet-darkroom. Experts say today’s technology is not yet ready for Digital Negatives for silver printing, that’s really the only motivation I need to pursue digital negatives for wet-process silver prints. The passion to simply make visual imagery has moved ahead of the challenges of large film photography and it’s limitations, particularly at this stage of my life.
I put a lot of value in how other creative artists approach their craft, not because I believe I am in their class, simply to understand how they approach the creative process and stay challenged. At only 32 years old Bruce Springsteen wrote an entire double album, 42 songs until he pared it down to the 20 song double album The River. “I was trying to figure where I fit in in the broader community,” Springsteen said of his 1980 double-album “The River.” “By the time I got to ‘The River,’ (writing the album). I can somewhat relate to his thinking and approach.
This month’s featured image is the one that began to crack the hard-shell of strictly being a film / analog photographer. This particular image from the White Mountains where I stayed with a close friend who is as committed to the analog process as one can be. I made this image on my 44th wedding anniversary at Profile Lake in Franconia State Park, New Hampshire. We showed up at this spot later in the day where several families with young kids running around almost at my side by the water’s edge. I saw this month’s featured image in front of me. I thought the reflection and shapes of the mountains and foreground rocks just underwater had the makings of a terrific composition. I carefully composed the image on the cell phone screen and simply pushed the button. I understood the physical shapes of the composition were powerful and worthy of a 2nd visit the next day. 
I returned in the morning with the hopes of capturing the same composition as is seen in this month’s color image on large B&W film. Sadly, but not at all surprising, the conditions were much different, no sun and most importantly, enough wind to completely wipe out the reflection of the mountain shapes in the water, see the cell phone shot from the next day.
Writing 50+ Stories Behind Every Photograph may not be on par with Springsteen’s River Album, but those writings have enabled me to, not leave behind the analog world, but to add another visual means of exploration !! When I look at the last image made that same afternoon by simply pointing the cell phone down to eliminate the surroundings of those young families I’ve come to realize the only limitation with modern technology is my own imagination. This last composition, seen, conceived, composed and recorded in seconds maybe (for me) the most exciting composition I have ever made in under 60 seconds !!
Steve, I understand where you are coming from. I have been shooting only digital for the last 25 years and have stated to shoot and process black and white film again. I think that it is good for artists to change how they do things to keep it fresh and to see things differently. The combining of the two technologies further open the possibilities of expression. I’m having a blast and I hope you are too.
Hello Dave,
Appreciate you reaching out with encouraging words, I’m looking forward to the expanded opportunities you speak of.
SS
Steve, well conceived and well expressed. As primarily a part-time artist in prose and poetry, I thought your expression of the dilemma and change you are experiencing was clear and captured the ambivalence you are feeling. Please, keep experimenting!
Thanks Michael for your interest in my BLog, wishing you well in your own creative endeavors,
Stay well,
SS
Absolutely stunning photos SS. For me, because I’ve just reconnected with you recently, I was a bit stunned that you were thinking of cell photos. But learning more of what you see is just a reminder of what is in that thick skull of yours. I know you will achieve something brilliant, how could you not. If it’s the old way or an exciting new way. The combination of your two worlds will soon be revealed. I can’t wait!
d
Thanks for your time to respond with kind words of encouragement, it will be a learning curve for sure.
SS
Really interesting development, Steve! (Probably not the first time you’ve heard this. ;))
You are probably already aware of Topaz Gigapixel AI. If not, check it out for ramping up the resolution of your digital files before printing contact negatives. If you are using another similar product, I would sure be interested in your experience. Best wishes for 2023!
Hello Michael, always nice to hear from you. Because of my granddaughter’s high school sports I have heard of the Topaz products and do own the DeNoise software. I’m still new to the whole D files and resulting negs. The new Iphone I have does shoot in RAW and produce, so they say a 75MB file so I am hopeful those features will get me started. The ultimate goal will always be for Silver prints I believe. Thanks for reaching out, hope 2023 is a healthy and productive time for you !!
SS
Thanks for the great images and thought-provoking essay Steve! Everything you wrote about printing digital negatives suggested to me that you might consider making platinum prints. Many platinum printers now use large digital negs to make contact platinum prints. In my opinion, they are even more beautiful and have that hand-made feel more than even silver prints. I still prefer to make my platinum prints from large film negatives but occasionally send digital files to a lab for making large digital negatives. Just a thought… Good luck in all your ventures.
Thanks very much for reaching out with your thoughts. As it happens, I took a Digital Neg. making workshop with a good friend and his good friend Clay Harmon last month. Moving forward with that process, immediately following this email I’ll be in the darkroom beginning the linearization process of the new Epson P900 printer and the Palladium process. So, your comments are right on target. That same Clay Harmon will be here doing a small private Gum Over Palladium workshop in my darkroom the last weekend of January with the hopes of getting the exact color I prefer for the Palladium process.
Thanks so much for your interest and time to offer kind words,
Best wishes for a healthy and productive 2023 to you,
SS
Nice blog Steve! I’m coming to realize that many of us at this senior chapter in life are pondering what our next creative move will be. I too am frustrated (and confused creatively) with the technological ease that is afforded us. I resent in many ways that button pushing quickly creates magnificent imagery. I find myself in a creative slumber often now.
But I do love the digital capture process in many ways.
I’ve recently taken notice of your zest for the digital negative process and am finding a curious interest in that twist to print making as well. (I have not yet begun the learning process though!)
On December 31 I thought I would try to climb out of the creative slumber and went to the Mattabesset River. Long story short…I created 2 lovely images in about 20 minutes…but still walked away with great satisfaction. Processed digitally the same day as well. Still feeling terrific about the imagery I created so quickly. So my conclusion is that I shouldn’t beat myself up so much just because my life disciplines in photography have allowed me to see a composition quickly and attained knowledge to capture it with ease.
I do long for the wet process at times and the digital negative path may be the way to go. Best of both worlds.
Peter
Hi Peter, I’ve answered a few emails from PhDs this morning about the Blog. You certainly are in the PhD status with your Digital color work so it is of some comfort when you hear other Creatives at the top of their game struggling with direction, content and most of all how easy it is to create meaningful imagery with no where near the actual visual talents that many of us have crafted over a lifetime dedicated to photography. The mind is the most interesting thing to me as I gently go down the other side of the mountain. Thanks for your insightful thoughts and words.
SS
amazing images! Happy to see that your creative mind is looking for new challenges. Looking forward to seeing more.
Hi Paul,
Thanks for reaching out with your thoughts, it will be a learning curve, one that I may lean on you for your expertise in this new world.
SS
Great photo Steve. I spent a lot of time hiking and backpacking in the whites. The smell of the balsam trees helped detract me from the work grind.
Maz
Pastels
Oil
Charcoal
Pencil
Wet
Dry
Electric
Molecular
No matter…
What do you “see”, and what do you choose to share?
Congrats, Steve!
Grow!!!
Love your metaphors Alan…Agree, but it will be much harder than the written word, at least for me. Thanks as always for your time and thoughtful comments.
SS
SS, SUPER STEVE! your remarkable ability to recognize and capture such awesome visual effects is indeed praise worthy. You deserve the title artist and to keep evolving is so immagative and inspiring. I honestly and truly find your back stories to be so interesting and I formative. Keep creating!
Hi Tim,
Thanks for checking out this New Years / added direction Blog. Always appreciate your kind and thoughtful words. As it happens I’m meeting with a book publisher up near where this mornings image was made in NH on the 11th. Enough people have made mention how interesting they find the Back Stories, so we will see what comes of the meeting.
Thanks, and have a Great New Year,
SS
I can relate however, while I grew up shooting 35mm film (digital didn’t exist in my youth and being in the sciences and engineering world for over half my life, I am going backwards in a sense.
I look around and everything has become about instant gratification, snap an image see it straight away. I jave been at the Grand Canyon for sunrise with my 4×5, sun mot up yet, next to someone with a digital camera. I set up, focused often as the light came ip, chose my composition in the dark,etc.
By the time I was done (4-6 frames later) the guy next to me had taken hundreds and more images. What I call spray and pray.
I was the same way, and realized one day, I knew nothing about photography even though I had been doing it since before I was 18.
I knew nothing about light, shadows, zone, composition and most importantly patience. Patience to wait for the “perfect” light. And realizing as well, I simply do not need to take an image at all.
Digital makes it too easy to spray and pray and ignore the fundamentals. Most importantly, it makes it easy to not be one with the land.
For me, as a mostly landscape photographer, that defeats one of biggest reasons for shooting landscapes in the first place, to be in nature and simply enjoy what is in front of me. .
So, I find myself shunning technology when it comes to not only photography, but astrophotography as well, where I am preparing to start makimg my own glass plates again and capturing the heavens the way it was done 100 plus years ago on formats up to 8×10 as well as for landscapes/portraits.
I find myself not only shunning technology for photography, but in a lot of what I do. Woodworking for example, I choose to do 90% plus using techniques from well over 100 years ago (hand planes etc).
While technology is here to stay and has its place, we need to not ever forget the “old ways”. Actually call someone on a phone, visit with real people, develop our talents and use them.
As an example, you could teach a computer to play a symphony, rock music, etc. And it would play them perfectly. However, there would be no emotion or feeling behind the notes, just 1s and 0s. There in lies the difference, human feelings and emotions vs sterile,antiseptic precision.
As a final thought, my digital outfit I do bring with me ways as much and more as my large format gear.
For me, it is in a sense going in opposite direction of modern technology, to slow down, to enjoy life and the momentary scenes it offers.
To quote Roy from Blade Runner, “ …all those moments in time will be lost…”
Hello Steve,
Thanks very much for taking time to read and then offer some insightful comments. I pretty much agree with all your observations. As I said in the Blog, the desire to make visual imagery has surpassed the process…NOT eliminated the love for it, hence the D neg hope !! As you point out technology has stolen away a medium that once demanded precision and craft, not anymore with the modern cell phones, of which I own one. The difference is, and always will be, I / we understand space and contrast and how each can be used to create a 3rd dimension in a 2 dimensional piece of flat art.
I know people who teach at the college level with letters after their name who know the ins and outs of a digital camera and don’t have near the understanding of light and form that we do. Like someone told me after a workshop, “He taught me what I didn’t know…I didn’t Know” !! And because of technology most will never have the need or desire to learn anything beyond what the tool will do for them !!
Thanks for your time, best of light in ’23 !!
SS
Steve, whatever you choose to take pictures with, will be exquisite! Very interesting what your friend, Steve said. Opening my eyes as well!
Thank you for your stories. I love them!!