I’m pretty sure we were all born originals.  Great … now hold that thought!

Some time ago I wrote an entry called Make Your Pictures Stand On Their Own.  I talked about an interview I had read of social documentary and street photographer John Free. There’s a lot that can be taken from it.

Free said “I think that the three most important and also difficult forms or types of photography, is social documentary, photojournalism and fine art street photography, which was called straight photography when I started. I think that the difference between them is rather simple to understand. In photojournalism, six photographs with captions might be required. Social documentary photography requires 25-50 photos, which are each supported by a caption or short story. In street photography, it all must be done with one photograph and with no caption to help explain what cannot be seen. No caption and no posing, make street photography the most difficult form of photography that I have ever been involved with. My professional work in social documentary photography was very helpful in teaching myself how to get closer to the subject. Closer in many ways, not just where I stand, but how I can convey my feelings about a subject in my photograph of that subject. To bring as much life and understanding into the image, in order for the viewer to better understand the image.”

Free focuses on the areas of photography that are of interest to him, but as we all know there are many genres and styles of photography beyond that of photojournalism, social documentary and street photography – landscape, architecture, and portraiture to name those we may be most familiar with.  The key is to be yourself for whatever photograph you make. Don’t think about what category your picture falls under, or whether you could somehow emulate someone else’s work.

I’m pretty sure almost every type of picture has now been made in some manner.

Who cares?

Unfortunately, in today’s world there is great pressure to do “something different” and “unique” otherwise you will be seen as derivative and passé. Sad. I don’t think you want to focus on being different. Your pictures might become really large mediocre junk … just like much of what you see in the current gallery scene.

In another entry I wrote, “I think it’s vitally important that our photographs be able to stand on their own as complete and self-contained personal statements.  All of your creativity and vision must become dedicated and focused to ensure that the picture you make faithfully reproduces what you initially saw in your mind’s eye … and felt in your heart ….when you make a photograph it should be a personal and intense experience.”

Do that and your picture won’t be derivative … unless you deliberately set out to make it that way.

I’ve read that some people try to find Edward Weston’s and Ansel Adams’ tripod holes at Point Lobos and Yosemite. Now that’s being derivative and a complete waste of time. The results will only be cliché. Do that and you’re a bozo. Time to hang it up and do something else.

No – the photograph should be yours. Actually, it must be yours! It doesn’t matter if someone’s been there before or made a similar picture. Nothing will be the same as your picture because no one felt like you did, saw what you did, and cared like you did during that fleeting moment in time when you clicked the shutter … unless you’re trying to copy someone else.

So be yourself and make your picture! It will be an original, just like you!

Stay safe,

Michael

I am truly lucky to know some outstanding photographers. Many of them are members of Monalog. When I came up with the idea for the Monalog Collective the first person I called was Jim Fitzgerald. I had met him a couple of months earlier at Steve Sherman’s PAX event and just couldn’t stop thinking about his work … and his accomplishments. First of all, his large format contact prints were beautifully seen with a vision unique to him. But, what really made his work so special was that they were produced with a little known historic process call Carbon Transfer Printing.

To be honest, I’ve never seen anything like a Carbon Transfer print and I never cease to be amazed when I look at Jim’s work.  Quite simply, they’re three-dimensional jewels. You can really look into the pictures! All I can say is that you have to experience this in person to appreciate such a thing. If you truly love photography nothing can prepare you for such a moment.

It takes an incredible amount of dedication to create work like this. That and a lot of time! It takes a minimum of four days to produce one finished print!  Think about that.  But when you have a passion to create one of a kind images that are a such a personal labor of love, then it’s worth all the time and effort.  At least it is for Jim.

Then, not satisfied with available commercially produced cameras, Jim decided to build his own to create the negatives he needed to pursue his craft – 8×10, 8×20, 11×14 and 14×17 beauties made from walnut.

But what really sets Jim apart in my opinion are the books he has made. No ordinary books mind you, they are made and bound by hand, and every image and the accompanying text is printed using the carbon transfer process. I was awestruck when I saw Jim’s first book, Survivors I, with its walnut paper cover. Printed using the finest watercolor paper, each image was exquisite – just like individually mounted prints! His second book, A Banquet of Light, composed of panoramic images is covered with amate bark paper and is 15 x 52 inches in size! Only several copies of each book will be produced.  Alas, while I’ll never be able to afford one, I will never forget what Survivors I looked like and how I felt that evening when I saw it!

What can one do knowing that such a person so driven in the pursuit of excellence for his unique vision and its presentation exists? There’s only one thing if you really care – continue to strive to be the best you can be, doing all you can to make your own art in your own vision.

Until recently, I walked five miles a day. I wanted to increase that to 10 kilometers. Sort of has a nice ring to it and was a good goal for me.  I’d been thinking about this for several months but hadn’t tried it yet. The last week a saw a news story about a women twenty-one years younger then me who had lost a leg to cancer. She had just completed running the equivalent of a marathon for 104 straight days!  I was inspired! Two days later I did my first 10K. I will never be able to do what she does … not even close.  And I will never do what Jim has done either. But like that incredible women, Jim’s accomplishments will inspire me to be the best version of myself … in my photography, and in my life.

Jim can be reached for information about his books, prints, and unique workshops (yes, he also teaches at Yosemite and other locations!) through the contact page on his website at https://www.jimscarbonartphotography.com/contact/

Stay safe,

Michael

Well all right!  Let the games begin, shall we!

A couple of week ago my wife showed me an article in the Bucks County Herald concerning an annual photography show now going at a well-known venue. It’s been bothering me ever since so now I’m writing about it.  The story described the show and contained reprints of pictures that were selected for awards. She likes things done in good taste, so she was complaining that they looked heavily altered and … well …  kitschy.  She also lamented about the sad state of affairs for photography.

Interesting.

It’s not just how digital images look vs. analog, it’s all the obvious and over manipulation that is done to create what can only be described as tacky. What I saw in horror was not limited to color. No.  Black and white was not spared either.  Perhaps one of the problems is just how easy it is to create this stuff, allowing those who produce it the unbridled power to let their worst excesses run wild.

So just to be fair, I’m not a fan of manipulated analog photography either, although what I have seen does not sink to the levels of tackiness exhibited by much of the manipulated digitalia. Why? Perhaps, because it is so easy to accomplish.  It would have been too difficult to achieve the same level of tackiness with analog.

This week in the same paper, I saw a couple of articles discussing two art exhibits, one focusing on work by students, and the other a call for entries for a statewide show.  It was interesting that the categories of art for both shows included photography, but also digital media.  Something I have been thinking about for a long time apparently has thankfully been accepted … the unambiguous difference of images created by analog and digital means!

Such clarification is a good thing and can only be helpful to the well being of analog photography. That having been said, now that the differentiation is established, I think it is also necessary to also consider the establishment of an important sub-category within the domain – that of kitschography or digital kitsch. I could be happy with either term.  One problem though – I’m struggling to decide which is tackier, kitschography/digital kitch or portraits of Elvis and Jesus on black velvet found in Greyhound bus station lobbies. Tough choice!

Seriously though, all of this has broad implications on what is considered art, let alone good taste. While unimportant to the vast majority, it does force those that are serious about the art they create with a camera to consider what in fact is good art.

So there you have it.  I’d love to know what you think.

Stay safe,

Michael

It’s hard to believe, but my basement project is almost done. This week I will finally be painting, and then I will order the carpet, have it installed, mount the baseboards and complete other finishing work. I’m hoping everything will be done in a couple more weeks or so. Then I can reconvert my darkroom and what use to be my workroom from temporary storage spaces back into what they were intended for.  The other thing is I will have time to photograph again … and not a moment to soon!

One unintended consequence of this project is that I have listened to a lot of “classic” rock and roll music, care of my neighbor who has been working with me.  Specifically, we have been listening SiriusXM radio’s “Classic Vinyl” broadcast and I have discovered a few important things: (1) a lot of classic rock and roll has not aged particularly well; and (2) if I hear Stairway to Heaven, or worse yet, A Horse With No Name one more time I may be forced dig my way through my stuffed darkroom, mix some HC110 and drink it!

Why, not listen to something else?  We tried the “Deep Tracks” show.  Guess what … you know why these cuts are called deep tracks? Because they stink and no one rightly cares about them!

I’m sorry for the rant but I want to, no I need to get back into the photographic swing of things … and soon!!!  When you miss something like this as bad as I do it reconfirms just how important it really is in your life.  So yes, I am counting down the days, but if you don’t hear from me again you can blame it on Led Zeppelin or America.

Stay safe,

Michael

The world has asked for it and now it’s finally happening!

That right, it’s the Inaugural Monalog Collective Monalogfest!  And most important, you can be a part of it!!

Take a look at our official flier below for all the details and think about attending what is going to be a blowout gonzo experience!

Hang out with me and other members of the Monalog Collective for incredible action packed few days of nothing but Black and White analog photography. Now what could be better than that? Ok, I can think of a few things, but not many.

No more than 25 slots available so sign up soon!  Any questions, contact me.

I look forward to seeing you there!!

Stay safe,

Michael

Inaugural Monalog Collective Monalogfest, A Black and White Analog Photographers Outing, Print Sharing and Learning Experience August 18 – 21, 2022, Bethlehem Pennsylvania

The Monalog Collective Monalogfest Photographer’s Outing and Print Sharing, Learning Experience is a chance for black and white analog photographers to meet, make photographs, show their images and communicate what their work is about, gain insights from other like-minded photographers, and participate in demonstrations of silver gelatin, platinum/palladium and carbon transfer printing techniques by Monalog members and noted fine art photographer and printing practitioners Jim Fitzgerald, David Haas and Gary Samson.  But most of all, the goal is to have a great time with other like-minded photographers!  It is also an opportunity for black and white analog photographers that are not members of Monalog to interact with and learn more about the Monalog Collective.

Monalogfest is limited to 25 participants and will be based in historic Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley, nearby, the cities of Allentown, Nazerath and Easton, the Pocono Mountains, the beautiful countryside of Bucks County and its picturesque towns, as well as the Delaware River and its many small towns. This means that there is an abundance of diverse subject matter to satisfy every photographer. It is easily accessible from Philadelphia, New York City, Allentown, Lehigh Valley and Newark airports. There are a number of local hotels and bed and breakfasts, along with plenty of restaurants in the area.

NOTE: We have reserved a block of rooms at a special rate with a complementary deluxe continental breakfast at the Holiday Inn Express and Suites, Bethlehem, PA.

We will begin our event with a welcome and group “get to know you” diner at a local restaurant (TBD) on Thursday evening in Bethlehem.

Friday will be devoted to making photographs in the field and having the opportunity to meet with and learn from Monalog member David Haas at his historic Allentown row house dedicated to the production of fine art black and white silver photographs. We will all meet at 8:30am at a central location and then take it from there. No pressure and no expectations. The idea is to be with other photographers, learn from an expert, have fun and be mutually supportive.  For those that want to make images, we will have a number of locations scouted out where participants can meet up, or you can go your own way freestyle, as there is no shortage of subject matter to be photographed.

Additionally, the following printing demonstrations and talks will be available on Friday:

Carbon Transfer Printing with Jim Fitzgerald, at David Haas darkroom and studio in nearby Allentown

10:00 – 1pm (up to 8 participants – pre-registration required)

Platinum/Palladium Printing with Gary Samson, at David Haas darkroom and studio in nearby Allentown              

2:00pm – 5:00pm (up to 8 participants – pre-registration required)

On Friday evening at 7pm we will meet at the hotel conference room to begin to share work and learn from one and other.

The first group of photographers will be given 30 minutes to present his/her work. Here is how it will work:

• Presenting participants can display 10 prints representative of their work,
• The presenter would give a statement about his/her work, vision, focus, etc., discuss their displayed images and what they hope to gain from this experience
• The presenter and other participants would then enter into an interactive discussion about the work.

Total Time 30 minutes

On Saturday we will meet again at 8:30am and then head out for more photographing or have the option to meet with David Haas.

Silver Printing with David Haas, at David’s darkroom and studio in nearby Allentown

9:00am – 12:00am (up to 8 participants – pre-registration required)

At 1pm we will reconvene at the hotel conference room to continue sharing work and learning from one and other.

We will break for dinner and reconvene at 7pm for more participant presentations and discussion.

On Sunday we will meet at the hotel conference room for our final presentation session at 8:30am.  Included will be time for participant feedback, thoughts on possible next steps, upcoming events and how to get involved with Monalog.

We will adjourn at 1pm.

Come join us and be part of this exciting Monalog event!

There is a low cost of $50 to attend, so you will want to sign up early to ensure participation in this exciting event.

We look forward to seeing you in August!

For more information contact Michael Marks at:

info@monalogcollective.com or 215-348-9171

Many black and white analog photographers don’t realize the range of wonderful processes and materials available to make there creative dreams a reality. Some of these date back to mid nineteenth century, but are still in use today and are available for you to make beautiful photographic images.

The following descriptions of some of these of these processes and associated materials was prepared by Monalog members Chris Karfakis and Gary Samson as part of the catalog that accompanied recent Monalog Collective exhibits. Our members use them to create their fine art images, and the results are quite wonderful.

I hope you find this an interesting and useful resource. From here you can certainly learn a lot more. You can also visit the Monalog Collective website at https://monalogcollective.com to contact our members for their thoughts. Maybe you’ll think about opening your creative aperture (pun intended) and trying something new and different.  You might be surprised at what you see!

Albumen Print: The most important print material of the 19th century, the albumen print, was the discovery of a French photographer, Louis Desire Blanquart Evrard, and was first announced on May 27, 1850. Hen’s egg white is applied as a sort of sizing to the paper before it is floated on silver nitrate to sensitize it. The image prints out on exposure to UV light, so no developer is required. Most albumen prints were gold toned for added permanence and to shift the print color to a more pleasing tone. A negative the same size as the required print was used to make a contact print. The negative was loaded into a contact-printing frame with the sensitized paper and exposed to sunlight for several minutest o sometimes many hours. The back of the frame was hinged so that the density of the print could be checked without losing registration with the negative. Once the print was at the proper density, it was removed and processed.

Wet-Plate Collodion Process: Invented by Fredrick Scott Archer in 1851, a glass plate is coated with collodion that includes soluble iodides. Once the collodion has set up, the plate is placed in a tank of silver nitrate for several minutes there it becomes light sensitive. The plate while still wet is placed into a light tight holder so that it can be exposed in a camera within about eight minutes. After exposure, the plate is immediately developed using iron sulphate revealing the image in 15 to 20 seconds. The image is then fixed, washed, and varnished before use.

Ambrotype: is a wet-plate collodion process invented by Archer and Cutting in 1854. These images are made on black or ruby glass or clear glass (backed by black material) and appear as positives. Using a thin piece of plate iron that has been japanned instead of glass also results in a positive image called a Tintype or Ferrotype. Modern wet-plate photographers often use black enameled aluminum plates to create their images.

Carbon Transfer Print: A layer of bichromate gelatin containing a pigment (carbon black, for example) is exposed under a negative. The gelatin is selectively hardened by light passing through the negative. When the gelatin is gently washed in warm water, the unhardened areas are dissolved away, leaving a positive image of pigmented gelatin. In the late 1860’s, the process became practical when pigmented gelatin layers called “tissues” became commercially available. The resulting prints have exceptional stability and are quite permanent.

Platinum/Palladium Prints: The platinotype was first introduced by William Willis in 1873 and he continued to improve the process through 1887 via a series of patents. The process is based on the light sensitivity of certain iron salts which, when exposed to UV light, reduce platinum compounds to metallic platinum. The resulting prints have exceptional stability. The process was admired for its delicate tonality, enhanced using matte paper. The image color can range from steely gray to warm brown hues depending on the temperature of the developer and the kind of developer used.  This is a contact print process requiring each sheet of paper to be hand coated and then printed with a negative the same size as the desired print size.

Gelatin Silver Print: The gelatin silver process was introduced by Richard Leach Maddox in 1871 with subsequent considerable improvements in sensitivity obtained by Charles Harper Bennett in 1878. The gelatin silver print or gelatin developing out paper (DOP) is a monochrome imaging process based on the light sensitivity of silver halides. They have been made for both contact printing and enlarging purposes by modifying the paper’s light sensitivity. A brief exposure to a negative produces a latent image, which is then made visible by a developing agent. The image is then made permanent by treatment in a photographic fixer, which removes the remaining light sensitive silver halides. And finally, a water bath clears the fixer from the print. The final image consists of small particles of silver bound in a layer of gelatin. This gelatin image layer is only one of the four layers found in a typical gelatin silver print, which typically include the overcoat, image layer, baryta, and paper support. Gelatin silver paper is the paper of choice for most fine art photographers working in traditional analog photography today.

Bibliography:

Care and Identification of 19th-Century Photographic Prints by James M. Reilly

Kodak Publication no. G2-S, 1986

The Book of Alternative Photographic Processes, Third Edition, by Christopher James, Cengage Learning, 2016

Wikipedia

Stay safe,

Michael