FIELD NOTES #4
All of my large format experiments have begun to manifest themselves. I thought I would share an update, providing the slightest glimpse of an evolving project.
Over the course of 14 months, I have been revisiting a location, taking various photographs and documenting change. These photos are another attempt, albeit in a new medium, to stop time. If but for a moment. I know ...again, dude? However, the medium of photography is a more logical choice and literally was invented to capture moments. I am taking my past obsession with stopping time and moving it from oil paint to film. Maybe this attempt will resonate more.
I am shooting a wide variety of formats: 35mm, 645, 6x9 and 4x5. I use a mix of expired films, chromes, black and white, as well as cross processing to C41. I am using non repeatable, improvisational developing techniques, searching for a unique quality and voice to tell this story. All of this effort is developed by my hand, as illustrated in the post, "Blixen." I imagine it will be presented as hand made optical prints, with zero digital reproduction. A true "all analog" workflow, from loading the film, shooting, developing and finally printing, in my personal darkroom.
The subject matter is not what you think or why. It is a personal conversation. Whether or not it works, remains to be seen. I imagine over the next year or two, I will begin to coalesce the images, looking for “print worthy” material. If I can find the story, I just might have some compelling work to present. Maybe.
In the mean time, I documented the sounds while shooting another round of views this morning. This is another in the Field Notes series, offering an ambiant, auditory glimpse, into a moment from the past.