2015 APUG Negative Exchange - Sign-up

[TheFlyingCamera]

Please forgive me but I'm struggling to work out how this actually works. Say there are 5 people in a group, do we sent out a negative to each person at the same time or does a batch of negatives get sent from member to member? If we receive a negative from someone, do we simply make a print and post it back to the person with the negative?

If I am in a group with 5 people will I receive 4 individual negatives from which I will make a print and send it back to the original sender along with the negative?

Answers:

• There will be four people to a group. You will make four negatives - one for your own archives, three to send out.
• You will make a master reference print of your own image, then mail the other negatives to the rest of your group.
• You will in turn, receive a negative from each of the remaining members in your group.
• You will make a print of that negative, as you see fit, exercising all your creativity. There is no limit or restriction on the print(s) you make other than we ask that you keep the print to an 8x10 piece of paper. Fill the paper, print it contact-print size, tone it, hand-color it, burn, dodge, bleach, scratch, do whatever you want!
• Then when you are done, return the print and the negative to the person who sent it to you. Please include technical notes explaining how you achieved your result - what paper, what developer, any manipulations.
• Please post a scan of the print to the gallery. I'm going to ask Sean to create a Negative Exchange gallery for us to post to. Failing that, attach them to a new post in the discussion thread. Please post the technical details along with the image either in the gallery or in the discussion thread.

So you'll receive three different negatives in the mail. Make a print from each. Return the print with the negative to the person who sent it to you. The reason behind doing it this way is to not prejudice your work by seeing what has been done by the others in your group. It prevents one person from becoming a bottleneck for anyone after them. And it also allows you creative freedom and protects the others in the group in case of a postal failure, a catastrophic darkroom accident, or manipulation of the negative. The prints should be your own interpretation of someone else's negative.

 

[Ghostman]

Answers:

• There will be four people to a group. You will make four negatives - one for your own archives, three to send out.
• You will make a master reference print of your own image, then mail the other negatives to the rest of your group.
• You will in turn, receive a negative from each of the remaining members in your group.
• You will make a print of that negative, as you see fit, exercising all your creativity. There is no limit or restriction on the print(s) you make other than we ask that you keep the print to an 8x10 piece of paper. Fill the paper, print it contact-print size, tone it, hand-color it, burn, dodge, bleach, scratch, do whatever you want!
• Then when you are done, return the print and the negative to the person who sent it to you. Please include technical notes explaining how you achieved your result - what paper, what developer, any manipulations.
• Please post a scan of the print to the gallery. I'm going to ask Sean to create a Negative Exchange gallery for us to post to. Failing that, attach them to a new post in the discussion thread. Please post the technical details along with the image either in the gallery or in the discussion thread.

So you'll receive three different negatives in the mail. Make a print from each. Return the print with the negative to the person who sent it to you. The reason behind doing it this way is to not prejudice your work by seeing what has been done by the others in your group. It prevents one person from becoming a bottleneck for anyone after them. And it also allows you creative freedom and protects the others in the group in case of a postal failure, a catastrophic darkroom accident, or manipulation of the negative. The prints should be your own interpretation of someone else's negative.

Thanks for the explanation, it's much clearer now. One more question though, the four negatives that I make, do they need to be the same, similar or different? Do I need to replicate a negative so that each person prints the same negative or can I shoot a series or can they even be different?

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Thanks for the explanation, it's much clearer now. One more question though, the four negatives that I make, do they need to be the same, similar or different? Do I need to replicate a negative so that each person prints the same negative or can I shoot a series or can they even be different?

The idea is that you send each person the same negative. If you do that by shooting multiple copies in the camera or by making copy negatives that's up to you. What we want to see as an end result is four versions of the same image, as printed by the members of your grouping. It would be hard to compare if all four images were different.

 

[Ghostman]

The idea is that you send each person the same negative. If you do that by shooting multiple copies in the camera or by making copy negatives that's up to you. What we want to see as an end result is four versions of the same image, as printed by the members of your grouping. It would be hard to compare if all four images were different.

Got it! Thanks for answering all of my questions, I look forward to participating.

 

[Eric Rose]

How will we be notified as to which group we are in?

 

[480sparky]

Can I request to be in a certain group? Such as: The Swedish Bikini Model group?

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

How will we be notified as to which group we are in?

I'm calculating the groups now. I'll post them here in the thread, and send each group a PM with their members. I'll expect you all to communicate amongst yourselves to share mailing addresses.

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Group 1: 4x5 shooters

Marc Morel (munz6869)
Craig Cross (ccross)
Bill Burk (Bill Burk)
Mike Merigliano (mmerig)

Group 2: 6x7

Matt King (MattKing)
Paul Thornton (pthornto)
Gerd Plescher (splash_fr)
Ken DePue (480Sparky)

Group 3: 6x6

Scott Davis (TheFlyingCamera)
Alexander Learmont (Ghostman)
Larry Gebhardt (L Gebhardt)
Eric Rose (Eric Rose)

Group 4: 6x6

Rachel Meilleur (mooseontheloose)
Paul C (Paul_c5x4)
Mike Clark (mike c)

Group 5: 35mm
Bob Walberg (walbergb)
Adrian Dear (Adrian D)
Loren Sattler (Loren Sattler)

Groups were chosen based on film format and geographic diversity. Everyone has been matched up by film format so that nobody within your group has to juggle which kind of film they're printing, or run out and buy a negative carrier they don't have, or worse, an enlarging lens! Each group has geographic diversity so that the pictures you get will represent places you probably haven't seen before, and no one group has all international or all domestic shipping. I'm counting on everyone to be timely in producing and mailing your film. We'll have 30 days from today to go out and produce our negatives and get them in the mail to our group-mates. For mailing the film, I recommend putting the negative in an archival page like a PrintFile page, folding the PrintFile page so as to better surround the negative. If possible, place the folded page inside a ziplock bag or other plastic food storage bag for additional protection, then tape the packet to an oversize (8x10 should be sufficient) piece of corrugated cardboard. place a second piece of corrugated cardboard on top so the packet is sandwiched between the two boards, then put the sandwich in a mailing envelope. Be sure to include your return address with the packet, along with any technical details about how you produced the negative if you're so inclined. Remember, without your return address, it will be hard for you to get your prints!

And... GO!

 

[TheToadMen]

This really sounds like fun. I don't think I'll have the time to do this within the next month so I won't sign up now, but I would love to participate in the next round.

Bert from Holland
http://thetoadmen.blogspot.nl

 

[480sparky]

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

This really sounds like fun. I don't think I'll have the time to do this within the next month so I won't sign up now, but I would love to participate in the next round.

Bert from Holland
http://thetoadmen.blogspot.nl

Bert - what we're aiming for in the first thirty days is to make the negatives and mail them out. The next thirty days is make the prints. If you change your mind in the next couple days, I can loop you in to one of the 6x6 or 35mm groups that are short a member. If not, we'll hopefully repeat this in a couple months.

 

[anikin]

Oh, that sounds like fun! Too bad I missed the sign-up.

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Oh, that sounds like fun! Too bad I missed the sign-up.

Anikin - nobody has started yet, so if you want to join, there's room in either the 35mm group or the 6x6 group.

 

[anikin]

Oh, then sign me up for 6x6:

Eugene Anikin
Portland, OR, USA
35, 645, 6x6, 6x7, 4x5
Silver Gelatin, Platinum, Cyanotype

 

[MattKing]

Tim:

Thanks for organizing this.

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Anikin- then consider yourself part of Group 4:

Group 4: 6x6

Rachel Meilleur (mooseontheloose)
Paul C (Paul_c5x4)
Mike Clark (mike c)
Eugene Anikin (anikin)

Please PM the rest of the group with your contact info and start shooting!

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Tim:

Thanks for organizing this.

Matt-

you're welcome. I think it will be a lot of fun for everyone to try it out, and a really good academic exercise. If it goes well, I might even build it in to a darkroom printing class I'm planning for later this year.


-Scott

 

[MattKing]

Anikin- then consider yourself part of Group 4:

Group 4: 6x6

Rachel Meilleur (mooseontheloose)
Paul C (Paul_c5x4)
Mike Clark (mike c)
Eugene Anikin (anikin)

Please PM the rest of the group with your contact info and start shooting!

I'm not sure whether the rules specify this, but watch out for Eugene - he might send a colour negative if you aren't careful

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

I'm not sure whether the rules specify this, but watch out for Eugene - he might send a colour negative if you aren't careful

Good point. I THOUGHT I mentioned earlier that this round, at least, was all black-and-white. More folks than not will be unable to print analog color at home. So PLEASE, make sure that you're sending a b/w negative.

 

[480sparky]

Here's my plan for shooting a roll of 6x7:

Frames 1, 3, 5 and 7 will be taken with the lens cap on. This will give me blank frames between actual images. The 4 identical images I take will be on frames 2, 4, 6 and 8. I will cut the film up like this:

For those shooting 35mm and 6x6 or 6x4½, you can adapt this to your format. This will give each recipient more than just a single frame to work with. It will make it easier to handle the negs as well as load them into your carriers.

 

[paul_c5x4]

Frames 1, 3, 5 and 7 will be taken with the lens cap on.

That is pretty much what I was planning on doing tomorrow when I go out shooting (if the weather holds).

 

[anikin]

Good point. I THOUGHT I mentioned earlier that this round, at least, was all black-and-white. More folks than not will be unable to print analog color at home. So PLEASE, make sure that you're sending a b/w negative.

No chance! When did I ever send color ? But I will accept color on the receiving end, even if the rules say otherwise

Anyway, I've been thinking about doing infrared this time around. I've got too many rolls of Aura in the freezer waiting for their turn. Besides, my rolleicord IS currently loaded with one... Just need to pray for one sunny day in Oregon

 

[paul_c5x4]

Spent an hour or so out and about shooting a couple of rolls today (Wednesday got rained off), and will be hanging the first strip to dry shortly. Are we having a separate thread for posted/received announcements and/or another one for print scans ?

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

I think we can just keep the process rolling here in this thread.

 

[Thomas Bertilsson]

Scott, I think I'd like to participate in 35mm. Should be good fun. I'll shoot some negs tomorrow. Y'all going to get some grainy negs to deal with...

Silver gelatin.
Minneapolis.