Alterning b&w negatives

[jojoman2]

Hey folks, I'm looking to get creative. I want to destroy, enhance, bleach, whatever my negatives during and after the development process. I'm a street photographer who used to live in NYC but am now living in a small town in New Jersey, so I'm looking to do more "fine art" type stuff. I experiment a lot with double exposures, but I want to start altering negatives as well. Any ideas on how to do that/where to start? I'm also interested in screwing with color negs but have yet to find a studio space where I can play with that chemistry--so I'll start with b&w

Thanks!

 

[jojoman2]

Oh yeah, I've already played with using extreme hot temperatures during development using dektol and purposely having the neg stick to itself inside the tank. That was fun for a self portrait series I did a few years back.

 

[pdeeh]

i'd say you've snwered your own question

Any ideas on how to do that/where to start? I

destroy, enhance, bleach, whatever my negatives during and after the development process.

 

[removed account4]

hey jojo
have you seen this ?
https://www.photrio.com/forum/resources/kill-your-darlings.17/
just gotta use your imagination and anything is possible
just remember once you kill it, its dead
ps. dektol won't do much to screwup your film, its a great film developer

 

[Raghu Kuvempunagar]

Why not develop the film normally and unleash your creativity while printing or scanning the negatives? If and when you get tired of artistic extravagance you will still have a decent negative that you can go back to.

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Depending on the size of your film, you could try either very coarse steel wool or a barbecue grill brush (it will NOT be gentle, so use with caution, and on LARGE film only - one oops and you've completely removed the emulsion from a roll-film negative). Another idea - mix up some dilute ferricyanide bleach, then dip an electric toothbrush (one of the disposable ones you can get at the drugstore) in it, then hold the toothbrush some distance above the negative, and turn it on. Let the bleach sit for as long as it takes to get a result you like, then wash and hypo-clear again. Lots of things you can do.

 

[winger]

I don't really recommend trying Mordançage without a class (find one that Elizabeth Opalenik is teaching - she's fantastic), but it does work on negatives as well as prints. Also better for bigger negs than small ones. I keep meaning to try it on some negs but just haven't had time.

Kill your darlings as John posted is a great place to start, too.

 

[eddie]

I miss Emil’s contributions to this place. Always amazing images, and generous with sharing his knowledge.

I’ve spent the last few years working on new ways to alter my negatives. The more ways I come up with, the more I realize I’m just scratching the surface ( no pun intended but I like it...)

 

[Patrick Robert James]

What happened to Emil?

 

[eddie]

He hasn’t participated here in along time. I don’t know why. He’s still making photos, though.

 

[winger]

And he posts on the LFPF, though not as much as he used to.

 

[ypkennedy]

Why not develop the film normally and unleash your creativity while printing or scanning the negatives? If and when you get tired of artistic extravagance you will still have a decent negative that you can go back to.

+1

 

[awty]

Ha! I can do this without trying. Helps to work in a confined space in dim light in total chaos.

 

[removed account4]

Why not develop the film normally and unleash your creativity while printing or scanning the negatives? If and when you get tired of artistic extravagance you will still have a decent negative that you can go back to.

there are some effects that can only be done through damage to the film. ( and its fun ).

 

[Bill Burk]

hey jojo
have you seen this ?
https://www.photrio.com/forum/resources/kill-your-darlings.17/
just gotta use your imagination and anything is possible
just remember once you kill it, its dead
ps. dektol won't do much to screwup your film, its a great film developer

Ah the first thing that came to my mind, Kill your Darlings is such a wonderful series