Did moving to a new home change your photography?

[MattKing]

So sorry to read this Dan.

 

[rcphoto]

Moved from a West Coast city to Vermont's biggest 'city' - 40,000 person cow town is what it is- and now outside Plattsburgh New York across the lake where towns are 3000 or less and corn and trees are more common. And yep, big changes that I am still not making sense of. The suspicion and outright anger of people is a big one. I had noticed in San Francisco the diminishing of street life for a while, but dang, out here in small towns, walking on a street or along a road means you have a giant target on your back. Be prepared to be aggressively confronted and interrogated over what you are doing, camera or not.

So in terms of darkroom setups, no difference- I can develop in a motel room and scan in the back side of my car if need be. But going from being among interesting sites where no one cares what you are up to, to needing to drive for any change of scenery and being certain to remember to stay in the public rightaway along a road so you don't trespass, to angry people hurling all sorts of accusations and insults and then them being surprised that you are not just rolling over in the face of their stupidity... well, it still throws me off. In a city, you give and you expect to get. Around here, people give but can't take a thing in response.

I am slowly getting footing on what to photograph, but it's taking time.

I spent 2 years in a city of under 2000 people in central Illinois and it was great, didn't care who you were, or where you were from. If you were nice, they were nice. It's partially why I was willing to move to a smaller city in Kentucky. Its bizarre, people in these southern towns talk about how dangerous and rude "city people" are, but i've never felt more uncomfortable around my fellow man than I do here.

 

[Dan Daniel]

I spent 2 years in a city of under 2000 people in central Illinois and it was great, didn't care who you were, or where you were from. If you were nice, they were nice. It's partially why I was willing to move to a smaller city in Kentucky. Its bizarre, people in these southern towns talk about how dangerous and rude "city people" are, but i've never felt more uncomfortable around my fellow man than I do here.

Economics? The area I am in has had some serious economic shocks in the last few decades. And day to day life is hard for lots of people. Most anyone who doesn't have lots of money will have horror stories related to health insurance, for example. Well, whatever the cause, I try to ignore it in most cases and as I said am slowly finding ways to do some of the photography I enjoy without getting shot.

 

[awty]

Moved from a West Coast city to Vermont's biggest 'city' - 40,000 person cow town is what it is- and now outside Plattsburgh New York across the lake where towns are 3000 or less and corn and trees are more common. And yep, big changes that I am still not making sense of. The suspicion and outright anger of people is a big one. I had noticed in San Francisco the diminishing of street life for a while, but dang, out here in small towns, walking on a street or along a road means you have a giant target on your back. Be prepared to be aggressively confronted and interrogated over what you are doing, camera or not.

So in terms of darkroom setups, no difference- I can develop in a motel room and scan in the back side of my car if need be. But going from being among interesting sites where no one cares what you are up to, to needing to drive for any change of scenery and being certain to remember to stay in the public rightaway along a road so you don't trespass, to angry people hurling all sorts of accusations and insults and then them being surprised that you are not just rolling over in the face of their stupidity... well, it still throws me off. In a city, you give and you expect to get. Around here, people give but can't take a thing in response.

I am slowly getting footing on what to photograph, but it's taking time.

Thanks for reminding me never to move to USA. I'm more concerned about running into an angry brown snake, even they won't bother you if you don't stick your nose into their business.

 

[Flashcam]

Thanks so much for your perspective on moving, and what the struggle to move forward has been for you. The move and all the changes have been quite a shock. This site has been a great help making it possible to reach you people. Tom's mentioning of his interests in post-modern photography and art with it's implications and effects on his photography sent me looking back to my earlier studio portfolio work as well as some texts from my humanities classes. Shooting towards a thematic illustrative portfolio was done during my most fun times doing photos. As postmodern art and social ideas have been changing with the time passing, it will be good getting back with that flow of ideas! Too much commercial work takes time to re-adjust from. The small studio space and the lab are now progressing. That type of image production so long used for commercial work is now under control. The septic tank issue is worked out, and the electric just might hold. So thanks again for all of the input here! David

 

[loccdor]

After a move, all film photography equipment went into a big box for 10 years. After that much time had passed, it came down to "use it or lose it". I was about to sell everything, but I opened the box and tried shooting and developing again - then I wondered why I ever stopped.

 

[Flashcam]

After hours of working to set up computers for online sales of bunches of stuff, I can only swear by the value of shooting film and the darkroom fun again. Things were so much more manageable then and without a learning wall, not "curve", of constantly changing hardware and software, endlessly, that seem to be driven only by corporate capitalism, against many photographers attempting to just make a living. Only those working for corporations seem to do well now. As always, it's a great avocation, but not a good vocation.
It would be really fascinating if during this digital age that this economic dynamic will change for the better, for us. Otherwise, it's artsy-fartsy film and darkroom stuff for me! Thanks again for all your great ideas.

 

[JerseyDoug]

Sometimes it's the small things. In our previous home I had no good space for developing film. We had two bathrooms but both of them had very limited counter space and small awkwardly shaped sinks. I resorted to working in my office with a no running water or drain arrangement in a large darkroom tray. I had a 120 roll film tank and 600 ml graduates for developing 120 film but it was so much more convenient to develop 35mm film with a smaller tank and 300 ml graduates that I shot very little 120 film, despite a preference for my results with the larger negatives.

The guest bathroom in our new home has a large flat bottom sink and an adjacent countertop with plenty of space for the larger graduates. It is now just as easy for me to develop 120 film as 35mm film and after four years I am using my medium format cameras almost exclusively.

As regards opportunities for taking pictures, within walking distance of the old place I had a river and only a small wooded area. Within walking distance of the new place I have the headwater of the same river, a lake, a large pond with a fossil bed that attracts fossil hunters and photographers, and extensive wooded areas. All in all, I consider that the move has helped my photography.

 

[Flashcam]

Where you are would be a wonderful place to be! I am temporarily setting up a processing room where I can take the used water out easily using a somewhat short wash cycle and an evaporative setup. The space now has temp control baths for the processing of 120 film and after a while a larger space will be cleaned out for printing and graphic arts work. The studio photography I'm trained for will be great to get back to, especially with the film stored in my freezer. The responses given by you and the others on this forum have provided much inspiration for me to get back with this.

 

[VinceInMT]

I have moved about 2 dozen times in my lifetime so I’m used to dealing with new surroundings and both the challenges and opportunities that brings. My last move was into a house about 3 times the size of my previous one and the selling point (other than the price) was that I found a room in the basement, about 11’ x 11’, without a window. After accessing the drain line that ran under the floor and hot and cold from an nearby utility room, I finally had a wet darkroom.

As for how the change might have impacted what I shoot, while I’m an hour from the Beartooth mountains and surrounded by the scenery of the “Big Sky,” landscape and nature are probably what I shoot the least. I do like the agricultural items like grain elevators, hay bales, various equipment that I have no idea what it does, fencing, and the change that snow brings to all of that.

The other change was how I think about images. This was spurred by finding out that I could get a full tuition waiver at the university for obtaining a BFA due to either my veteran’s status or my age (over 65). That really gave me a new way of approaching my work.

 

[mr rusty]

Yes! Inherited a house back in 2017, which took 3 years to rebuild. Since we've been here, we've built a new garage, and a new garden room (all DIY) and, finally, on the horizon is my new darkroom!! I know where it's going, but it needs completely fitting out as it's a bare-brick coal store at the moment... I retire from the day job in 18 months, so hopefully a bit more free time!! I'll be back posting again hopefully in the future....