do you give yourself mini projects, short assignments or ?

removed account4 · Aug 19, 2015

everyone works in different ways ..
some give themselves mini-assignments
( like the monthly shooting assignemnt here )
which focuses on DOF, composition, abstraction or whatever ...
some have a project they work on, like fire hydrants, mailboxes, public seats and
other "street furniture", or friends, family, strangers in their neighborhood, or the local tavern,
or movie palace or factory or stuff that is old and rustic and falling apart &c
still others buy fun gear and play with it, make new developers and play with them
just have a good time and don't really work in any sort of project or assignment mode ...

what is it that you do?
have any long or short term projects you are working on or recently finished ?
have any experiments you have been having fun with ( also includes sensometric/densimetric info gathering ) ...

or are you still deciding what it is you hope to do with your technical/artistic/neither camera-work ( or darkroom work )?

Ian Grant · Aug 19, 2015

I work almost exclusively on projects some longer term than others. The longest has been ongoing for nearly 30 years, the shortest might be a few hours. Some projects I finished and exhibited 20+ years ago get revisited occasionally and I might add new prints.

What little I shoot outside my main projects often provides the kernel for new projects at a later date.

Ian

Ricardo Miranda · Aug 19, 2015

I do sometimes some projects besides my "normal" themes.
At the moment I'm working in a 8mm film about street markets before they disappear or cine film goes away.

Bob Carnie · Aug 19, 2015

Yes - I work on many sub projects of a larger theme. I am about to photograph(solarize) my dogs bones(we have over thirty) a selection of small portfolio boxes black(think 2001 a space odessey) and a toy manufacturer is going to supply me with a rather large selection of their toys.

Each sub topic is photographed with three settings... BW normal process- print solarization, Colour Negative solarization- tri colour gum over palladium- and BW solarization processed neg- scanned- tri colour over palladium.

Never really know what will work or suit my fancy, lots of happy results, each sub project takes me two days to photograph and then process.. Printing is left for a later day.

I try to pick objects that I think I can work into the over all main topic or theme.

Bob Carnie · Aug 19, 2015

The simple fact that they are detailed out or sketched is half the battle.

Michael R 1974 said:
The only types of assignments I give myself simply involve getting things done, so they have nothing to do with the creative/idea side. I have a long list of photographs to make. They're all detailed out, sketched etc. but I am sluggish about actually "doing" them, so I sometimes need to push myself that way.

guangong · Aug 19, 2015

My last project? I could spit nails! Shot a large number of rolls of
Fomapan R 100 only to find the film
Discontinued in 36 exposure
.Didn't even develop the film yet.
Such are the times.

pdeeh · Aug 19, 2015

Hmm.

I've been photographing the light and shadow in three sections of the same planted wood for years now .. digital, film, the odd 'phone snap, all formats from 35mm to 10x8, lensed, pinhole, zoneplate ... then printed plain, cyanotyped, salted, lith ... or even just digitised ... I've never thought of it as a project, but there are settings there I want to "capture", and it's become part of my life. From time to time, I'll go back to the same particular tree(s) or patch of ground almost obsessively and take a similar photograph over and over in different light, always trying to get just that feeling ... is that a project?

This year I've become involved in sort of documentations-cum-collaborations with a performance artist (a close friend). It's something I'd like to do more of.

As part of the most recent of the latter, I spent a day testing paper for a piece of work we're doing together at the end of the month - systematically checking out three different types of paper to select just the right one for the event, making the same print a dozen or more times with different sizing, acidification and so on. It was tedious by the end but the test pieces are all retained to form part of the documentation for the event and form part of her archive.

(I can, as a result, wholeheartedly recommend Daler-Rowney Mixed Media pads for cyanotypes 250gsm, very robust, takes endless wet processing well, nice surface (two actually, they're slightly different), washes really quickly, holds the image well and doesn't absolutely require sizing or acidification, though a gelatine size will sharpen it a little bit if that's your bag)

Ian Grant · Aug 19, 2015

Michael R 1974 said:
The only types of assignments I give myself simply involve getting things done, so they have nothing to do with the creative/idea side. I have a long list of photographs to make. They're all detailed out, sketched etc. but I am sluggish about actually "doing" them, so I sometimes need to push myself that way.

Bob Carnie said:
The simple fact that they are detailed out or sketched is half the battle.

That's fine for constructed images but can't be done for the majority of the images I shoot where you need to approach the subject (in my case mostly landscapes) with an open mind. Of course you can go back once you know the location with a more preconceived approach, but often I only visit the location once.

Ian

Bob Carnie · Aug 19, 2015

Funny you should say that about camera work being the (durdgery) part... that is exactly how I feel about it as well, I enjoy the thinking in advance about the image, how I am going to do it, as well I kind of like the actual film process, but I find the actual shoot to be the most boring aspect.

After I have the film I sit on it for quite awhile before I make some simple test prints, then I think some more as to what I really want to do with the work as far as print process.

I have the luxury of a complete printing facility so I make test INKJETS manipulated the way I think I want the final print to look like, I make a small print of each and every significant exposure about 6 x9 and I keep each print in a large watercolour artist sketch book , I mount them in place. I will even go as far as making phoney prints in small size , matt them and over time keep looking at the work and only then will I start editing them down to a smaller body of work that I intend to edition.
I have only found myself reshooting subjects now if in the first place I did not do all three setups I explained in my first post.

I am now 10 years + into this project and have not yet bit the bullet and made a complete edition of any image, I am getting close but not quite there yet.

I too look forward to the months/YEARS of printing that this method of working will afford me.

QUOTE=Michael R 1974;1953778186]Good point. That's what keeps me going. That, and looking forward to printing. It's the final camera work that is the "drudgery" part for me, so it is sometimes difficult for me to actually get to it. Could be part of the nature of the subject matter. Also my own personality. But delaying too long with urban landscape type stuff can be costly since things change and then your shot is gone after you had it all figured out, metered etc.[/QUOTE]

Bob Carnie · Aug 19, 2015

I am not a landscape photographer by any stretch, but I have made thousands of medium format images of it... I actually like going to three two regions in Ontario. What come to mind are Muskoka region,Madawaska region and Cape Croker region.

I have gone to each region many, many times in my life and those visits have left strong mental images.

My landscape approach has always been to have an idea, concept in mind and only follow that , not letting the magnificence of outdoors influence me, so I do not go for walks and see what happens with the camera.

example- I decided that green was an obvious colour I wanted to print, and in Madawaska during rain the green is spectacular, so when we would go North- a Toronto saying BTW , I would wait for bad weather forecasts and try to go during the crappy weather. I would then only photograph scenes that have green as the dominant cast... so a bit like Michael I have sketched out in my mind a photographic approach.

Peltigera · Aug 19, 2015

I have two long term projects. One is mediaeval churches - I have essayed circa 25 churches so far. The other is buskers - this one is open-ended unlike the churches as there are more people taking up busking all the time.

I also carry a camera everywhere for anything that catches my eye.

Alan Klein · Aug 19, 2015

Ricardo Miranda said:
I do sometimes some projects besides my "normal" themes.
At the moment I'm working in a 8mm film about street markets before they disappear or cine film goes away.

Where do you buy the film and where do you develop it? good luck with your project.

removed account4 · Aug 20, 2015

thanks for talking about the long and short term projects and other"stuff" you are up to.
its great to read this sort of stuff because it gives hope and energy to some who might not be
as hopeful and energetic about the value of their own projects or thoughfulness of their own work.

i have a few projects i have been working on on and off for long and short term ... long term, i make portraits
of strangers, some may say character portraits some may say documentary style portraits whatever it is called, i make them
and i am not too particular about what camera i use ... its been as small as a 110 camera and as big as a 11x14,
its been on paper, glass, film .... not sure what i will be doing with all these people pictures besides making them, but it is something i have
started and stopped done it in drips and dribbles for a long time, something i guess i will do, so i can learn more about me and people i bump into.
other projects include haphazard documentation of the city where i live ( and eventually the state ). the city is kind of a weird place, was something like 13 mill villages that eventually
became a city, so there are hidden away enclaves no one knows about, residential regions, crumbling 19th century mill and energy infrastructure, sacred places from the people
who were here before the colonial period, remnants and the removal of it all that into "modern age" ...
i've also been doing something like pdeeh, photographing the same place/s now for 15 years. i keep going back to get something, i'm not sure what it is,
light, feeling, shadow, spirit, but something draws me to some of these places i keep going like a ghost hunter or treasure hunter keeps searching the same place for clues ...
i used to be more active doing "OUTSIDE" stuff with a camera but over the last few years i have also been working on an INSIDE projects ... and have fallen
back in love with liquid emulsions, primitive/non representational photography, enjoying how light changes emulsion, pushing myself to work more like a painter (?)
or instead of a documentarian with a lens. eventually i'm guessing it will all fall into the same stew and i will incorporate it all ( the portrats of people places and things )
but i haven't been inspired on how to do it ...

Ricardo Miranda · Aug 20, 2015

Alan Klein said:
Where do you buy the film and where do you develop it? good luck with your project.

Simply: http://foma-cz.cs4.cstech.cz/en/catalogue-fomapan-r-100-detail-273

I buy here: http://www.processuk.net/Fomapan_R_100_2_x_8mm_x_10m/p740597_12022915.aspx

Development will be by myself as soon as I get a L"omo" 16mm tank.

BTW, B&W 16mm (one perforation) and Double Super8 (DS8) are also made by Foma.
ADOX makes a B&W Super8 in a cartridge.

I am using a beautifully made Quarz (no T in there) M-2 mechanical camera.
Double8 from Foma comes in 10M rolls ready to load in camera.

DWThomas · Aug 20, 2015

As I read through here I was reminded of a verbal exchange at one engineering company where I worked:

"What is so-and-so's title?"
"He's a project engineer."
"Oh."
"Yeah, he makes a project out of everything."

Anyway, I'd say some of my best work comes out of small "projects," but I am way better at starting projects than finishing them (ask My Faire Spouse!) More often than not the projects are initiated by some random accidental event or glance at something not previously noticed, as opposed to staying up late "trying to think up something."

In fact this thread is timely, I've been invited to put some pieces in an upcoming local show that's themed on preservation, open space, etc., but it's supposed to be just this county and my last shots (just this past Saturday) would fit the theme but are the wrong county. And the time window is closing and I have a couple of other fires to put out. So I shouldn't be sitting here typing, but I hate being under pressure (or told what to do!), especially when I'm retired and the goal is having fun.

"Life is what happens while you're making other plans ..."

4season · Aug 20, 2015

If everyday life can be called a project, then yes I assign myself photo projects all the time

The closest things I have to actual projects are eBay product photos, and the day-to-day process of deciding which images are worth keeping and fussing-over and which can be disposed of immediately.

As my eBay product shots have improved, these have sometimes become a source of satisfaction in their own right.

Edit edit edit: Frequent and fast review sessions of the latest images. What's working? What's leaving me cold? I like to do this while the event itself is fresh in my mind. I like to work relatively quickly and ruthlessly. Because instead of agonizing over whether to keep an iffy image, I feel like I could be out creating a stronger one.

As far as the bulk of my image-creation goes, everything's fair game. Always looking for qualities of light and happenstance which can transform an everyday scene into something else. Sometimes I'll completely fail to capture the mood, and might revisit the theme over and over again before something "clicks" with me (if it ever does). Which might sound like a recipe for frustration, but often when one thing's not working, there are other photo opportunities to be had, so I don't dwell on it for long.

TheFlyingCamera · Aug 20, 2015

I've been working on several projects over the last six months or so, just shooting what I see in my daily peregrinations. Even though I'm travelling the same route every day, more or less, I'm always finding new things to photograph in that process. I think it's been a great experience to focus (pun intended) my photographic vision so I'm more observant and it makes me take better pictures because I'm always re-thinking the things I've photographed before.

Sirius Glass · Aug 20, 2015

Sometimes I give myself a photo assignment.

winger · Aug 20, 2015

I haven't really done many projects because I tend to just shoot what I can, when I can. I don't have the "luxury" of choosing to shoot on my schedule. I do have a general project of Ohiopyle State Park that's ongoing and might never really be "done." I frequently see things as I'm driving by at 60mph that I'd like to shoot and could maybe make part of a project, but I don't have time to just do it, yet. Part of my problem is that during the best light, I'm either getting Nate up and moving or I'm making or eating dinner. I can't just run out to wherever to go shoot. And we live far enough out that everywhere is a drive.
My favorite part is a toss-up between shooting and darkroom. I really enjoy being out somewhere with a camera or two. I possibly have projects or starts to them in all my images, but I don't always do anything with them once I've shot them. Or I'll print them and stick them in a box. If they're not completely what I was going for, their value goes down fast.

Nathan King · Aug 21, 2015

Most of my work stems from projects. I just started a project documenting the nightlife in a hot area of town. I suspect it will take a year's worth of Friday and Saturday nights before I have enough material.

Bob Carnie · Aug 21, 2015

Hi Nathan

Have you ever considered infared film with a infared flash.. would make possibilities that normal flash may not allow.. I have always thought this type of documentation would be great project.

Nathan King said:
Most of my work stems from projects. I just started a project documenting the nightlife in a hot area of town. I suspect it will take a year's worth of Friday and Saturday nights before I have enough material.

removed account4 · Aug 21, 2015

Bob Carnie said:
Hi Nathan

Have you ever considered infared film with a infared flash.. would make possibilities that normal flash may not allow.. I have always thought this type of documentation would be great project.

me too ... or "hyping" the film so it didn't need a flash would be pretty cool too

Nathan King · Aug 22, 2015

Bob Carnie said:
Hi Nathan

Have you ever considered infared film with a infared flash.. would make possibilities that normal flash may not allow.. I have always thought this type of documentation would be great project.

I have indeed. A portion of the project will utilize infrared flash. It should be a fun exercise in pushing the materials to their limit.

Bob Carnie · Aug 22, 2015

That's great Nathan, I think this will allow you to be less prominent in a crowd and give you more opportunities.

Now all you need to do is use a rollieflex and look down on the viewfinder with the lens pointing a different direction from your body angle, you will really then catch people unaware.

QUOTE=Nathan King;1953779188]I have indeed. A portion of the project will utilize infrared flash. It should be a fun exercise in pushing the materials to their limit.[/QUOTE]

Nathan King · Aug 22, 2015

Bob Carnie said:
That's great Nathan, I think this will allow you to be less prominent in a crowd and give you more opportunities.

Now all you need to do is use a rollieflex and look down on the viewfinder with the lens pointing a different direction from your body angle, you will really then catch people unaware.

I've already exposed a frame before people notice me. That's a benefit of using the same camera constantly for a few years, I'm quick.

do you give yourself mini projects, short assignments or ?

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