In Praise Of Old Things (No, not me)

[chuckroast]

It is my occasional habit to ditch eating lunch and go for a walk with a camera. I use this time to both test some new ideas, techniques, developers, etc. while at the same time trying to make real pictures. Of late, a fallen dead tree in a nearby forest preserve has captured my repeated attentions. The light at high noon on the dead branches against the darkness of the forest behind it is something I am still trying to conquer.

Anyway, today's exercise had to be quick since I had meetings all afternoon. I set up, shot 2 exposures each of 2x3 Tri-X and HP5+, and got back with plenty of time for the afternoon jawboning.

It was not until I processed the film after work that I realized I had just participated in an exercise where everything in the process except the chemistry was ... old.

I shot on a 2x3 "Baby" Speed Graphic with the aftermarket Graflok back upgrade I installed some years ago. I don't know when mine was made, but they went completely out of production by 1970.

The lens was a 180mm f/5.5 Tele-Arton - again I don't know the age of mine, which is pristine - but these were done in production in the late 1960s.

The best part was the film. The HP5+ expired in 2018 but that 2x3 Tri-X has an expiry date of Nov. 1969 (and I have multiple boxes stashed away too).

All old, all working quite nicely, thank you very much. The negs are hanging as I write this and they look just fine, though there may be just the slightest hint of fog on the Tri-X, but certainly nothing to worry about.

While the developer was fresh (D-23 1+9 + 0.5g NaOH/l), the formula is forever years ago old.

In a world in which everything seems to have a 10 minute half-life, it is somehow satisfying to realize that it is possible to do creative things using tools from a very old toolbox.

P.S. I guess it's time to start using the 1940s "Reporter" typewriter I bought for 75 cents at a garage sale 30 years ago. It is in perfect condition. They wanted $1 but I talked them down ...

 

[KinoGrafx]

There’s a photographer whose work I really admire, Eric Henderson, who uses (used? not sure if he’s still active) a Hawkeye Brownie- a great quote from him: “I use the Brownie camera exclusively, but not for any nostalgia. I mean, I dig the design and the 1950ness of it, but I'm intrigued by the idea of technology often advancing not because we've exhausted it, but rather because we simply want something new.” Kinda describes where photography is at right now, always wanting something new rather than making interesting images.