Let's All Print (or Maybe Scan) One Negative 2025

[Don_ih]

Is it too late for a scanned file?

Nope. Anyone can sign up for the scanned file until results start to get posted. The scan is not yet available.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

Great! I'm in for a scanned file, then.

 

[dcy]

Post #56 says that there were two negatives left as of the time of writing. Post #57 claimed one negative. I did not see anyone else claim the last negative, but I might have missed it.

If there's one negative left, I would love to have it. If not, I would like to request the scan.

Thanks for organizing this. I'm kinda terrified at my meager work appearing next to other people's.

 

[MattKing]

I'm kinda terrified at my meager work appearing next to other people's.

You need to reframe that.
I'd suggest something like: "I'm looking forward to seeing how the work of other, more experienced printers compares to mine, and I'm looking forward to how much I might learn".
To which I would respond with something like: "I'm looking forward to seeing what others do with this, including seeing what fresh viewpoints people with less experience will bring to it".

 

[koraks]

Post #56 says that there were two negatives left as of the time of writing. Post #57 claimed one negative. I did not see anyone else claim the last negative, but I might have missed it.

People sometimes arrange things in the background without posting in a public thread; maybe that's what happened here as well. Just a guess; IDK.

Either way, feel confident in printing this negative. It's not a contest!

 

[Don_ih]

@dcy - send me your address. That will be the last one claimed.

As for being terrified about that, well, there's no reason. Part of what's interesting about this activity is seeing how different people realize different possibilities from the same thing - perhaps possibilities no one else even conceived. This isn't a right or wrong thing. So whatever you do, try to do it as well as you can.

And if you have difficulties, you can always blame the guy who exposed the film.

 

[dcy]

Woot!

Thanks for the encouragement. I've sent you my address.

 

[Alex Benjamin]

And if you have difficulties, you can always blame the guy who exposed the film.

Hey! Don't play spoiler! That was my plan all along!

 

[Don_ih]

And they're all in the mail. A couple of you will get them soon. Some of these have quite a distance to travel, though.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

You need to reframe that.
I'd suggest something like: "I'm looking forward to seeing how the work of other, more experienced printers compares to mine, and I'm looking forward to how much I might learn".
To which I would respond with something like: "I'm looking forward to seeing what others do with this, including seeing what fresh viewpoints people with less experience will bring to it".

Or his response might be after seeing them, " Gee, I didn't realize how good my work is and how many so-so photographers there are here." (Including me)

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

Hey! Don't play spoiler! That was my plan all along!

Blame the post office.

 

[Don_ih]

Or his response might be after seeing them, " Gee, I didn't realize how good my work is and how many so-so photographers there are here." (Including me)

That's true, too. The fact is, everyone has a different range of tastes and expectations. Different people like different things. When it comes to photography, what one person thinks is great another might think is crap.

There is a bit more objective judgment available when talking about technical aspects, although there's still room to justify almost anything you choose to do.

 

[Doggy-wuff]

This is such a cool idea!

I'll have to catch it next year.

 

[dcy]

Or his response might be after seeing them, " Gee, I didn't realize how good my work is and how many so-so photographers there are here." (Including me)

A lesser known aspect of the Dunning-Kruger effect is that (1) the most talented people underestimate their own competence because they underestimate how difficult a task is for other people, even when they are trying to adjust, and (2) when shown the work of other people, the most talented people re-assess their own perceived competence upward to better align with reality, but the least talented people do not re-assess because they honesty can't tell the difference.

 

[Don_ih]

Anyone participating here should consider joining The Blind Print Exchange. It's sign-up month. The more, the merrier!

 

[koraks]

On the digital/scan front, a little update as well: the scans will be made available around mid-next week (Sept 18th-ish). This is to enable at least some of the people who will receive negatives to have a look at the real thing before edits start showing up. No, it's not a waterproof system, and it doesn't need to be, but it seems nice if at least a good chunk of the participants can get started at roughly the same time.

 

[Nicholas Lindan]

We all suffer from Dunning-Kruger. Everyone thinks they are smarter than they really are and thinks they know more than they really do.

The effect seems to be caused by knowing of someone who you think is stupider and more ignorant than yourself.

 

[dcy]

We all suffer from Dunning-Kruger. Everyone thinks they are smarter than they really are and thinks they know more than they really do.

That is not what the Dunning-Kruger paper found. Setting aside the fact that what they studied was not IQ, they found that, yes, most participants overestimated their performance in whichever task was being tested, but time after time, the top quartile of participants slightly under-estimated their performance.

I read the paper some years ago, but I can't find a link to it right now.

 

[Don_ih]

There will be no grading of results in this exercise.

Everyone should just try to get the result they want. There's no scale. There's no correct way to get to the result.

I should say, also, there is no incorrect way to get to whatever result you want.

 

[koraks]

There is no right or wrong
Only tin cans and cordite and white cliffs and blue skies and flight

 

[Alex Benjamin]

Got my negative today !

Not opening the envelope until my next darkroom session, which is Friday...

 

[MattKing]

Mine arrived today as well!

 

[Don_ih]

I'm amazed it got to you so quickly, Matt. I'm not surprised Alex got his - he's much closer to me (no major mountain range in the way, either). @cowanw should have his, also, because he's closest of all. But who can say with the vagaries of the postal service...

@Alex Benjamin -- I'd actually advise you to gain a tiny bit of familiarity with that negative before you go to your darkroom session.

 

[Alex Benjamin]

@Alex Benjamin -- I'd actually advise you to gain a tiny bit of familiarity with that negative before you go to your darkroom session.

Already taken care of ! Made it my favorite pasta recipe and will serve it with a good bottle of red tonight, so we'll have time to chat and learn about each other.

 

[MattKing]

Don,
I'm not particularly surprised that I got it as quickly as Alex did - Canada Post is pretty good with sending mail between the Provinces.
Where it slows down sometimes seems to be at the ends of the process.