MSA march/april 2020 - Beauty/soul/fun/mood/? of technology.

Theme for march and april is beauty/soul/fun/mood/? of technology.


We all use many kinds of technologies every day. Not only computers, cars, airplanes and robots are technology, but houses, tables, coffee cups, carpets and books too.

According to philosopher José Ortega y Gasset technology is something we use to ease the undesirable conditions of nature and adapt to them: We have a house to get away from coldness of winter, a bicycle and a car to travel faster and easier, and a book so that we don’t have to remember everything. We tend to think technology’s most important features are efficiency and practicality: Car is more practical than a bicycle, computer is in many ways better than a book and digital cameras are more popular than film cameras because of practical reasons. We like to make our life practical and easy.

But the best things in life aren’t practical and efficient. We make deep bonds with things, we all have special items we cherish and sometimes it feels like some machine could have a soul. Old steam engine is not practical but it’s otherwise impressive. Riding a bicycle up a hill isn’t as fast and easy as driving a car, but bicycling has other desirable qualities. Making a coffee in a campfire isn’t as practical as using an electric coffee maker, but it has some other fine qualities. Printing in darkroom has entirely different mood than sitting in front of a computer.


It’s those other qualities that this theme is about. What makes us abandon practicality and do things the hard way? Is it beauty, soulfulness, fun or just plain stubborness? I’d like to see pictures about that.

You can just post a picture, or if you like you can also write something about it.

And here’s one as an example. We have this old sauna with no electric light but this traditional method instead. It’s dark and impractical but we couldn’t even think about modernizing it with led technology as is usual nowadays. It would change the subtle and ascetic mood entirely. "The other quality", or in this case traditionality and mood, is more important than practicality.



The picture is also linked to darkroom work. It’s digital scan of a negative (with curves adjusted). I’m not experienced in darkroom printing and I haven’t been able to make a good print of this yet, but it’s a work in progress. Why don’t I settle for this digital file and make a print from it? It would be easier, less time consuming and in many ways more rational, but holding a self-made print has that ”other quality”.

Now I got it - great theme for the MSA !!

I hope the theme is clear enough. I've been writing and thinking about these things lately, and there's always a risk of uncomprehensible jargon in these somewhat philosophical themes, especially when not using native language!

Oh my.. got the juices rolling...

Marttiko said:

risk of uncomprehensible jargon in these somewhat philosophical themes, especially when not using native language!

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Hmmm ... my interpretation:
Beauty, soul, fun, mood, captured in the technology of a captured image, .. to portray all four, .. with perhaps a mysterious fascination.of what the image is trying to depict, or what it is of. To be done in a particular way, by each individual viewer. Achieved, by the photographer, as in your example: "old sauna with no electric light but this traditional method instead" In such a manner, as not to make it obvious, but requiring the participation of the viewer to complete the meaning of the image through their own life experience, of what it is portraying.

Oh boy going to be a fun challenge!
Thank you..
.

A very interesting MSA theme indeed.
A reminder to everyone that photos need to have been taken no earlier than March 1, 2020, and that the "analogue" restrictions described in the guidelines linked to below apply.
I'll do my magic with Sticky threads, and I'll update the historical list of themes.
A link to the guidelines: https://www.photrio.com/forum/threa...vised-2015-07-further-revised-2019-07.126124/
There is a lot you can do with this - this ineligible pre-existing photo of my very first 35mm camera comes to mind:

peter k. said:

Oh my.. got the juices rolling...

Hmmm ... my interpretation:
Beauty, soul, fun, mood, captured in the technology of a captured image, .. to portray all four, .. with perhaps a mysterious fascination.of what the image is trying to depict, or what it is of. To be done in a particular way, by each individual viewer. Achieved, by the photographer, as in your example: "old sauna with no electric light but this traditional method instead" In such a manner, as not to make it obvious, but requiring the participation of the viewer to complete the meaning of the image through their own life experience, of what it is portraying.

Oh boy going to be a fun challenge!
Thank you..
.

Click to expand...

Contemplating on the subject is of course appreciated! Feel free to interpret the subject and challenge yourself accordingly!

Something like that? Older shot so not valid: Pinhole selfmade 4X5" "old-fashioned laundry drying"

Bertus said:

Something like that? Older shot so not valid: Pinhole selfmade 4X5" "old-fashioned laundry drying"

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Same here, Bertus - waiting for the sun to dry in the garden. I have designer underwear too !
Not a recent one, so out of competition :


Nikon F4 - AF Nikkor 35-70mm f/2.8 - Provia 100

Yes, as soon as the laundry is dry we can go outside again

macfred said:

Same here, Bertus - waiting for the sun to dry in the garden. I have designer underwear too !
Not a recent one, so out of competition :

View attachment 241592
Nikon F4 - AF Nikkor 35-70mm f/2.8 - Provia 100

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Just to clarify - is this about the beauty/soul/mood/etc of old(er) technology?

I was mainly thinking about old, but It doesn't have to be if it is somehow special to you.

Marttiko said:

I was mainly thinking about old, but It doesn't have to be if it is somehow special to you.

Click to expand...

Thanks. It’s a really interesting theme, I hope I can find some good examples.

Sailing ships in Dordrecht. Behind it the Stochholm warehouse. The facade lean forward to keep it dry. That was an effective technical adjustment.
Last weekend, sunny. Bronica SQai 80 mm 1/250- F 8,5. Ilford FP4 in HC110 dill B 9 min. I see now I have to buy new chemistry. There are white flakes and grains in the negative.

Nice pictures, and ships are my favourite! In fact me and my wife visited a very good friend in Turku in 2017 when there was Tall ships' race. And it was one of the best days so far. My wife loves sailing ships but we rarely see them because we live inland. In fact she cried a little because of the beauty and gloriousness of the ships. As everyone of course knows Finland is the land of thousand lakes. Boats are ordinary here but seaships are entirely different breed.

I was browsing some of my photos and came across these old ones I took 14 years ago when I was working at a living history museum in Toronto. Of course they're not eligible but I thought I would share them in this thread as they really remind me of the beauty/fun of old technology and why I enjoyed working there so much.

Lock #6 on the C&O Canal. It's a piece of 19th century technology that is beautiful in its simplicity. It's a meditative experience to go visit the canal and walk along the towpaths, and when operating, watch the canal boats rise and fall in the locks. Shot with another piece of technology that's extremely beautiful - my Canham 8x10 wood field camera.

Alright - here are my submissions! Excuse the quality, my scanner isn't working so these are quick and dirty iPhone snaps of the prints I made last night.

These were taken at the Keage Incline in Kyoto. The prefecture to the east is Shiga, and it is home to the largest lake in Japan (Lake Biwa). During the Meiji era the Biwa Canal was built between Lake Biwa and Kyoto and the canal allowed for the transport of water, goods, and people. It ended at Keage, and here there is an aqueduct, hydro-electric plant, and a rail that allowed the laden boats to travel from the canal further into the city. Now, the entire area is a tourist site, and I like coming here for walks and photography, since it is always open, and it doesn't attract the same kind of crowds as some of the first-tier sites do in Kyoto. That said, in the spring time the Keage Incline is packed with people because the entire incline is lined with cherry trees, this year I was able to visit and photograph it with very few people in my photos. Don't know when (and if) that will ever happen again.

Image 1, 3, and 4 are all of the aqueduct. Image 4 I shot with a pinhole for WPPD. Normally these arches are full of people trying to take selfies, but with the current situation, not people were around and I was able to get my 2 min+ exposures in. Image 2 is of the rail line that connected the canal to the downtown area of Kyoto.

Here is my submission. This photograph was taken on our cattle ranch in western Wyoming and is of saddles located in our tack room near the door. In this modern word of AI controlled robotics, saddle horses still play a key roll in cattle ranching in the western USA. There isn't much more joyful than moving cattle on comfortable saddle with a good ranch horse. Even better on nice weather days. Poor lighting in this 80 year horse barn make getting your saddle near the door a prime position! I tried to capture dimly lit mood of the room with the bright glow from the door.

Digital pic of 4x5 neg (HP5+). Image inverted and small changes to contrast and so forth made.

Nice to see more submissions. I was afraid that there would only be two. I forgot my computer in my cabin and have only a phone for few days so you have to wait a while, but in thursday I can look at the pictures properly and pick my favourite.

Thanks Martikko - we won't mind if it takes a bit of time.

I like all of the pictures. I think they all portray the quiet mood, which is present in many older technologies. For example sailing ships compared to motor boats, old canals compared to motorways and wooden tack room with that dim natural lighting compared to modern, brightly lighted store room. I've never seen actual aqueduct, but I would think that they tend to radiate calmness and stillness around them. All these technologies are now more or less obsolete, but they have some other non-practical qualities which have deep impact on people.

I think wyofilm is the winner. That's because cattle ranching with a horse is a living tradition that is practical and yet has many special qualities which I believe makes it very important part of ranchers' lifestyle. And I can relate to the hardships of photographing that kind of room as old, dark log buildings are one of my favourite subjects!

Well done Martikko, and congratulations wyofilm.
I look forward to seeing what wyofilm comes up with for a theme for the next MSA.

Thanks! Martikko and Matt. I will have the next MSA shortly.