Postcard Exchange Round 48 Comments and Feedback

[Ariston]

I just received "Stay right there!" from bedrof. Man, oh man, what a perfectly executed photo. The lighting, the framing, the printing, all so wonderful. Thank you! I am not able to do darkroom prints myself yet, so I don't know a lot about paper, but the texture of this Slavich Bromportrait paper is absolutely wonderful.

I love every part of this print. Thank you!

 

[bedrof]

A card from bedrof, a studio shot of a photographer instructing a model, good use of props and lighting is very good , very nice thanks Ilya.

Mike

I just received "Stay right there!" from bedrof. Man, oh man, what a perfectly executed photo. The lighting, the framing, the printing, all so wonderful. Thank you! I am not able to do darkroom prints myself yet, so I don't know a lot about paper, but the texture of this Slavich Bromportrait paper is absolutely wonderful.

I love every part of this print. Thank you!

I'm very glad to hear the cards are reaching their destination. Mike and Ariston, thank you for your kind comments!

 

[iandvaag]

Howard Earl – Waterfall Bulls Bridge Kent, Ct – I like the contrast in textures between the blurred frothing water and jagged rocks on the bank.

BSP – Teufelsberg Tower – The incredibly high contrast, graphic look suits the subject well. Seems like a good set for a movie set in a dystopian future.

jvo – ALIEN – Interesting printing technique: very dark, but also low contrast with low Dmax; a combination I’ve not seen before.

mike c – California Reindeer Antler – I actually really like how the limited DOF makes the “antlers” go soft. Nice contrast against the interesting cloud formations in the sky.

Gijsbert – Old tree – I love the satin surface of the paper you selected for this image. It really emphasizes the tones and the curvy form of the wood. And it was lovely to include the mountain in the background which really balances the frame nicely.

Thanks all!

 

[Rowreidr]

I too have now received Rowreidr's card of pier 81. I love the square format (of which I like to do a lot!) that it's been cropped to, along with the shallow depth of field.

I am curious though about the list of various cameras, lenses and printer, listed on the back of the print though? I'm guessing it's made from a neg in film camera; the neg then photographed and then printed on inkjet? Have I missed a comment about it's production?

Terry S

Thanks for the comments, mine will be coming soon...

Just to clarify, shot square on a lomo LC-A 120 with expired Foma 200/Ilford DDX, digitized with a Canon 6d with macro lens, curves and sliders in PS, printed with a consumer Canon printer on fine art baryta paper from Red River. It was actually my first time printing for complete strangers.

Spent a lot of time experimenting and messed up the paper uptake mechanism on the printer, but had a lot of fun.

 

[BSP]

The experimenting is more than half the fun! Isn't it?

 

[tezzasmall]

Thanks for the comments about how you went about producing your picture Rowreidr.

Terry S

 

[Black Dog]

I really enjoyed exploring the layers of patterns in that one!

 

[mfohl]

Wow! I received not one but two really nice cards today. Bedrof's "Old House, Hot Sun", an old stone house taken on a tropically sunny day. The red filter makes the sky almost black. Nice! And Wayne Frederick's beach photo taken at low tide in South Portland Maine. Taken with an old Kodak Bullet camera, and processed with possibly older developing equipment.

Two great cards! Thanks Ilya and Wayne!

 

[tezzasmall]

And Wayne Frederick's beach photo taken at low tide in South Portland Maine. Taken with an old Kodak Bullet camera, and processed with possibly older developing equipment.

And I too have just received Wayne's card.

First impressions on seeing the print and then starting to read the text, was that it was a card for the 'toy camera exchange', especially as it was shot on a 127 film format camera, with soft lens details as expected.

But no! It is for this round of the Postcard Exchange!

I always enjoy hearing how participants produce their work, and this one was really interesting and will have me googling for a while.

I find it interesting that 'in the old days' and obviously today as well, the way films were processed, then and today by Wayne. It's intriguing that one loaded the film AND the backing paper into a tank, and then filling it with chemicals with both the film and backing paper still in it, for the film to be developed! I find it hard to imagine opening the tank at the end of the process, and having to take out a very soggy backing paper, before washing the film. I presume the paper is tough enough to hold together during this process?

Whatever the process used, I love the soft and nostalgic looking print received. It's almost timeless, with its lack of modern details to date the picture of a beach scene, with small background details of people, trees and a few buildings.

Many thanks Wayne.

Terry S

 

[Howard Earl]

Just received Wayne Frederick's beach photo taken at low tide in South Portland Maine. Very moody photo looks painterly.
Nice job.

 

[mike c]

I have also received Wayne's post card. The grainy fore ground and stick like figures of the people on the beach make for an interesting break from the background, nicely composed. A interesting processing procedure also, thanks Wayne.

Mike

 

[BSP]

I also received @Wayne Frederick's postcard today. Excellent work, I was very pleased with it, like the many recipients before me.

Thanks very much Wayne and also for the "making of" story you put on the back of it. This inspires me to make more of an effort in describing the process behind my own postcards in round 49 and further.

 

[bedrof]

Oh, I just got the "Alien" card by jvo.
Despite what looks like some men in black tried to remove an important part of the image (to keep secrets safe?), the concept of the image is still well read and it is very impressive to my eye. And thank you James for the great story on the back of the card. I wonder what other creatures might be lurking in that primeval rainforest.

 

[bedrof]

Back to the pile...
A view of a pier by Ariston shot at long exposure. I believe this is sort of a classic composition for such scene. Looks very nice.
"California Reindeer Antlers" by mike c. It took me a couple of moments to get the concept right. And I really love the tones. I have a zero experience with TMY using mostly HP5+ and Fomapan 400, but should give this Tmax stock a try.
Thank you guys!

 

[Wayne Frederick]

Thanks All, for the favorable comments about my card of the beach scene, I am really glad you liked it!

I have received 15 cards so far; I like all of them a lot:

Ariston - a somewhat terrifying shot of a railroad in motion, the train moves while the rails and the rail bed vibrate.
awty- a wired self-portrait in cyanotype, thanks for the info on the processing.
bedrof- sunny and hot old house, nicely printed. I see some shade creeping up on the right.
Black Dog- a field in the hot sun with a mysterious pool of cool, soothing water in the shade, a nice combination.
BSP- nice detail photo of contra bass, I like the shadow.
drpsilver- somewhat scary photo of fibonacci cactus, well done.
gijsbert- a really old tree; the detail is wonderful.
Howard Earl- beautiful waterfall scene.
iandvaag- old grain elevator photo with great dramatic light.
jvo- really creepy alien. It is hard for me to look at this, it is so scary(no joke).
MattKing- picture of an interesting old tree, nicely done. Thanks for the info on processing.
mfohl- street scene in Paris; I like the shadows on the window curtains.
mike c- antlers on pickup truck, made more mysterious by dark printing which suggests a storm is approaching.
Rowreidr- nice arrangement of buoys; I like the figures in the distance.
vedostuu- a nice soft ficus; reminds me a little bit of some pictorial photos of the early 1900's.

 

[radiant]

Wayne Frederick - got your card. Just amazing work. The photo itself is stopping one and glad that you explained how the photo was made - just beautiful. Real vintage. The photo itself is timeless. And fiber paper. 10/10. Top notch!

 

[mfohl]

I just received darinwc's nice photo of some granite and trees in Carmichael, CA. It came as a later, but it came nonetheless. Thanks, Darin!

 

[mike c]

Darin's card came today also, like the group of rocks with the well shaped tree behind them. The rock formation and the way they are standing on end reminds of Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England.

 

[drpsilver]

11 Feb 2020

Two cards arrived recently. The card from Wayne Frederick has a very "retro" feel, both print and subject. I am impressed that you assembled such a complete collection of "old-time equipment" for this project. Well done. The other card from darinwc of a juxtaposed tree and rocks. Nice composition on what I immediately noticed as slightly fogged paper. I believe that every darkroom photographer has made the same mistake at one time in their career.

Regards,
Darwin

 

[Black Dog]

Wow! I received not one but two really nice cards today. Bedrof's "Old House, Hot Sun", an old stone house taken on a tropically sunny day. The red filter makes the sky almost black. Nice! And Wayne Frederick's beach photo taken at low tide in South Portland Maine. Taken with an old Kodak Bullet camera, and processed with possibly older developing equipment.

Two great cards! Thanks Ilya and Wayne!

+1 on that from me too...totally agree with the above comments. Thanks!

 

[darinwc]

I just received darinwc's nice photo of some granite and trees in Carmichael, CA. It came as a later, but it came nonetheless. Thanks, Darin!

Thanks.. yes finally got them out in the mail.
I apologise for the delay. I have not been able to do much of anything these past few months!

 

[BSP]

I finally received a letter in the mail on Valentines Day

Whoohoo!!!!!

Thanks @darinwc for your "lovely" photograph.
The small goof-up with the paper fogging only adds to the romanticism of these exchanges.

See you on the next round!

Bill

 

[Wayne Frederick]

I received a card from darinWC showing some interesting boulders and a tree in an otherwise grassy location. I do not mind that it is printed dark, in fact I like it.
Thanks Darin for including the info on the Fuji/Fujica GW type camera you used. I have always wanted to own a GW690.

Wayne

 

[Black Dog]

I received a card from darinWC showing some interesting boulders and a tree in an otherwise grassy location. I do not mind that it is printed dark, in fact I like it.
Thanks Darin for including the info on the Fuji/Fujica GW type camera you used. I have always wanted to own a GW690.

Wayne

Thanks from me too-nice seeing! Also loving the alien from jvo...dark and moody prints always appeal to me.

 

[Ariston]

I received a photo of Willard Beach from Wayne. Maine is a place I would really like to visit, so I enjoy the subject matter very much. It was taken and processed with equipment and techniques that were around before any of us were born, which I love, and which is impressive. I fail so often at such things...

Thank you, Wayne!