Revisiting old negatives and some thoughts about it

[darkosaric]

So, every 1-2 year I review my old negatives, I have scanned almost all of them (started in 2005 or so). I write on negative sleeves date, place, camera, lens, film and developer.

I have noticed couple of things:

- 90% of all my "good" photos I made with 50mm (Nikkor or Leitz) and 105mm (Nikkor f2.5). I ask myself - why do I have othere lenses ?
- I return often to places where I made "good" photos (good means it deserve to be printed on paper 30x40cm size). Istanbul, Warsaw and Rome are places where I made my best work.
- Here and there I change my mind - what I before thought "no good" - after couple of years I do print on paper.

What are you thoughts about this? Do you do similar work flow?

Thanks!

 

[Daniela]

I wouldn't dare say I have any kind of work flow since I'm very disorganized and currently keep stacks of negative sleeves in boxes. I do date them and write the location on them, go me!

I can certainly relate to going back to places where I found good pictures, in my case in the same city for the most part. I will go through bouts of going back several times in the span of two or three weeks until I feel like I need a change of scenery. I find this to be a great exercise for sharpening observation skills and experiencing surprise It keeps me curious, excited and light-hearted. Using just one camera and lens also helps me stay focused on observing.

As for reviewing negatives, I also find "new" ones when looking back. I think that distance from when the shooting happens really helps me see the photos more abstractly, if that makes any sense, and I get to appreciate them differently. Another cool aspect of this is that, as I try new things artistically, I can use pictures in a different way. For example, I'm now going through a period of intense collage making, and I get to play with them in a different way. It's a gift that keeps on giving!

 

[Rick A]

I review my negatives every few years and toss the ones I deem unworthy. Last year I printed a negative I shot over eight years prior, it was a bit stubborn but everyone loves the print.

 

[ic-racer]

Many times I’ll print something older from my negative archive. Though the 1970s and 1980s have nothing new, a few good new prints still come from the1990s and early 2000s.

 

[snusmumriken]

I leaf through my negative files now and again, hoping to find something good that I’d overlooked, but I never do.

 

[Pioneer]

As a personal observation, I don't feel that I look back on my negatives as often as I should, but when I do I am not usually looking for negatives to print. I do find those occasionally but I am usually trying to evaluate whether I am improving or not.

Lately I have been working with 35mm a lot more than in the past and I am not as pleased with my progress as I thought I would be. I really felt that being able to make more exposures by using a smaller negative would be helpful but I am beginning to believe that it isn't working out the way I thought it would.

Interestingly I think I was probably progressing more back when I was using large format. The difference was probably that I was paying more attention to my composition. Happy snapping seems more likely when I am using 35mm than with 8x10 or 11x14 film. I think I am beginning to realize that, for me at least, the use of 35mm is not the best way for me to improve. It seems to become more about quantity. Quality is certainly still possible but I haven't found it in my 35mm work as frequently as I thought I would when I started working with it.

Kind of odd how things don't always turn out how you planned. Anyway, I consider looking back over my old negatives/prints as more of a useful, personal, learning exercise.