The Silver Conference Should be Starting about now....

[jovo]

What can we do as photographers to get the word out that film is not dead and encourage new photographers to take the dark room route?

An excellent review, Aggie, from what I could quickly skim. I'll read it slowly and more carefully later. Thanks for taking the time.

What can we do? For one thing, we can encourage the makers of traditional camera equipment and supplies to continue to advertise. The power of advertising is so great that when a critical mass of potential customers no longer believes there is any future in that equipment and material (thank you Mr. Perez you yutz!!) they will abandon it as if it were actually true. We can likewise continue to press the editors and publishers of the magazines so many photographers read to write as if the glass were half full instead of half empty. When Outdoor Photography magazine proclaims the wonders of digiography then includes a majority of images made with film on LF cameras, we have to do more than protest that to each other. We have to write in large numbers to request such a magazine quit the hypocrisy.

 

[Richard Newman]

HI Aggie,

It was great to have you and APUG there, thatnks for the help on Saturday night. We will be posting the winners of the competition in a couple of days on the Calumet web site. It will take longer to get the images posted becuase we'll have to retrieve scans from the winners, there was simply no way to do that there as you know. I have processed my FILM and we'll get some of the panels, speakers and book signing images up in a few days. Thanks again for being there and good luck in May, I bet yours will be really fun!
Best
Richard

 

[photomc]

Thanks for the reports everyone. Just one question comes to mind. Did anyone mention color? It seems like all we are hearing here is B&W, which is only one part of traditional photography.

Understand where you are coming from Robert, but probably the main reason there was no mention of color can be found as part of the statement on Calumets site describing Silver...
"ILFORD Photo and Calumet Photographic are jointly sponsoring Silver, an international forum for devotees of traditional black-and-white photography, including a conference, a photo competition and a commemorative book, along with informal discussion gatherings and related events."

Perhaps it is time to get Fujifilm to do the same thing for color films.....just a thought.

 

[BWKate]

What about some kind of list of the winners?

 

[Aggie]

The enlarger from Calumet will be out shortly. John Sexton is in the process of testing it now.

Kate, Richard said above he will have a list in a couple of days on the calumet site. I looked at all the winners and honerable mentions. There were no apuggers in them.

 

[André E.C.]

Thanks Matt for the initiative, lee, Les, Aggie and Sharon for the support!
Special mention to the image makers contributing to the project, great images from all of you!

Cheers

André

 

[Bob Carnie]

bit of bragging rites here.
My client Aroura Galluzo won second prize. I am so happy for her and she just got the news. She will be at the APUG Conference and I can tell you she just started photography 5 years ago , only shoots film and she is extremely please as this was the first contest she ever entered. I am sure she will become an APUGer or my name is mudd
With her winnings I will force her to take 5 of the Conference courses rather than the two she had decided on.

 

[Richard Newman]

HI Aggie and all,

I just need to make a few corrections. Dennnis Keeley is with Art Center College of Design and John Sexton is not testing the LED head. Alan Ross has tested it and there is a review in View Camera.
Thanks again to all from APUG who supported this. We'll have the winners up in a day or so.
Richard

 

[roteague]

HI Aggie and all,

I just need to make a few corrections. Dennnis Keeley is with Art Center College of Design and John Sexton is not testing the LED head. Alan Ross has tested it and there is a review in View Camera.
Thanks again to all from APUG who supported this. We'll have the winners up in a day or so.
Richard

Richard, next time don't forget about COLOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Some actually do the majority of their work in color.

 

[Aggie]

Richard, next time don't forget about COLOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Some actually do the majority of their work in color.

I sympathize with you Robert, but it was a conference devoted to Black and White. Richard bless his heart did a fantastic job pulling an outstanding conference together. It will grow I'm sure.

Robert I have a suggestion, why not really do some ground work and see what it would take to do a color conference? You could also include such things as the Marshall people who do the retouching dyes and the paints. I think it would be very enlightening. Even a poll here on apug would give you an indication as to how many would attend. Just think, Jack Dykinga, and George Dewolf(I like him) would be awesome.

 

[roteague]

I sympathize with you Robert, but it was a conference devoted to Black and White. Richard bless his heart did a fantastic job pulling an outstanding conference together. It will grow I'm sure.

Sorry Aggie, but color film also has SILVER, it is also part of traditional photography. Not including color is just plain shortsighted, and shows a lack of respect for the process of color photography, IMO.

 

[Aggie]

Sorry Aggie, but color film also has SILVER, it is also part of traditional photography. Not including color is just plain shortsighted, and shows a lack of respect for the process of color photography, IMO.

All the literature for the conference stated it was about Black and White photography. Ilford was the other half of the group putting this on. They have no color products. The Ilfachrome or what ever its name is, is produced by the Swiss group, which is not part of this Ilford group.

I personally would love to see a conference that was about color. I use to do color back in the early 70's before jobo's became a big thing. Trying to keep temps constant while pouring a tray full of chemicals back into alittle jar in total darkness was a skill not easily learned.

 

[Robert Brummitt]

I'm also a color photographer. It would have been nice to include Christopher Burkett. I understand that this was a Black and White gig but a little color never hurts anyone.
I'm just glad to have met all of the fellow Apuggers there. Now, I have a face to go with the name when we chat on line. Thanks.
I'm telling all my Pacific Northwest photographers to come down when the conference happens. Like I said before I'll start saving my money for next year. It would be interesting to see a demographic chart of where everyone came from? What format they usually use? And what do they print on? Such as Platinum/paladium, Silver, Cyanotype and so forth.
I only wish I had more time. I wanted to get some Ilford HP5 to feed my 8x10. This little Oregonian gets lost very easy with all those highways.

 

[roteague]

All the literature for the conference stated it was about Black and White photography. Ilford was the other half of the group putting this on. They have no color products. The Ilfachrome or what ever its name is, is produced by the Swiss group, which is not part of this Ilford group.

I wonder if anyone bothered to approach Fuji to see if they would like to have participated. Fuji is very bullish on film.

 

[Robert Brummitt]

I wonder if anyone bothered to approach Fuji to see if they would like to have participated. Fuji is very bullish on film.

Maybe next time and only If Ilford wants to share.

 

[roteague]

I'm also a color photographer. It would have been nice to include Christopher Burkett.

I would have made the effort to attend if Christopher Burkett, a truly nice fellow that I had the privilege of meeting last year, or Jack Dykinga had been invited to attend. I like John Sexton's work, but not enough to spend hundreds of dollars on airplane, hotel and rental cars.

 

[roteague]

Maybe next time and only If Ilford wants to share.

Funny, the last time I looked, I noticed that Calumet sells color film. At least, I've been sending them $$$$ and they have been sending me Velvia in return.

 

[Aggie]

On July 4th of 2005 it was Ilford that initiated this whole thing by asking if Calumet would join them on this venture. It was in essence an Ilford conference so sponsored by Calumet. If it had been Fuji asking Calumet it would have been a different slant on the conference.

I think the conference was worth it to just listen to Keith Carter, and Al Weber. With those two speakers it was not about whether we shoot B&W or color, it was about being a photographer.

Apis was not asked to include color photography, yet a lot of Alt processes use silver.

 

[Simon R Galley]

Dear Robert,

Whilst stricktly a black and white kind of guy, I have nothing against colour, and as is rightly stated it has silver in too. I will speak to the HARMAN director responsible for the show and see what he thinks, it helps mitigate the financial risk and Fuji do seem bullish on film...lets see, Calumet were a co-sponsor so they would have to agree also.A word of caution, I have not heard that it is intended to be an annual event

Simon ILFORD Photo / HARMAN technology

 

[photomc]

Simon,
You are a gentleman...good thoughts. If Ilford/Harman should decide to make this more than a one time event, would like to suggest that it happen no more often than every other year. Annual events seem to get tired and over done - IMO.
Thanks

Dear Robert,

Whilst stricktly a black and white kind of guy, I have nothing against colour, and as is rightly stated it has silver in too. I will speak to the HARMAN director responsible for the show and see what he thinks, it helps mitigate the financial risk and Fuji do seem bullish on film...lets see, Calumet were a co-sponsor so they would have to agree also.A word of caution, I have not heard that it is intended to be an annual event

Simon ILFORD Photo / HARMAN technology

 

[roteague]

Dear Robert,

Whilst stricktly a black and white kind of guy, I have nothing against colour, and as is rightly stated it has silver in too. I will speak to the HARMAN director responsible for the show and see what he thinks, it helps mitigate the financial risk and Fuji do seem bullish on film...lets see, Calumet were a co-sponsor so they would have to agree also.A word of caution, I have not heard that it is intended to be an annual event

Simon ILFORD Photo / HARMAN technology

Thanks Simon,

That sounds great. It would mitigate the costs and probably increase the attendance as well. One request if you do this: Bring Joe Cornish!! His work is excellent.

 

[keeley]

Silver Conference

To Aggie,
Thanks for the thorough and insightful analysis of the weekend…

The “Silver “ conference sponsored by ILFORD Photo and Calumet Photographic came to Art Center on the third, fourth and fifth of March and brought with it some of the most remarkable voices in image making and traditional photographic practice that have ever been under one roof. Keith Carter, John Sexton, Dr. Tim Rudman, Alan Ross, Jeff Dunas, George DeWolfe, Mary Virginia Swanson, Mona Kuhn and others spoke and generously shared of themselves, their work and practice. Just the conference attendees themselves probably added up to a few thousand years of commitment, experience and originality. This community came together to speak and hear about the importance of the personal, technical and aesthetic choices in making work, the state of the art and a sense of community with other photographers that also saw the importance of this awareness, information and participation.

It was great to listen, talk, eat and participate in an event that doesn’t happen often in this world of great consequence, short notice and shorter memory. I believe that the talks, panel discussions and informal dialogues between all the photographers present were of importance to everyone no matter what their technical or aesthetic process was. The choices that we all make in our materials are critical to the result and the Silver Conference gave everyone there new information and inspiration. For some it was simply an inspiring reminder, for others I think it opened up new and productive ways to make work and for all it was a great moment to witness a community of explorers in personal process. It was an honor and pleasure for me, the faculty and students to be there and meet many of you. I hope we can do this again.

Dennis Keeley
Chair of Photography and Imaging
Art Center College of Design

 

[gr82bart]

The problem with these events is that they have an inherent bias against colour photographers. Today, whenever one says 'traditional photography', it means black and white which sends me to spasms. Just read the title of this event: "Silver Conference" - nuff said.

I would dare say then, that B&W photographers should have no problems whenever the word 'photography' today means digital by just about everyone. Touche.

Regards, Art.

 

[photomc]

Why pound on the conference organizers because the conference was what they said it was going to be - about black & white? If you want color included, or have a traditional color conference get to working with Fuji - I do use there color products, but you guys need to chill. This site has become classic in regards the term "No good deed goes unpunished"

 

[jd callow]

Not to pump the 1st Annual International APUG Conference too much, but for far fewer dollars, US or Canadian, you can take colour workshops, and go on photo outings and shoot colour as well.

Mr Robert Teague will be the leader of the sunset and sunrise photo outing and there is a strong chance the night photography and street outings may be lead by experienced colour photogs.

I can also guarantee that there will be colour work hanging in the show.


I am not hammering Silver -- i simply saw an in for another Apug Conference nudge...