Too many directions?

scheimfluger_77 · Nov 2, 2012

Stephanie Brim said:
... You don't really think of Iowa as an awesome place to photograph, and neither did I, but then I opened my mind and realized that there's a LOT of stuff right here to work with.

...

I had this problem with Missouri when we moved here. Having grown up in Colorado and spent my adult life in Montana and Idaho, it's rather flat here. I seem to be doing a lot of stuff around campus.

Steve

StoneNYC · Nov 2, 2012

scheimfluger_77 said:
I had this problem with Missouri when we moved here. Having grown up in Colorado and spent my adult life in Montana and Idaho, it's rather flat here. I seem to be doing a lot of stuff around campus.

Steve

To be fair, Colorado is hard to compete with...

~Stone

The Noteworthy Ones - Mamiya: 7 II, RZ67 Pro II / Canon: 1V, AE-1 / Kodak: No 1 Pocket Autographic, No 1A Pocket Autographic

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Stephanie Brim · Nov 2, 2012

I'm not as much for traditional landscapes as some people. I like desolate, almost empty places. I kind of seek them out. I think that being around two small children all the time makes me crave the peace and quiet that these places, and photographs of them, provide. I'd absolutely kill to photograph Death Valley. I also love abandoned factories, but since the one in town closed and so many people lost their jobs (including lots of my family and my husband) I haven't really had the desire to seek those out. I'm going to explore some really personal issues in the photographs I do next, so I think that doing the 'Middle of Nowhere' project right after will help me decompress.

I need to get the basement cleaned up so that I can set up the first shot. For some of these shots I'm going to need someone who can trip the shutter for me (it has to be me in the photographs), and for others I'm going to need models.

ntenny · Nov 2, 2012

scheimfluger_77 said:
I had this problem with Missouri when we moved here. Having grown up in Colorado and spent my adult life in Montana and Idaho, it's rather flat here. I seem to be doing a lot of stuff around campus.

Steve

I don't know the middle of the state too well, but over on the western edge there are some scruffy little towns that photograph well in my experience. Not a lot of Grand Sweeping Ansel Adams Landscapes, though.

My great-grandfather was a serious landscape photographer who did basically his whole life's work within a day's drive of KC. Lots of trees and rivers, lots of light, lots of seasons, but not a helluva lot of topography in his images.

-NT

MattKing · Nov 3, 2012

Stephanie:

It occurs to me that you could probably do some interesting abstracts with yarn/knitting and a macro lens.

StoneNYC · Nov 3, 2012

Stephanie Brim said:
I'm not as much for traditional landscapes as some people. I like desolate, almost empty places. I kind of seek them out. I think that being around two small children all the time makes me crave the peace and quiet that these places, and photographs of them, provide. I'd absolutely kill to photograph Death Valley. I also love abandoned factories, but since the one in town closed and so many people lost their jobs (including lots of my family and my husband) I haven't really had the desire to seek those out. I'm going to explore some really personal issues in the photographs I do next, so I think that doing the 'Middle of Nowhere' project right after will help me decompress.

I need to get the basement cleaned up so that I can set up the first shot. For some of these shots I'm going to need someone who can trip the shutter for me (it has to be me in the photographs), and for others I'm going to need models.

Me too but I like mine with models

~Stone

The Important Ones - Mamiya: 7 II, RZ67 Pro II / Canon: 1V, AE-1 / Kodak: No 1 Pocket Autographic, No 1A Pocket Autographic

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Stephanie Brim · Nov 3, 2012

MattKing said:
Stephanie:

It occurs to me that you could probably do some interesting abstracts with yarn/knitting and a macro lens.

I'd need to find a film that could handle the long exposures that would come from high bellows factor plus small lens aperture, but I could do it. I have a 7.5" lens and plenty of bellows on the Burke & James to make it work. I'll think about it.

If only they made Acros in 5x7. I do NOT have the patience to cut it down.

scheimfluger_77 · Nov 3, 2012

Stephanie Brim said:
...

If only they made Acros in 5x7. I do NOT have the patience to cut it down.

what about using the Arista Ortho Litho and processing as continuous tone? A 100 sheet box of 5x7 is $38.99?

Steve

eddie · Nov 3, 2012

Stephanie- Just an idea. Take it in the spirit it's offered. What if you used 5x7 B&W, then dyed the prints using the same dyes you use for the yarn?

Stephanie Brim · Nov 3, 2012

I'd actually have to get dyes for plant-based fibers since I work with protein-based fibers, but that would possibly work. Weak solutions, though.

I've got Kentmere VC Select for the initial "transition to contact printing" period, but then I planned to hit the Foma contact paper and maybe try out some Lodima. Since both are coated on cotton paper (aren't they?), it should work.

Oooh...

removed account4 · Nov 3, 2012

eddie

i am in the same boat ... a lot of projects
i just do them when i remember.
its all about keeping from being bored, and having a good time

eddie said:
Stephanie- Just an idea. Take it in the spirit it's offered. What if you used 5x7 B&W, then dyed the prints using the same dyes you use for the yarn?

i have done this for years, i use Reed Dye from the craft store.
dyes are so much better than nasty chemicals
rubber cement is great for a mask for stuff you want to NOT be dyed

J

StoneNYC · Nov 3, 2012

jnanian said:
eddie

i am in the same boat ... a lot of projects
i just do them when i remember.
its all about keeping from being bored, and having a good time

i have done this for years, i use Reed Dye from the craft store.
dyes are so much better than nasty chemicals
rubber cement is great for a mask for stuff you want to NOT be dyed

J

What about food coloring dyes? Lol

~Stone

The Noteworthy Ones - Mamiya: 7 II, RZ67 Pro II / Canon: 1V, AE-1 / Kodak: No 1 Pocket Autographic, No 1A Pocket Autographic

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Stephanie Brim · Nov 3, 2012

When I first started dyeing wool, food dyes were what I used. They work on protein fibers, but not plant fibers. Hair = protein. They may stain, but won't actually dye. However, gelatin is made up of protein, among other things, so it may actually dye with the wool/silk dyes...

God, now I'm curious.

eddie · Nov 3, 2012

Stephanie Brim said:
God, now I'm curious.

Good. Experimentation is always good. Even if it doesn't turn out as originally expected, it may lead to other things.

I now have some thoughts involving liquid emulsions with dyes, powdered chalk, etc. Anyone (John?) try anything like this?

winger · Nov 3, 2012

Stephanie Brim said:
When I first started dyeing wool, food dyes were what I used. They work on protein fibers, but not plant fibers. Hair = protein. They may stain, but won't actually dye. However, gelatin is made up of protein, among other things, so it may actually dye with the wool/silk dyes...

God, now I'm curious.

If heated afterwards (microwave works, I think), Kool-Aid will dye wool. I have a raspberry beret from the 80's that has raspberry Kool-Aid (and some cherry and blueberry 'cause the color wasn't quite right at first). No idea what Kool-Aid and heat would do to film, though. jnanian? tried that, yet?
Indigo works on just about everything (including the stuff you're not trying to dye).

Stephanie Brim · Nov 3, 2012

Kool-Aid was used, too, but I had better luck with Wilton's and McCormick plus either citric acid or vinegar, so I just went with that. I now dye with Washfast by Pro Chemical and Dye.

Another interesting idea would be to tightly knit a square, coat that with emulsion, and print onto that. I kind of wonder what that would look like on bare wool.

removed account4 · Nov 3, 2012

winger said:
If heated afterwards (microwave works, I think), Kool-Aid will dye wool. I have a raspberry beret from the 80's that has raspberry Kool-Aid (and some cherry and blueberry 'cause the color wasn't quite right at first). No idea what Kool-Aid and heat would do to film, though. jnanian? tried that, yet?
Indigo works on just about everything (including the stuff you're not trying to dye).

hey beth
yep i have used kool-aid
but opted out since it had so much sugar and it smelled
fruity when i was done
food coloring took too much, to make it a concentrate that worked
reed dye seemed to work best of all the weird stuff i tried
but i am sure there are other things that work well too ....

one of these days i will try encaustic painting on prints ...
wax and paints seems easy and fun

slackercrurster · Oct 5, 2018

eddie said:
I'm wondering how others handle it when their work interest goes in multiple directions. I have so many different projects, sometimes I feel like I'm not giving each it's due.
Right now I'm working on (or not working on):
Hand painted nudes on hand coated paper.
Combined/distressed negatives.
Toned Holga/Diana stuff.
Large hand-painted stuff (still getting the darkroom set up for 32x40 inch printing- I'm close to ready...)
Large format portraits.
Hand painted images from non-camera produced negatives.
Bromoils.
Old family photos, for my family.
Probably a few more I've forgotten...

What are your "rules" for handling this situation? How do you allot your time? How do you allot your finances?
Thanks for your insights.

That's funny. Sounds like me. I have many interests, but short on time and $.

Right now I'm scanning East Village Other newspapers from the 1970s. Before that I was scanning Screw newspapers and Fag Rag newspaper. Before that I was working on scanning a large hoard of film camera catalogs. While I was doing that in the daytime, at night I was working on my 16mm film archive. I stopped with the 16mm for a couple months, now hope to get back on it and also get back to some 8mm films which I looked through last year. I still need to get back to editing my own work which I've neglected.

PS...like them bromoils!

Sirius Glass · Oct 5, 2018

Ian Leake said:
Pick the one theme that's most important to you and dump the rest for at least twelve months. Accept and celebrate the constraints that your chosen theme brings, and use your time to go as deep into it as you can.

I too prune out, down select or prioritize. Now that I retired, I am so busy that I cannot figure out how I got anything done when I was working.

RalphLambrecht · Oct 5, 2018

eddie said:
I'm wondering how others handle it when their work interest goes in multiple directions. I have so many different projects, sometimes I feel like I'm not giving each it's due.
Right now I'm working on (or not working on):
Hand painted nudes on hand coated paper.
Combined/distressed negatives.
Toned Holga/Diana stuff.
Large hand-painted stuff (still getting the darkroom set up for 32x40 inch printing- I'm close to ready...)
Large format portraits.
Hand painted images from non-camera produced negatives.
Bromoils.
Old family photos, for my family.
Probably a few more I've forgotten...

What are your "rules" for handling this situation? How do you allot your time? How do you allot your finances?
Thanks for your insights.

I always try to stay with and finish one project before starting another;I get more done that way.

Too many directions?

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