What you, as a model, should know about me.

I am a film photographer and I print all the photographs I shoot in a traditional darkroom.  There are others like me out there, but we are getting to be a rarity and it is becoming more common for me to run into models who have never worked with one of us before.  I probably work differently from what you you are used to with  digital or film shooters who do some or all of their post processing in the digital medium.   There is no harm done if you find my methods unappealing and choose not to work with me.  It won't hurt my feelings.

1. There is no possibility of seeing the pictures during the shoot.  

There is nothing to look at until the film is developed.  That usually doesn't happen until the next day.  After that, I must print the pictures which is very labor intensive and happens over a period of 2-4 weeks during which time I make low res scans available to models as I print them. 

2. I do not scan negatives.

Part of the creative process happens during the printing of the pictures as images are manipulated to my liking.   My final product is a darkroom print, not a file on a CD.   The only digitization I do is to make low resolution scans of the prints in order to put the images up on my website.

3. I do the picture selection.

Models get an 8x10 copy of every negative I print.  Models never get to see the negatives or any contact prints.  It is just not practical for me to dedicate hours of darkroom time to print pictures selected by the model and there is no way I can treat one model differently than another.

4. Prints do not get Photoshopped.

Because my pictures go from film to paper without ever seeing a computer, there is no editing of the prints.  Complexion issues, scars, tattoos, stretch marks, tan lines, bruises, wrinkles, moles, body hair, fat, and bloodshot eyes will all be rendered as is with exceptional clarity for all to see.  For the most part, it has become common practice for such characteristics to be edited out of pictures that appear in model portfolios.  This is why I so annoyingly insist that you tell me about any such issues ahead of time.   I will cancel the shoot if a model shows up with significant "surprises".

5. I do not do reprints.

Given the time consuming nature of darkroom printing, I will not print additional copies of pictures for a model, nor will I reprint a damaged or stained print.  Models can scan the prints and reproduce the pictures in any way they wish for their own personal use.

6. I shoot only black and white.

I don't have anything against color and have shot tons of it commercially, but I choose not to work with it anymore.

 

Why I do it this way.

 

Many people I talk to assume I shoot film simply because I don't have digital equipment.   Some think I stick with film because I believe it to be technically superior (I don't).  A lot of people have a hard time understanding why anyone would continue to use a medium that takes hours, days, and weeks to yield what digital technology effortlessly spits out in minutes at the mere touch of a button.

The answer is simple.  I'm attracted not just to the art, but to the craft of creating traditional darkroom prints.  I like the feel of the materials, the smell of the chemicals, and just being around the tools of the trade.   To me, the craft  is not the means to an end.  It is the end.