Re: [Leica] Re: Learning to develop and print for myself

["Dan Post" <dpost@triad.rr.com>]

Jim-
It's not too hard to explain- it's the same reason some of us still bake our
own bread occasionally, or get down and dirty and make our own pizzas, or
even change the oil in our cars ourselves.... it's fun! I just had a ball
painting my own backdrop this weekend!
There is still that little thrill that runs up and down you spine when you
see that first darkening of the image in the developer, the holding of one's
breath as the tension builds, the anticipation, the hope that it will be a
success, and when it is- Voila!....and when it isn't, you want to try, try
again!
Sorta like sex for the first time!
Dan ( WHO'S YO' DADDY?!) Post

- ----- Original Message -----
From: "Jim Brick" <jim@brick.org>
To: <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us>
Sent: Sunday, July 30, 2000 8:00 PM
Subject: [Leica] Re: Learning to develop and print for myself


> Amazing stuff Dan,
>
> You are a heretic in that in the year 2000, you have chosen as your first
> endeavor into the second half of photography, to use a very old, outdated
> process, in a strange, isolated, smelly very dark room.
>
> Please tell us why you picked this old fashioned, wet, smelly method over
> the more modern, comfort of a nice desk chair, lights on, no clean-up, can
> fix anything wrong with your original, digital method?
>
> Jim (wondering what's going on here  ;-) ) Brick
>
>
> At 10:01 PM 7/30/00 -0400, Dan Honemann wrote:
> >Gang,
> >
> >My first ever photography class (just a weekend seminar, but lots of
> >hands-on experience) has come to an end, and boy was it ever an
eye-opener.
> >
> >First and foremost, to all those of you who encouraged me to learn this
end
> >of the process, thank you!  And you were absolutely right.  It has
already
> >begun to shift my perspective in taking photos.
> >
> >It has also revealed that half--if not more--of the art of photography
lies
> >in processing and printing.  It's simply unbelievable how much variance
and
> >flexibility there is in printing the same negative.  And, having said
that,
> >it's also clear just how important it is to capture as much information
on
> >that little negative as possible at the time of exposure.
> >
> >These fledgling experiments with processing my own negatives and printing
a
> >few 6 1/2 x 9 1/2's have already proven how much better I can do than any
> >lab--even the so-called pro labs--as I'm the one who visualized the photo
> >when I shot it.  If I depend upon a lab to do the printing, I get someone
> >else's visualization.
> >
> >Finally, I've learned that this end of the equation is as much fun as the
> >other; time seems to evaporate in the darkroom the same way it does when
I'm
> >street shooting.  There is no one shooting or printing, no subject being
> >photographed and no photograph being created--there is just the seeing
and
> >the expressing, the emerging images--of life, beauty, art--call it what
you
> >will.
> >
> >I'll call it joy.
> >
> >Dan
> >