Photographic Offerings

I never gave color serious thought as it relates to photography except in a superficial way. I didn’t have much in the way of control over it so what’s to know. Basic color theory learned in art school was my bread and butter. Light defined my compositions with value and intensity.

Then came the digital revolution and almost over night the door closed on my analogue dark room. Suddenly color has passed through the digital prism and into a versatile, valued and accessible tool. It’s a quantum multiplier for image refinement and enhancement especially for black and white. (Yes that’s what I said)

When I was five, my dad built a dark room in a second floor closet bathroom. If he was working there and it wasn’t past bed time, I was allowed to sit and watch the magic reveal itself in vaporous concoctions of chemistry and light. Way beyond my understanding and it fascinated me watching black and white images creep into existence under the subtle orange glow of a safe light.

I began to compose shots with the shutter open for two and three minutes at a time. In some instances while the shutter was open and the film accumulating light I would walk out into the scene and expose different elements with a portable flash head. Using different colored lighting gels over the flash head and I would paint with light.