Daily Practice 71/365

Title: "Indirect evidence of existence"

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I am not interested in debating the pros and cons of analogue vs digital photography. The truth is, I use whatever tools are at hand, or are appropriate for my intended purpose. Sometimes an image starts in digital and ends in an analogue print, sometimes it's straight digital or analogue from start to finish, and at other times it begins with an analogue film camera but goes through some digital processing or printing. While the specifics of what I am doing in creating any final image contribute to the success (or not!) of the exercise, I don't personally feel the need to get into those specifics in presenting or discussing an image.

Having said that, given pressures of a recent heavy work load that left little time for my daily practice, I have been relying exclusively on a straight digital process for the past several weeks. What I observed was a general decline in my engagement with this project. I need to have the tactile feel of film and prints, the routine of film processing and darkroom printing in the mix in order to stay creative and engaged. Using my hands as well as my mind is important for my process.

Today's image was made during a session with a homemade pinhole camera and some expired Polaroid 664 film. I had come home from work and noticed the shadows in the backyard and wanted to explore the possibilities they presented on different surfaces. My enthusiasm for the idea went up dramatically when I thought of trying hand-held pinhole image making, which adds a slight uncontrolled blur in these exposures of 6-8 seconds. The strong geometric shadows on the geometric lines of the brickwork were able to stand up to the hand held long exposure.