Leica M4-P, 50mm f/2

This weekend I was visited by an old friend from my photojournalism days. I wanted to do some printing with him in my darkroom, and see what he knew since we last worked together so many decades ago. It turns out, I’ve come a long way after those days of overexposing the print, dumping in some developer, and quickly yanking it out before it turned black, and get it in the stop bath.

My view of materials has changed a lot. I was appalled at the mistreatment of photographic paper. First of all, the Ilford MG300 that I’ve fallen in love with, is not cheap; not like the old days when I was a kid. But I’ve come to respect fine materials.

Photographic paper is a masterpiece of technology and tradition. In recent years, I started treating paper as a treasured material, particularly since it will take on an image I have worked hard to produce. It is much like the pedal of a rose. It is beautiful. It is delicate. It should be treated as something that is fine and delicate, because really it is.

First, I like to look at the paper that will contain my image. I want to get to know it, even as I examine it in the daylight. I want to know its texture. I want to see its sheen. I want to feel its thickness, and touch its edges. In the darkroom, I want o expose it for the highlight, and ever so carefully adjust the contrast until I obtain just the amount of deep shadow, and no more than is necessary.

I handle my paper carefully, and move it with care between developer and final wash. I want to play with toners to see what the perfect look should be for a particular image, and I want each image to be unique and special. Our work deserves that, and we must clean up our act, as part of our quest to produce the best images of our lives.