I’m taking a lot of art-related classes this term (1 music class, 3 studio art classes, and 2 art history classes). One of the classes I’m taking is a photography class. The class is primarily film, although we will do some digital photography towards the end of the term (which is actually fast approaching!). I thought I would share the photos I’ve taken (the ones I’ve printed, at least!), as well as a photo collage I did for one of our assignments.
So far, I’ve really enjoyed working with film. All of our photos are taken with a 35mm camera, without flash or any special lens. We are only allowed to do black and white photography. I’m using my grandpa’s old camera, which is a Canon from the 80s. I’ve had some trouble with the camera- for the past couple of rolls, it thinks the roll is done after 27 photos (instead of the 36 it should actually take), and it also won’t rewind, which means I have to unload the film in a darkroom and immediately develop it. The process is pretty cool, but can also be tiring. So much time is required just to process the film, and then it takes even more time to print each photo. It’s also expensive! But I love the way the photos come out, and the pictures feel more valuable when you’ve put so much time and effort into them. I’ve only printed about 2-3 photos from each roll I’ve taken. If I have paper left over after our assignments are fulfilled, I want to print some others.
First roll:
Above: Architecture on my college campus- this beautiful gothic building is the one I lived in last year!
Above: This is the same building, and is actually the arch that is located just below the former photo.
Roll 2:
Above: My beautiful sister, Heather. She came to visit me the weekend before she left for 6 months in South Africa, and I took this photo on a walk we took.
Above: A stream we saw on our walk. I loved the way the stream reflected the trees.
Roll 3:
Above: The lounge in Tompkins Hall (Elmira College). All of the photos I printed from this roll were from the same building (which is the same building featured in the two photos from the first roll- I’m sensing a theme here!).
Above: This beautiful window seat is located on the floor I lived on last year. The windows in the building are just amazing!
Above: The hall I lived on last year. The hallway is pretty dark, despite the bright window at the end, creating a somewhat eerie mood.
Collage:
Above: We were encouraged to create a collage from old discards that past students have left behind. I combined parts from 5 photos to create my image. Funny story: the whole time I made this, I was thinking that the “motel” sign was a cinema/theater sign, thus the “showing” sign. It was only after the entire thing was finished that I realized my mistake- oops! I still really like it, and think my mistake actually might make it more interesting.
So, there you go! My first adventures with film photography!
The Oke Den 