So I am retaking Photography II at my local community college. At this point we are about 3 weeks from the end of the semester. Along with my Anatomy and Physiology class I have been pretty busy.

So far I’ve done 4 projects and am currently working on a side project and my final project. I’m still trying to make arrangements for my final project so I will decline to share that at this point. The side project on which I am currently working is a print using the gum bichromate process. It has proven to be very time consuming but definitely very enjoyable. In fact, I’m in the photo lab as I write this entry awaiting the drying of the emulsion on the paper for my next layer. I will be sharing the results with you all as soon as I can get a print that I feel is complete.

My previous forays into photography classes were not as structured as this one. In Photography I we learned the basics of exposure, film development, and printing of the negatives. The only assignments given were an oral presentation on a well-known artist, the midterm print, and the final portfolio. There were no structured shooting assignments. Basically, we could shoot what we wanted and the only stipulation was that we had something for critique days. The condition set for the final was that all the photos had to be tied together somehow and there were to be a minimum number of matted prints. Photography II was pretty much the same structure, but there was no midterm and the only technicals discussed were those dealing with color theory as it relates to printing on color photo paper.

In this class, however, I was given 4 loosely structured shooting projects. The first project was purely technical in nature as it was an introduction into the zone system of exposure and experimenting with an 18% gray card. The second project was one where I documented, through photography, a dream that I remembered having. That project was very fun as it allowed me to move into experimental subject matter. The third project given required me to consider the use of time in shooting the picture. There were many possibilities with this one as well, and I had fun going through the different ways to factor time into the photographs. The fourth project was a self-portrait (which those of you who see me on Facebook have already seen). I don’t really care to take pictures of myself so I wasn’t thrilled with that one.

Instead of resin coated paper, this semester the professor had me using fiber paper. This has turned out some wonderful prints as the contrasts and shadows have a richness (due to higher silver content) that I could never reproduce on RC paper. It definitely took me a while to get used to printing on this as the exposure times were shorter. This semester I was also learned how to create my own negatives from digital photography for printing on photographic paper. This little skill has proven to be most helpful as I have created a couple of beautiful prints on fiber paper from digital files. Of course I could pay to have my digital photos printed via a digital chromogenic process, but nothing matches creating something by yourself.

So that’s been my semester in a nutshell. Hopefully I only need one or two more passes on the gum bichromate print in order to have something really special. My final is going to be an ambitious project, but unless my model and I can synch our schedules, I may have to go with a Plan B. At this point I’m going to start force-drying the emulsion on my gum print. Wish me luck as I move forward with this side project. I will check in again with you all soon.