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I became interested in photography at an early age when I was given a Kodak Brownie Box Camera. I still have most of those early negatives saved!
As a teenager, I built a darkroom under the stairs and did contact printing with a naked bulb as the light source. At University, I joined the camera club and used an enlarger for the first time. In 1973, I came to Calgary and was introduced to black and white fine art photography by Dr. Harry Thomson. I thought this was wonderful and bought a Mamiya RB67 camera, but within a year I switched to a 4x5 view camera and this is my camera of choice still.
Because of Harry's influence, I attended workshops run by very prominent photographers that included Bruce Barnbaum, Paul Caponigro and Michael Kenna. I attended the very last workshop run by Ansel Adams at Yosemite and I met Alan Ross and John Sexton there. I have attended three workshops with John Sexton and he continues to be an inspiration to me. I recently attended a workshop run by Brooks Jensen and was introduced to digital procedures that I am now exploring as a means of complimenting my traditional methods.
I enjoy looking at photographs, and I especially enjoy crafting beautiful black and white prints. Capturing light is at the centre of photography so it is important that the quality of the light exudes from the print if it is to capture the attention of the viewer. There is a great deal of technique involved in the photographic process, but in the end it is the print that must make the statement so technique takes second place to this. The production of a truly expressive print only occurs when the mind and the heart are involved.
My special interest was landscape photography, no doubt influenced by my exposure to many fine West Coast photographers, but I am leaning toward being more intimate with the landscape and now prefer to focus in on the fine details within the big scene. I also enjoy the challenge of architectural photography and I am becoming more involved in special projects. I have just completed one on the Britannia Heritage Shipyard in Steveston in Richmond, B.C. and have also done one entitled Frost Abstractions. This one was my first foray into digital photography. I submitted it to LensWork, and I was one of 12 photographers chosen for the Year End Gallery. So two of my Frost Abstraction pictures are in No. 85 of LensWork and six more are in Extended LensWork 85. I am also working on a retrospective about Cherry Point, a rural community in northern Alberta. I started a new project I call, New Picture of the Week and not only am I enjoying this very much, but it has been very well received by my contacts.
My primary camera is a 4x5 Wisner Field Camera and I also use a Canon Rebel XSi for digital work. I work in the traditional "wet darkroom" producing silver gelatin prints to exacting archival standards. These are mounted on 4 ply Alpharag Artcare Conservation matboards and I frame my own prints using Nielson silver metal frames. For many years I used Kodak Polymax Fine Art paper, but with the demise of that paper, I have switched to Ilford Multigrade IV paper.
For my digital work, I use an HP Photosmart Pro B8850 Printer, and I use Harman Professional Gloss for that "silver gelatin" look, and Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Ultra Smooth when I choose a matte finish.
What I find very exciting is that I can now scan my 4x5 negatives and then develop the print digitally. This makes it possible to print spot free images and I am able to exert much more subtle control over the final image.
These digital pigment-on-paper prints are expected to be as archival as silver gelatin prints. When I ship these prints unframed or un-matted or over-matted, they are packaged in a crystal clear acid-free, lignin free film envelope that is archival and will not damage the print. The supporting backer board is made with an "acid barrier" white cover sheet that is suitable for short-term storage, but should not be considered the ideal choice for long-term archival storage. Do not use the backer board if or when you frame the print, but instead use fully acid free materials, eg. full cotton rag mat board.