In most of my recent photographic en devours I've been shooting mostly film, developing in a basement darkroom, and then simply scanning the negatives onto my computer. In a sense I feel I was breaking the chain of traditional photography. I didn't have much to show for all my work besides a computer screen of photos and a few digitally printed images. I needed to make some prints!
I scoured local craigslist listings for a while and finally found a gem: a c760 omega enlarger, in nearby Streetsboro for a steal! It was only $75.oo and that included the enlarger, El-Nikkor 50mm lens, a mint condition GraLab timer (pictured above), and two boxes of printing paper. Amazing! After that all I needed was a 6x6 negative carrier and an 80mm lens and I'd be in business to start printing from medium format negatives. Well the negative carrier came in quick but the 80mm lens took a little longer to find at a good price. Yesterday I had all pieces to the puzzle together and I started making my first prints from my 6x6 negatives!
There is something magical to being isolated with something you love. Whether I'm under my car with a hot, oil dripping engine above me getting my hands caked with grime, or if I'm hunching over an enlarger in a dimly lit room with the smell of chemicals all around me: I'm always at complete peace. Manipulating the developing times and exposure times, mixing and stirring chemicals, measuring and cutting paper, it all comes together to make an image. The best part, by far, is dipping the paper in the developer after exposing it. At about the 15 or 30 second mark, like magic, an image appears from nothing. A blank white piece of paper stirred in what looks like water makes a (hopefully) gorgeous black and white picture. Hey I remember seeing that in my viewfinder!
Besides being fulfilling, productive, and amazingly fun, I really enjoy it because the darkroom is over at my grandmother, Sisa's, house in her basement. Not only is it great to hear her belting out Spanish lyrics to beautiful songs from upstairs but it's great to just see her and spend time with her. I really didn't get to see my grandfather (her late husband) much because I was still pretty young when he died, and I suppose I'm making up for it by spending more time with her. Even though she speaks in broken English and I don't know much Spanish, we manage to make conversations work. Admittedly I'm always surprised at how sharp she still is. I shouldn't be though, but I have this preconceived notion that all elderly people are beginning to falter mentally or have some disability. It just isn't true with her. I just wish I spoke Spanish, as then I could really get the full extent of what she's trying to tell me. And that's my disability.
