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My camera is a passport to a world of amazing discoveries My adventures began as a five year old. I started spending wondrous times with my dad in the quiet glow of his darkroom. I took great pride with my responsibility to gently rock the prints in the hypo tray. Ah, the sound of gurgling water and the warm orange glow from the safe lights. I was totally enthralled by seeing an image come alive in the developing tray...pure alchemy! It comes as no surprise when I say I frequently retreat to this magical z...

Say Hello Few people feel comfortable striking up a conversation with a person they haven’t previously met. I refrain from using the word “stranger” because the way I see it, we’re all fellow humans, potential acquaintances, possible friends. And who says they’re any stranger than I am? After all, I’m the one going up to people I meet in public asking to make their portrait. A camera in hand really is a magical device that allows us to meet almost anyone, anywhere. To approach them. Say hello. ...

A Revelation Just south of Sydney sitting on one of Australia’s most pristine coastlines you’ll find the regional city of Wollongong. Nestled within this city of surfers, coal miners and steelworkers you’ll find a group of students creating big things in a small darkroom. ‘Mez, I’ve been thinking a lot… I want to be a fine art black and white film photographer.’ These words from one of my TAFE NSW students, Sara, were delivered with a shakiness in her voice, utter passion in her heart, ...

Connected Shooting film is an act of patience, a commitment to slowing down in a world that moves too fast. With digital photography, you can take hundreds, thousands, of images in a matter of minutes. There’s no real cost to over-shooting, no pressure to be deliberate. But film demands something different. Each frame is finite, precious. You select before you shoot, considering light, composition, and emotion in a way that feels more meditative, more connected. The Beauty of Imperfection There’s an...

Hand colouring The idea of adding colour to a monochrome image by hand dates back to the beginning of photography. At this time it was the only way to get a colour photograph. Although colour photography using the three colour process was put forward just short of thirty years after the first photograph by Nicephore Niepce,  it was, in its early years, expensive and difficult to produce a colour image. Hand colouring became a practical way to give the impression of colour and everything from Daguerroty...

Processing your own film can speed up your workflow and give you quicker access to your negatives. It is also typically more cost effective and best of all there is nothing like the sense of satisfaction you will gain by taking control over the full end-to-end process of your photography. While trying it for the first time might be a daunting prospect, fear not. Below is our guide on what equipment, chemistry and method would be suitable for anyone new to processing films. For more detail, you can downlo...

Mounting your Prints Even the most stunning print can look better when it has been properly mounted. Mounted prints are also better protected as they are kept flat with the image separated from the immediate surroundings by unobtrusive margins. There are no hard and fast rules about mounting prints; the most suitable results will depend on individual preference, the nature of the image, the intended use and other circumstances. It is recommended that only boards and other materials intended for the p...

1992 - How I met Masterji Soon after leaving my staff photographer’s position on the local newspaper where I’d been employed for the previous 5 years and with the luxury of in-house film processing no longer a convenient option I began using my local city centre professional colour lab, in Coventry. During the accumulating hours I spent in that lab waiting for my 35mm films to process, watching small colour prints dropping from the conveyor belt from the end of the machine, I very watched a short In...

What are paper developers? Paper developers allow the latent exposed image to become visible to the naked eye and form part of a processing workflow along with a stop bath and fixer.  Read our guides, for more information on picking the right paper for you or which chemistry to choose  When shopping for photo chemicals always check the application. We produce a range of photo chemicals including stop baths, fixers, toners, wetting agents as well as paper and film developers. Film developers are speci...

Introduction I’ve been a photographer for 35 years since I was 11 in fact when I first loaded my Zenith 11 with film and set off for a walk into the wilds of South Yorkshire. 20 years later I turned professional and as soon as digital became a viable option I traded in my Nikon F90x and Mamiya 645 pro for a Nikon digital kit. Digital was for me always a triumph of convenience over real quality in those early years and not much else. It wasn’t until Canon brought out the 5D series that I found myself ...