cyanotypes

cyanotype printing is an older process (1840's) that alleviates any need for a darkroom. the chemicals are also less expensive than platinum chemicals, which allows me to attempt really large prints without too much trepidation (or distress when i fail... miserably).

large prints are my current focus. i've been traveling, visiting some of the most amazing places on earth... and i want to present the images i captured in a way that intrigues and enchants the people who see them, much as the places themselves drew me.
it's all in the details... so look closely: the amount of beauty that a large cyanotype print allows me to impart is truly worth the time it took to make it (and figure out how to post it online). you can find the original color images on my other sites. if you have some time, compare them, see which one you like better and let me know.

devatas at angkor wat, siem reap, cambodia

bakong, siem reap, cambodia

east mebon, siem reap, cambodia

stacked rocks at lolei temple, siem reap, cambodia

lion at pre rup, siem reap, cambodia

for more information on cyanotype printing please visit http://www.alternativephotography.com

platinum/palladium prints

these three prints are done using a process that dates back to the 1800's. i jumped at the chance to learn it for two reasons: firstly, my obsession with anything that happened before my grandmother was alive; and secondly, it's a process that i can do in my basement! no darkroom needed! besides, the different grays, and the depths, and the textures that this kind of printing makes possible just intrigues me like no other process does.

i gathered three images from my from the milk crate series to explore platinum printing (also called ziatype).
if you compare these to the original series, i think you'll see why i'm so in love with this process...

for more information on platinum printing, please visit http://www.alternativephotography.com/

from the milk crate

from the milk crate is a body of work comprised of self-portraits. i have long been interested in first impressions and how we are able to manipulate a person's impression of us based simply on our outward appearance. in this work, i explored many different appearances- some normal, some fantasy- and the emotions that were revealed upon donning each one. i found that my attitude towards posing in front of the camera, and even my confidence level, would change depending on what i was wearing. the more fantastical the costume, the more creative the pose, the more i enjoyed taking the picture.

there are sixteen 8x10 black and white photographs in all, each finished with a store-bought mat, and placed back in the cellophane envelope that the mat came in, price tag still affixed.
for display, i then tossed them all into a beat-up old milk crate to be shuffled through by the viewer, like old prints at a flea market. here are five of the sixteen prints...