Experimenting with Light & Long Exposure

I have been pretty out of it lately with the whole photography thing. Here and there I have done some work, but have been working more on writing instead. A few months ago, I started working on a project with Liam Lynch from Pretoria, South Africa called The Heart Is An Organ of Fire, which includes random photos from the past with a creative writing/prose narrative below each one. I’ve even considered compiling everything I’ve written in my lifetime into a book of sorts, but haven’t started.

A few nights ago, my roommate Chad Spann and I were playing around with a Vivitar Auto Thyristor 2800 and a Canon Rebel XTi (that somehow randomly appeared on my porch at 4 AM one day) & decided to do some long exposures. They may look like multiple exposures, but they’re not.

This is achieved when you click the shutter, and then zoom out.

This Place is Full of Ghosts – new works on film

Cave Johnson house – Polaroid Spectra (expired)

About a month ago, I read this book ‘Spook’ by Mary Roach (Science Tackles the Afterlife.. “…brings her tireless curiosity to bear on an array of contemporary and historical soul-searchers: scientists, schemers, engineers, mediums, all trying to prove (or disprove) that life goes on after we die.”) .. in it there’s a chapter about seances. Who did them, what went on, and HOW they did them. When I found out the entire process that went on, I was utterly amazed.. and was especially interested in mimicking ectoplasm in a photo shoot. We had limited supplies, but cranked out a pretty stellar shoot with what we had.

Inside of the piano – PX 600 from The Impossible Project

The milk was just another idea that ended up sour. (har har) Regardless, I had a blast. I worked with my good friends Chad Spann and Kelsey Lange. Chad shot with his 50D, and I used a Canon EOS Rebel with Kodak Tri Max 400 black and white film, which I developed at home. (4 minutes @ 79 degrees F) All black and white images were shot at the Cave Johnson home at 916 Madison Street, right next door to me. Cave Johnson died in 1849 of Scurvy, and introduced the first postage stamp in 1846. (I’m such a mail nerd) The house has been abandoned since a family was poisoned with carbon monoxide.. I frequent it often, and it will soon be demolished.

Shot with Polaroid One Step express & expired 779 film

Here are a few of the digitals that Chad Spann shot from that day:

Sparklers & Long Exposure

In the past month, I got together with people twice to play with some sparklers and do some long exposures with my Canon 35mm film camera. There’s not much to explain.. but I will give you one tip: if you’re going to try and do a serious & creative photoshoot – don’t get drunk while you’re doing it, especially if you’re the one pushing the buttons. I’m not going to say that we ruined these because I was drunk, but I will say that something weird happened with the second roll, in which I thought I was shooting with a completely new roll, but I ended up double exposing the whole thing. Kind of interesting, but I think we had a hard time coordinating. Here’s what happened:

All photos were shot with a Canon EOS Rebel on 35mm color 400 ISO film. Special thanks to Matt Smith, Gabe Garcia, Deli Neblett & Chris Allen. Good times!

Timed self-portraits on film

Last week I decided to try some self-portraits with my Canon EOS Rebel film camera. I wasn’t exactly pleased with the results, but some of them weren’t half bad. As you all know, I was expecting to go to Bonnaroo this summer, but my husband actually suggested that we use the money we would on tickets and gas, and put it to better use by getting me a nice digital SLR.

It will be a sad day, indeed, as I will be stopping my obsessive use of film to get some practice in. I simply canNOT keep fucking up on film. It’s not so much expensive anymore (I process my own film, and scan the negatives.) as it is time-consuming & really gets on my nerves when I’m not pleased with the outcome. It’s just something I feel I need to move on to.

I will still be using my film cameras for The Art of Waiting projects.. I will just be trying to get less/better results AS A RESULT, of getting more photography practice in on a digital. I really, really like to experiment with film. I would just prefer better outcomes when I get an idea and decide to take it on.

long exposure, bubble blowing. Kodak Tri-X film, Kodak D-76 developer. (all of my photos are developed with D-76)