In an increasingly digital world, some processes have been discarded or forgotten, in favor of new. While the Art World can be apprehensive about accepting new forms of media and processes, it has become more and more accepting of the use of technology. However, because of this some forms of Art have completely changed, and left the past behind. One of the best examples of this is with Photography. Most schools have moved to strictly using digital cameras, or even smartphones, as a means to capture images. While both do allow the students more familiarity with the process, the advancements in technology have removed much of what makes photography Art. While Benton Art students do learn about digital photography and digital editing, they also learn about and get hands-on experience with “Traditional” Darkroom Photography.
The Photography course actually starts with students constructing their own simple camera, out of mat board and a couple small pieces of aluminum. It is a simple camera that takes one black and white picture at a time, but they do take a surprisingly good photo. This whole project/ process allows us to discuss the history of Photography and how the equipment and processes evolved. Fun Fact: What is considered to be the first photography was taken in 1826, by Joseph Nicephore Niepce, and it took eight hours to make. Bonus Fact: Cameras themselves have been around since Ancient Greece, but they had no way to record the images. Through the process, the students learn about photographic exposure, photographic negatives, darkroom chemistry and how to make positive prints.
The students then learn how to use 35mm film cameras. For decades, this was the go to standard in Photography classes, before the rise of digital. While film cameras are familiar to the students, most have never used one, let alone one that has completely manual settings. The students learn to operate these cameras, and what it takes to get a quality photograph using them. This is really where the Art comes into the process. With a digital camera, and especially a smartphone, much of the adjustments are done by the one board computer processor. It determines the focus, the exposure, and makes the necessary changes. If the photo turns out well, the photographer only had a hand in pointing the camera in the right direction. With traditional photography each step of the process has to be done well in order to guarantee a quality photograph. The camera has to be manually focused, the settings manually adjusted, the film processed correctly, and finally the print developed well. Because of this, the traditional process tends to be the favorite part of the course. Not only is the process novel, but it is rewarding. All of their knowledge, work and experience, lead to a quality final product.
Sadly, while there is some reassurance in Traditional Photography, like there are with many other antiquated tools and processes, locally Benton Community is one of the few school districts that still offer it. With those of us who learned it in school being replaced by those who did not, that number will continue to decline. Fortunately, with many other techniques and processes in the Arts, as long as there are those still interested in the materials, nothing is truly gone forever.
Photo Captions
Image 1: These are the “Traditional” cameras the students in Photography use through the first couple units. On the left is a 35mm SLR film camera, and on the right a Box/ Pinhole camera made from matboard and a couple pieces of aluminum (The Box Camera is decorated with paint, which makes it look more mechanical than it is).
Image 2: This is a long exposure photo, showing the process of working in the darkroom. Note the red/ amber colored safelights that allow the photo-sensitive papers to be handled without improperly exposing them. Due to low light and the use of only the safelights, taking the photo took between twenty and thirty seconds, which is why the person moving seems slightly blurry.