Dance Photography: Shooting for an ad
Three weeks ago my friend came into the studio. Our agenda, make photographs of her for an ad for an upcoming Dance Festival. I decided that I wanted to shoot the ad in film. I loaded my Nikon F4 and after reviewing each pose she was offering, I made photographs. Working with film in a digital studio posed a serious challenge. How was I to process the film?
While I have all the parts of an analog darkroom, I did not have anything set up to process the 4 rolls of Tri-X 400 I had just shot on. I was incredibly excited to have the film processed and knew that it was going to be a few days before I could see the film. I was leaving to go away for the weekend, my friend, portrait below, was also going away for the weekend. He allowed me to drop the film off at his private, in home darkroom, and promised me I would have the film back within a few days. I took his word and set out for the weekend away. The anxiety was painful, as this shoot was one of the first in a very long time that had me so excited. It was unlike the shoots I do for clients, which always have me smiling and happily content, because it was the first time in a very long time that I worked with film. I knew what I was going to get. Great images with some grain. Something I was looking forward to.
The moment I saw the film, I knew I achieved what I was looking for. I got the results I wanted and I couldn't be any happier. It took me a few days to scan the film. Roughly 12 hrs of scanning for high resolution. But in the end, I have a set images that are just incredible and capture my friends talent. Currently these images are in an exhibition along with three other photographers. The below photograph is of my friend on the night of the exhibition, followed by a shot from the exhibition.
Instead of framing my photographs, I installed partitions and hung the prints via clips and finishing nails. The un-framed prints take on their own personality being a part of a set of walls that sit in the middle of the room. I am very pleased with how the exhibition looks.
