"The visual arts are among the most sophisticated forms of human communication. Artists are often the interpreters of their times." (from Art History by Marilyn Stokstad)

In past newsletters, we have shared and discussed what we as photographers feel, first when we make the negative and later, with its final presentation. But when does the photographer become the viewer? At what point is the vision complete, enabling us to see the photograph as art and not as just another technical achievement?

I have often looked at (critiqued) the varied images in our Guild gallery and thought to myself, "I could have done that" or "I would have done this differently," all the while seeing the photograph as a photographer. Finally, after several attempts, I was able to enjoy the photographs as a viewer, to partake in the individual images for what they were, to get acquainted with the individual who made the final print, and maybe to see more of the image as a viewer that I ever would have as a photographer.

This month the Contact Printers Guild welcomes new member Tri Tran to the fold. Tri uses ultra-large-format cameras to extract every last detail and feeling he can for his platinum images. Using cameras as large as 20 by 24 inches, Tri's prints have a long-felt beauty about them; once you see one, it is very hard to forget it. Also in this month's issue, Ian Leake relates his experiences in sharing the photographic process with his models. The final product is the result of a partnership between the participants, photographer and subject.

We have a busy schedule for our group, including outings, upcoming shows and open studios, and workshops offered by our members. We thank you for your interest in the Contact Printers Guild and in our art, and we welcome comments from one and all.

As viewers and collectors of photography, we participate in the re-creation of a work of art. Its meaning changes from person to person and over time. Once we welcome art into our lives, we have a ready source of sustenance and challenge that grows, changes, mellows, and enriches our daily experience. No matter how much we study or read about art or artists, eventually we return to the contemplation of the work itself; for art is the tangible evidence of the ever-questing human spirit.

Above is "Flat Rock #7" a 16x20" hand-coated platinum print by Gerald Pisarzowski, currently available through our Online Gallery. Because we understand the difficulty of seeing the true beauty of a contact print from a scanned image on your computer, we offer an unconditional guarantee. If you are not satisfied with any photograph you have purchased from the Online Gallery, you can return it for a refund. We currently have nearly 400 photographs available for sale. Just click on the link below to quickly and easily view our catalog. The Gallery is a secure site that allows you to purchase using your credit card or PayPal account.

Click here to visit our Online Gallery.

New Member: Tri Tran

The Contact Printers Guild is very happy to introduce Tri Tran as its newest member. With an award-winning career as a wedding photographer, he has made the transition to large-format photography seamless. His understanding of photography, lenses, cameras, processes, and printing have contributed to a remarkable journey to his present artistic acumen.

Having had the pleasure of seeing his ultra-large- format images first hand, I can attest to the detail he is achieving in his wonderful platinum/palladium prints. They seem to me the perfect balance of experience, education, camera, print medium, and passion. Months after seeing three of his 12-by-20-inch prints, I still remember the experience as if it were yesterday.

Although he chooses ultra-large-format cameras and their resulting negatives, he maintains a sensitivity as few have been able to do. So many times the large camera dictates what the photographer will do, but Tri makes that transition as it should be done, artfully. Needless to say, we are very pleased with his addition to our group.

Above is Tri Tran's image entitled "The Pier." We are in the process of including his work in our Online Gallery, so please check our Guild website soon to see more. In the meantime, you can visit Tri's website by clicking here.

"Damn it, Ian, when are we going to work together?"

Libby and I had talked on and off about the possibility of collaborating on a project, but for various reasons we'd not managed to actually schedule any studio time. Last summer she finally lost patience with me and demanded my attention. I'm glad she did, because this led to the most significant project of my photographic career to date.

Nowadays it's relatively easy to make a beautiful picture of a beautiful body. The recipe is simple: Take one beautiful body (female or male, depending on taste), add some light, shoot lots of photos, and finally simmer in Photoshop for a few hours. But I'm not satisfied with this. When I make photos, I seek to explore a person's body and mind (and my mind, too, if I'm honest); I look for the quirks, the lumps and bumps, the mannerisms, and the personality which make them unique; and I try to reveal what we find through beautiful pictures which celebrate humanity.

"Knotted Up" (above) is a good example of my approach to creating. Large-format photography often involves lots of waiting. Libby was patiently waiting for me to finish messing around with some piece of my camera kit when I turned around and saw how she was sitting, fingers intertwined with toes. This was one of the "decisive moments" that I search for: We immediately made a few negatives, and then, over perhaps four further sittings, we revisited the composition again and again until it was just right. I'm extremely happy with the final print.

Completing our "Glimpses of Libby" project required about 80 hours of studio time, a couple hundred 8x10 negatives, several late nights, plenty of vigorous debate, and a few glasses of champagne. In the end we selected ten photographs that not only show the beauty of Libby's body, but also reveal aspects of her personality and mind. I am very proud to share these with you.

Thank you, Libby, for losing your patience last summer.

Note: Ian Leake's work is printed on Buxton paper and mounted onto a larger sheet of Chateau Vellum, both handmade in Margaux, France. Eight of the ten "Glimpses of Libby" photographs are available as individual prints, or the full set of ten is available as a limited-edition portfolio. A PDF version of the portfolio can be downloaded from here (1 MB file): Glimpses of Libby

The Trials and Tribulations of a Large-format Practitioner's Spouse by Mary Jo Kolb

"Recently, a Guild member asked me to write about how I dealt with the difficulties of being the spouse of a large-format photographer. He figured that, after many years with someone who is devoted to the demanding intricacies of this art form, the time-consuming activities of capturing images and bringing them to life in the darkroom, I might have some advice for others in my position on how best to weather the waiting, wondering, and wandering in search of beauty.

"First of all, I had to get used to the idea that time loses all significance when my beloved photographer is involved with his craft. When Patrick says, 'This will take five minutes,' he is honestly describing his own experience of time's passage. Never mind that my watch clearly shows an hour going by. I always have something of interest close at hand and use the time to advantage. During our photo trips, I journal or read those books and magazines that seem to stack up at home. And I recently got a digital camera, so I often 'borrow' Patrick's gift of vision by standing near him once he has zeroed in on a beautiful vista and get a quick snapshot or two of my own. (I also make him the subject of my snapshots on occasion, and he's getting a little more willing to give me a smile instead of a glare as time goes by.)

"But what about all those hours at home, when said photographer is buried in the darkroom? For so many years, I worked in offices; and I longed to spend more time in the garden and to be able to get more exercise during daylight hours. Most of us have some special passions which bring us much satisfaction, or curiosity to explore some new interest. This way, I don't have to feel guilty about "doing my thing" alone because I know Patrick is totally delighted playing (he says 'working') with his chemicals, papers, and light boxes. And I know that at the end of the day I can look forward to seeing gorgeous prints emerge from the darkroom. It's kind of like Christmas morning, any day of the year.

"Ultimately, I have to admit that I consider Patrick's dedication to large-format photography not a hindrance or obstacle to enjoyment of life, but rather a facilitator. Without that extra bit of motivation, I'm not sure we would travel as frequently or make the effort to get to know some places as intimately as we have. During the long, rainy winters in the Northwest, we would likely be trapped indoors or become just two more "snowbirds" sitting around a pool or cruising a golf course in Arizona. Instead, we have camped in Death Valley and Joshua Tree, walked Monterey's promenade in T-shirts in February, and hiked into Thousand Palms Oasis. Of course, the day he asks me to carry those 30 pounds of camera gear is the day I will respectfully reply, 'You shoot it, you carry it, Darling!'

"There's another element that makes this a win-win for me. Since Patrick joined the Guild, he has become acquainted with some wonderful people, many of whom I have had the pleasure of getting to know as well. With his expanded presence in the world of photography, he has had more gallery shows; and helping him with the accompanying publicity and receptions has made me feel a part of them, even though I have no work hanging next to his. How do I survive being married to a large-format photographer? I can truly say I've never been happier nor had more opportunities to experience life!"

If you'd like to see more of Patrick's exquisite platinum/palladium prints, please click here to visit his section of our Online Gallery.

Please check out the Special Offers section of our Gallery for prints offered by Guild members through this newsletter. Using this link, you can buy selected photographs that Guild members have discounted for a limited time.

At left is Ray Bidegain's beautiful 8x10" handmade platinum/palladium print entitled "Pears," available this month at a very special price. Some of our prints are also featured in the current B&W Magazine advertisement. Please visit the Guild's special-offer prints on our website.

Be sure to check out the latest B&W Magazine (June 2008 issue) for an article featuring Guild member Scott Peters and his images. And look for Sandy King's article entitled "TMY versus TMY-2: A Comparison" in the March/April 2008 issue of View Camera, to be followed in their May/June 2008 issue by "A Comparison of T-MAX 100 and T-MAX 400."

Linda Elvira Piedra: Berkeley, California

As we announced earlier this year, Elvira holding another Open Studio, this one scheduled for Saturday, May 3 and Sunday, May 4, from 11AM to 4PM each day. Her studio is located at The Annex, Grace North Church, 2138 Cedar Street, Berkeley, CA 94709. It is a themed exhibition entitled "A Flower," with a selection of photographs of tree peonies.

To see her work available through our Online Gallery, please click here.

Michael A. Smith and Paula Chamlee

Smith's and Chamlee's large platinum contact prints will be exhibited at the Wach Gallery's booth at the AIPAD Photography Show New York, April 10-13. On May 9-11 and 17-18, they will open their studio to the public as part of the Elephant's Eye-Bucks County Artist Studio Tour. Visit www.elephantseyetour.org for details.

To see Michael A. Smith's contact prints available through the Guild, please visit our Online Gallery. To see Paula Chamlee's prints available in our Online Gallery, please click here.

Gerald Pisarzowski is teaching a two-day platinum-printing workshop April 19-20 at Big Camera Workshops in Burlington, Ontario. This workshop is limited to a maximum of eight students, allowing all participants hands-on experience with mixing emulsions, coating paper and exposing and developing the image.

Other topics to be covered include negative development, selecting paper, scanning negatives and making inkjet negatives. Please go to Big Camera Workshops for more details.

Ray Bidegain and Patrick Kolb will be teaming up with workshop veteran Jeanette Altman July 10-13 for a four-day platinum/palladium workshop. This is an expansion of the popular three-day workshop series by Ray and Patrick. Additions to the agenda will be the study of tailoring a film negative to the platinum/palladium process, crafting a film negative for scanning, the scanning of the negative for platinum/palladium, and tailoring a digital negative to platinum/palladium printing. Their workshop will encompass all of this, as well as spending two days demystifying the platinum/palladium process. This very hands-on workshop will again be on the Washington State University campus in Vancouver, WA. Tuition for the four-day class will be only $395, and the group will be limited to a maximum of ten students. Look for additional information in future newsletters and on Ray's workshop page.

Michael A. Smith and Paula Chamlee will conduct a "Vision and Technique" workshop at their home/studio in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, on May 23-25. Six members of the Guild have taken this workshop and have gotten a lot out of it. There are also still openings for their Iceland Workshop now scheduled for July 11-21. Please click here for details on these classes.