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About

I have been taking photographs since I was given my first camera, a cherished Ansco Readyflash, at age 11. Since then I have owned a variety of cameras (Rolleiflex, Exakta, Leica, Olympus, and Canon). Until a few years ago, I primarily took black and white photographs. I had a darkroom and could control the entire process from developing the film to the framed print. For a variety of reasons, I drifted away from photography, the most compelling being that I lost access to a darkroom. Entrusting film to someone else was not at all satisfying and the final prints were not always what I had visualized.

And then digital photography arrived. There was no need for a traditional darkroom. Pictures could be evaluated on the spot and retaken if necessary. In the last few years, the quality of digital cameras, printers and papers has improved exponentially. Is a digital print equal to a fine black and white print? There are some who say no. I think that superb quality is possible with a digital print. I am not sure why people feel compelled to compare digital pictures to traditional pictures. They are different.

So I have embraced digital photography for a number of reasons. Many companies have abandoned film photography - there are fewer choices of film and paper. A digital darkroom is much kinder to the environment. I still shoot an occassional roll of black and white film that is processed with chemicals but scanned to be ultimately used digitally. There are innumerable digital cameras and gadgets in the market today. I believe that whatever makes it easier for the photographer to go out and capture the moment is a good thing. I have, and will always have, tremendous respect for the Cartier-Bressons and Westons who "read" the light without a meter, manually set aperture and shutter speed, manually focused, and managed, without auto-gimmicry, to take timeless photographs.

I love carrying one camera and one lens. I love being able to store thousands of images in the same space as 5 rolls of film. I love the possibilities. I don't miss the stinky, messy darkroom. And I love the options for producing a traditional photograph or for experimenting with endless manipulations in Photoshop. I don't believe in making sad comparisons to old techniques or degrading what is done with digital just because it isn't "traditional". Wait a while. It will be.