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Home , Developing tank, Photographic printing, Safelight, Viewfinder

Photography in Art and Design Education

Alan Kay Stockwell College of Education, Bromley, Kent

It is only during the last few years, since the comment or social use, or even making 97 advent of larger schools with more staff and new images. specialist equipped rooms that Visual concepts - Shape, form, texture, has been seriously considered as an integral tone, colour, with the introduction of part of the secondary school curriculum in other ideas of line, transparency, scale, art arid design. etc. When any practical work in photography has been taught in schools, it has often been Within the context of the departmel)ts in the form of a photographic or operating in either this way, or perhaps with club, generally taking place after school a more loosely struct"ured syllabus, photo- hours and in many cases organised and graphy has a firm place. It uses the - supervised within one of the science areasof sensitive surface and the unique way in the school. In some instances the values of which it responds to quantities of light as a these clubs have been the traditional values part of the two dimensional media area, the of the amateur photographic clubs with photographic work can have many inten- considerable emphasis placed on the equ ip- tions apart from its record ing aspect, and ment, the skills and the scientific aspect of photography is particularly the subject. The value of photography as an concerned with tone as an art concept. A art form in its own right has often been particular aspect of photography is that it neglected apart from brief discussions on uses the idea of and positive images the pictorial quality of the prints. as an intrinsic part of the process. A part of art is the selection and rejection In terms of both cost and the time that of images and the manipulation of these it takes to produce any worthwhile result in materials and methods. If this statement is terms of , it is unlikely true then photography must have a claim to that most schools would be able to do any- be represented as a part of the body of thing other than a small amount of experi- knowledge embraced by the term art and mental colour photography. The materials design, but in too many casesnot only has and equipment are expensive to buy, the equipment and technique been over-valued, basic chemicals are expensive and difficult but the only use of photography in the to use in the working conditions of a school school has been that of a recording device. , and the time taken to produce Many art and design departments in satisfactory colour print is out of scale to schools are now beginning to evaluate and the normal school double period, or even a investigate, as part of their syllabus, the fine whole morning or afternoon session. Mono- art and the appl ied art attitude, that is chrome photography, using relatively cheap, problem-solving approaches in which either easily obtainable and simple to use materials the artist sets himself the problem, or he is is a very reasonable proposition in terms of set a problem as a design brief, this is, of cost, resources required and the period of course, in addition to the limitations of the time within which the averageart and design media in which he chooses to work. department works. In addition to this, some art and design departments are structuring their courses so that students have experiences of art and I believe that students should be introduced design work in terms of: to the photographic medium in a direct way with as little as possible of the 'craft Media - two, three and four dimensional. mystique' being emphasised at the begin- Intention - Illustration recording, social ning. The initial experience should be one of the uniqueness of the response of the photo- which photography has been introduced, graphic material to light, together with an and there is no doubt that there is the possi- 98 introduction to the positive/negative/positive bility of fascinating images being produced process used in monochrome photography.' in this way. Even older children in the The manipulation of even the simplest of school are surprised to see the images which seems to introduce a technical can be created by placing a hand or a bunch barrier to these initial experiences and inter- of keys on the , while feres with the immediate response to the translucent objects such as leaves or even the media. nylon reel of a acquire a The first experience of photography can quality of their own. even be accomplished without the aid of a The main disadvantage of the darkroom. Ordinary photography bromide is that it is essentially a 'one-off' process. paper can be brought into daylight con- Once the objects have been exposed to light ditions, drawn or painted with diluted they necessarily have to be moved in order developer with the darkening process that the development of the paper can take observed as it happens, and the paper then place. fixed in the usual fixing bath. If this process A more useful extension of the photo- can take place under safe-light conditions gram is what used to be called the 'cliche in the darkroom, paintings using a range of verre' - literally drawing on a glass plate - half-tones and full black and white become or what might now be named a hand-made possible. negative. Using cheap tracing on grease-proof The placing of opaque and translucent paper, images can be drawn, coloured trans- objects under darkroom conditions between lucent or opaque materials can be stuck on the light source and the printing paper - the to make a negative which can be printed in photogram - has been a traditional way in contact with the photographic printing

A print from a hand-made negative using stuck on materials and drawn images- Brenda Howarth 99

A pictorial in which some experimental work of printing on various paper grades, in wasdone prior to the final print.- Bev Sage paper. A range of materials can be used for cess is given - more s_othan when using the 100 this, felt pens, pencils, wax crayon, coloured photog ram, since the original image is avail- inks, coloured adhesive transparent material, able for inspection and comparison. and a range of drawing techniques can be Many possibilities occur using this method used including shading, wax resists or even of introduction to photography. The oppor- simple graffito (or scratching) methods. If tunity to make a representational drawing the hand-made negative is made in the same in negative form presents a stimulating proportion as the printing paper, usually 'challenge to some older children, the use of stocked (10" x 8") - i.e. 8" x 5" or 5" x resists and scratches become reversed, and 4", not only economies in the use of the use of coloured materials presents the materials, but other possibilities (described student with an immediate experience of the later), occur. The hand-made negative is ex- response of the paper to coloured light - posed. generally under a sheet of glass for bromide paper is orthochromatic and is firm contact with the photographic paper, sensitive to light but insensitive to under a light source. It is then developed and . The experience of working and fixed in the usual way. with colour to produce a black and white When students examine this print from negative could lead to a discussion of pan- their hand-made negative a direct experience chromatic films and their sensitivity to the of the negative/positive photographic pro- of colour in their relative

A print using Kodalith Ortho Film in which the design has been achieved by multiple of the negative image on to the paper - Ingrid Bugge. tones, the necessity to develop film in total share the same focussing mechanism, so 101 darkness (or with a weak safelightl, that the focus is seen in the viewfinder. and the use of orange or /green safe- The single lens reflex, in which the object is for the printing process. both viewed and exposes the film through The introduction to the photographic the same lens. process by using hand-made negatives also has the advantage that some of the creative Both the viewfinder and the twin lens darkroom processes of double printing, reflex suffer from the disadvantage of multiple printing, serialisation, reverse print- , that is the viewfinder does not ing and even repeat pattern making can be show quite the same view of the object as is carried out with either the original hand- registered on the film. This problem can be- made negative, or a combination of two or come quite a major difficulty when working more negatives, or with specially produced with moderate or extreme close-up work. The negatives that have some of these techniques twin lens reflex also presents a viewfinder in mind. Parts of the hand-made negatives image that is laterally reversed, and this can can be placed in the negative carrier of the present problems particularly for sports and and be considerably increased in action photography. size and printed on to the paper. The single lens reflex offers a viewfinder It is only after a thorough experience of image as seen through the exposing lens. The the hand-made negative and its associated image is not reversed, and, when interchange- darkroom techniques, including the produc- able lenses of differing focal lengths are used tion of test strips, the use of the on the camera the viewed image is exactly as control of the enlarging lens, and the chemi- will be registered on the film. cal processes of development, stop baths, Polaroid cameras, in which the photograph fixing and washing the print, that work with is exposed, developed and printed within the the camera should be introduced. camera have use in school, particularly for the instant viewing of the printed image in comparison with the picture taken. There is, however, little possibility of using any of the Of all the various types of cameras available creative darkroom techniques and the cost for use in schools, the Instamatic type with of the film is relatively high. its fixed focus lens and single speed mechanism has an immediate appeal on the grounds oJ cost and in use, but there is no doubt that tha single lens reflex camera has very considerable advantages for Decisions will have to be made about the producing the type of creative work that is format that is to be used and while the larger of intere,t to an art and design department. formats (generally 2'1.." square) make good qual ity enlargements possible and make the The viewfinder type, either in the simple handling of the negative easier, the range of form of the instamatic or in its more film, developing and enlarging equipment complicated and expensive coupled range- obtainable for the smaller 35 mm (1%" x finder type (of which the Leica is probably 1") size, together with its relative cheapness the best known make). both for equipment and cameras, make it a The twin lens reflex, in which a pair of lenses more economic proposition for school use. are mounted one above the other, one Film can be bought in bulk, and it is possible exposing the film, the top used for illumi- to buy both film and paper stocks that are nating the large viewfinder. Both lenses slightly out-of-date but sti II useable. Although 102

..w:! Darkroom work using the hand-made negative and double exposure- Elaine Imrie camera equipment may have to be specialised the use of blurred images or double- 103 in terms of film size it is a good idea to have printed images to suggest movement. an enlarger (the universal type) that is capable Reflection, from a variety of surfaces, of handling film sizes from 35 mm to 3Y2' x including water, metal, glass, distorted 2%" for the high contrast work that will be reflection from curved polished surfaces. described later. Texture, the surface quality of various As well as standardising on film size, for objects from rough to smooth, with the simple methods of working it is as well to investigation of the use of light to en- purchase one type of film (possibly of the' hance these. 125 ASA rating), one type of film developer and a paper developer and fixer. A developing Scale, the small object becoming larger than tank, a , a thermometer, a clock for life through simple macro or micro seconds timing, a universal enlarger, develop- photography, the enlarging of the small ing dishes, print forceps and washing equip- negative image to a variety of size. ment complete the basic need of darkroom The environment, the recording and use of materials needed. urban and rural images, street graffiti, I have always found that, for both school lettering, field and landscape patterns. The and college use, the 'one-shot' developer obtained from these projects which is used once and then thrown away is can be used as art objects in their own preferable to the developers that can be used right, for use as source material for other again and again. In school conditions, the forms of fine or applied art or as photo- liquid developers and fixers, even though graphic sequences. costing rather more than the powdered forms, do save time and patience, particularly In the applied art areas photography can in the vast majority of school departments be used as an integral part of a dress scheme that have to manage without any technical investigating the use of lighting for fashio~ assistance. It is as well to label every bottle photography, portrait work, as source with the quantities found necessary for each material for the design of dress and acces- darkroom session - this can be done on the sories, or as an adjunct to work in graphics plastic bottle with a felt pen. or print-making. Far too much difficulty and complications Over a period of time students can be seem to surround the use of cameras, light- gradually introduced to other skills in photo- meters and enlarging equipment by students. graphy - the use of lenses of differing focal Much of this difficulty can be overcome by lengths and the examination of the effects having simple work cards made for each of these lenses on the angle of acceptance of the lens and the differing depths of focus ob- piece of equipment, and to supplement these tainable and not only with the use of these by notices in the darkroom for the particular lenses but at different in the same processes being used. It is even a useful idea lens. to print, on a plastic covered card that can Other speeds of monochrome film can be be hung over the developing dishes, the used from the low speed 32 ASA fine grained times for each part of the processes. film giving good contrast, to the faster 4000 ASA films giving relatively coarser grain, particularly in big enlargements, and less Projects can be set for individuals or small contrast. The effects of different developers on these films can be explored with their groups to investigate ideas such as:- effects on the nominal ASA rating of the Movement, the freezing of a movement, or film and their effects on grain and acutance 104

__ F_IL_M__ I ASA RATINGS AS MEASUREMENT OF SPEED ~ Viewfinder APERTURE CAMERA / Twin Lens Reflex FOCUS -- Single Lens Reflex EXPOSE

c::e:J THE NEGATIVE I

Use of test strips

Chemical reactions (as above)

FIX

THE POSITIVE J; THE PRINT WASH - [) Can be larger, or same size as negative in the negative. two intermediate tones. All this work can 105 The use of negatives with relatively little lead to the consideration of the original image contrast and with a high degree of contrast on the negative in a number of different on differing grades of paper when printed in ways. the darkroom forms another and slightly Together with the practical work, students more advanced areaof knowledge asthe work can be encouraged to keep a collection of in photography proceeds. The after-treatment contemporary and historic photography of photographs by 'spotting out' the white drawn from source such asthe photographic marks on the prints and erasing the black press, magazines and colour supplements. marks by careful work with a sharp craft Historical theoretical studies for the more kn ife, and the mounting and display of the academic students might include a study of prints are an important later part of the the from the camera work in photography. obscura, the work of pioneer photographers The use of Kodalith Ortho film asa source such as Fox Talbot and Daguerre to the of black and white images gives a very con- work of distinguished contemporary photo- temporary and exciting graphic image that graphers. is often relevant to students' interests in Photography can be pursued in the graphic design and pop culture. The Koda- General Certificate of Education at both lith film either develops the intermediate Ordinary and Advanced Levels with some tones in the negative as pure black, or examination boards, and the Certificate in remains transparent according to the amount Secondary Education, particularly in Mode 3 of exposure given to the film. Its use need offers opportunities for a course of study to not be expensive, since it can be bought in be exhibited and evaluated both internally boxes of 50 in the 2]1," x 3]1," size. This and by the external moderating examiners. means that a 35 mm negative can beenlarged Even within the limited compass of this on to this material as a positive (this could article, I hope that it has been shown that also be used for projection in a school slide there is both a rationale and a place for projector), the positive can be contact prin- photography as an area of study within the ted with another piece of Kodalith, and the framework of an art and design department. resulting 2]1," x 3]1," negative can be placed After the initial expense of equipment both in the universal enlarger and used to make a of the camera and the darkroom equipment black and white print on normal photographic has been met, the continuing expense of bromide paper. The only additional equip- the expendable materials - film, paper and ment required is a safelight, and the chemicals - bears some relation to the special Kodalith developer for the film. expense of other areas of study. In terms If larger pieces of Kodal ith can be pur- of the time taken to develop and print a chased, this material can be used in direct negative, the cost of photography isprobably contact with various photo-sensitive screen of the same order, or even somewhat less,as printing materials to use in screen print- the cost of textile design and printing or making either as multiple images, or in con- even graphics and print-making. nection with graphic design - posters and Certainly in terms of its relevance to the packaging designs. everyday lives of students today, and in terms The 'use of Kodalith materials can lead to of its contribution to the visual awarenessof further and more advanced experimental these students, photography has every justi- work in the darkroom using processes of fication to stand in its own right as an art solarisation, or converting the original photo- form, or as an important contribution to the graph into areas of black, white and one or area of integrated art and design studies.