Wednesday, October 05, 2005

Taking a Break

Today has been hand tint day... adding transparent oil to sepia toned prints...
I've been in and out of the art room, dealing with clients and answering the phone.
Needless to say my concentration hasn't been all that great. I start jamming on a print and ...(insert an interruption)... go back to the task and find I forgot what I was doing on the print. But that's not the main problem... it reverts back to the new digital age and the principle of 'need and production.'

I need special transparent oils for my prints and my favorite are not being produced anymore. The two photo supply companies I order from have ceased carrying them. I tend to run out of veronia brown, perigrey, titanium white, ivory black and basic flesh. All of the tubes I have are barely squeezing out oil. I've found a supplier that has my second choice of oils that I use only when my other brand is out of stock... but they are 3 times the price of what I paid not even 6 months ago.

The digital age... is killing the old way of doing things and I'm mourning. The old photographic restortaion masters put out work that can last for 100 years if taken proper care of...I know this because I have customers who bring in old photos of 100 yrs and under that still have a crisp image, after all this time. The damage is mainly the paper decaying. I know that one day in the next few years, I'll not be able to get chemical prints for hand tinting, because almost all the labs I deal with are going to digital imaging. And my heart mourns the day.

1 comment:

S.S. said...

People nowadays don't live as long as what it used to as well...

But that's the way with the 'improved' world nowadays. Your age is shorter but then you'll get to travel further and MUCH faster than the older days. Nothing comes free.