Visual Perception & Beyond

PSA Journal, August, 1999 by Richard Harper

The Photographic world seems to have become besotted with computerization, digitalization and even advanced photographic systems. But there are many of us who do not even own a computer and find that digital and APS films are incompatible with traditional photographic equipment, apart from being more costly.

Whatever avenue we choose, it is wise to remember the advice of one of the great masters of the Art World. Gauguin was of the opinion that visual perception was the most important element. This applies as much to photography as it did, and still does, to painting. The efforts of the "point and shoot" photographer can be said to be the result of visual perception. I feel, however, that Gauguin meant not only what the eye can see, but something more than just that--the sentiment, the feeling, the nuance, and that individuality and distinctive style of the artist, which was perhaps so typical of the impressionist period.

Whether or not that applies to my kind of photography is perhaps not for me to say. Those of you who recall my article "Montages, Messages and Memories" will know that something I see sparks off something else, either from memory or from my files, and the resulting montage may give a message to others, but also has memories for me.

For those who still indulge in the traditional methods of photography, I give the following accounts telling how some of my other pictures' evolved.

For instance, I composed, or should I say constructed, the picture that I have called "Synergy." I could have called it something to do with trunks or torsos because of its derivation. But how did it happen? To start with, I had seen and heard about photographers who were keen on recording various textures, so I went out and took some shots of the bark of tree trunks and such. It was an exercise, but it did nothing for me. On another occasion, when I was out shopping, I saw some interesting ebony tailor's dummies in a shop window, all black and shiny, waiting to be dressed. That was when my thoughts turned to minks and torsos. I wondered about the possibility of montaging them--so "Synergy" was born, i.e. a combination of subjects!

How was it accomplished? The simplest way is to make two masks out of the same piece of photographic mounting board. Any size to suit the print paper you are using will do. I tend to print to 14 x 10 on 16 x 12 paper because this allows a handling margin to avoid contamination when subsequently treating black and white prints with color toners or other dyes. So my two masks had an external measurement of 14 x 10 and an internal cut out of 9 x 7. I then made test strips to determine the exposure levels for each part of the image. With the masks in position, I placed the tree trunk negative in the enlarger, checked the focus, and after removing the outer mask, I made the first exposure. I replaced the outer mask, changed the negative, and exposed for the ebony model. Care must be taken to ensure that the position of the masks remains constant, which can be done simply by the use of weights or suitably heavy objects. The final picture is mounted in an antique white mount.

If you want to try your hand at something even more ambitious, you can prepare a "triple" mask having a narrow 1/4-inch mask between the outer and inner ones. Thus, when removing the outer and inner masks, the 1/4-inch mask is always left in place so you can have a white "frame" between the two images. Alternatively, just use the narrow outline mask as a spacer, finally removing it after replacement of both outer and inner masks, so that a black outline can be burnt in between the images.

I also adjust the position of the images to give a slightly deeper base to the picture to improve the balance. Incidentally, I always do this when preparing my mounts so that when displayed at exhibition, the picture does not appear to be slipping out of the frame.

A similar method was used for "Fantasy Girl." In this case the background was a rockery plant in my garden. The shot was taken on black and white film, printed on multigrade paper at grade 4, and then colored in a violet dye bath. The central picture of a young girl was again printed in black and white but this time was treated in a Colorvir yellow toner bath followed by pseudosolarization in a blue polychrome dye bath. The central picture was then separately mounted on photo mounting board with the bevel reversed. The background picture was mounted on the backing card with the center of the print cut away so that the portrait could be superimposed instead. Finally, an outer midnight blue mount was prepared and fitted so that the violet-toned background image appears to be below the levels of the other cards.

Now for something different using overlays in another way. I had taken some shots of violins displayed in rows along a wall in a music shop. Using a photo mounting board, I made a black outline of a violin just 1/4 inch wide with black cutouts of the main features. I reshot the background picture in black and white, with the cutouts placed at an oblique angle across the print paper. The effect was to give the white outline of a violin across the picture of the music shop display. The resultant print was treated in Colorvir toners, but it did not gel. Some time afterwards, my wife was sorting music scores when I noticed one in particular--"Rhapsody in Blue." That was the answer! I assembled the violin pieces over the sheet music at an angle, but this time, I added a cutout of a nymph seemingly emerging from inside the violin. The nymph came from a photograph that I had taken of an Art Deco lamp, printed to suitable size, and trimmed of unwanted subject matter such as background, base, and lampshade. The resultant montage was rephotographed in black and white and the final print treated in Colorvir yellow toner to color the greys, and then in blue polychrome dye to color the white areas. The picture has had some successes at international salons, particularly as a slide. But, as you may have guessed, my thoughts did not end there. I had on file some shots of the Artex designs on our bedroom ceilings. I used one of those negatives in order to gain the impression of the swirl of the sound of music. This was placed in the enlarger first, and given a mere one second exposure, which tests proved to be sufficient. Keeping the print paper in place, I exchanged that negative for the "Rhapsody" one but with the length of the required exposure reduced by the same one second. The second exposure will intensify the swirl pattern. If you want to attempt something like this, you will need to do your own tests, because the density of exposed negatives and the nature of different print papers does vary. The ultimate picture was treated in Colorvir blue toner for the greys, then in polychrome blue dye (a slightly different hue) for the white areas, to emphasize the intention. This version works best as a monochrome print and, as such, it has also been successful at international salons.