Disaster in the Darkroom Trailer

Lost all my Silver Nitrate from my Acrylic Tank. It leaked and I lost about 4-5 litres of the solution. I have travelled with it loaded in the tank for several years now, with no issues. This time it leaked from the tank, through the 5 inch foam surrounding the tank and through the hard tack box I used to project the tank during travel.

Bloody awful, hundreds of dollars in silver lost! $500? $800?, who knows. So f-cking depressing.

Spent the night cleaning up the mess as best I could. I cannot transport the silver that way. It will need to be stored in lab bottles, in the special foam cooler I made up. This will require more time and effort, each time I shoot. I will have to unload the silver solution from the bottles, and then put it back again each time.

I have lost faith with silver nitrate tanks, at least the larger ones. This i]is the second time I have had a leak.  I might try doing my silver work in trays from now on.

Note* I made up a fresh 5 litre bottle of Silver Nitrate solution afterwards, to replace the lost one. I have about 16 litres of thee stuff.

The Victoria Camera Club TALK INFO

The Victoria Camera Club asked for more info, for the coming talk I will do for them via ZOOM (a PowerPoint Presentation).

Wrote this up for them and sent them a bunch of pics from the 2 projects and some selfies.

Hey M... A... and R..., here is what you wanted.

THE TALK WILL BE 7- 9PM VICTORIA TIME ON JANUARY 14, CORRECT? We will use ZOOM, allowing me to show my POWERPOINT PRESENTATION.

TALK INFORMATION

The two projects in the talk are, THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE UNDER THE FREEWAY and THE FAMILIES OF THE DUMP.

THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE UNDER THE FREEWAY deals with the lives of Thais living in the notorious Khlong Toei slum, in Bangkok, Thailand. THE FAMILIES OF THE DUMP tells the stories of Burmese refugee families living and working in the Mae Sot, Thailand garbage dump. I have been working on both projects for over a decade. 

A very important element of the talk and the MAIN THEME, is how photography can be used as a FORCE FOR GOOD IN THE WORLD. We (donators and myself) do both photography and donation work both under freeway and in the dump. We have raised thousands of dollars to help those in need. The photographic work has had a positive effect on the lives of the subjects.

The talk contains photos (film and digi imagery) of the people, details the donation work done, and contains many first hand personal stories and memories.

BIO

Self taught social documentary photographer. Worked 31 years as a nighttime security guard in Edmonton. The name YAUM is a pseudonym, Yaum in Thai means "Security Guard". I prefer to let the photos be about my subjects, not myself.

Attached are some photos from the talk and a couple of headshots.

Thanks Gerry

PS...if there is anything else you need, please ask.

THE FAMILIES OF THE DUMP

THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE UNDER THE FREEWAY

Silly Me

Opening the House Window Glass I got for $30

So the first 3 attempts at opening yesterdays house window glass went bad (cornered screw type). I broke all 3 and was only able to get limited smaller cuts out of the broken glass pieces. The problem was the glass was very thin, only 2mm thick and very fragile.

My attempts on the older aluminum glass windows (cornered staple type), went better. Once I figured out how to remove the metal corner staple (bend the aluminum window corners with pliers, then dislodge the staple), things went OK, only minor breakage.

I will continue the work with the larger, more fragile plates tomorrow.

Note* I was hoping for thicker glass, some of the older aluminum frames have what looks like 3mm but some seem to be only 2.5mm. Better than thee newer screw type frames, but not by much.

The windows were well worth the $30, I just wish the glass was thicker.

Glass Thickness

So, did an unintentional glass thickness today while varnishing.

Plate #1, 2mm thick. While I was applying the painters tape, I VERY lightly bumped the corner of a 11x14 Ambrotype on th corner of the desk. This small mistake took out a 1cm wide section about 3 cm long on the bottom corner of the plate.

Plate #2, 4-5mm thick.While taping I dropped the entire plate off the desk onto the ground at my feet. There was no damage at all!

I prefer the substance of thicker glass as well, at least 3mm, 4 mm even more so. The problem is the cost, 2mm is dirt cheap, 3mm more expensive and 4mm super expensive!

I would prefer to do all my Ambrotype work at 4mm, but I do not believe that will be possible. Unless Ii can find free sources of old glass that is not tempered.

$30 For Old House Windows

Got a ton of old house non tempered glass windows off Facebook Marketplace today. Cost $30 CAD (down from $40).

If I can get these things apart without breaking the glass, I will cut the unscratched glass for Ambrotype plates and use the damaged glass as a black (painted) substrate, backing material for framing.

Being retired requires me to be more careful with money. Getting glass this way helps. Plus’s there is something beautiful of using garbages items to make art. Maybe some of this found, repurposed old house glass will someday hang in a high end gallery as a beautiful Ambrotype!

There was more windows, than in the pic at the home, got them for $30

Frame-Glass Sizes

New Kodoku

Found an old "Compact Flash" card in a drawer, hope to use it soon to make new pics. On the card I discovered some old 2017 Kodoku (Solitude) images. Edited a few new photos.

I always enjoyed this series but it had never been exhibited (never submitted it).. Hope to print it in photogravure. Think would look great that way. Maybe that could lead to an exhibition.

Japan, 2017

Preparing to do 24x24 inch Ambrotypes!!!

Getting the darkroom trailer Freddy and the 24x24  camera gear together. Will try making ultra ultra large Ambrotypes next week!!

Lots to think about. this is a big and difficult step.

Cut Up the Window Glass Today

Cut up the free window glass today. It was 3mm thick, once I removed thee metal framing. Cut the first 2 rather sloppily, the second 2, were better cuts.

I ended up getting 7-14x14 inch plates and 7-11x14 inch plates (the plates are slightly below 11 inches). Plus a few smaller sizes from some old broken glass I had,

Nice to get the free glass, it should last a session or two. Old free house windows might be better to search for as they are not tempered glass.

4 Free Glass Windows

Picked up 4 FREE large NOT tempered window frames tonight. Each metal frame section measures about 32 inches x 24 inches. Meaning if I take the metal off apart and do the cuts without breakage I will get 8-14x14 inch plates  to expose ambrotypes on.

Different Vinegars

I have been playing around with my vinegar developer of late for my ambrotype work. If you have a higher level of glacial acetic acid (restrainer) in the mix, you can achieve a slightly more contrasty image. Having a contrastier development option is important on heavily overcast days. 

To that end I am learning more about various glacial acetic acid concentrations in different type vinegars. I also have the optioni of adding pure glacial acetic acid or acetic acid (diluted Glacial) directly into the developer.

I would prefer to have a a variety of premixed vinegar developers at the start of every shoot. Saving some time and allowing for variation choices depending on my mood and the lighting of that day. It would also be safer to only use vinegar.

There seem to be a variety of Vinegars available. 5%, 7%, 10% and 30% (expensive)!

Lost a Lot of Glass

When cutting my free farm glass before last trip I found that much of it was tempered glass so unusable (cannot be cut).

It is so depressing, I did so much work getting the glass, and then hauling and carrying it around, only to find out the majority was tempered.

Now I need to get rid of that glass, and buy expensive new glass. 

Note* My search for non tempered free glass continues.

Silver Nitrate Tray

For the fat farm glass (5mm?) I was forced to use a tray to coat silver nitrate on the plates. When I tried using the tanks, I kept scraping the collodion emulsion off, which is super frustrating, expensive and wasteful. 

The tray system worked well. I might try it with the large 24x24 inch plates to come!! It might be an easier way to do things except for the clean up which will take longer as I will need to pull out and return the silver solution to the bottle each and every time I do a session.

Water on a 2 Day Shoot

I was able to reuse some of the storage water. Poured it back into the 5 gallon jugs after day one use, and used them again on day two. A functional way to extend my water supply.

Power, on a 2 Day Shoot

On the second day of shooting I ran out of power with my for car battery set up. I had used it a long time the first day so by the second there was no much left. I was forced to turn off the exhaust fan and run the lights and timer off small 20v batteries, went through 1 1/2 of those. 

I was able to run the A/C on the 1000w Jackery (battery power supply) for about 4 hours (not sure how much power left there). I used the low power A/C setting which helped things. The trailer interior interior did not run above 23C, which helped to prevent artifacts on the plates.

Motorhome Hitch Not Damage

The motorhome hitch was acting funny this last trip. For 6 years there was no issues but this last trip the right side bumper area was sagging. I believe the hardware holding the hitching frame to the RV is damaged/loose on the far right side. 

When I put the trailer on a space of about 1.5 to 2.5 inches is created above the rear right bumper. When I remove the trailer weight, everything pops back into place. It did that 2 times.

I will need to tank "FANNY" the RV in for a repair at a hitch shop. Hopefully it is not too expensive a fix.

Collodion Coming Off the Plate, Why?

I had several issues of collodion coming off the glass place last trip. It might be related to much sloshing honey, but more likely it is a plate cleaning issue (lousy cleaning on my part). I will try a few solutions. I am not eager to albumnize the entire plate, not just the edges.

I think its plate washing as I was tired and rushed things on the 2nd day, where most of the problems happened.

Spot the Problem!!

I had an issue with my glove, can you spot it? 

The problem stems from attaching the plate back to the camera. The spinning attachment wheel cuts a hole in my glove.

Leading to a badly blackened finger from Silver Nitrate

I will need to use a thicker style glove (Gorilla, used by mechanics) in the future or change them out more often.

Day 2 Stuff, Nordegg, Alberta Cemetery

I need to go back, started late in the day and had exposure issues. Was very tired by the end of things. There is a lot more to photograph there than I was able to get.

I will try to return in not soon with the truck and trailer alone (motorhome towing issue), and get more shots. Might even try the 24x24 inch camera.

Day 1 Stuff, Forest Next to Campsite

I shot 2 days of 11x14 and 14x14 inch Ambros, this last trip, rather exhausting.

Campsite forest shots next to my motorhome.

One of the shots

Sink Area

Plate pulled from silver tank, dripping off excess

Camera set up

The pretend master photog look

AMBROTOS KANATA Meaning Version 2

Ambrotos Kanata 

Ambrotos = the Greek word for immortal. I put this in the title to indicate the strength and lasting power of an ambrotype, wet plate, photograph. Along with the immortality of the Canadian landscape and the inhabitants of Canada.

Kanata =  is an indigenous Canadian word meaning "village" or "settlement". It is the origin of the name Canada. I chose this word to pay tribute the original people on Turtle Island (North America), the indigenous natives/first nations people.

Some Nice Freebies!!

Got some nice freebies tonight for from the Photographic Historical group I belong to. A first class 12 inch cable release, a 75mm medium format enlarger lens, some 1961 magazines and a few other odds and ends.

The time I spend with members, the more I enjoy being there. Will give a talk the group on wet plate on Feb 7, 2027, should bee fun.

Man in a Headscarf (Procurer), 1954

Love this painting by Lucian Freud. I think it will impact my Ambrotypes portrait work.

Man in a Headscarf (Procurer) 1954