Less grain, more the darkroom
Most of the editing happens weeks later, when the memory has faded. Good coastlines is for the most part a series of little, unglamorous decisions.
The process
None of this is new, and that is partly why it works. There is no single right way to approach waiting for the light, but some ways are kinder than others. Film forces a pause between seeing and pressing the shutter. For a long time I treated contact sheets as an afterthought.
In practice
The soft part is hardly ever the hard part; consistency is. This got going as a quick note and bit by bit turned into something longer. Somewhere between the harbour and home, the idea finally made sense. For a long time I treated grain as an afterthought.
A light meter is a good teacher if you let it disagree with you. It is effortless to overthink printing. It is harder to just start. Somewhere between the old market and home, the idea finally made sense.
- Compare against last autumn
- Note the date and the weather
- Start with overcast days and nothing else
- Do less editing a series, more shooting film
In July the light changes, and so does the work.
coastlines