Sarah Moon's techniques

Hi, I'm kind of a beginner with developing and printing techniques

since it's only my second year taking photography class at school. I

have recently became very fond of Sarah Moon's work and checked out

her book Coincidences from the library, and I love all her pictures.

I was wondering if any of you who are familiar with her work could

give me tips on how best to achieve the gray tones, grainyness, and

the kind of out of focus look that her photographs have. Also what

kind of film would you recommend using. I was thinking of something

like HP5+ maybe because of it's grain. Also, I'm probably going to

be using Tmax developer, since that's what we have at school.

Thanks.

I suspect the technique has more to do with the printing; otherwise I'd say "grainy film and a little diffusion".<BR><BR>Although she also shoots b/w that is quite sharp.<BR><BR>

 

google says:

<BR><BR>**********************************************<BR><BR> I think it was an Ultrastable print either made by Marc Bruhat, in

>Paris, or somebody in London (I do not know his name).

> --<BR><BR>

> Gerard Niemetzky

 

<BR><BR>

> From: Keith Gerling <kgerling@ameritech.net>

> Subject: RE: PIGMENT PRINTS

<BR><BR>

>Not that this contribution will assist in determining just WHAT a pigment

><BR><BR>

>print consists of, but I encountered a rather large (20x30 or therebouts)

><BR><BR>

>nude by Sarah Moon in a large show recently. It was identified as being a

><BR><BR>

>Pigment Print. It was in color, and I couldn't determine how it was made.

>

>The gallery representative was clueless.

<BR><BR>

 

As Gerard has noted, Sarah Moon had pigment prints made by Marc Bruhat

while he operated his lab "Sillages" in Paris, France. Marc made these

prints using the UltraStable pigment emulsions. Marc closed his lab about

two years ago and no longer does any printing. More recently, Sarah Moon

has had her work printed by Adam Lowe and Mike Ward of PermaPrint, Ltd., in

London. This new work is also printed with UltraStable pigment emulsions.

<BR><BR>

As Keith noted, clueless-ness remains too often associated with pigment

printing. At present, Art & Soul, in Seattle, Washington, and PermaPrint,

Ltd. in London offer UltraStable printmaking services. Ataraxia Studios

also offer a pigment printmaking service with their own emulsions.

<BR><BR>

Best,

<BR><BR>

Tod Gangler and Craig Beverly<BR>

Art & Soul Studio<BR>

Seattle, WA.<BR><BR>

********************************<BR><BR>

 

linky = http://www.usask.ca/lists/alt-photo-process/2000/july00/msg00381.html<BR><BR>

I like Sarah Moon. Quite a few of her pictures were shot on Polaroid type 55 positive/negative, enlarging the negative.

<p>Most of her black & white work was shot using a simple polaroid pack film camera and Polaroid type 665 film. The slight blur is a result of the slowness of the shutter in low light environments combined with a slow film (80 asa) and the "electric eye's" of the polaroid camera response to the light (it fires only when it has read enough light as per the lighter/darker f stop setting she sets it at. The negatives are not washed thoroughly and are handled in a manner that caused scratching or shifts in the emulsion. She mentions taking a shot and putting the negative in her pocket, which indicates the intentional disregard for negative purity.<br>

Her shots are toned silver prints. The toning adds a significant nuance to the distressed negatives.</p>

<p>As polaroid 665 is only available at astronomical prices on auction sites, one technique you can so is to unevenly coat a sheet of acetate unevenly with matte medium placed as a 'contact' print onto you paper, while printing your negative from the enlarger.</p>

 

<p>Back in 1993 I had the fortune to be her assistant's assistant (he was a mate, I just got in the way) for 2 days in a studio in Paris, she was using a Nikon with a Polaroid back with Type 55 film, exposures were pretty long (half to one second) due to the convoluted route the light had to take to hit the film.</p>

<p>anybody know what is her camera? she usesses manual polaroid camera or authomatic polaroid camera?</p>