Just a Number

 

Lost running shoe - Burnham Overy Staithe, Norfolk - 2016

There is a moment when you suddenly realise that your photography has aged. Those images you printed up in the darkroom, ah it seems like just yesterday, are in fact suddenly 25 years old. The very age you were when to took the photographs. It's a sobering thought.

Moments stay with you. I wrote on my main website blog about a personal important photography milestone over thirty years ago. The photograph was of the seafront at Colwyn Bay and it marked that moment when the camera and darkroom skills all came into line. I saw the image in my mind's eye and took the photograph using my camera and darkroom abilities. I still have that 10x8 black and white print framed on the wall.

Since then, many photographs have been produced, trailing behind like a ship's wake. I can divide the images into eras. The 1990s were the black-and-white film years, the 2000s were a roughly even mix of black-and-white and colour, and the 2010s were like the previous decade but with digital colour gaining dominance and mobile photography added. The jury is still out about the 2020s.

I think what I'd like to do in this 'era' is return to shooting a little bit of film. Probably not on the scale of twenty years ago, but a few rolls of HP5 or FP4 film through the F3 or F5 would feel good. 

As for the photographs getting older, you just have the nostalgic moment and carry on with the journey. After all, the age is just a number!