Field notes from the ferry terminal
Some of this will be obvious; some of it took me years. Scanning is tedious, but it is where the series takes shape. The best frame on the sheet was the one I almost did not take.
A note on tools
I shot most of this series on a single roll, half of it in fading light. If something here is unclear, that is on me, not you. The first eight weeks were chiefly about unlearning. I tried the still version first. It did not last. Film forces a pause between seeing and pressing the shutter.
I print small first, then decide what deserves to be larger. This is less a guide and more a record of what worked for me. Thanks for reading, and for the gentle observations that keep arriving. The best advice I got was plainly to slow down. Overcast days are underrated; the light wraps around all of it.
Notes along the way
Between printing and scanning negatives, the second one taught me more. Between shooting film and printing, the second one taught me more. I keep a short list of things to try next; walking with a camera is near the top. Most of what I know about light came from getting it wrong first. Below are a few observations, roughly in the order I picked up them.
The short version
I keep a short list of things to try next; printing is near the top. I tried the grainy version first. It did not last. Between walking with a camera and shooting film, the second one taught me more. Here is what shifted, and what stayed exactly the same. There is a version of this that is much more complicated. This is not that version.
I keep coming back to long exposures, chiefly because it rewards time. There is no single right way to approach printing, but some ways are kinder than others. It took me eight attempts to see the pattern.
- Compare against last winter
- Stop before you are tired
- Write down what you change
- Do less shooting film, more printing
In July the light changes, and so does the work. There is no single right way to approach walking with a camera, but some ways are kinder than others.