Found Feathers – Wet-plate Collodion

I started this series after coming across a few feathers while traveling through Maine and Canada last year with my wet-plate collodion camera gear.

I remember someone once told me if you find a feather on your path it’s a message from an Angel. Hopefully more will come across my path this summer while exploring the woods again.

You can view more of this series at: www.preussphotography.com/Feathers

Washing my plate after developing.

New Studio!

Finally, the NEW studio space is completely setup!

We’re having an open studio event during Lacuna’s ART PARTY NIGHT.

WHEN
Friday, January 8, 2016 from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM (CST)

WHERE
Lacuna Artist Lofts - 2150 South Canalport Avenue Chicago, IL 60608

Ruth Bernhard

Happy Birthday, Ruth Bernhard!

(October 14, 1905 – December 18, 2006)

Ruth Bernhard by Larry Colwell

"Each time I make a photograph I celebrate the life I love and the beauty I know and the happiness I have experienced. All my photographs are made like that responding to my intuition... After all these years, I am still motivated by the radiance that light creates when it transforms an object into something magical. What the eye sees is an illusion of what is real. The black-and-white image is yet another transformation. What exactly exists, we may never know."
...Ruth Bernhard 

Two Forms. Ruth Bernhard, 1963

Two Leaves. Ruth Bernhard, 1952

More about Ruth Bernhard’s life.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruth_Bernhard   

Julia Margaret Cameron

A happy 200th birthday today to Julia Margaret Cameron (1815-1879) a British photographer. She is one of the most celebrated women in the history of photography. She began her photographic career when she received her first camera as a gift from her daughter at the age of 48, and quickly and energetically devoted herself to the art of photography.

Cameron's photographic career was short, spanning eleven years (1864–1875). Cameron became known for her portraits of celebrities of the time, and for photographs with Arthurian and other legendary or heroic themes.

Although her style was not widely appreciated in her own day, her work has had an impact on modern photographers, especially her closely cropped portraits.  (Wikipedia)

'Call, I follow, I follow, let me die!' Julia Margaret Cameron London 1867 Carbon print 

King Lear Alotting His Kingdom to His Three Daughters, Julia Margaret Cameron 1872, a Albumen silver print from glass negative.

Sadness (Ellen Terry at sixteen), Julia Margaret Cameron, 1864

Interview with RFOTOFOLIO

If no one saw your work, would you still create it?
Definitely yes, I create my work mainly for my own enjoyment.  But when others find it captivating it’s always a delight.  I view every image as if it’s going in my own home.  But it’s always nice to see my photographs end up on someone else’s walls.

Which photographers and other artists work do you admire?
I truly admire painters like Frederic Leighton and John William Waterhouse for their composition and dedication to details.  But being a photographer, I have always admired the simplicity of Ruth Bernard and Imogen Cunningham.

See the rest of the interview here: RFOTOFOLIO

Exhibition: MoP and Mike Wright Gallery

During MoP this year I will be exhibiting my platinum images on skeleton leaves at Mike Wright Gallery in Denver, CO.

 

MoP - Month of Photography Denver is a biennial celebration of fine art photography with hundreds of collaborative public events throughout Denver and the region in March and April of 2015. Mike Wright Gallery has assembled a dynamic roster of artists working in alternative processes and pushing the boundaries of photography for group show "Analog".

"ANALOG"

Opening Reception 

Thursday, March 12th 6-9PM

Closing April 16th

 

Mike Wright Gallery

1412 Wazee St, Denver, CO 80202

(303) 590-9800

I hope to see you there!

For more information visit my e-flyer.

Interview: Ted Preuss' Timeless Aesthetic

Photographer Ted Preuss' work has a timeless aesthetic. Although he has recently begun to shift from the figurative photography, for which he is known, into more landscape and seascape imagery, the goal is the same: to create simple, enduring, beautifully shot images in black and white that expose the natural elegance of the subject he is working with. He is acutely interested in lines and shapes present in the composition, regardless of whether the image is of a nude figure or the rocky terrain of a seaside cliff.

See the rest of the article here: ZIA Gallery

Monovisions Magazine

Latest interview with Monovisions Black and White Photography Magazine!

Why do you work in black and white rather than color?

To me, color can be distracting. I feel black and white images have a timeless character to them with greater depth. Black and white process offers me more control over the results I’m looking for. To me shooting is just half the job of creating my art. It’s always a great thrill to see a print appear in the developer tray for the first time.

See the rest of the interview here:  monovisions.com

Exhibition: ZIA Gallery

Opening Reception
Saturday, January 24, 2015, 5 - 7pm

During this show I will be debuting selected pieces from my latest series "The Sea", together with my past works, including still-life tintypes and my Simple Beauty series.

Yosemite - 1917, Albert Augustus Jeaneret

Also on exhibit will be a few photographs by my great-grandfather from early 1900's which I printed from his original 4x5 negatives.

This will be an exciting show!

ZIA Gallery

548 Chestnut | Winnetka | IL | 60093
847-446-3970

Show runs from Jan. 24 – Feb.28, 2015

Rudolf Koppitz

Happy Birthday, Rudolf Koppitz!

Rudolf Koppitz (1884–1936) is amongst the most important Austrian photographers. He is much appreciated internationally for his unique way of blending Pictorialism and Art Deco.

Self-portrait, In the Bosom of Nature. 1923

Koppitz's nude self-portraits fascinated his contemporaries as much as they do viewers today. The photographs were taken high in the mountains of the Alps --with the assistance of his wife, Anna. Often symbolic, his images reflected the enthusiasm for nature that Koppitz nurtured throughout his life. - Wikipedia

 

Bewegungsstudie,1927

The Sea

My latest series “The Sea” is a project that’s been long looming in my mind. This series is unlike my others, but the philosophy is still the same. My idea is to keep it simplistic, and to capture the natural beauty of my subject with the sense of timelessness.

I could not say it better.

“My soul is full of longing

For the secret of the sea,

and the heart of the great ocean

sends a thrilling pulse through me.”

- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Otter Cove, 2014 – 30” x 36”

Pacific Grove, 2014 – 36” x 28”

Swirl, 2014 – 10” x 8”

You can view more of the series at The Sea 

ND Magazine Interview

Recent interview with ND Magazine.

ND: We can see your photographs mostly in black and white, why have you chosen to present them in this form?

The simple answer: I shoot with black and white film because I enjoy all the steps creating the final product. I love working in the darkroom with the smell of fixer in the air and thrill of seeing the image appear for the first time on the paper. It’s nearly as exciting as creating the image itself.

You can see more at ndmagazine.net/ted-preuss 

Anastasia

I recently had another wonderful opportunity to work with the talented Anastasia before she leaves the States to head back to Europe. It’s been fun to collaborate with her over the years. Here are just a few images from our recent shoot, including a wet-plate collodion tintype with Rebecca from the past.

Luminous - Platinum Palladium Print

Dreamer - Platinum Palladium Print

Discrete - Platinum Palladium Print

Cocoon - Platinum Palladium Print

Sleepers - 8x10 Tintype

Tales from the lens: Ted Preuss

I was recently asked to take part in The Eastern Sierra Center for Photography series “'Tales from the lens”. Thank you Laura Campbell for including my work!

Full Article : Tales from the lens: Ted Preuss