picture perfect – Thaddeus Holownia book

Posted on April 30, 2021 by Robert

Headlighting 1974-1978

Toronto.  I had an email from PHSC president Clint Hryhorijiw the other day. The email contained a link to this book release on a site called, “BK On The Scene“. The book post was dated April 21st of this year and directed viewers to visit Jane Corkin Gallery for any orders.

On the Corkin Gallery web site was this article: “Thaddeus Holownia, ‘Headlighting 1974-1978’

“The images in this book comprise photographer Thaddeus Holownia’s large-format portrait series, Headlighting 1974–1978. This project, on the theme of internal-combustion-engine vehicles and their drivers, ostensibly ‘car culture’, is a body of work that has become increasingly provocative at the ‘end of oil’. It was Allan Fleming, the distinguished Canadian graphic designer, who first suggested to fledgling photographer Holownia—when he presented his portfolio to Fleming at the University of Toronto Press in 1974—that he might consider using a view camera. Holownia freely admits that this meeting changed his life. Shortly thereafter he began Headlighting, a series which originated in Toronto but overflowed into the US Midwest and ended with his move to New Brunswick, Canada.

“-Robert Tombs”

Thaddeus Holownia
Headlighting 1974-1978
59 duotone reproductions
66 pages, 12 x 18 in.
Hardbound, in limited edition.
$85.00 + Tax

Order at info@corkingallery.com.

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light my fire

Posted on April 29, 2021 by Robert

Bay Studio lighting in late 1970s

Toronto. Back to the very beginnings of photography, savvy studio artists used lighting to model their subjects, control contrast, and at just the right instant capture the fire or essence of each subject. Over the decades, books have proliferated with the results of this careful rendering.

Typical is this late 1970s colour studio lighting set-up ready for portraits of all subjects. The big square soft light gives the overall illumination; a spot light softens the backdrop and dissolves  shadows; while another spot adds modelling to the subject children.

All that is left is the professional’s skill and sharp eye to snap his camera and capture the image just as the subjects sparkle with inner fire.

Note. The title of this post is the famous Doors song of 1967. Here you can listen to Jim Morrison and company sing the song.

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if not for you …

Posted on April 28, 2021 by Robert

Leitz 35mm f/3.5 lens close setting stop post

Toronto. … my lens would unscrew. Photographers know that the infinity focus setting sets the lens at its closest to the film/sensor plane. For close-ups, the lens is extended further from the film/sensor plane. Box cameras for film often had small lens openings relying on the physical depth of field to keep subjects over a wide range of distances more or less in focus. An of course the shorter the focal length of the lens, the wider its depth of field.

At the time the tiny Leica was introduced, most lens close settings were 1 metre. More modern  film lenses come to within about 20 inches and with auxiliary lens elements, extension tubes, or a bellows, they can go even closer to the subject.

As lens technology advanced, a physical stop was set to keep the lens from extending beyond the manufacturer’s design setting. For example, this mid last century 35mm Summaron lens uses a screw post to block rotation of less than 1 metre.

Traditional projector lenses had no physical stop, relying on the long tube length after the threads to keep the lens from being unscrewed by accident and dropped. Of course modern day lenses set to auto focus keep the owner’s hands off. Even with a manual setting, most stops to focussing travel are hidden from view.

Note: The post title is George Harrison’s 1970 song, sung here by Bob Dylan. The image shown is a slightly sharpened iPod Touch photo cropped for both the 1200 pixel and 225 pixel sizes.

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making it big, making it better – again

Posted on April 27, 2021 by Robert

CDV portrait of three ladies by Ashworth of London, Ontario. c 1860

Toronto. Cartes des Visite or CDVs came along in the early 1850s with wet-plate technology and stayed popular for about 15 years. The actual photograph, on albumen paper, curled into a tight cylinder making a stiff backing necessary. Cards of 2.5 x 4 inches were usually used with the taker’s advertisement on the back. CDVs became popular to take portraits of celebrities. As a result, multi-copy cameras were invented making the process more efficient.

Shown here with enhanced sharpness and contrast is a typical CDV portrait of not one but three young ladies taken by London, Ontario photographer, Ashworth, in his studio near the London post office.

Over a decade after the CDV became popular, the tiny card had run its course and saturation set in. Portraits were revived by studios offering a much larger Cabinet card of about 4.25 x 6.5 inches in size with an albumen or other kind of print glued to this firm backing.

I found detailed information on CDVs, Cabinet cards and other 18th century photographs in the 1976 book, “Collector’s Guide to Nineteenth Century Photographs” by William Welling. My copy is the letter size soft cover version. Many other products emulated this concept of increasing size to improve the device from cameras, to smartphones.

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Brandon Leung – Ryerson Thesis Winner for 2020

Posted on April 26, 2021 by Robert

by Jim Wong-Chu courtesy of UBC Rare Books Library and B J Leung

Toronto. I was pleased to hear from our 2nd Vice-president, Ashley Cook at the AGM this month. Ashley co-ordinates the review and selection of the Ryerson Thesis winner each year. In spite of the radical changes in society invoked by COVID-19 rules, she was happy to announce the 2020 winner.

Ashley proudly announced. “The 2020 F+PPCM Thesis Prize winner is Brandon James Leung for his thesis: ‘Chinatown Forever Changing’: Jim Wong-Chu’s Pender East.’

The image at top left is called, ‘Jim Wong-Chu, [Chinese boy holding an umbrella], gelatin silver print, after 1970. University of British Columbia Library, rare Books and Special Collections, image courtesy of Brandon James Leung.’

The précis of the thesis from Ryerson’s School of Image Arts reads, “This thesis explores the historical context of late Asian Canadian artist and activist Jim Wong- Chu’s photographic and poetic album Pender East, which is held in the Jim Wong-Chu fonds, University of British Columbia Library Rare Books and Special Collections (RBSC). I discuss the album in the context of Asian Canadian Cultural Activism of the 1970s, the same time period when the photographs within the album were taken, applying the movement’s relationship to community, history and cultural representation to my analysis. Viewing the photographs and poems through this lens reveals how the album visually represents Chinese Canadian identity through the photographs, poems and its structure. Additionally, as much of this information is not accessible from within the RBSC database, I outline how the relationship between the album and the knowledge surrounding it can be maintained through its catalogue record.”

A summary of the thesis will appear in a future copy of Photographic Canadiana and may be presented by Brandon in person or via ZOOM in a Toronto Monthly meeting at a later date.

Note: A minor amendment was made to the title and reference note of this post on August 4, 2021 following a request from a fellow PHSC member and close friend.

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a pretty little poser

Posted on April 25, 2021 by Robert

Little girl in studio portrait c1850s

Toronto. I bought this daguerreotype of a little girl around 1975 at one of our fairs from Bill Marshall of Deux Montagnes, Quebec. There was only a half case on it so the quarter plate image was priced under $10. For most of the 1800s, media and equipment were so slow that stands had to be used to brace subjects for the long exposures needed (up to a minute or more depending on the studio lighting  and apparatus). This little girl held a chair back and leaned on a metal stand (at one time you could see the upside down T shape with the short bar on the floor below the pantaloons).

On July 2, 1976 I cleaned the image using  the Missouri Historical Society formula of thiourea, phosphoric acid, and distilled water, plus a dash of wetting agent. The plate was dried off by dipping it in pure alcohol (Alcool from Quebec) and air dried. You could then see details like the varnish cracks on the chair, and the stand below her body. 46+ years later, the stains have returned and blocked the details once again.

In the larger image shown here, you can see that the hand and dress at the chair back are sharp while the head, body, and dress a bit further away are slightly blurred, perhaps by tiny movement. One book I have suggests the plain brass frame and metal binding (not cardboard) indicates a later daguerreotype, hence my c1850s estimate.

As you can see, the child is well fed, clean and dressed up in her Sunday best to have her ‘likeness’ taken for eternity. Less fortunate folk could not afford the clothes or studio photographs, especially of children. The very wealthy could engage an artist to paint a portrait.

 

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The Amalgamated Photo History Newsletters Vol 2-4 (April 2021)

Posted on April 24, 2021 by Robert

Amalgamated Newsletters
Vol 2-4, April 2021

Toronto. The Australian Back Focus issue plus some old articles are reproduced here in our special members-only supplement, this time its the June 2020 issue of Back Focus. As a member of the PHSC, you received this supplement Friday, the 23rd of April.

Vol 2-4 was sent out last Friday afternoon to all current members with an email address. If you did NOT get a copy, please email me at info@phsc.ca and I will send you a copy after verification of your membership. Not YET a member? well, for heaven’s sake! Grab your plastic and register via PayPal on the upper right of this page! And you can donate to the society the same way via PayPal, or go to our Canada Helps entry on the link below the PAY NOW button.

The preamble states, “Welcome to our Easter readings of the Amalgamated Newsletter to offset the effects of Covid.

“Ron Reynolds, President and of many hats for The Australian Photographic Collectors’ Society of Australia, contributes our one main article on the testing of lenses. It is a difficult topic that requires expertise to explain properly.

“George Dunbar of the Photographic Historical Society of Canada offers some of his finds in surfing the internet.

“Permissions granted: Back Focus – The Australian Photographic Collectors’ Society of Australia–Ron Reynolds; Photographic Historical Society of Canada–George Dunbar.”

Ron’s article is very detailed and of considerable interest. I did a similar test of various cameras and lenses in the late 1960s for members of the Bell Canada Camera Club in Montreal. Ron offers a  far more detailed and precise analysis  than my rather simple test results using a similar resolution test chart about a half century ago. George Dunbar submitted the May, 1941 Electronics magazine article. “Facsimile Speeds Air Reconnaissance” and the analysis article, “After the Shot Is Fired” from the March, 1931 issue of Science & Industry magazine.

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Charlie Geschke dead at 81

Posted on April 23, 2021 by Robert

Adobe’s co-founder Charles Geschke, courtesy of Rappler.com

Toronto. You may wonder who the heck this guy was and why his passing merits attention on a photographic history website. Almost everyone above ground and many underground have used his products over the years.

Monday, April 19, 2021, I was watching CP24 on our Sony TV when a brief post caught my eye. It said the Adobe co-founder and co-person behind PDF, Charles Geschke had died at 81 years of age.

We at the PHSC use many older Adobe products like Photoshop, and the ubiquitous PDF (Portable Documentation Format) to post our journals and newsletters. As savvy folk know, PDF keeps the fonts and image positions exactly like they were created in a page layout program.

I personally used many Adobe products (Acrobat, Photoshop, Illustrator, GoLive, Dreamweaver, InDesign, Lightroom, etc.) on both Windows and Apple platforms until Adobe moved to their current business plan making them uneconomical for non professionals to use. Before then, I was so impressed with Adobe that I bought Pamela Pfiffner’s 2002 book ‘Inside thePublishing Revolution‘.

Photographers and web browsing folk everywhere need shed a tear on the passing of this great and remarkable man.

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up, up, and away

Posted on April 22, 2021 by Robert

Intrepid in flight – courtesy NASA

Toronto. Bet you thought your telephoto lens takes a really long shot! I have an old 20 inch Bausch and Lomb lens that mounts on a Leica mirror box. But, NASA has everyone beat by miles. Their tiny Intrepid drone took off f rom MARS Monday (19th of April if you are counting)  and took this video.

Well done little camera – and a tip of the hat from every savvy photographer and videographer!

Note: The title of this post is a 1967 song written by Jimmy Webb, sung here by the 5th Dimension (very low resolution video).

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Aldo Egidio Lista 1930-2021

Posted on April 21, 2021 by Robert

Aldo Lista, 1930-2021

Toronto. Our president and my good friend, Lewko (Clint) Hryhorijiw, called me yesterday (the 20th) to say Aldo had died on April 15th.  Clint worked at one time years ago for Aldo at the New Paramount studio as a wedding photographer.

Clint knew Aldo and his family as well as their home by Lake Ontario. The full obituary (thanks Clint) was in a recent issue of the Toronto Star and can now be read here on the Legacy web site.

After Aldo retired, his son took over operation of the studios. We are sorry to see this bit of history fade away.

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