I have been a fan of images printed on platinum and palladium for quite a while. A well done platinum image seems to float right off the paper; it’s some sort of magic having to do with the physical characteristics of the materials along with the slightly modified contrast (especially in highlights and mid-tones) that gives platinum images a very special look. As with most everything else photographic, you have to see the original prints, as reproductions tend to be a bit more flat and lose that 3-D effect.
Norwest Center, by Keith Taylor, platinum print, 2006.
Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to see as much original work on platinum as I’d like. It seems that most gallery shows I go to these days are all about BIG! COLOR! photos with very little new black and white work and only a tiny percentage of that being printed with platinum. Because of it’s dreamy and somewhat “old fashioned” look, it often appeals to sentimental types, and it’s not hard to find really overdone work in platinum as well. But there are a few contemporary artists who really nail it, and it’s exciting to see.
I bring this up because I am finally going to take the leap and start printing some of my own photographs in platinum/palladium. I am doing an independent study with Doug Schwab at Brooklyn College in the fall to learn how to make platinum/palladium prints from original 4×5 negatives as well as digital negatives from scanned medium format film.
I’m going to Sicily for a couple of weeks in June and I should be taking a lot of photos. I’m hoping to get started on a small addition to my darkroom for the necessary supplies and equipment when I get back, and after that, we’ll see what happens!
Links to a few contemporary photographers who are working in platinum and palladium:
Beth Dow
Keith Taylor
Craig Barber
Ronald Cowie
Alejandro López de Haro
