Film Markings / Early Experiments

      I made this series of images when I was working at a photo lab in my hometown, Kingston, Ontario. It was one of my first jobs after high school and lead to my continued love of photography and image making.

 

I spent most mornings alone in the printing lab, developing negatives from the previous day. After processing, we would always cut away unexposed portions of film. Instead of throwing them out, I used the pieces to experiment. Using the company office supplies, I began making marks and drawing on the film. I loved how Highlighters and markers changed to their opposite colors once scanned. Using a can of compressed air over a permanent marker would create a paint spray or splattered effect. Paperclips were an ideal to scratch away at the negative's surface and to create sharp lines. After scanning, I then adjusted the colours and made small 4x6 prints. I had to work quickly and covertly as my manager would often come check on my progress and would not have appreciated me printing my own images. 

 

This was not only a way to pass the time, but was a way to experiment with line, color, texture and composition. Through these interventions and mark making, I was able to examine how the photographic process works & the physical nature of film photography. I had all but forgotten about this project but recently rediscover them in a box of photos I kept from 2005.