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My Process
I am a fine art photographer with a passion for combining Art and Science. My colour photograms are made without the use of a camera; colour gives a contemporary twist to a technique which was utilised by early pioneers of photography such as Henry Fox-Talbot.
I use small botanical specimens such as flowers, individual seeds or seedheads, mostly sourced from my own garden. In the darkroom, I shine light through the specimens onto photographic paper. This has to be done in complete darkness as the colour paper is sensitive to all wavelengths of light. Many test strips are done to determine the appropriate exposure and filtration, then the final print is exposed and processed. I can often only produce one final print as the fresh specimens deteriorate quickly.
The strange colours occur as a result of the specimen filtering out certain wavelengths from the white light, and only allowing the remainder to reach the light-sensitive paper. For example, green leaves will give a magenta image, and a blue flower will give a yellow one.
I make digital files from the original C-type analogue prints by scanning them at high resolution and then working in Photoshop to reproduce as accurately as possible the subtle tones of the originals. The resulting images play with both the scale and the colours of the botanical specimens and encourage the viewer to see these commonplace subjects in a new way.
