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London Independent Photography Film and Darkroom Group 7 October 2019

Ted began the meeting this month with a demonstration of the Dark Arts. Of spotting prints, that is.

We also welcomed new members Danilo and Zoe, whose first contact with the group was through the darkroom seminar at LIP’s annual exhibition this year, and Emma, who has recently joined LIP.

All the scheduled darkroom sessions have been filled.

Don told the group about Intrepid contemporary hand-made large format cameras, which led on to a discussion about the use of camera movements.

Ted then began a discussion on composition, using as its starting point ‘A Transatlantic Arriving 1959’ by Henri Cartier-Bresson. Following our viewing of the same photographer’s ‘Martine’s Legs 1968’, the conversation moved on to how a modern reading of such images might differ from past times, given the increased awareness of objectification.

Don generously offered up four of his prints with an invitation to discuss ‘bad’ composition. The group, however, was able to find merit in all of them.

We also talked about how street clutter can cause difficulties in composing photographs, and finally left the subject with a suggestion for a later meeting to consider how different film formats, aspect ratios and cropping can affect composition.

New member Danilo then showed us a selection of his work, using Polaroid SX70, SLR, and Diana cameras.

The next meeting is on Wednesday 6 November at 6.30pm. Anyone interested in coming along is asked to contact Ted Kinsey at tedkins@gmail.com. Roberto Arendse