After decades of using primarily digital photography, from wedding photography to portfolio development for my MFA program, I’ve recently rekindled my analog roots with cyanotype printing. It has been a refreshing process stepping away from the screens and pixels to create with nothing but sunlight, water, and a simple chemical mixture. In a digital world, this analog process offers a slower, more intentional way of creating art.
At its core, cyanotype printing is a remarkably straightforward process. You coat paper with a 1:1 solution of ferric ammonium citrate and potassium ferricyanide. Once dried and exposed to sunlight with an object or transparency on top, you watch as a bright yellowish green transforms into a murky blue-brown as the chemicals are exposed to light. A quick rinse in water transform the image into the bright blues associated with cyanotypes and helps to fix the image.
In a time where nearly everything in photography can be done with a click or a swipe, there’s something captivating about crafting an image from such a basic, raw process. I love the hands-on experience of creating something tangible, a stark contrast to the editing and layering involved in digital work.
Going back to cyanotypes has rekindled a sense of discovery that often gets lost in the fast-paced digital world. With cyanotypes, there's always an element of surprise. The sun’s intensity, exposure time, and layering of objects effect the result, making each print as unique as a fingerprint. It reminds me of why I was drawn to photography in the first place.
As I venture back into cyanotypes, I’m reminded of how freeing it is to create without endless editing or retakes. It’s just me, the sun, and the materials I choose. I’m excited to keep experimenting, to push the limits of what cyanotypes can do, and to share these pieces with you all.
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