Re: [gardeners] photography
Kay Lancaster (gardeners@globalgarden.com)
Mon, 4 May 1998 20:58:53 -0700 (PDT)
On Mon, 4 May 1998, George Shirley wrote:
> I used Seattle Filmworks all the years we lived in the Middle East and
> other countries. (I'm third-generation oil field trash)Always got my film
> back in good shape, done on time, etc. Mailed it to Seattle from all over
> the world and never missed a picture. Either I'm really lucky or care was
> taken at every step. Shucks, if my pictures could survive the Saudi Postal
> Service and Saudi customs it could survive an a-bomb.
The only thing I have against Seattle Filmworks is they want to
give you those rolls of leftover movie film (the slide/print film),
and sometimes the color balance is pretty wonky.
> >I have both a 20 cuft and an 11 cuft freezer, but there is no way
> >that I could get all my slides inside them! Yes, Kay, how do
> >you do it?
Ruthless editing and group slide files. About 5K slides in 3-4
cu ft. (Doesn't everyone have a freezer full of film, slides and
negatives? Is *that* why my mother refuses to open my freezer????)
Our problem over the years was that the original slides
> >mounted in glass (circa 1957) all developed red splotches, and
> >have become useless.
Glass slide mounts were notorious for this, esp. the double glass mounts.
As I understand it, it's mainly a fungus problem. Even the cardboard
mounts (and photographic negatives) can have problems in humid
climates... my husband's family have lost most of their family photos,
courtesy of living in the Caribbean, Florida, and similar subtropical
paradises.
Someplace, Kodak has a good tech bulletin on long term storage of
photographic prints, negatives and slides. The basic recommendations
are cold, dry, and dark.
Bringing this back around to gardening (sort of), I've always
found a small white umbrella to be useful when photographing
flowers. It's instant minor shade when you need some, or a flash
diffuser, or even a reflector to toss a bit of light on a shady
side of a flower. White t-shirts work pretty well too. I know
I've startled some fellow botanists by asking them to contribute
their (slightly ripe) t-shirt to my photographic endeavor.
Kay Lancaster kay@fern.com
just west of Portland, OR; USDA zone 8 (polarfleece)