The Tenth Muse

                    Infrared Rose

Way back in ancient times, or what my kids might thing of as ancient times, well, before they were born anyway, I took photographs with infrared film, specifically black and white negative film (although I did shoot some infrared slide film, but this isn't about that). It was a bit of a process because of a couple of things: the film speed was slow, you had to shoot through a filter (dark red is the one I used to use), and once you had focused on your subject or scene you had to compensate for the shift to infrared. Also you had to load and unload your camera in absolute darkness which also could be a pain. The images were different too, in a day and age when many people were (and still are) striving to create the clearest, the sharpest of images possible, infrared introduced the subtle distortion of grain.I could look up all the pertinent data, the exact specifications and numbers and settings and what developers were recommended to process the film (I liked HC110) but it doesn't really matter, it's what you did to take the pictures and to print them, it was all part of the craft of photography.

                                      The Pond Mills Bridge, London, Ontario

But the results were magic.

                                        Creeping Charlie and the Old Clarinet

I always felt that there was a bit of magic to photography, maybe a bit less so in this digital day and age (or just a different sort of magic, the kind that deals with computers and programs that allow you to manipulate images), but magic none the less, and particularly in the case of infrared film and the resulting prints. There is an extra element here because you were, and I mean I was, never a hundred percent sure what the final image was going to come out looking like. Oh you had an idea, that's for sure, but the tenth muse always put in an appearance. The name of that muse is serendipity.

                                            Cloud and Tree, Toronto, Ontario 

I came to love the muse and the things she showed me, particularly when she was in one of her playful moods, when she did something special with the light. Here I've picked just a few examples for you that I hope you'll enjoy.

                                                        Country Cemetery

I still plan to play with infrared photography in this digital age (you can see an example in an earlier posting) but it isn't quite the same and it's taking me longer to come to terms with the muse's requirements. Still, it's part of the journey, isn't it.