I should have had some prints to scan and upload on my website. Walks through the Wirral, Warwickshire. I threw the negatives in the bin. It seems a bizarre tradition of mine when I become too comfortable with my photography. Commonplace images, captured with ease. It started with my Nikon FM2 when I was working in Cologne. Wandering the Rhine in the evenings capturing images whilst listening to Joy Division on my headphones. One time I noticed I was on exposure 43 of a 36 exposure film; I had not loaded the film properly. I took it as a message from the Film Gods. The images where probably all shit. I now destroy a roll of film or two every year without even bothering to develop them. It’s a wakeup call to try harder.
Storing Negatives is easy. Ive got my process down to an art. I simply print out a contact sheet of the negatives and on the next page I place the negatives which correspond. The only tips I can give is to buy good negative and A4 sleeves. In both cases there is a huge gulf between a good insert sleeve and a bad one. I stick to Kenro for negatives and Oxford for the A4 sleeves. Kenro also sell the ring binders and accompanying case. Whilst expensive, I recommend these. From my university days I remember how loose A4 ring binders are designed to be a stacking nightmare.
The one thing I have found with prints is that the rose-tinted expectation of having these hand made prints in little boxes of nostalgia everywhere is a bit overrated. Always being obsessed with the next image, I often do not look back. Prints are hard to categorise, different subjects, varied sizes, multiple copies. There are projects that start, turn into something else or are abandoned. Boxes become dumping grounds or a convenient place to hide a failed idea. They are not particularly inviting places to rummage. Piles or mismatched images, often repeated or of varying quality.
These are the most underrated. The size is the most realistic for a manageable print project. If you where consistent with good photographs, it could be possible to have one of these filled for each individual photoshoot. For mini projects they are hard to beat. Its perfect for holding a small selection of curated prints. The downside is they are not the best for multiple copies of prints, variations etc. In the world of darkroom printing economics, it often makes sense to print 3 or more copies per print, or minor variations. This is so further toning processes could be tried or if you want to give a copy away or hang one on the wall, it is far less bothersome. For those kind of prints it’s best to have a box.
It works but they fall to bits fast. It also looks a bit crap.
I have bought a few of these but I’ve found they are not durable, it is rare to get a few delivered without one getting dinged. They also look a bit prissy, like jewellery should be inside. I prefer the more craft paper/card looking varieties. They could be ideal for selling or giving a small print series to somebody, especially with some Blue Peter customisation.
This is my favorite box. I’ve found they’re great for multiple prints, variations, assorted sizes. They are also durable. Not being too deep, you can get a lot of prints inside, enough for a general category but not enough space for year's worth of casual shooting to look lost inside.
I might bin these. They are great, durable and hold a lot of prints. The problem is I tend to treat them as a dumping ground, I rarely ever look through them again. If I do look back Ive found that I have shoved every surviving print variation of a subject in the box. Two dozen different exposure options shot on 4 different varieties of darkroom paper. This brand is also dust magnet on the outside.
I love these, I flip though them regularly. A slight issue is that they look a bit odd with just a few pages, if you removed some inserts, and being best utilised double sided, they hold a few more prints than I’d want for a mini body of work. I put all my model shoots inside and buy a new portfolio when the included pages become filled. The downside is that I would not try stuffing a few spare copies of prints inside a sleeve, I have done it but I am guessing one day they will burst the sleeve apart.
So there you have it, nothings quite perfect. In my mission to sort out my house, photos, life; I’ll probably transfer everything into slim archival boxes, weeding out too many duplicates and pointless variations. I’ll also make sure a copy of anything good gets placed into a Macpack spiral portfolio, not left hiding in the dark of a box.
