Matthias PetzCyanotype - When I go "blue" for a day
Reading time: 10 minutes - October 13, 2021 - by Matthias Petz - From the Schnappschuss
My name is Matthias Petz, I'm 34 years old and I live in the district of Ravensburg. The title of this article is my motto in life. Because when I'm "blue" and not taking photos, I create analog fine art prints using the cyanotype process. I not only sell these in my own online store, but also produce cyanotype prints with my own image at the customer's request. But before I go any further: What actually is cyanotype?
Matthias PetzWhat actually is cyanotype?
Well, some people know it under the name "Prussian blue" or "blue printing". It is considered a black and white process, although it "only" depicts different shades of blue. However, this is also due to its age, as this noble printing process is almost 200 years old. It was invented after the daguerreotype and calotype and, unlike these two, is based on iron, not silver. In cyanotype, paper is photosensitized and dried. It is then exposed as a photogram using UV light. The unexposed parts are washed out, so there is no development as with photographic film.
Many people are probably thinking that this sounds rather complicated. However, I can reassure everyone. Cyanotype is a very easy process to learn and quite safe to use. Nevertheless, you should not forget that it involves chemicals and that you should take a few safety precautions. The cyanotype process can be used with objects as well as with negatives specially produced for this purpose and printed on film. A simple inkjet printer is sufficient for the negatives. However, as this would go beyond the scope of this article, you can find a detailed tutorial here.
Matthias Petz - FranceIt won't let me go...
Now to the subject of how I came to this process. At the beginning of my self-studies in analog photography, it was the cheapest process with which one could begin to transform one's own pictures into fine prints. Once you start using it and see how the blue develops in all its nuances in the water bath, you very quickly fall under the spell of this process; it has stayed with me to this day.
I choose motifs that touch me. Pictures and photographs that I have usually taken with a certain thought in mind. These include my "Street Photopraphy" pictures or my ballet shots on black and white film. Many of my portrait shots also find their way into print finishing. But why do I actually go to the trouble of exposing images in an old format as prints when I could just as easily have them produced on fine paper by a print shop? Personally, I find that too many pictures in the digital age are "stored" somewhere on a hard disk or on the internet in social media without anyone really getting to see them. In this day and age, when every smartphone can store thousands of photos, it has become commonplace to always have a digital photo album to hand.
Matthias Petz
Matthias PetzMatthias PetzIt's nice to know that your most precious pictures are hanging on the wall...
Too often, however, we don't look at the old pictures, let alone think about backing them up. One little mishap and all our precious photos are lost, even the ones that are really close to our hearts. I find it comforting to know that even if my cell phone dies and my backup can't be found, my most precious moments in life are waiting for me at home as fine prints on the wall to be admired at any time. You can already see that my attitude to photography is not so firmly anchored in the digital world. But of course I have to admit: I also use digital photography. Often because my smartphone is the "always-on camera".
How the picture was ultimately taken, whether digital or analog, plays a subordinate role for me. However, if I consciously take the time, I prefer photography on black and white film.
My inspiration
Just before I finish this article, I would like to talk a little about what inspires me in my work. First and foremost, it's about how I see the world. I have been suffering from a chronic mental illness for years and so I give a new expression to the world as I experience it. I often look for moments that are full of peace and beauty, but which we tend to overlook in the stress of everyday life. For me, it is also a time to switch off, to consciously slow down in everyday life. I only concentrate on the picture, because you only recognize a lot about a picture when you consciously take the time to look at it. This also applies to the further processing of images.
Matthias PetzThe big goal is still in the works
But what actually happens to my works now? That is indeed very different. Some pictures often lie around for years, like a good wine they mature, figuratively speaking, until I rediscover them. Selected pictures end up as prints in my online store and others end up on social media such as Instagram. Some of them also make it into magazines for submission, and I've also had cyanotype prints published alongside my photographic work. However, the really big goal is still in the works: at some point I would like to hold an exhibition of my pictures. Details and themes are in the works, but nothing more will be revealed just yet. Other planned publications, such as in a book, will only be finally announced by me when they are "ready to go", as they say.
Perhaps you would now like to go "blue" for a day and immerse yourself in the world of cyanotypes.
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