Expired Vol. 2 - Photographs on Dead Film

I began shooting this pack of Ansco Superpan Press at the tail end of another project that I was doing - one where I spent the winter photographing the industrial side of Seattle, Washington. By March, after spending four months in the city, I was ready to escape east into the sagebrush and basalt formations.

Since the Seattle Project had me photographing in a specific way, I wanted the spring to essentially have a more relaxed feel to it. However, I don't really do relaxed, especially when it comes to photography.

For the majority of the project you're about to view, I hiked and camped through most of the half-dozen excursions into the eastern counties.

It was a season of exploration for me. I had become used to and even proficient with the Chamonix 4x5, so it felt almost natural to use it. As I saw more of the photos developed, I realized that perhaps the hand-held Graflex Crown Graphic was more suited to this emulsion.

The lens, a cheap 135mm Steinheil München Anastigmat Actinar, worked magic upon the scenes I discovered. It brought a feel to the places that a more modern lens could not. Shooting it wide open, at f/4.5, turned the crisp sunlit world around me into an ethereal experience.

The processing was, as usual, done in my small bathroom using a generic version of HC-110. And for film that was nearly 70 years old when I shot it, it didn't do too bad.

7.5"x7.5"; 56pages; b&w