I’ve been printing since I was 17, starting at art college and in various makeshift darkrooms then progressing through an assortment of West End and Chelsea laboratories, working in both colour and black and white, whilst simultaneously pursuing other creative areas. Early on I worked at Vala Studios where we produced cibachrome colour prints (Valachrome!) that were absolutely stunning at that time. The eye-watering prices reflected that - if I remember correctly my initial weekly wage would have just about been enough for two 10x8s. I learnt a lot about professional printing there, working practices that I still use today. Following that I moved across professionally to black and white and eventually set up independently, printing my own work and that of a handful of clients that had been with me for years. Lith printing and hand tinting became specialities.
I have at last shut down my darkroom and sold all my equipment, having talked about doing it for some years, bar the bits necessary to process bw film. I still have a few rolls so once that’s used up I probably won’t shoot any more film and the final pieces of equipment can go. It’s sort of sad but I’ve been doing this for a ridiculously long time, so perhaps it was finally time to move on. It’s not like I’m short of things to do…
