Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2004/05/19
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Greg, I had the opportunity to meet Jean Loup Sieff several times while we lived in Paris 1982/83. We used to have breakfast at Caf? de Flore on Fridays. It took a couple of months before we talked, but in the true European fashion, we nodded "bon jour" for several Fridays until we decided to talk! The fact that we both carried M's with the basic lenses on them; 21/3,4 S-Angulons, 35 Summicrons, and 50 Summicron established the connection. Oh, and the plastic bag full of Tri-X, too. We both carried our copies of Liberation and Intn'l Herald Tribune, too. He was a devoted Tri-X user, processing in D-76, either 1:1 or straight, depending on the contrast he wanted. He, like me, mixed his own D-76 from scratch and we had several discussions on cutting the Sodium Sulphite down to get more distinct grain (S/S mushes up the grain a bit). He used a D2 Omega enlarger and also had the largest supply of dodging tools I have ever seen. He did some of his own printing but a lot of his exhibition work was done by Jean Yves Bregand of "Imagenoir" who also printed for Sebastian Salgado and Joseph Koudelka (how establised can you be!), Sieff was very much a "basic shooter" - no fancy stuff, but he had mastered the equipment he used and saw no reason to change. His Hasselblad stuff and 4x5 stuff was different - that was strictly commercial and film/developers were targeted to client need and "art directors" whims. Oh, we designed a hell suitable for Art Directors : all shag carpeting (purple and mustard color), formica and chrome chairs and only incoming phone-lines - they could not phone out. They would all be stuck in this barn like structure and have to live with each other and wear ugly ties in perpetuity! The photographers' heaven had unlimited supply of Tri-X, D-76 was always fresh and the developing trays would magically replenish themselves with fresh solutions every morning! All exposures would be perfect and all models would listen to the photographer and not throw fits. In the early 80's his choice of paper was Ilford fixed contrast paper, but we both discussed the Multigrade papers as a potential boon for darkroom work. His paper developer was a variation of Dektol (increased amount of Sodium Carbonate for deeper blacks). I think Bregand also mixed his paper developers from scratch and somewhere I have his formula for a warm tone developer. Both Sieff and Bregand were heavily addicted to Ferrocyanide, doing individual blades of grass on entire lawns! All the best, Tom A P.S. Tuulikki, My wife studied French in Paris while I used my school and college French. I did explain to the Parisians that the reason I used mostly present tense was that I had "no past and no future in Paris". Sieff was deeply impressed by the logic of this statement and quickly changed to English as our language of communication! -------------------------------- Tom Abrahamsson Vancouver, BC Canada rapidwinder.com