Cemetery Photography and Holga Workshop!

I’ve made many images in cemeteries (and other places) over the years with a plastic toy camera called a “Holga.” The Holga is a film camera that uses 120mm (medium format) film. Yes you can still buy this film and yes you can still get it processed, scanned, and printed.

Why film? It’s analog, baby. And not only that, but the Holga is so unpredictable you never know what you’re going to end up with! Personally, I like the surprise. However, it is a finicky beast. If you’ve never loaded a film camera, that can be a challenge. If you’ve never had to guess at proper exposure and focus, that can be an even bigger challenge!

But fear not - on October 3, 2015, I will be letting you in on all my secrets (well, not ALL my secrets, just the Holga ones). As part of POST, the annual “Philadelphia Open Studios Tour,” I will have some of my work on display at the Da Vinci Art Alliance in South Philadelphia (click here for website). As part of this group exhibition, which we call “Art by Design:”

I am offering a (free!) HOLGA workshop Saturday, October 3, from noon to 2 pm. (I will be there until 5 pm)

I plan to have a couple cameras there for you to play with, and I will gladly show you how to load and unload film, how to focus and make correct exposures. We can chat about films and the inherent foibles of the Holga – from light leaks to vignetting. We can even discuss REAL adventurous things like cross-processing your film and scanning your own negatives.

If you’d like to just stop by and see my work (and the work of the six other talented artist members of Da Vinci in the show), I will be there Sunday, October 4, from noon to 5pm. Many of us will be there both days, but the Holga workshop is just Saturday.

The work I will have on display will include some Holga images, and it won’t be all cemetery work (but we can certainly share cemetery stories!). I will have many additional examples of Holga images to look at in portfolios and greeting cards. Please stop by – there will be snacks and refreshments as well!

Click here to go to the Facebook Invite

The Da Vinci Art Alliance exhibition, “Art by Design,” is being staged in conjunction with InLiquid, a Philadelphia based nonprofit organization, which presents the work of local, national, and international artists to the public. The exhibit will run from October 3 – 30, 2015. All the artwork will be for sale. Gallery hours are Wednesday 6-8 pm, Saturday and Sunday 1-5 pm. The seven artists participating in this show are:

Sarah R. Bloom

Kitty Caparella

Sheila Fox

Linda Dubin Garfield

Sandi Neiman Lovitz

Ed Snyder

Annie Stone

"Trees," photograph by Ed Snyder

By the way, if you're wondering which piece of art reproduced on the postcard above is mine, you may be surprised. It's actually the blue abstract in the upper left corner. Directly above you see this digital, non-Holga image in its entirety (framed, it is 19x25 inches).

Further Reading:
Click here to learn more about the Holga camera!  

Da Vinci Art Alliance website

See examples of Ed Snyder’s Holga photographs on his website, www.edsnyderphoto.com