Wet Plate Collodion Photography Sydney at Studio 1A Sydney withChristopher Getts and Pania Newport

Here is a series of wet plates, tintypes and ambryotyes made in and around Studio 1A Sydney by photographers Christopher Getts and Pania Newport. Over the past few months the studio photographers made a portable darkroom and developed their final ideas for the Head On Photo Festival 2013; OBJECT.object: Contemporary Wet Plate Collodion Portraiture is an exhibition featuring works by Christopher Getts and Pania Newport that are produced using 19th Century photographic processes. Represented are wet plate collodion tintypes which are objects of art in their own right. Artists Christopher Getts and Pania Newport have captured portraits of people holding an OBJECT that represents something of importance to the sitter whilst the OBJECT held by the sitter is photographed as a separate still life wet plate. Each sitter is required to remain still and concentrate on the picture taking process and holding of their important OBJECT which can last for up to 60 seconds (unlike the instant shutter of digital photography today). The resulting intensity of the sitters gaze engages viewers in a manner that is distinct from the casually made, ephemeral images that have become so familiar with todays digital photography.In the minds of the artists, they attempt to capture the meditative relationship between the sitter and their object recording that moment during the extended period of exposure and image capture. It is the stillness and peace that takes place during the process of 'sitting' that is captured on the wet plate and creates the finished "OBJECT". The images displayed below show the preliminary ideas and practice of skills over the past 3 months at Studio 1A Sydney