Saturday, July 21, 2007

The Reify and Redact Project


“… do you have a portfolio that you could present without a single excuse or elaboration as being representative of what you've done as a photographer?”

Mike Johnston
The Online Photographer, July 19, 2007

Something was obviously missing in my assortment of prints, slides and digital files. After reading Mike’s article, “Reify and Redact”, I’ve decided to accept his challenge and produce a real and tightly edited portfolio of prints.

As an aid to selection and editing, I’ve made up the following rules:
1. Cutoff date 2006
2. Suitable quality for an 8x10 or better print
3. Only a dozen prints!

My portfolio will be a set of these prints, separated by interleave tissue and placed in a portfolio box. My first thought was to use 11x17 inch paper but it was easier to find the tissue and box for 13x19 inch size. The boxes are a bit deep (1-3/8 inch) for only a dozen prints but that leaves room at the top for a set of linen gloves (well, maybe cotton).

My printer is an Epson 2200 and I like the results using Moab Entrada Natural paper. This is a archival matte paper that is slightly warm. Because the prints will not be mounted, the thicker 300 gsm paper should have a nice touch.

The cutoff date is set at year end 2006 partly to include some of my favorite photographs and partly as an incentive to make a better portfolio in the future.

The prints will be somewhat larger than 8x10 but small enough to leave a wide border on the 13x19 paper.

The paper, interleave tissue and portfolio box are ordered for the Great Reify and Redact Project and the selection process has begun.

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