These abstract, colorful prints are the result of scanning "bad negatives" into the computer. The process turned them into beautiful works of art.
The negative project came to be purely by accident. After my father (and fellow photographer) passed away from cancer in early 2011, I took on the enormous task of scanning the negatives from his 25 year career into the computer. As I went along I started to notice something very interesting; the ends of film rolls that at first appeared to be destined for the garbage can were taking on an entirely different form after the scanner light passed through them. These were the pieces that most photographers would cut off and throw away; scrap, camera misfires, the last of a film strip that never really exposes. Not my dad, he kept everything even though he always said his photos weren’t good enough. As it turned out, even his actual “crap” was brilliant. All of these images were different with no two designs the same and the result was abstract and fantastic. I could immediately see large prints gracing walls with this art that is truly unique.
This work is entirely a metaphor for how a photographer sees the world and what I think more people could benefit from in their daily lives: find something beautiful where no one else is looking.
Dayton, Ohio,