Kelly, 2002

Personal Geography: Kelly Detail, 2002

The idea of DTNs (Digital Transparancy Negatives) is that the impersonal look of digital photography can be overcame. I invented the process DTNs myself, when I wanted a look of tradtional photography that I just couldn't get printing my digital pictures out from the computer. No matter how good the printer is: whether it's laser or ink jet, it cannot replace the look of a photograph developed in a darkroom. The process is simple but may sound confusing to those who have not spent much time in darkroom. After taking a picture on the digital camera, I upload the file onto the computer. Then I bring the picture into a photo editing program which will let me turn the photograph into a negative. Then I print the photo (as a negative) onto a piece of printable transparancy paper. The transparancy is taken to the darkroom where instead of putting a negative in the light chamber of the enlarger, I leave the chamber empty. I then get a piece of photo paper out, place it under the enlarger and then place my transparancy negative directly on top of the paper. I expose the paper to light for the given amount of time, and then develop the picture as normal.