Portrait in black, white & grey

item details

NamePortrait in black, white & grey

ProductionSteve Rumsey; photographer; 1963; Auckland

Classificationportraits, black-and-white prints, gelatin silver prints, black-and-white photographs, works of art

Materialsphotographic gelatin, silver, photographic paper

Materials Summaryblack and white photograph, gelatin silver print

Techniquesblack-and-white photography

DimensionsImage: 357mm (height), 281mm (length)

Registration NumberO.027678

Credit linePurchased 1998

Overview

This black and white photographic print was created by Steve Rumsey in 1963. 'Portrait in black, white and grey' is, as the title describes, an experiment in the effects that are possible with black and white photography, and is a complex technical achievement. Rumsey produced the print as part of a series of investigations into the technical possibilities of photography that he began in the early 1950s.

Technical details
Portrait in black, white and grey was created from two negatives. The first created the silhouette of the woman's head and the grey background. The second provided the details of the woman's head and torso, and was printed in the space left after the first negative had been printed onto the photographic paper. Using registration pins to ensure the two negatives line up correctly, the resulting photographic print is a composite image. It emphasises the basic elements of black and white photography, which are that an image is created by exposing light sensitive paper for different lengths of time. No exposure creates white highlights, grey indicates partial exposure, and black indicates lengthy exposure.