Hybrid Photography

Fusion of Digital and Film Photography

Within the Fine Arts world, the industry and economy of Fine Arts, there is a renewed interest in the high craft value of skilled printing that comes, in part, out of the darkroom tradition. This renewed interested happened very quickly. It can be argued that digital photography didn’t really saturate various disciplines until about 2008, when it plateaued. Within a few years galleries were already valuing artists (anew) who use film and darkroom printing for value distinguishable from digitally derived or printed images. The gallery economy quickly saw a potential representing artists who can make either one-off photos (think paintings) or who make photographs that possess the obvious or not so obvious creativity, materiality and rigor of film/darkroom based photography. When fewer individuals possess a skill set that translates into other related technologies (film to digital) that skill gains a different kind of value, within certain circumstances a higher value. This high craft, high value reality is a selling point for the department. So many schools have closed their darkrooms, but those who have not leverage their darkrooms and related professional learning tools and spaces as unique.

Why not FRC?

Over the last several years since the saturation of digital tools in art, students in community colleges love learning in the darkroom. They love it! There is the possibility of achieving, within certain photo studio student groups, a kind of professional camaraderie and critical pleasure that fosters how to work around other people while also being creative. This can happen in a digital studio, of course, with the right instructor, but everyone has a digital studio. Feather River College Studio Arts has a darkroom. The photography courses utilize a unique (rarely found in higher ed) darkroom-digital hybrid curriculum and tools. Many artists who teach photography would love to have this blend, but it’s difficult to achieve this within most departments due to competing faculty interests, space/studio/scheduling issues (they are usually in separate rooms, floors or buildings) or simply because academia tends to have a quick hyperactive response to new technology that doesn't allow for hybrid curriculums. We have the flexibility to do this and respond to student amibitions.