News and Events

UPDATE - Sept. 2, 2010:

Goodness, what a bumpy road. The move is still uncertain.

Jim Cole Photography has a FaceBook page! Check it out here.

IMPORTANT NOTE: During this move and possibly for sometime after, I will not have the capability to offer framing and matting services. This will most likely be until we finally get settled in Washington. All prints on this web site will still be available, but as unmounted prints only. Your local frame shop will be able to do the rest for you. I do have a small inventory of framed prints on hand, so please email or call to see if the print you want is framed and in stock, otherwise I will only be able to ship an unmounted print. I apologize for any inconvenience, but it takes quite a bit of room for framing and I do not yet know what space I will have available in our rental home in Indiana. I imagine things will be a bit topsy-turvy for a while. Please email with any questions you may have regarding timing of orders. Phone service will be interrupted during the move, but the new number will be published here as soon as it becomes available. I will post exact moving dates when I know.

Upcoming Shows:

None scheduled for now due to the pending move.

Black and White gallery on the web site:

On January 7, 2009 I added traditional black and white images to the site. All of the images in the Black and White Gallery have been made on large format or medium format B&W film and developed personally in traditional darkroom chemicals. Limited edition prints from these images are produced digitally with pigment on a slightly warm 100% cotton rag paper with a baryta surface. This museum quality paper yields wonderful tones with the look and feel of traditional silver darkroom prints. I spent well over 3 months, made dozens of test prints with 8 different fine art papers and spent hundreds of dollars to find the best photographic paper for these reproductions.

Each B&W image in this series is limited to 50 prints. I hope you like them.

Project - Vintage Flagstaff Series:

In early 2008 as I was preparing to leave Flagstaff to move to the Pacific Northwest, I decided that before I left I would document Flagstaff and the surrounding area in a way that I had not done in the 8 years I had lived here. My new project would have three aspects. First, I would photograph landscapes, buildings and objects that I would always think of when remembering Flagstaff. Secondly, I would do it using a media that I had never used before, black and white film. Finally I would expand my large format experience from just my traditional 4x5 field camera to include the use of a late 1940’s 4x5 Pacemeker Crown Graphic press camera for handheld shots and a 4x5 pinhole camera that would provide a dreamy quality to certain images.

After studying some classic B&W books by some of the masters including Ansel Adams, I jumped into shooting and developing my own sheet film in June 2008. I shot all of the images in this series on 4x5 sheet film from Kodak and Fuji using the cameras listed above and developed the negatives personally. After I developed the negatives, I scanned them for use in a digital printing workflow. My long term goals include traditional darkroom printing, but time constraints for this project precluded the setting up of a darkroom and the several years required to attain competency in traditional techniques. Digital printing of B&W images has come into its own in the last few years with new papers and inks that provide the ability to produce beautifully toned archival images that are different from, but rival traditional prints in feel and quality. This series is printed on a very traditional, warm tone, heavy fiber based paper with a baryta base. The prints look wonderful and feel great in the hand.

All prints have been toned to provide a vintage look to the photographs similar to what was produced in the late 1800’s prior to the availability of film. In that era, photographs were made on glass plates that were hand coated with photographic emulsion by the photographer. The emulsion coating process was difficult to master and inconsistent, resulting in the look presented in these photographs.

The new "Flagstaff in the Pines" portfolio includes twelve prints from the series. Each image is approximately 6x8 inches on 8x10 inch paper and is printed in poster style on the same warm tone, heavy fiber paper as the larger images offered for sale. The twelve pigment prints are enclosed in a nice die-cut presentation portfolio cover and each print is suitable for framing or for simply enjoying in your hand. The portfolio is now available on this web site in the Vintage Flagstaff Gallery. Price is $145.

Workshops:

I am once again offering photo workshops, but on a private, one-on-one basis only. Private workshops allow me to work with each person to accomplish very specific goals with no distractions. I can help you with everything from basic camera operation including metering, apertures, shutter speeds and other camera functions to lens choice, using and choosing filters, close-up work, basic composition skills and learning to see (finding the image). Beyond the camera I can also help ease you through the post production learning curve in the digital darkroom including film scanning, processing images in Photoshop, inkjet printing and color management.

Camera basics and field work can be taught with whatever camera you own including digital or film cameras from 35mm up to 4x5" view cameras. Indoor workshops are taught at the student's home or other location of choice. Outdoor shooting workshops are taught at a location agreed upon by the student and instructor. Students will provide all equipment and materials for the outdoor workshops including camera, lens (preferably more than one focal length) , a sturdy tripod and film and filters if required.

Digital darkroom work will require that you have the hardware or software that you want to learn on. I can provide help with the selection of new equipment and software if you are just setting up your workflow with considerations to your actual needs and budget.

Current pricing for private workshops is $175 for 4 hours and $300 for an all day (8 hours or more) experience. Generally arrangements can be made for a private workshop with as little as a week or two notice. Payment is expected prior to the workshop.

Call me at (928) 774-0007 to discuss and/or schedule a workshop.