Darkrooms to digital: Changing
technology ends era of darkness
by Amelia Gonzales, co-associate editor
Instances in our lives are constantly being captured through
a lens, providing individuals with opportunities to capture
and savor our cherished moments and beautiful scenes through
the art of photography.
The history of some of the very first
darkrooms dates back to the late 19th century.
They were invented to allow photographers access in
processing and developing their own images that they had
captured on film.
Using a dark room requires several
steps in order to insure success in capturing an image.
These images are captured using light-sensitive materials
that require careful attention in order to obtain desirable
prints.
But with the collaboration of major
programming industries such as Adobe and Apple, the world
can capture an image, edit an image, and print that same
image instantaneously, without ever having to step foot in a
darkroom.
The use of digital equipment comes in a
variety of forms and allows a photograph to appear
completely different than what was really seen with the eye.
Images that were captured years ago, using equipment that
did not allow special effects, can now recapture the entire
image again but with the opportunity to transform that image
into something completely different.
The simplicity of using digital
equipment has helped those unfamiliar with photography turn
an amateur photo into an award-winning photo by having the
opportunity to edit with the click of the mouse.
As technology has continued to advance,
darkrooms have taken a hard hit. All over the world, people
are slowly going from darkrooms to computer chairs, leaving
the darkroom literally in the dark and useless to many.
Photographers all over the world argue
about whether the use of darkrooms should go away or stay.
The argument lies behind whether the art of developing and
processing has been lost to technology, or if technology has
just offered a broader spectrum of art to the public.
Either way, there are numerous
higher-level institutions that are doing away with using the
darkroom as an available tool for photography students. For
years, South Plains College has offered students the use of
two darkrooms on campus. One of the darkrooms is located in
the Fine Arts Building, and the other in the Communications
Building. Both locations are available to students in a
variety of courses of study.
The darkroom that is currently located
in the Communications Department is currently facing its
last spring semester at SPC. This darkroom is primarily used
by students with photo journalism and mass media majors.
John Sparks, chairperson of the
Communications Department, mentions that when he arrived as
an instructor at South Plains College, this particular
darkroom had just moved from the second floor of the Student
Center back down to the first floor. It was located on the
second floor for some time, due to the fact that the Student
Center had flooded in 1978.
When the construction of the
Communications Department got underway, the campus
newspaper, The Plainsman Press, had its news room located on
the third floor of the Library. The darkroom then was
located inside a janitorial closet. When the construction
was completed, the dark room was located between the news
room and the broadcasting room that exists today.
Sparks mentions that the growing
industry of mass communications has moved to the digital
form of photography due to the fact that students no longer
have to deal with the use or the disposal of hazardous
chemicals. Whatever way one may wish to use, Sparks says
that they are both an artistic form of
photography.
“Our goal here at SPC is to train
students in what the news media wants them to do,” says
Sparks. “ New 21st century tools are out there,
and creativity is creativity whether you are using chemicals
or a digital form of art.”
As the chairperson, Sparks’ decision to
go from courses offering film photography to digital
photography was made all in the best interest of the
students. He mentions that all local, as well as national,
areas of mass media are now using some form of if not all,
digital access to bring the public the news around them. He
mentions that the college’s primary purpose is to prepare
students for the world today, and the world today is using
technology as its main source of communication to others.
Jennifer Conlee, a sophomore at SPC,
has had some hands-on experience in the darkroom. As a print
journalism major, she was required to take a news
photography class which required her projects to be shot
with black-and-white film, which was then processed in the
darkroom.
Like others, she mentions that seeing
her photographs appear before her through processes she did
on her own was an enjoyment to her.
A photography course involving the use
of black-and-white film will be offered for the last time
during the Summer I session. The darkroom in the
Communications Building will be closed in July. The Fine
Arts Department will continue to offer film-based
photography courses during the fall and spring semesters,
while the Communications Department will offer Digital
Photography ad Digital News Photography, beginning with the
fall semester.
“It’s a shame they are taking away the
darkroom,” says Conlee. “I think that even though film
photography is a dying art, students should learn how to
develop film. Nothing beats the feeling you first get when
you first see your developed film and it has come out great,
and you know that you took those pictures.”
As every work of art differs, so will the opinions of the
changes technology brings us. Many will be able to adapt to
change, while others will eventually adapt but keep sacred
what once existed.
