Last year, one of my biggest photographic experiments involved shooting a roll of 60+ year old film in my Rolleiflex Automat MX camera. The pictures turned out better than I had expected; and the resulting blog post got picked up and retweeted and FB “liked” all over the world.
Not bad for a shot of my old college’s white-steepled chapel.
Eventually the post was picked up by major tech and photography websites, and when I found out that one of my favorite magazines, Popular Photography, had included the picture on their website, I was over the moon with excitement.
Granted, I also received more than a few people who simply brushed off the image as “obviously having been Photoshopped.” Hey, I still have the original negative, and if you want to come to Albany and check it out for yourself, be my guest. And bring some diet cola while you’re at it. It’ll wash down all those sour grapes you’ve been ingesting.
Of course, success with an experiment like this didn’t equate to success in competition. I entered the picture in a couple of events, but the judges didn’t like it. So I moved on to other projects, and my “vintage film projects” idea went to the dusty shelf.
That was until this afternoon, when I received an e-mail from a publishing company in San Francisco.
And I quote.
“We have partnered again with Popular Photography magazine to create a comprehensive Photo Manual. The book, will largely consist of tips and ideas for the aspiring photographer with accompanying photographs, utilizing both new and previously printed materials.
To maintain the style and integrity of the magazine, our team has chosen the best and most relevant shots from both the magazine and Flickr. We are pleased to have found your [photo], which would be a welcome addition to The Pop Photo Manual.”
That’s right, loyal readers, this little photo experiment – in which I took 60-year-old film and actually USED it in a camera and developed it – is headed toward publication in a photography manual! How freakin’ SWANK is that? YEAH, BAY BEE!!
Okay, Chuck, calm down. Don’t need to have a heart attack and miss out on your big moment.
So as soon as the book gets published, I’ll let everyone know.
Yeah… sometimes, even on a dark, boring day like today, it’s nice to get some good news from completely out of the blue.
And I’ll take that good news every day of the week and twice on Sundays.
Chuck The Writer 
THAT is as FREAKIN’ SWANK as it gets, my friend! So very happy for you!
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