Photo Study: Solarized Sandstone

This image was recorded on a Kodak Tri-X Pan 100 film negative using a Minolta XGM camera with a fast f/1.2 50mm prime lens. The peculiar effect upon the sandstone wall of a depression-era WPA building is because the negative was used to produce a solarized print in the darkroom. A successful solarized image was achieved by the only means possible – trial and error. This is solarization old school, not a digital effect produced by software. This technique yielded very few good results. Here is one of the few….

©1991 Solarized Sandstone Eric Wells Hatheway All Rights Reserved

Solarization is a phenomenon in photography in which the image recorded on a negative or on a photographic print is wholly or partially reversed in tone. Dark areas appear light or light areas appear dark. Initially, the term solarization was used to describe the effect observed in cases of extreme overexposure of the negative in the camera. The effect generated in the dark room was then called pseudo-solarization. This fine distinction is not made in the jargon of contemporary photography. The term is synonymous with the Sabattier Effect when referring to negatives, but is technically incorrect when used to refer to prints.

(Solarized) Calla Lilies (1931) by Man Ray

Careful choice of the amount of light used and the precise moment in development to provide the additional exposure gives rise to different outcomes. However, solarization is very difficult to manage to yield consistent results. It is possible to solarize a negative and subsequently solarize the print made from that negative. The results of such double solarizations are rarely successful, usually producing muddy and poorly defined images.