JD Nolan

I began photography in 1997 with a class at the Indianapolis Art Center in Broadripple. I persued photography by reading books and teaching myself.  In 1999 I had the good fortune to meet and study with the first of three people who had worked with Ansel Adams.  I considered this a big turning point in my career as Ansel Adams is the reason I chose photography in black and white.  I find it to be the most expressive form of photography.  All of the color and things that attract me to a subject are reduced to black, gray, or white.  I think of what I do is photographing the "soul" of the scene.  A famous photographer once said that "anyone could be taught to be a good color photographer because they were capturing what they see, but learning black and white photography was like learning a foreign language."

 

I do traditional photography.  All of my images are captured on film.  The film is hand processed by me, and each image is printed in a wet darkroom using chemistry.  There is no digital or computer involvement in any of my work.  Each image is printed on fiber-based paper, selenium toned for archival reasons, and mounted on acid-free rag board.  I currently shoot with a 4x5 large format camera using sheet film.