Many artists constantly strive to move forward, to evolve as artists, to develop new vision and techniques, to redefine themselves. The following is a technique I use to move forward by going backwards.

Although most of my fine art photos were shot within the last five years, I occasionally search through my archive of negatives and slides for “lost” images. A few years ago, when making the transition from creating photo prints directly from negatives and slides, I purchased a film scanner. It enabled me to digitize film for use on the Internet and to create prints for fine-art shows and galleries.

The scanner also helped create a large visual database of all the slides and negatives accumulated since the 1970s. These slides are kept in an acid-free slide-storage tray-and-box system. Each slide is numbered to correspond with the tray within each box. The trays and boxes are also numbered. 

Photos in the database can now be retrieved by using keywords that were assigned as each photo was reviewed. To find photos of a specific nature, a keyword search is conducted. This practice has helped me rediscover forgotten photos that can now be used for exhibition or simply to relive a forgotten moment .

The two photos below are such photos: “Taking a Moment—Placencia Cove, Belize, 1972” and “Awaiting Call—Cedar Key, Fl, 1970.” Both of these photos have become staples in my fine-art portfolio.