[Leica] Jeanloup Sieff

[s.dimitrov at charter.net (Slobodan Dimitrov)]

Sometime ago I picked up an issue of PHOTO Hors Serie dedicated to Sieff,
dated November 2000. On page 62, it recounts how he discovered Tri-X,
developed in D-76, in 1975. His lenses of choice were the 21, 28, and 35.
S. Dimitrov


> From: TTAbrahams@aol.com
> Reply-To: Leica Users Group <lug@leica-users.org>
> Date: Wed, 19 May 2004 18:26:54 EDT
> To: lug@leica-users.org
> Subject: Re: [Leica] Jeanloup Sieff
> 
> Greg,
> I had the opportunity to meet Jean Loup Sieff several times while we lived
> in Paris 1982/83. We used to have breakfast at Caf? de Flore on Fridays. It
> took a couple of months before we talked, but in the true European fashion, we
> nodded "bon jour" for several Fridays until we decided to talk! The fact that
> we 
> both carried M's with the basic lenses on them; 21/3,4 S-Angulons, 35
> Summicrons, and 50 Summicron established the connection. Oh, and the plastic
> bag full 
> of Tri-X, too. We both carried our copies of Liberation and Intn'l Herald
> Tribune, too.
> He was a devoted Tri-X user, processing in D-76, either 1:1 or straight,
> depending on the contrast he wanted. He, like me, mixed his own D-76 from
> scratch 
> and we had several discussions on cutting the Sodium Sulphite down to get
> more distinct grain (S/S mushes up the grain a bit). He used a D2 Omega
> enlarger 
> and also had the largest supply of dodging tools I have ever seen. He did some
> of his own printing but a lot of his exhibition work was done by Jean Yves
> Bregand of "Imagenoir"  who also printed for Sebastian Salgado and Joseph
> Koudelka (how establised can you be!),
> Sieff was very much a "basic shooter" - no fancy stuff, but he had mastered
> the equipment he used and saw no reason to change. His Hasselblad stuff and
> 4x5 stuff was different - that was strictly commercial and film/developers
> were 
> targeted to client need and "art directors" whims. Oh, we designed a hell
> suitable for Art Directors : all shag carpeting (purple and mustard color),
> formica and chrome chairs and only incoming phone-lines - they could not phone
> out. 
> They would all be stuck in this barn like structure and have to live with each
> other and wear ugly ties in perpetuity!
> The photographers' heaven had unlimited supply of Tri-X, D-76 was always
> fresh and the developing trays would magically replenish themselves with fresh
> solutions every morning! All exposures would be perfect and all models would
> listen to the photographer and not throw fits.
> In the early 80's his choice of paper was Ilford fixed contrast paper, but
> we both discussed the Multigrade papers as a potential boon for darkroom work.
> His paper developer was a variation of Dektol (increased amount of Sodium
> Carbonate for deeper blacks). I think Bregand also mixed his paper developers
> from 
> scratch and somewhere I have his formula for a warm tone developer. Both
> Sieff and Bregand were heavily addicted to Ferrocyanide, doing individual
> blades 
> of grass on entire lawns!
> All the best,
> Tom A
> P.S. Tuulikki, My wife studied French in Paris while I used my school and
> college French. I did explain to the Parisians that the reason I used mostly
> present tense was that I had "no past and no future in Paris". Sieff was
> deeply 
> impressed by the logic of this statement and quickly changed to English as our
> language of communication!
> --------------------------------
> Tom Abrahamsson
> Vancouver, BC
> Canada
> rapidwinder.com
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