date » 28-07-2026 17:48
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still life, contax rts studio porche, tusunami olympus early 70s, la paptente, my profession, kemal babdrak kemal, studio foto lampo potenza, vincenzo carrese publifoto milano, rollei biottica, gossen lunasix exposition, thumnerwald,
© archive manunzio
The square-format twin-lens Rolleiflex—which gets so little talk regarding the portable invention of the photographic medium, as if one only ever named a Boaz and not oly Joachim : Alchemy, to be precise. Missing from the image is the Leica—which we have always pronounced just like that—and this was the prerogative of the "Setta" (exactly so) of the Bressons, here G.B. Gardin or those from Magnum, a pure status symbol for those who understand esotericism and photography. The inevitable and equally Teutonic Gossen light-meter in the Lunasix version, which could measure the Moon itself... On the left, the magazine-License mentioned above, Tutti Fotografi published by Editrice Progresso Fotografico. Equipment of a certain "weight." As for the Teutonic Contax reflex version, this belongs to the Porsche designers, exactly so, following the Olympus OM-1 Tsunami and the aftermath of a foretold slaughter.
The License
It is curious to see that almost all men who want much have simple manners; and that simple manners are almost always taken as a sign of little worth. Leopardi
...continue... No, nothing to do with Pirandello or the performance of that puppet named Totò. More prosaically, the "paperwork" supporting what we have been writing (see the About)—that is to say... what we write on odd days, but even ones too: the ranks or, to stay on subject, the License itself. Supporting paperwork Anno Domini 1970, September. And I was already behind a lab counter, making my mark with the Rollei, which was the standard-issue camera back then; the Hasselblad would come later, though already in use in "Mlano" ahh, just like the RZ Mamiya... but back to us.
And so, again, there were the profs from "Mlano" complete with their cursus studiorum, their "academy," or even, no less Italian, sons of... descendants of a certain "noble house": nothing to do with Giovanni Gastel, no. By ranks, we mean what the "people" expect: the calamari, see, on the suit lapel that make the rank. Conversely, for those who actually served as soldiers, there are the ranks bitten on the battlefield: metaphorically speaking or however you like. Sure, they might not hold equal dignity for the "people," and yet... And from here to wrap things up. Yes, when I write that I have been a photographer since 1969, I don't do it to show off, nothing like that. In fact, to tell the whole truth, I was preceded as a sharp-shooter at the Foto-Lampo Lab (a studio for ceremonies and a miniature version of Carrese's Publifoto in "Mlano," ahh with its own journalist, a bit strange but functional) by my lifelong friend, of whom I no longer have news other than that he is in Prato; and we ought to write about that fact, but readers couldn't care less: the scrollers who have other things to think about, so be it. But then, what are they thinking about? Do they still have neurons or just strings of text in base 1 and 0? Pimps and hacks with a camera preaching from their pulpits, syphilitic as they are: ah, what a joy to read the nonsense of certain... but here it is wise and proper (contempt?) to keep quiet, which is better. The License is served...
date » 20-07-2026 10:57
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foto lampo potenza, agency foto-lampo via pretoria, big print procedure, big balack and white, analogic era, dark room black and white, artisan printer-man black and white, allah akbar, printed matt 20 x 25, colombo boss democratic party italy, thumnerwald,
Big Print statio (part one)
Now, this is going to be a long one, so we are splitting it into two or maybe three episodes for those who have the stomach for it. And let’s be clear: "iPhone-scrollers" or compulsive Android-swipers are definitely not welcome here. Go find some other arena to release your squalid digital discharges. Likewise, the minchiapixel (coin for "pixel-peepers")—too busy measuring the size of their digital junk under a virtual microscope—can take a hike. Both of people, please go play somewhere else...
continue
This premise is both necessary and sufficient, because here on Manunzio.it, somewhere between the serious and the facetious, we actually understand and talk about photography. We’ve been doing it for fifteen years on the Manunzio.it, backed by a solid sixty years (see the About section) of pure Analogue experience. It is an epic saga that we are unrolling here—literally—just like the procedure that perfectly matches the cover image.
For anyone who has ever set foot in a darkroom—where you work with actual Alchemy, guiding the print from nigredo (the pitch-black void of the undeveloped negative), through albedo (the magical whitening where the image emerges in the tray), to the final rubedo (the completed, immortal piece)—what the printer-man narrates isn't just a tall tale. It is the absolute, unadulterated truth, and we back it up one hundred percent, no ifs, ands, or buts.
And if I still had the space in this "hovel" that goes by the grand name of an apartment (ha ha ha), we would still know exactly how to develop and print a 50x60 sheet. Yes, for the English-speakers out there, that translates to roughly 19.69 x 23.62 inches—a beast that offers about 20% more surface area than a standard modern A2 sheet.
To "pull" a print that size, when I was a "garzone" of photo-laboratory namde Foto-Lampojust in POtenza my town where living two massive trays were enough: the developer bath and the fixer.
Or rather, once the printing-developing-fixing dance was done, you would swap the trays out (on the temperature-controlled bench) sliding them from right to left (the exact opposite for the development-fix routine) like moving heavy gears in a clockwork press. This secondary fixing bath was the secret key to total archival stability. This meticulous choreography was standard practice for prints crafted as fine art by wise, experienced hands.
Again say, the classic 30x40 cm (12 x 16 inches) or A3/A3 Plus prints, which simply ended up in standard 40x50 cm exhibition frames for "very nice people".
Just remembering the 1970s..Then, those giant "bedsheets" of paper, alongside the smaller 18x24 cm (7 x 9.5 inches) companion prints showcasing local theater plays or notary parades led by Colombo—the local and Prime Minister Christian Democrat boss—would all end up pinned inside the public display case right outside the Via Pretoria (yes same name of castrum romans)on Main Street...
But that’s all for now. For those who want more, the link is right below...
Link...https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/qfrJh30iHOE
