Me, Chemistry and D23

Sometime around the age of 6 or 7 I was given a chemistry set for Christmas. I seem to remember there was some discussion as to whether this was a good idea or not. In the 1970’s giving a child a metalated spirits burner, and chemicals seemed less of a trauma than today. I guess we all had a different view of health and safety in those days! As a digression, the year before I had been given a woodworking set. I wasn’t much interested in woodwork then, and I’m still not. I very much admire people who can make wonderful things with wood, but it’s not me. The saw did interest me, and I sawed a lot. The garden gate, chairs, but the best was the dining table, with some effort I managed to saw right through one leg. It was never the same after, always wobbled and was eventually replaced by a tubular metal and glass one! So on reflection a chemistry set was perhaps a better bet. I was thrilled!

The set pictured above came with a book of experiments to try, very basic chemistry stuff, filtration, evaporation and so on. I worked my way though them and recorded my results. To a child me, it was fascinating. Even at that age though, I remember thinking that it was all well and good, but what was the point? 1+1=2, tested and recorded, but so what?

My fascination with chemistry faded as my interest in photography grew. I’ve recorded on this blog before how, within a few years I’d taken over the garden shed, and turned it into a darkroom. Christmas gifts from then on were usually mostly film, paper, and yes, chemistry. My previous interest came in handy after all. Measuring, diluting, mixing, temperature. This time however there was a purpose – developing a film or a print, and there was an end product – a photo.

Fast forward 48 years (…ish) the one subject that has stuck with me, or rather me to it, is photography. When I think about it for a while, I wonder if that is because it encompasses so many other things, almost limitless. Travel certainly, history, art, people, landscape. So much so that these are the often named categories one often hears used to describe a certain photo. In my case I think it is the window that I use to experience the world. Most people I know, I know because of photography. Most places I’ve been, I have because I wanted to photograph them. Truth be told if I didn’t or couldn’t photograph I almost certainly wouldn’t have gone!

And so it came to pass that I look down at my coffee table and find that I have Sodium Sulphite and Metol, stirring rod and scales spread out in front of me. I admit that I still have the same joy that I had when I was 7. Now I’m making D23, for the first time, perhaps my life with chemicals, film and photography is only really just getting going!