Selfie Saturday
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It was my third photo lab job since I began my first on the day of my 21st birthday, something I had considered a gift from the Spirit of the Universe at the time, since I was not a believer back then, and lab work was the only thing I knew I wanted to do after falling in love with it during my one year of college, where we studied photography once a week Friday mornings from nine to noon 
I had a very long list of things I did not want to do! I had never wanted to do or be all the usual things people say they want to be when they grow up
My first lab job lasted a year and a half. I had to pester them to hire me, since they kept telling me I had no experience LOL. Then I hitch-hiked across the country and got my second lab job two days after arriving here. I had gone to the employment office and they gave me a lead on a job in a near-by city, something the woman said she was not supposed to do. I worked there for five years, until my boss sold a greater part of the company to an outfit that did not care about the quality of the work. I didn't last there long after that.
The day after I received my first unemployment insurance check, I applied at a number of labs. There was recession at the time and people were telling me I would not be able to find work, but I knew I could get a job easily. I also knew which lab I really wanted to work at, and I applied there last. They were not looking for anyone, but I was introduced to everyone and shown around the lab and got called in to start work there the next day anyways.
The first ten years I was color correcting proofs for professional photographers, weddings and portraits mostly. At first we relied on the printer for the first tests, but then we went computerized, and the first tests came from me video-analyzing the negs. We were handling about a thousand rolls of film a week when it was busy. I also took over the package and large print departments when the guy who was doing it quit cuz he had too much to do. He told the boss I was the only one who could do it. But he came back because he had gone to a job where there wasn't enough to do, and that was worse LOL. I worked in the one hour department for just under half a year, also, and did print spotting when I could all along.
Then I was managing the 35mm printing department for about the next ten years, which was so much better: more interesting photos, and greater freedom and flexibility in my job. I was printing as well as overseeing a number of printers, color correcting all the work, and filling in for the other printers when they were on breaks etc. We got our first machine that digitally scanned the negs during that time. Up until then, we "read" the negs with our eyes. That eventually led into digital, which I didn't even want to do at first because initially, people did not really know what they were doing and a lot of it was
In 2003 we got a digital printing machine that cost about the same as buying a house. It handled all the film and slide scanning, plus hard copy digital files as opposed to what came in online from professional photographers. I became the main operator of that machine for many years. My boss tried to get me to move over to a different department in digital, printing the online stuff for professionals, but I resisted LOL. I did end up there eventually, hmmm, not sure at what point, because I did both, being the sole operator of the hard copy digital print machine and film scanner, as well as analyzing all the the work that came in online. I did have to train others on the hard copy digital printing machine because there was so much work in those days.
Then my original boss retired and sold the business to one of my co-workers, and cuts happened yada yada, but I was told I would never lose my job because I was so capable. At that point, all the work except custom prints and black and white went through me. When my new boss took over, I had even more freedom and flexibility, plus, generally speaking, a lighter work load. Schools were our bread and butter, so the beginning of the school year was always busy, and so was graduation time, not to mention summer holidays and Christmas. I enjoyed my job a lot, but I don't miss working LOL. Forty four years all told in that industry, at three different labs, in two different provinces
I had a very long list of things I did not want to do! I had never wanted to do or be all the usual things people say they want to be when they grow up My first lab job lasted a year and a half. I had to pester them to hire me, since they kept telling me I had no experience LOL. Then I hitch-hiked across the country and got my second lab job two days after arriving here. I had gone to the employment office and they gave me a lead on a job in a near-by city, something the woman said she was not supposed to do. I worked there for five years, until my boss sold a greater part of the company to an outfit that did not care about the quality of the work. I didn't last there long after that.
The day after I received my first unemployment insurance check, I applied at a number of labs. There was recession at the time and people were telling me I would not be able to find work, but I knew I could get a job easily. I also knew which lab I really wanted to work at, and I applied there last. They were not looking for anyone, but I was introduced to everyone and shown around the lab and got called in to start work there the next day anyways.
The first ten years I was color correcting proofs for professional photographers, weddings and portraits mostly. At first we relied on the printer for the first tests, but then we went computerized, and the first tests came from me video-analyzing the negs. We were handling about a thousand rolls of film a week when it was busy. I also took over the package and large print departments when the guy who was doing it quit cuz he had too much to do. He told the boss I was the only one who could do it. But he came back because he had gone to a job where there wasn't enough to do, and that was worse LOL. I worked in the one hour department for just under half a year, also, and did print spotting when I could all along.
Then I was managing the 35mm printing department for about the next ten years, which was so much better: more interesting photos, and greater freedom and flexibility in my job. I was printing as well as overseeing a number of printers, color correcting all the work, and filling in for the other printers when they were on breaks etc. We got our first machine that digitally scanned the negs during that time. Up until then, we "read" the negs with our eyes. That eventually led into digital, which I didn't even want to do at first because initially, people did not really know what they were doing and a lot of it was
In 2003 we got a digital printing machine that cost about the same as buying a house. It handled all the film and slide scanning, plus hard copy digital files as opposed to what came in online from professional photographers. I became the main operator of that machine for many years. My boss tried to get me to move over to a different department in digital, printing the online stuff for professionals, but I resisted LOL. I did end up there eventually, hmmm, not sure at what point, because I did both, being the sole operator of the hard copy digital print machine and film scanner, as well as analyzing all the the work that came in online. I did have to train others on the hard copy digital printing machine because there was so much work in those days.
Then my original boss retired and sold the business to one of my co-workers, and cuts happened yada yada, but I was told I would never lose my job because I was so capable. At that point, all the work except custom prints and black and white went through me. When my new boss took over, I had even more freedom and flexibility, plus, generally speaking, a lighter work load. Schools were our bread and butter, so the beginning of the school year was always busy, and so was graduation time, not to mention summer holidays and Christmas. I enjoyed my job a lot, but I don't miss working LOL. Forty four years all told in that industry, at three different labs, in two different provinces
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I should have said, it scanned the negs and displayed a digital image on a monitor which allowed us to fairly accurately color correct it before printing. This cut down the remake rate substantially as long as the machine was properly set up and balanced, and the operator knew how to read the image properly. It was still an optical printing machine
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J
I should have said, it scanned the negs and displayed a digital image on a monitor which allowed us to fairly accurately color correct it before printing. This cut down the remake rate substantially as long as the machine was properly set up and balanced, and the operator knew how to read the image properly. It was still an optical printing machine
Are you sure you don't miss the work?
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Wow... So very rare these days to go after what you want and actually stick with it that long. All that experience evolving into your collages seems like a "no-brainer" lol
Are you sure you don't miss the work?
Are you sure you don't miss the work?
). But really, I did it long enough, saw a lot of changes in the technology over the years, rode that wave daily really well. It was a blessing and I knew that from the get-go, and now? Yeah. It does in many ways seem to have prepped me for what I do in designing my panels, although I did very little photoshop work at my job. And it's not like there weren't challenges along the way. There certainly were. I don't like to remember those things, the interpersonal conflicts. Still, even out of them them came good things. But actually going to work? haha. Nope. Don't miss it at all
J
But actually going to work? haha. Nope. Don't miss it at all
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Ha! I hear THAT! Doing what you love "on your own terms" isn't exactly work anyway
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J
Once the new boss took over, we did not have to "pretend" to be busy even when there was no work. He knew how much work there was, and did not begrudge us doing other things as long as those other things did not interfere with work. So, I was allowed to be online, and then once I started designing panels (which was in 2018), I could do that at work also. So the transition was maybe not as jarring as it might be for some others. I have always loved being caught up in the creative process. Everything else goes away. It's almost like I get to live there
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My eyes are always yearning for inspiration
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J
Doing what you love "on your own terms" isn't exactly work anyway
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J