Kind of Blue

Ten months ago, I began my DSLR home scanning attempts. As a beginner Photoshop user — or of any image processing software of the kind — I had a lot of trouble getting rid of the blue cast in my images.

Though there’s certainly a solution to the blue casts, I confess that I never really bothered researching it completely. Instead, I thought of this colour wash as part of my process — as the results reflected my state of mind perfectly.

I felt blue, just like the scans, triggered by the sense of being trapped in a world of increasing prices and greater life challenges in the midst of a pandemic.

Consequently, I felt anxious about the scanning and developing process. It was getting expensive. I’ve set up my Canon Rebel T3i with a 3D-printed film holder and a stand. I tried some “new” expired film stocks: Kodak Portra 400, Portra 160, and Ektar 100. They ended up having less blue cast than my other stocks though not devoid of it. Still, both the film scans and I were blue.

The blue tint permeating my images is soft, sometimes barely noticeable, yet is an integral part of the entire scene, much like the diluted yet pervading melancholy within me.

The blue flows from navy to aquamarine; it folds in with oranges, reds, and yellows. This blue is the Kind of Blue, as it reminds me of the incredible namesake album by Miles Davis that I hold close to my heart, in moments like these when I feel blue.