The Black & White Negatives of Chris Binks and Dave Pinkard

[guyburns]

A couple of years ago I scanned the slides and negatives of Chris Binks and Dave Pinkard to become part of the audio visual Journeys To Pedder. While scanning, I was so impressed with the collections that I decide the best of the images should be turned into a picture book and not just stay locked up as Blu-ray pixels on a disk.

The first proof has just come back from the binders (Foot and Playsted), and later this week the remaining 4 copies will be printed at Impress on their amazing Fuji-Xerox Versant 3100i, which can duplex print on paper up to a metre long.

Only five copies at this stage: for me, my partner, Chris, the State Library and a lending copy. But I have enough paper (see below) for another two or three copies, so I thought I should let others know just in case someone is really interested.

244 pages, 320W x 300H, printed on Saxton Chardonnay 115 GSM from the Shoalhaven mill, the same paper as Perpetuum, one of a very short list of papers that is recommended by the National Library as truly archival. Saxton is no longer made, unfortunately, as the Shoalhaven mill shut down. But… I have 250 sheets of 910 x 650 left over from a previous book, and having that paper was another impetus for doing this new book.

This is not a sales pitch; I'm not a desperate author trying to make a dollar; but if you want a copy you'll have to fork out what it costs me: $350 – $150 for the printing and $200 for the binding.

And you'll need to let me know before the end of this week, 9 Sept, because it may be going through the Versant the following week. This is basically a once-off, on-demand book offer. gmail me at gdburns if interested.

Photo below and you can download some sample pages here: https://www.mediafire.com/file/4us6cp6b1vscf5s/Chris+Binks+Sample.pdf/file.

[gayet]

PM'd

[headwerkn]

Oh lordy, those photographs are magnificent! Had I not just blown my wad on a new packraft I'd be sorely, sorely tempted. Might just have to be a cheapskate and wait until the library copy is available

[tas-man]

Sent PM and email to you Guy.

[north-north-west]

Am I the only one who emailed as per instructions?

[gayet]

The mention of the gmail use was at the very end of the paragraph. I saw the statement indicating a speedy response would be best so pm'd.

[Baeng72]

An amazing, and uniquely personal snapshot into history.
Kudos.

[Jon MS]

Book looks great and will be a very important reference!

I had a lot of discussions with Dave Pinkard whilst I was doing the SW Tas fire history part of my PhD. Provided they have a date, old photos are very useful for working out when fires occurred and it would have been great to have access to the photos back in the late 1990s when I was mapping historical fires. I used some of Dave's photos but most were filed away and not available.

Can you let us know when the book is in the reference library and I will go in and have a look.

Jon

[guyburns]

An update.
• All correspondence re purchasing the book should be by email, not the message system.
• Three people want a copy, so I'll probably print as many as my paper allows, probably 10 or 11 copies, giving me a few spares.
• Because people are paying for the extra copies, and because I've made a few changes to the first proof, a second proof will have to be printed – tomorrow (7th).
• Final print run will be on Tuesday 13th
• Delivered to Foot and Playsted Friday 15th
• Book should be ready two weeks later.

All my projects and the associated source material, at original uncompressed resolution, are eventually made available for free download. As an example, see the bottom of the Tanksinker page https://sites.google.com/site/tanksinker/Home/max-burns-tanksinker.

So, if you don't want a physical copy, you'll be able to download a PDF version (the version that went to the printer) in a year or two. I'll start a new thread when that happens.

[guyburns]

Another update.

Printed copies are now with Foot and Playsted and should be bound in 2-3 weeks, ready in early October.

I've had to edit this post re the cost cos I made a mistake with the GST. Price is back to the original at $350.

One copy still available. Brief details about the book are now on my website here: https://sites.google.com/site/tanksinker/Home/chris-binks

[guyburns]

Bound copies were finished earlier than expected (Friday 23/9/22), in just one week. Foot and Playsted must have had a lull in their usually busy schedule.

Books will be collected on Tuesday, and sent out soon after.

[gayet]

Book received today !!

It is beautiful.

Thank you Guy.

[bluewombat]

Thanks for making this available Guy, it is an unbelievable record of some marvellous adventures, with great production values. I will spend many hours with this one
cheers
BW

[PJK]

Hi. Just a heads up about an audio visual presentation that’s going to take place on the north coast in the next few months. Guy has done regular A/V presentations about walking in Tasmania and he’s producing a really fascinating one titled “Journeys to Pedder”. I was privileged to see an early version of it the other day.

This is not just a presentation of beautiful pictures of the old Lake Pedder and the surrounding ranges - it is that - but a collection of reflections from a range of people who walked in the region in the 1940s and through to the flooding of the lake. They reflect on their experiences of journeying to the lake and to the mountains around it. Many well-known people share their stories, photos and insights, perhaps none more significant than the reflections of Chris Binks, a pioneer explorer and historian, who did many exploratory trips to remote mountains in the 1940s and 50s. Chris narrates his experiences with humility, wry humor, and the deep wisdom that comes from looking back in your 90s on a life well spent. The photos of Chris, David Pinkard and others have been beautifully and painstakingly restored to provide a stunning visual experience.

In the stories one can get a sense of the heart of a wild region. One also gets to appreciate the boldness of youth, of engaging challenges and unexplored territory, of exploring beauty and wildness. I personally found myself reflecting on the inner territory of our own growth, wisdom and relationship with the land.

The journey moves on to those visiting the lake in its final years, with many sharing their memories, as well as thoughts about whether they would like to see it unflooded or whether it is best left as a memory to cherish.

It is in no way a political statement, but rather it invites all of us on a deeper reflection on why we walk, what we get out of it, and the damage we can do through thoughtless or inappropriate over-development.

I found it really moving to watch and just wanted to encourage anybody to go see it when it is around July sometime.
Peter Kaldor