Tutorial led by Editor Michel Romaggi in collaboration with the author Kurosaki Sangan 
Edited and published by Yvette Depaepe, the 20st of March 2024

Intrigued by the unique techniques used by Kurosaki Sangan, I gently asked him to reveal how he gets those amazing results. 

Series : 'Champ de neige en moi'

Can you introduce yourself and tell us a shortly about your unique photographs?

I’m a 50-year-old Japanese guy who lives in Sapporo, a city in northern Japan. I usually work in sales. I am organizing a solo photography exhibition in the city where I live, and this year it is scheduled for the 13th time.
I take portraits of people while listening to their views on life and love.
Most of the people posing were friends, and they did it for free. Before shooting, I ask the person to know his personality and use this information to shoot. Previously, I used to do divination, another of my hobbies.
By photographing people, you get to know them, and by interacting with them, you also get to know yourself.
There is much more than creating works and interacting with people makes be growing.

Series : 'Champ de neige en moi'

How did you come up with the idea to make this?

I always was impressed by the beautiful texture of the portraits drawn on the linen canvas used in Japanese paintings.
A brownish kraft paper with a texture that is even slightly similar to this.
The advantage of photography is that it can be reproduced.
By digital processing, printing, and analogue staining, I still wanted it to be a unique work that could not be reproduced just like a painting.
However, when printing on brown paper, there is no white ink, so there is no white as in Japanese paintings and it first didn't meet my expectations.

Series : 'Champ de neige en moi'

Can you reveal something more about how you come to these amazing results?

When shooting in series, I often use a Sony A7IV with a 35mm F1.4GM lens.
I did not use flash and take all my pictures with natural light.

The important thing of the series is not the photographic equipment, but the processing method.

* I first adjust the colour of the photo taken with a digital camera using Lightroom, and print it on the canvas using a laser printer.
* However, when printing on brown paper, there is no white ink, so there is no white as in Japanese paintings. And that didn't meet my expectations.

* So, I found two ways to add white to portraits printed on kraft paper.
-The first method is simply to apply white paint on the craft paper used for printing.
-The second method is to print on a transparent vinyl sheet and superimpose it on kraft paper. Then, pour white paint between the two pieces and spread the white part by pushing it with your hands.

In order to display it on 1x, I had to convert my works.
With a scanner, you could not see the fibres of kraft paper. So I used an iPhone to take close-up photos and convert them into jpegs.

Series : 'Champ de neige en moi'

Many thanks for this most interesting tutorial, dear Kurosaki Sangan. 
Respect for your unique creations.