Vita

 

The traditional photography seems to be losing more and more importance and the photographic craft is increasingly forgotten. Linked to this the knowledge about and the processing of old magnification techniques is also getting lost more and more.

F r i e d r i c h   S a l l e r

born 1958 in Regen, Bavarian Forest, has been a passionate photographer for many years, specializing in landscape photography in medium and large format.

His main interest is black-and-white photographs, which he makes himself from the photograph, the film development to the finished print on baryta paper.

Depending on the subject and the environment, he uses different camera systems and negative formats, from 35 mm to medium format, up to large format 4×5 inch and 8×10 inch.

In 1994, during a workshop, he met the American photographer Robert Werling, who became one of his mentors. Several trips to California led to an intense friendship between them, which is still maintained through regular meetings. Friedrich Saller always seeks contact with analogue photography and the beginnings of photography. The works of the pioneers of classical photography such as Ansel Adams, Imogen Cunningham, Minor White, Wynn Bullock, Edward Weston, Brett Weston, Cole Weston, Ruth Bernhard (just to name a few) influenced him in his work.

Workshops with Cole Weston, the son of Edward Weston, and Bob Werling led to a connection with the roots of photography and a deep understanding of American landscape photography.

The contact with Kim Weston, grandson of Edward Weston, with whom he has regular contact, connects him to the roots of American West Coast Photography.

His friendship with Kim Weston connects him to the roots of American West Coast Photography and led to the exhibition WESTON – FOUR GENERATIONS in the Galerie Kuns(t)räum Grenzenlos in Bayerisch Eisenstein in 2017. An extensive exhibition of prints by Edward, Brett, Cole, Kim, and Zachery Weston, which was shown to this extent for the first time outside the United States.

In Germany and Europe he has also found people who accompany him on his way and enrich his works. His German mentor is Andreas Weidner („Forum visuelle Tonart“) who is the most well-known representative of the zone system in Germany after Ansel Adams.

Friedrich Saller has visited many workshops, built up contacts, from which wonderful friendships have emerged. The exchange of ideas with them and leading representatives of analogue photography significantly enriches the artistic professionalism of his works.

To this day Friedrich Saller works with analogue systems and the zone system. In addition to the classic silver gelatin process on baryta paper, he also deals with alternative processes, techniques that were developed and have been used since the beginning of photography: album printing, platinum / paladium, cyanotype (also called iron blue pressure), callity, bromo-oil pressure, oil pressure, ambrotype (wet Collodion method), heliogravure, …

Digital aids are used only when images are to be supplied to other media.