Contact Sheets

Learn what goes on in the mind of the photographer by looking at his contact sheets. Inspired by Magnum Contact Sheets, photographer Edwin Koo reveals the methods and thought process behind 24 documentary photographs, taken from his book “Paradise”, based on the recent events surrounding the Swat Valley of Pakistan.

What is a contact sheet? In film photography, a contact sheet is a chronological index of photos that shows all the images made on a film roll. First, celluloid film strips are laid in directly onto photo sensitive paper in sequence. Then, both film and paper are exposed to light inside a darkroom to make a photographic print. The resulting contact sheet reveals the sequence of photographs leading up to the “decisive moment”. By studying the contact sheet, the viewer sees what the photographer sees through the viewfinder - his hesitations, his hits, his misses, and his choices.

This app shows you what happened “behind-the-scenes” in 24 photographs featured in Edwin Koo’s first monograph - Paradise. In addition, it also features 6 additional contact sheets from the companion book Visage, which comes together with Paradise as a bundle off the shelves. For more information about the books, please visit www.abookcalledparadise.com.