Shown mounted, exactly as it arrives. Frame not included.

Black and white photograph of the Crystal Mill, a weathered wooden mill perched on a rocky outcrop above the rushing Crystal River in Colorado, with aspen-covered mountains behind — The full photograph. Tap to see it large.

The print shown to scale in a black frame above a credenza in a light living room — To scale above a 72 in credenza. Frame not included.

The print shown to scale in a black frame above a walnut console in an entry hall — To scale above a 48 in console. Frame not included.

Marc making a print in his darkroom, 43 seconds

The logo is a website watermark. It does not appear on your print.

Silver gelatin print · Signed · Numbered

Crystal Millon the Crystal River, 1974

Near Marble, Gunnison County, Colorado
September 1974
Marc Schuman

Launch price · 40% offUntil November 30

$1,099~~$1,849~~from December 1

Launch price until November 30. From December 1 this size is $1,849. Plus $60 shipping and $59 gallery packing.

Launch price ends in

00Days00Hrs00Min00Sec

Limited edition of 500. Once they are sold, Marc will never print this photograph again, in any size.

Choose your size

16 × 16 inImage about 9 × 9 inBest on a wall you see up close: a desk, a hallway, beside a bed.$899~~$1,499~~20 × 20 inImage about 13 × 13 inHolds its own above a console, a dresser or a bed.$1,099~~$1,849~~

Size is the mount board. The photograph sits on it with at least 2 in of border at the top and sides and about 5 in at the bottom, where Marc signs.

Buy this print $1,099

Secure checkout by Square
Tracked UPS delivery
30-day promise

TodayYou order
In 1 to 2 weeksLeaves the darkroom
A few days laterAt your door

The print

A silver gelatin print on fiber-base paper, made by hand in Marc's darkroom from the original 6×6 cm medium format negative. Signed on the mount below the lower right corner of the image, numbered, with provenance documentation attached to the back.

Size and framing

You choose the mount board size. On the 16 × 16 in board the image is about 9 × 9 in; On the 20 × 20 in board the image is about 13 × 13 in. The print arrives mounted flat and unframed, ready for your framer. Wait until it arrives before ordering a frame, since each board can vary slightly.

Authenticity

Marc keeps every negative himself and is the only person who prints from them. Nothing digital is involved between his camera and your print. Each one is signed, numbered and documented.

Shipping and returns

Shipping is a flat $60 plus $59 for gallery packing. Sent by UPS with tracking, signature required, US addresses only. Arrives damaged? Marc replaces it. Not happy? Write to him within 30 days of delivery to arrange a return.

Questions before you buy? Email Marc. He answers about his prints himself.

Hand-printed in a Colorado darkroom◆From the original film negative◆Signed and numbered by Marc◆Nothing digital between negative and print◆Lasts a century or more◆Launch price until November 30◆Hand-printed in a Colorado darkroom◆From the original film negative◆Signed and numbered by Marc◆Nothing digital between negative and print◆Lasts a century or more◆Launch price until November 30◆

Crystal Mill on the Crystal River

01 The photograph

Fifty years ago, at the height of fall color

This is one of Marc's oldest and best-known photographs: the Crystal Mill, perched on a rocky outcrop above the Crystal River at the end of a rugged four-wheel-drive trail near Marble. He made it in September 1974, more than fifty years ago, with the aspens at their peak.

The day was overcast and chilly. With no direct sun, the soft light let Marc hold rich detail in every part of the scene, from the deep shadows under the mill to the white water below. He tilted his Carl Zeiss 50mm Distagon lens down to bring the river into the bottom of the frame, which makes the walls lean very slightly and exaggerates how precariously the mill sits on the rock.

The mill has since been re-roofed with fresh, unweathered planks. In this photograph it still has its original patina, just as Marc saw it on that fall day.

"The mill appeared then, as now, as if it had always been there."
Marc Schuman

Where: Crystal River, near Marble, Colorado
When: September 1974
Camera: Hasselblad 500C
Lens: Carl Zeiss 50mm f/4 Distagon
Film: Black and white medium format film, 6×6 cm
Print: Silver gelatin on fiber-base paper, made by hand from the original negative

02 On your wall

See it at true size before you buy

Choose a room and a size. The print is drawn to scale in a simple black frame, the way most people finish it. It arrives mounted and unframed.

16 × 16 in20 × 20 in

The print shown to scale above a 72 inch credenza

Shown to scale above a 72 in credenza, hung about 10 in above the top.

03 The darkroom

A darkroom print, made one at a time

Most photographic wall art today is printed from a digital file. This print isn't. Marc shines light through the original negative onto fiber paper coated with a silver emulsion, then develops the print by hand in trays of chemistry, the way fine photographs were made for most of the last century.

Nothing digital happens between the film in his camera and the print on your wall. Marc keeps the negatives himself, and nobody else can print from them.

Getting one print right takes Marc a full day in the darkroom and at the mounting table. The whole time, he's asking himself one question.

"Am I producing the very best print possible of the negative in my enlarger?"
Marc Schuman

A 6×6 cm medium format negative has more than three times the area of a 35mm frame. That extra film is where the deep shadow detail and the bright white water in this print come from.

3.6×More film area than a 35mm frame

50+Years since Marc made this negative

1Full day of Marc's work for each print

100+Years it lasts, kept out of direct sun

Watch

Marc, making a print

Forty-three seconds in the darkroom: a sheet of fiber paper going through the trays as the image comes up. Every print of Crystal Mill is made this way, for one buyer at a time.

How it compares

Feature	Marc's darkroom print	Typical mass-produced photo print
Made from	The original film negative	A digital file
How it's printed	By hand, with light and chemistry, on fiber-base paper	Inkjet or press, in volume
Who makes it	Marc, one print at a time, after you order	A print shop or factory, often ahead of time
Signed and numbered	Yes, with provenance documentation	Rarely
How long it lasts	A century or more when kept out of direct sun	Depends on the inks and paper

04 What you receive

What arrives at your door

Front of the mounted print, drawn to scale. Switch sizes to compare.

Attached to the back

Provenance

Title: Crystal Mill
Date: September 1974
Print: Silver gelatin, fiber base
Number
Signed

Illustration. Marc fills in the documentation for each print by hand.

The print, silver gelatin on fiber-base paper, made by Marc from the original negative
Mounted flat on high-quality backing board, 20 × 20 in
Signed by Marc on the mount, just below the lower right corner of the image
Numbered, with provenance documentation attached to the back
Shipped by UPS with tracking. Someone needs to be home to sign for it.

Not included: a frame

Marc doesn't sell frames, on purpose. Glass and frames add weight, cost and risk to shipping. Take the mounted print to a local framer once it arrives, and wait until you have it in hand before ordering the frame, since each board can vary slightly in size.

Packed the way galleries ship art

Soft paper over the image, fixed to the back of the board
Sheet foam wrapped around the front and back
Taped between two oversize corrugated sheets
Set in an oversize box filled with foam chips

Every material is new. Nothing is reused.

05 Timing

From your order to your wall

1Today
You order
Marc emails you to confirm the order and give you a ship date.
21 to 2 weeks
In the darkroom
Marc prints, dries, mounts, signs and numbers your print.
3Shipping
Packed and sent
Packed by hand and sent by UPS with tracking and a signature on delivery.
4On arrival
On your wall
Unwrap it, look it over, and take it to your framer.

Buying it as a gift?Order by November 30 for delivery before Christmas.

00Days00Hrs00Min00Sec

Portrait of photographer Marc Schuman — Portrait by Daniel Montano, Elevation Creation, Denver

06 The photographer

Meet Marc Schuman

Marc learned photography in the darkroom his father built at home in Tulsa, with his father's Rolleiflex. He switched from engineering to fine arts at Purdue University, graduated in photography in 1970, and went on to run three photography shops in western Colorado and Montana for thirty years, shooting weddings, architecture and cinema work along the way.

He still does every step himself. He exposes the film, develops it, prints it, mounts it and signs it, working with everything from 35mm cameras up to an 8×10 view camera, and with the Zone System he learned as a student. When he isn't in the mountains or the darkroom, he's a substitute teacher east of Colorado Springs.

Since childhoodBehind a camera and in a darkroom
Purdue, 1970Fine Arts, concentration in photography
30 yearsRunning photography shops in Colorado and Montana
RetrospectiveA retrospective of his photography for Purdue University

07 Buy with confidence

Marc's promises to you

Arrives safely, or it's replaced

If your print is damaged in shipping, email Marc within 30 days of delivery and he will replace it.

30 days to be sure

If the print isn't what you hoped for, write to Marc within 30 days of delivery. He will work it out with you, up to a full refund of the print price when it comes back undamaged. Return shipping is paid by the buyer.

Prices only go up

The launch price is the lowest this print will ever be offered. From December 1 it rises, and Marc never discounts after that.

"I stand behind my work."Marc Schuman

08 Questions

Before you buy

Everything buyers usually ask about this print, in one place.

Something else? Email Marc and he'll get back to you.

Why does this print cost more than other photo prints?

Because it's made a different way. Marc prints it himself in a darkroom from the original 6×6 cm medium format negative, on fiber-base paper, and one print takes him a full day in the darkroom and at the mounting table. It's signed, numbered and documented, and it's made only after you order.

You're paying for that time and skill, not for a file sent to a print shop.

Why is there a launch price?

This print is offered at a launch price until November 30. From December 1 the price rises: the 16 × 16 in goes from $899 to $1,499; the 20 × 20 in goes from $1,099 to $1,849. After that, prices only go up, never down.

Is this an inkjet or digital print?

No. It's a silver gelatin print, also called a silver halide fiber-base print. Marc projects light through the original negative onto light-sensitive paper and develops it in chemistry. Nothing digital is involved at any step.

How big is the photograph itself?

The size you choose is the mount board. The image on the 16 × 16 in board it is about 9 × 9 in; on the 20 × 20 in board it is about 13 × 13 in. The borders are at least 2 in at the top and sides and about 5 in at the bottom.

Every print is made by hand, so the exact size can vary slightly.

Does it come framed?

No. Your print arrives mounted flat on backing board, ready for a framer. Marc doesn't offer framing, because glass and frames make shipping heavier, costlier and riskier.

Wait until the print arrives before you order a frame, so your framer can measure the actual board.

Is it signed and numbered?

Yes. Marc signs the mount just below the lower right corner of the image. Each print is numbered and has provenance documentation attached to the back.

Will the logo be on my print?

No. The logo is a watermark on the website images only.

How long until it arrives?

Each print is made to order and takes one to two weeks before it ships. Marc emails you after you order to confirm the ship date.

It travels by UPS with tracking, and someone needs to be there to sign for it.

What does delivery cost, and where do you ship?

Shipping is a flat $60, plus $59 for gallery packing. Orders ship to addresses in the United States. Both charges show at checkout before you pay.

How is it packed?

Soft paper goes over the image, then sheet foam front and back. The print is taped between two oversize sheets of corrugated cardboard and set in the middle of an oversize box filled with foam chips. All of it is new material.

What if it arrives damaged?

Email Marc within 30 days of delivery and he will replace it.

What if I don't like it?

Write to Marc within 30 days of delivery. He will work it out with you, up to a full refund of the print price when the print comes back undamaged. Returns need his OK first, and the buyer pays return shipping.

Will it fade?

A properly processed silver gelatin fiber print lasts a century or more when it's kept out of direct sunlight. Hang it away from strong sun, and ask your framer about UV-filtering glass for extra protection.

If I order another print of this image later, will it match?

Prints made at different times can differ slightly in density and contrast, because each one is made by hand. If you want matching prints, order them at the same time.

I'm buying for an office, hotel or design project. Can I order several?

Yes. Email Marc at coloradoinblackandwhite@gmail.com with the images, sizes and quantities you have in mind, and he'll reply with timing.

Can I ask Marc a question before I buy?

Yes. Email coloradoinblackandwhite@gmail.com and Marc will answer you himself.

Is checkout secure?

Checkout is handled by Square, the payment company. Your card details go straight to Square and never touch this page. You see the full total, shipping included, before you pay. Square takes all major cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Cash App Pay, and on most orders you can split the total into four interest-free payments with Afterpay.

Made for you, one print at a time