Jens Mauthe, an amateur film photographer based in Richmond, Virginia, has completed a new long-term photography project built around strict limitation and repeated execution. The work continues his analog-only practice and reinforces a method rooted in routine, documentation, and physical printing. The project developed over many months and followed a fixed structure from start to finish, using the same cameras, lenses, film stocks, and darkroom setup for the entire duration with no new tools introduced once shooting began.
The intention was control. By limiting variables, Mauthe aimed to better understand how small changes in light, exposure, and printing decisions affect the final photograph. All photographs were made on black and white film using fully manual 35mm and medium format cameras with exposure decisions made without automation. Notes were recorded at the time of exposure to track conditions and intent, with each roll following the same development process to maintain consistency. Film was developed by hand in a home darkroom with developer type, dilution, temperature, and agitation timing remaining constant throughout the project.
Printing played a central role, with Mauthe treating the darkroom as the primary site of decision-making rather than the camera. Each selected negative moved through a sequence of test strips and work prints with exposure times adjusted in small increments and contrast filtration refined step by step. Final prints were made on fiber-based photographic paper using traditional enlargers and archival chemistry, with each finished print washed, dried, flattened, and stored according to archival standards. Mauthe evaluated prints as physical objects under consistent lighting rather than relying on scans or screens, with only one final print per image retained.
The subject matter remains restrained, depicting quiet interior spaces, transitional architecture, and utilitarian surfaces found throughout Richmond while avoiding recognizable landmarks, people, and staged scenes. Many images show empty rooms, corners, walls, and structural details, with locations revisited repeatedly to reduce novelty and emphasize familiarity. This repetition was intentional, removing the pressure to find new subjects and shifting attention toward execution where subtle differences in light direction, surface wear, and tonal response became the focus.
The completed project is now published within Mauthe's online archive at https://www.jensmauthe.com/archive. Each image appears alongside its contact sheet and technical notes, with exposure settings, development records, and printing decisions included while failed frames and rejected prints remain visible. The archive presents the work as a complete process rather than a curated selection, serving as a working record where the goal is accuracy rather than presentation.
By keeping all steps visible, the project documents how analog photography functions when treated as a discipline rather than an outcome. The structure supports photographers interested in long-term improvement through repeatable methods, completed without commercial intent as the photographs are not for sale and were not produced for exhibition deadlines. Mauthe works independently and maintains photography as a personal practice, with the release marking the conclusion of a defined phase rather than a final statement.
Constraint remains central to his approach, with limiting tools, locations, and materials allowing deeper attention to process. Mauthe continues to work slowly, often producing only a small number of finished prints over extended periods, measuring progress through consistency and clarity rather than volume. Future projects will follow the same framework of fixed equipment, defined subject range, full documentation, and physical output, with each new body of work building on previous records to form a cumulative archive of decisions made over time.
For business and technology leaders, this project demonstrates the value of systematic constraint and documentation in creative and technical processes. The methodology of eliminating variables to better understand core principles has direct applications in product development, quality control, and process optimization across industries. The emphasis on physical output and archival standards in a digital age offers insights into maintaining tangible quality benchmarks, while the focus on repeatable methods rather than novel outcomes aligns with sustainable business practices that prioritize consistency and improvement over constant innovation.
