Megan Karson, Tintype Photographer
In residence, April 25-May 15, 2025
About the Artist 
Megan Karson joins us as April’s Creative Resident. Megan is focused on preservation, storytelling, and connection. Through working with nearly 200-year-old photographic processes, her work evokes a sense of longevity and timelessness. She strives to not only preserve historical photographic and artistic processes but to use these techniques to preserve the stories of the modern world.
Invented in the 1850s, wet plate collodion is an entirely hands-on medium that allows Megan to connect to each step. From mixing her own chemistry to utilizing a portable darkroom to sensitize and develop each image, she is immersed in the process from start to finish.
Tintypes created by early explorers show us views of a world much different than we see today. Our planet is rapidly changing. Much like the wet plate photographers that came before her, she travels with large format wooden cameras, her darkroom and chemistry, and a passion for capturing images of the world around her. Instead of a covered wagon, she travels in a 1979 Chevy camper van, creating one-of-a-kind images that can be held in our hands and shared for hundreds of years.
In today’s fast-moving times we are flooded with digital imagery every day that disappears in the blink of an eye. The concept of family heirlooms and keepsakes is an antiquated one. Traveling from coast to coast she engages with people from all walks of life, making photographs of families and individuals that are very personal and meaningful. Hearing stories about the family photos that are kept and cared for after hundreds of years is a daily testament to the value of the work she is doing today.
Learn more about Megan here. If you’re interested in a tintype photo by Megan while she is at the Reserve, you can book an appointment. Please note, these appointments are during our Mother’s Day event.
