Though the 1976 exhibition of William Eggleston’s Guide
at the Museum of Modern Art is commonly referenced as the beginning of
color fine -art photography, by that time Eliot Porter had already been working
in color for 30 years. Porter began making his own separation negatives and dye
transfer prints—a labor-intensive but relatively permanent process—in 1940. In
order to create prints that he felt equaled the natural power of his
landscapes, Porter often slightly increased the brilliance, contrast, or saturation
in his work. The bold yellow fruits in Frostbitten Apples, Tesuque,
New Mexico appear like flashes of light against the dark branches of
the tree.