Manual Mode

Tino Martínez (Santiago de Compostela, 1943) is the paradigm of an analogue photography professional. Over more than four decades, he mastered every stage of the discipline—from conception to exhibition, from capture to development. His career is a true masterclass in photography, conveyed through his way of seeing and telling, of deciphering frames, light, and timing; through his choice of settings, the careful preparation of his tools, and the precise selection of techniques.

Manual mode is a way of working—more measured, honest, and deliberate. This exhibition presents a twofold narrative: the city as seen through Tino’s eyes, and the photographs shaped by the author’s knowledge and experience. The aim is not merely to show scenes of Santiago, but to reveal the processes and techniques that make their creation possible. In this way, Tino Martínez becomes an artisan of landscape and people, crafting an unmistakably analogue vision of Santiago.

PANORAMAS AND NOCTURNES

The mastery of photographic technique is evident in his panoramas and nocturnes. His command of chemistry enabled him to produce prints up to one meter in size and to master Cibachrome, the direct reversal process that plays with extraordinary colour. On long moonless nights he achieved a deep, sooty black and created the desired atmosphere with up to 1,200 bursts of flash. His field notes preserve the data that allow us to reconstruct the entire capture process, revealing an ethic of solitary work carried through from beginning to end.

PORTRAITS

For more than forty years, Tino Martínez portrayed figures and friends from the life of Compostela. He worked as a portraitist of the individual—an observer of hands, gaze, posture, and attire. His portraits are introspective handcrafted images of their subjects.

Printed on 320 gsm Platinum Baryta paper.

TINO MARTÍNEZ

Tino Martínez (Santiago de Compostela, 1943) began his photographic journey as a self-taught teenager at the age of thirteen, inspired by cinema and the chemical processes of light. This early fascination grew into both a lifelong vocation and a professional career spanning more than forty years of uninterrupted practice.

His work unfolded in the streets, in his studio on Rúa Nova, and in his darkroom, always closely connected to the civic, political, and cultural life of the Galician capital. Throughout these years, his camera served as an invisible yet ever-present witness to the city's defining moments.

 

 

MORE INFORMATION