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 I only discovered today that Peter Goldfield, ex-pharmacist, photographer, educator and superb cook, died last week.
I knew Peter from way back, in the 1970s, when his pharmacy in Muswell Hill, London, was the only source of Agfa Record Rapid paper in the UK. Not just the world's best photographic paper could be found there, but nearly every conceivable item of associated photographic chemistry that was otherwise unobtainable in this country - and which we all thought formed part of the magical 'elixir of photographic excellence' that we strived for. The business that evolved from those early days of importing paper from Germany was called Goldfinger Photographic.
When I was involved in the Cambridge Darkroom in the 1980s, Peter visited once with his portfolio of pictures from the Fens of East Anglia with a view to getting a show at the gallery. Unfortunately, the gallery director at that time was not sympathetic to Peter's style and rejected the show. Every time I ran into Peter from then on he would remind me that 'I' rejected his show! It was all in good spirit though and it certainly didn't have any lasting effect on his enthusiasm or his work.
Having been devoted to traditional photography, Peter was one of the first people I knew to actively explore the electronic approach. He became an authority on digital printing and on the manipulation of images. His style and approach to the new medium was not to everyone's taste, but he had a pioneering spirit and boundless enthusiasm - which rubbed off on all who came into contact with him.
The last time I saw Peter was in 1999 at Duckspool, his beautiful Somerset retreat in the Quantock hills from which he ran an extensive series of photographic workshops. I was there attending the 'Total Eclipse Pinhole Workshop', run by David Gepp, and Peter was on fine form - even when we had to get up at 2 a.m. to travel to a port in time to catch the boat that was taking us into the middle of the eclipse path in the English Channel.
Needless to say, it was cloudy, but we all experienced the eerie darkness as the sun disappeared and overall a good time was had by all. The photograph of Peter above shows his willingness to try out anything new. In this case, attempting to shoot video of the eclipse through a pinhole camera attached to a videocam.
 His legacy in the field of independent photography and education is vast, but the one thing for which I will remember him is the slim, home-made, typewritten catalogue that was the Goldfinger Manual. Not just a catalogue of his range of products, but a 'how to' book as well, covering all aspects of processing and archival printing. This became the primary source of information on fine-art photographic practice for those photographers who were part of the resurgence of interest in 'pure' photography around that time (1970s-1980s). I learnt so much from that book - and from Peter - in my first explorations of fine art printing.
You can download a PDF of the third edition from the Silverprint website.
Visiting Duckspool was a joy; not only was the location idyllic, but the facilities were good and the food - often cooked by Peter himself - was superb. Peter knew just about everyone who mattered on the photographic scene and was able to draw some big names to run workshops at the 'Pool'. Once Paul and Angela Hill's 'Photographers Place' in Derbyshire closed, Duckspool became the only place in the UK where one could be sure of a brilliant photographic workshop experience, in good company and with fantastic support.
He will be sadly missed.
Other references: Idiotic Hat; Re:Photo; Pradip Malde
Obituary: The Guardian, 10th April 2009.
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