It was a real pleasure to welcome the eminent photojournalist Judah Passow back to darkroom recently. He was interviewed about a project he worked on over 30 years ago in one of the first Wagamama restaurants in Bloomsbury, London. The Japanese-themed restaurant chain were shooting a promotional film to show their successful evolution from that humble start to the major brand they are today.
Back in 1992 Judah created a series of images that would become synonymous with Wagamama’s identity, including the iconic shot of one of their workers eating from a ramen bowl. In the interview he explained how this image came about and the creation of the pared down visual aesthetic that perfectly complimented the experience of eating in the restaurants
When we were setting up darkroom in 2018, Judah generously donated the darkroom equipment that he was no longer using, due to his switch to digital. It was a thrill to see him reconnect with the Beseler enlarger he had used to print so many of his great images on, including the Wagamama ramen bowel shot.
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