When I asked you to tackle the topic of Passion I did not expect you to use over-saturation as the main tool. My previous classes did not do this. Maybe I was thinking of a softer form of passion, more to do with the passion between people, about relationships, and even about environments. Perhaps I will alter this topic for future classes by renaming it, ‘Color/ Ambience’. I am trying to get you to elicit a feeling of environment through the use of color. The color of an environment changes through the day because of the changes in the angle of the sun and the way the atmosphere alters the color of the sunlight hitting us. [When the sun is setting and it drops below the edge of the earth, the earth’s atmosphere bends the sunlight letting only the longest wavelength, the reds and oranges, illuminate our world.] One problem with color photos is that they tend to look too normal, aka regular. It is desirable to alter the color away from normal to make a more interesting photo. Most cameras pump up the saturation automatically, so it is better to desaturate to take things in the other, unexpected direction. [Most TV’s and Computer Monitors come with the color saturation turned up as well!]
I do have to comment that there are still a number of photographs that come under the heading of Photo Clichés; dogs, babies, flowers, sunsets, City Hall, lights, graffiti, etc. Please re-read the Photo Clichés document. Avoid people posing for a photo, or worse, hamming it up for the camera. That turns that shot into a snapshot. If people are aware they are being shot they become self-conscious and it usually doesn’t work. Simply asking people to close their eyes can make a big difference. The problem with snapshots is that the essential meaning is not actually contained within the photograph. Snapshots are used to trigger people’s memories, so the image is in their minds, not so much in the photo. This is not what we are looking for in this class.
Typical Color Clichés include anything with intense color. If it is seen that you are shooting just to grab the color, and there is no deeper meaning behind that subject, the photo is not going far enough. Shooting graffiti, or architecture just for the shapes, is appropriating some else’s art. It is preferred that you make your own art directly from the raw material that the world provides for you. If you are using architectural elements such as graceful curves to enclose a space, or edges of buildings that cast sharp shadows, then you are on the right track. Cute animals (are there any animals that are not inherently cute?) are a classic form of snapshot. Sunsets are a classic content of picture postcards and those are too commonplace. The feeling generated by the light of a setting sun can however be used to create an evocative setting for a subject. Flowers are another classic photo cliché and should be avoided. They are just too easy. Lights seem to be overused these days. The light cast by a fixture, however, can create an environment with ambience, as described above when talking about the sun, just this time it is interior rather than exterior.
note: If you are going to do more work in B&W, as I have encouraged, they have to be toned, even if just slightly. Dead flat B&W is not enough.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Let’s start this analysis by looking at the simplest use of color, the Monochrome images. In this case they start with an industrial setting. Chi Hwan aligned the bottom up with the frame to give stability to that huge blank wall. Veronica’s photo is similar but the color is a bit too real. I have desaturated it just as an example of how the feel can be altered simply. It gets a little more run-down looking with less color and the sky is a bit more somber. Kristen’s stairway is thrown of center by the wall and all the tones fall into the same hue. Kendel’s boarded up window and doorway pose questions about the fate of not only that building but the people who lived inside. Kristen’s next shot has the yellow of the janitorial items blending in with the color of the limestone walls them selves. This picture also addresses the person who uses this equipment.
The windows in the next few photos are the linkage of this series. These are some good examples of how lighting can produce ambience, some outside, some interiors. The upstairs light in the photo by Chi Hwan allow me to sit up there all day. The streaming light in Ali's photo creates an unearthly space that transcends the actual locale. (this is Tuttleman Hall - remember no photos on TU Campus!) The last photo by Mariah adds real color into the equation. This is one where I questioned the saturation at first, but now I believe that it really looked like that because it is nighttime (or it is a really weird place).
This is echoed by Michael and Dan in the next couple of street photos. There is a book by Alex Webb called Hot Light / Half Made Worlds: Photographs from the Tropics. There are many walls like this green one down there, and Alex makes the best of it. He includes people, usually truncated, to add personality to the environment. Do a Google Image Search for his work and you’ll see what I mean [note: well, only about 1/3 of the photos that come up in that search are what I am talking about, but you can see which ones have the light and shadow and broad colors.] These two photos make good use of bright color because they still look believeable.
Dan’s vertical pole links us to the next couple of shots by Natalie and Kati, both of which include a vertical element like that. When you push these up against the edges of the frames you get tension, and tension is good in photographs. I think you have to watch out for halos and I wish Kati’s foreground was just pavement, but still, this is an effective photo that establishes a real sense of place waiting for something to happen.
The next few shots all have the street itself as the subject. The drawing and text in both of Mike’s photos is intriguing. Ashley’s shot removes all space and makes an almost abstract study of the gravel and stone slabs. This is almost a painting.
From here the foregrounds open up again for the next several photos. Various things happen. The figure walking in the background of Dan’s photo makes it a more active photo while still keeping the people anonymous. The foreground in Ashley’s photo takes up the entire bottom half of the frame, and there is still this purple line on the ground. Curious! In Dan’s next shot the line becomes a rainbow and the foreground becomes a sea of automobiles. Joe’s photo keeps the same horizon line but in a very different space.
The next two photographs of fences remind me of an old topic of ‘Borders/Boundaries’. Bridges are things that link two areas while fences are things that divide. That’s a good topic if anyone wants to run with it. The little wagon photo by Garrett has a softness of both color and focus that puts my mind into memory mode. It’s not exactly my childhood but it still makes me think of playing in the driveway behind my house with all the other kids on my block. Please take note of these elements because they can be used in the 4th and last topic, ‘Memory’.
The next 4 photos take us back to the landscape. Mike’s photo gets us up very close. The negative space between the leaves is just as active as the leaves themselves. The framing in the shot is excellent. Ashley pulls back a little bit but still does an excellent job of framing this little stream. It makes what could be a generic scene into a special place just by the angle of view. Julie’s photo also has a limited viewpoint that forces the viewer to poke around to see just what is going on. This is a visual mystery. Kendel’s photo also removes a lot of the spatial cues and plays with complementary color; red against green.
The next two photos almost go abstract on us. Caitlin’s shot is close-up of some kind of structure, probably a sculpture, but is obscure enough that it works. Chi Hawn’s photo is one of a few where this intense color really works. This is an outrageous place with hanging lights but that is not so obvious until you look at it for a while. And the Photo is divided almost in half, adding to the visual structure.
Now we get to the portraits and self-portraits. The first two, both by Ian, have the faces obscured, first by water and then by light. Kendel’s photo cuts the face with light while Mariah’s cuts the face with the frame. This enhances the gaze in her eyes because pushing things close to the edge of the frame enhance their power. This is the other case where the subject can project their personal energy right through the lens. This is a talent that is required in the acting profession. It is a matter on confronting the camera without self-consciousness. Hollie’s goes even farther to eliminate the eyes, making it that much more anonymous and makes us ponder the subject that much more.
The next set of photographs considers the space around the figure, giving us that much more information to evaluate the person in the frame. Veronica’s flag photo makes us stand further back creating a great environment for the figure with maybe a little bit of political commentary the same time. And speaking of political commentary, Garret’s photo of beer and pool make their own statement and helps us learn something about the subject of the photo. The extended foreground of the pool table is another powerful visual tool. And we all know what happens to people with red shirts who drink too much beer? Well, Ian’s next shot answers that question. Mariah’s photo presents us with a very different back that is sensuous because of the content and that is enhanced by the quality of light in the room.
The last little shot that didn’t seem to fit anywhere else is Caitlin’s picture of a pitcher on a table. This shot uses angle of view and closeness to frame the shot while the soft color and soft-focus background adds to the feel and evokes memories. Another beautiful photo to keep in mind when we get to the 4th topic, Memory.
No comments:
Post a Comment