W Eugene Smith

Steelworker, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1955 by W. Eugene Smith. [1280x926]

• introduced to photography by his mother and after his father committed suicide he became obsessed 
• at a young age a local newspaper hired him
• wanted pictures to show the terrible aspects of war
• photo jounalist 
• he had strict ethical values he would not break
• photographed images of suffering 
• He photographed 26 carrier combat missions and 13 invasions 
• he immersed himself in his subjects (unlike most other photojournalists)
• he resigned from Life magazine because he wanted more rights over his images
• he did photo essays (one was over 11,000 photos of Pittsburgh

Can a single photograph affect the world for change?

I think that one photograph can be extremely impactful and make people think or change their ways. Say for instance a graphic image of a war is released to the public. People would start protesting the war and possibly make a change to stop the war. I do think there is a limit to how much an image can change the world because not everyone will see that image or care or decide to make a change because of the seeing that image. Large problems cannot be solved with one picture but they can be improved and work it toward a solution.

Project 5: Light Shadow and Reflections

Silhouette: Pinterest

Brassaï

Backlit: Pinterest

Johan van der Keuken

If this image was taken with the metering on the darker areas such as the back of the person or wall then the light would be blown out. The detail in the curtain would become white and detail would be seen more in the darker areas such as the wall and the back of the person. The balance of the picture would be lost and would become less interesting if the artist chose to take the image this way. 

Reflections: Pinterest

Henri Cartier-Bresson

Shadow: Pinterest

Matteo Angelotti

André Kertész

Margaret Bourke White

Blurb:

• Born 1904
• Photographed for Life magazine (first woman)
• Worked during the depression and dust bowl
• photoed Auschwitz tragedies
• fist woman documentary photographer 
• started photographing as a hobby
• photographed design in factories and industrial architecture 
• photographed in Germany for Fortune magazine
• went to Russia during industrialization and photographed for Life magazine 
• married to novelist and worked on photo projects with him
• did photo essays of Dust Bowl, Germany, and Soviet Union
• photographed WWII and in India with Mohandas Gandhi 
• very modern women for the time she was living

Semester Final Portfolio

Project 2

Exploring the Creative Controls (Depth of Field)

Abstraction: breaks away from traditional representation of physical objects. It explores the relationships of forms and colors, whereas more traditional art represents the world in recognizable images.

In photography abstraction is the imagery of elements of art rather than actual object; less about a subject than is easily distinguished. 

Shelbie Dimond

Barry Massoni

 Nancy Lehrer

How depth of field is used in these images:

Most of these images use a wide depth of field and are really close up. The closeness of these photos make the images abstract because one cannot clearly distinct the object but can distinguish the elements of photography in the images. The first image by Dimond has a shallow depth of field to focus on the movement and shape of the human body. Many of these images focus on texture and value.

Shallow Depth of field:

Paolo Pizzimenti

Sally Mann

Exploring the Creative Controls (Motion)through Diptychs and Triptychs

Michael Penn : slow motion

 unknown artist: freeze action

 Fire at Marlborough Street, 1975 by Stanley J. Forman: freeze action

 Godfrey Hirst: freeze action

Juliann Veeger: Panning

Gerald Sanders: camera shake

Photographs that show the same type of action, but opposite movements:

Ann McGrath: long exposure

Tau Zero: short exposure

My opinion: I personally like the first image with a long exposure because it is more abstract. The subjects are less clear but the motion creates a more interesting and somewhat mysterious feeling, which I like more than a photo that is crisp but you cannot interpret on your own. The first image is more thought provoking.   

Triptychs

The presentation made up of three (and only three) distinctly separated photographic images displayed on a common background.

Adde Adesokan: 

Paolo Cola