Photo II - Week 9

My first photograph is "Identical Twins" by Diane Arbus. Arbus was known for photographing the abnormal moments in people. I have always found it easy to do this with multiples. This idea has always attracted me to the idea of photographing multiple to see how easily this may or may not be and what would come of the project. What I really find successful about this photograph is its blocks of tones. The clear black, white, and grey tones are visibly blocked out into different areas of the image which creates a dynamic feeling for such a static pose. This blocking makes the other wise weak and average composition and printing successful. To see more of Arbus' work click here.

My next image is one from Rineke Dijkstra in her beach portrait series. What attracted me to this image was its simple subject and bold colors. The subject is relaxed and centered but yet clearly posed. This is even more accentuated by the direct light and clear visible background. The sense of the light is also very clearly portraiture and seems kind of off in the setting yet not so off that the viewer can't accept it. Finally the bold tones and bright warm color in the middle of a cool toned setting makes the image pop even further. To view more of Dijkstra's work click here.

The final image for this week is Route 14, New Mexico. It is part of a series titled Stranded by photographer Amy Stein. The series is about the corruptions in American government post Hurricane Katrina. Stein spent five years working on this project as she traveled across the US to photograph broken down cars. During this time she marked each location on a Google Map which you can visit here. The cars are both symbolic for the American destiny and literal for their breakdowns. What I found most attractive about the photograph itself was its sense of atmosphere. The viewer clearly recognizes that haunting feeling of being lost and broken down on a creepy and eerily generic road. I think the thing that makes this so clear is its ambiguity in location. The viewer can put his or her own experiences on the photograph without being deterred by road markers, license plates or anything that is distinct of a specific area. To view more of Stein's work click here.

Photo II - Week 8

My first photograph for the week is "U.S. 90, en route to Del Rio, Texas" by Robert Frank. What I liked about the photograph was it's sense of space and awkward balance. Not only does the car take up most of the pace in the frame but the interior or the car is full and leaves the view with a claustrophobic feeling. I think that the little space of the scenery is extremely important. The distance in the background and the winding road give the feeling of travel and without it the image would seem more like living in your car rather than traveling across a distance. I found this image in Artstor.

My second image for the week comes from William Eggleston's book William Eggleston. What drew me to the image was the mystery of the subject. While its clear that it's a woman in a restaurant you cannot truly see who she is or what she looks like. Along with that as in all Eggelston color photographs the colors are extremely vibrant and make the photo even more interesting. The viewer may feel like they could know this woman or have seen her some where just from knowing her skin tone or hair color. To view more of Eggelston's work click here.

My final image for the week is Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah by Rob Hann. Rob Hann is an English photographer that seems to specialize in photographing the things he finds during his travels. One of the few thinks he has done is photograph a convention in the Bonneville Salt Flats. This is one of the images from that series. While it may appear set up the reality is that he was merely photographing what he saw at the convention. The photo appeals to me for is light, clear tones, and beautiful colors. To view more of Rob Hann's work click here.

Photo II - Week 7

The first photo I choose this week is "Pacific, Devil's Slide, California" by Minor White. What I found most interesting about the photograph was the light. I felt like the light in the image was fairly intense and yet there was only one single cloudy light source. I also was interested in the textural quality that the light brought out in the water. To see more of his work click here.

The next photograph that I choose is "Overnight" by Mark Klett. I have been really interested in the idea of photographing passing time since seeing Sugimoto's work and I think that is what caused my interest in this work. The photograph depicts what happens in a single area, a single bed, for a night. That idea and the beauty of the image itself is extremely successful in my opinion. To see more of Kletts work click here.

The final photographs I have chosen is a self-portrait of the artist herself Alexa Meade, an in process photograph, and my personal favorite work of heres titled Nocturne. Meade creates her work by selecting models and then painting the subject to match what she sees. At times that subject is within an interior to add to the interest of the final image. These paintings are then photographed. What I found most interesting was that it doesn't appear to be that Meade focuses on one aspect more than the other. The construction of the image is not more important that the image itself. To view more of her work you can visit her webpage here.

Photo II - Week 6

The first image I choose is Coast near point Reyes, California by Ansel Adams. I chose this photograph because while it involved landscape it felt much more like a skyscape. I think what makes this photo successful is the mimicking of landscapes shape in the clouds. They both form a a c shaped curve that is very successful. Adams use of the zone system also created a tonally balanced image so that it had all the detail of the landscape without loosing the glow of the sky or clouds. I found this image on Artstor.

The next image I selected is by Harry Callahan. It is titled Eleanor and Barbara (baby carriage) and is a silver print from 1952. While the subject matter of a child and her mother is always beautiful to me I also really enjoy the image for what it looks like as well. Callahans use of point of view forces the viewer into curved path and back out in a calm way that feels natural and genuine. This feeling then carries on due to the calm of the subject themselves. While the image itself is dark it still has plenty of detail to add to its beauty. To see more of Callahans work click here.

The final image for this week is Blowing Bubbles by Sally Mann. It is a featured part of her book "Immediate Family". The dramatic lighting is what draws me into the image. Once pulled in the viewer bounces around first looking at the children and then to their cultured surroundings. The selective focus for the image also helps the viewer to notice these things as well. However when it comes to the subject I feel that the childs direct gaze helps the image. Had she been turned around with her sister I don't think it would hold the same feeling. To view more of her work you can visit her website here.

Photo II - Week 5

My first photograph this week is by E.J Bellocq. I think what I found most interesting about it is its calm quiet nature. Bellocq was known for photographing many prostitutes and allowed them to dress how the wanted and to be seen how they wanted to appear. Many of his photographs have the same calm quiet that can be seen here while others appear much more matter of fact. While the subject matter is simple it is portrayed in a way that brings much more interest and reveals a side of these women that most people never really saw. To see more of his work you can visit ARTstor which is where I found this photograph.

During critique this week Ron had told me that it looked like I had photographed with Meatyard in mind and so I decided to go and search for what he was seeing. While I came across a large amount of masks and blurred arms I found this particular photo my favorite. I thought that it depicted the emotion of the child well. After photographing children for a while I have come to recognize that face quite well. However it was the childs use of the props that made the photograph for me as well as his feet. The way he pokes the doll with the flag and looks away and crosses his feet read boredom and childhood so clearly. It just feels genuine. To see more of Meatyards work you can visit ARTstor which is where I found this image as well.

My final photograph this week is by Tierney Gearon. It is part of her series titled Explosure in which she double exposes her film in camera and then prints them straight with no retouching. Tierney is a recently discovered artist (discovered in 2001 for her series "I Am A Camera") who has now produced 3 exhibitions, Explosion being the most recent. What attracted me to this photograph was its double negative quality. While I am not exposing my negatives twice this week I am hoping to achieve a similar look in my work. To see more of her work you can visit her website here.