Before your time

I love this photograph, the beauty of the dancer's movement without any movement at all, is stunning. With this image in our minds only as I had no copy to use while shooting my friends and I re-created a feeling. I enjoyed this project and will be continuing down this path as it's something that really catches my eye and imagination. Dancer and how they are able to move the body are going to keep me busy for awhile.

Movie Week Extravaganza!

The movie War Photographer starts with a Robert Capa  saying "If your pictures are not good enough, you are not close enough."  In the movie The War Photographer we follow the life of James Nachtwey  James along with his camera are always in the middle of a dangerous  scenario with very little regard to his own life. I have very strong admiration for his obvious passion he feels for what he is doing. I was glad that I had watch the film though I might not agree with everything that was conveyed it seem that he really cared about the people and situations he was shooting.  What I do agree with is using the camera as another of my many tools for doing good. Helping people, telling there stories and finding the beauty in all things. 

                                      

 Born into Brothels, a look into the lives of children in Sonagachi, North Calcutta's red light district. London born, New York-based photojournalist Zana Briski was moved by the children's plight. She describes this area as a world within a world, where rules are intricate and compulsory, where violence and abuse are commonplace. Frustrated by what looked to be the children's  future she gives eight of the children cameras so that they might document there lives in the district. I felt helpless watching this movie I wanted to be able to do something that would have impact at that moment. The more i thought about it the more I realized that i need to look around my own surroundings and to reach out. There are people in need right here at home. I know we can all say that we are going to run out and save the world tomorrow with our camera and our hearts but most likely we do not have the money or the no-how to accomplish that huge task. what I can do is cherish each moment I have and express it to my family and friends how grateful I am to have them in my life. I can be more receptive to people who are in need and offer what I can. I can also look more closely around my neighborhood and see what is needed. I can look people in the eye when I pass them on the street and they ask for spare change, understanding that they are human beings with a story of there own. Small steps but each could have a huge impact that I might not ever know. I need to put my ego aside and open my heart to all the possibilities life had to share with me and when I loose my glasses for the second time in a school year understand that life is not over and count my blessings and get over myself. 

                     

Ok so I'm going to be short and sweet with this movie. It was not my favorite of the three but it did have impact on me. We as in you and me use to much shit. We then throw it out for more new shit and then complain we don't have enough shit. This is something I struggle with every day. I am a girl who loves to buy new shiny things and want more and more just like most everyone else. I have come to realize that stuff is not making me any more happy or having a greater sense of fulfillment. This movie sort of makes it seem like the problem is far away but it is anything but.... In manitoba most of the stuff we think is recycled is actually thrown away. Almost every single person I know has a computer and we have to replace them every few years because of the purposeful plan of planed obsolete is in full force. Meaning that people who design things don't make things so that they will last for the next 50 years or longer they make it so they last 2, 5 or 10 years if we are lucky. This makes me fill sick and I do not have all the answers but i do know that each dollar that you spend is like a vote and that makes me spend my money a lot more wisely then i ever have. I found the images in this movie interesting but over all the movie a bit boring... funny how we as a society are so easily board with killing of our planet it's so 1990's right?

On The Anniversary Of An Icon's Death

For this assignment it seemed obvious to use this remarkable image of John Lennon shot by Annie Liebovitz on the anniversary of his murder. Remarkably this shot was taken just hours before the tragic event, leading to the magazine Rolling Stone to publish it without any text involved. The image stands alone, Lennon was telling the world he was not afraid to show his vulnerable side and holding onto his women. The unexpected intimacy portrayed was partially created by Liebovitz capacity of being unobtrusive. She had to have gained the trust and confidence of the couple and to truly understand what it means to capture a moment. The shot is simple, you see the bed with clothes strewn on the edge and the simplicity of background ,a neutral carpet, give the image context and pulls our eyes right to the subject. This was a shot that Liebovitz thought of and planned out but gave room for the closeness of the couple to shine through. Overall this is a very strong and passionate image that gives us a glimpse of a man who hours later would no longer be with us.  

Photographic Hero

After having taken a closer look at Yousuf Karsh's work with a more technical perspective the first thing that jumped out at me was that Karsh is a master of studio lights. Karsh had a gift for capturing the essence of his subject and would meticulously prepare for each so he could have a list of questions to ask and put them at ease while they posed for him. He was fascinated with experimenting with artificial light with a particular fascination with stage lightning. Karsh practiced using artificial light in the 30's when many photographers only used natural light.. The main light unit he used consisted of a stand made by Dyna Lite Inc., a light box manufactured by colortran Inc. and a Mylar diffusing screen. 2 meters high, half a meter long and almost half a meter wide The light box is painted navy blue on the outside, white on the inside, he used 5 tungsten 250watt bulbs. The large unit stood about one and a half meters to the right and slightly behind his camera.The second light a fill light put behind the camera was similar to the first except slightly smaller and used 3 clear bulbs.He could add a spot light or over head light depending on his subjects.  Karsh did not set up his own equipment but had an assistant do that work and would then go in and test everything using his assistant to test angles and where the light was going to fall on his subject.  Throughout most of his career he used the Large format 8×10 bellows Calumet camera to document his well known High contrast gelatin silver prints. Karsh printed in the darkroom with assistants. His photographs are signed in black ink on mount au recto (front), usually imprinted with a studio stamp au verso (back), and mounted to 100% rag board. Some earlier prints were signed in white ink on the photo.

 I love this photo of Winston Churchill it captures his essence of disapproval. I love the background lighting.it is stunning. You can see how the back lightning helps make Churchill pop out of the  wall. Some of my favorite things about what Karsh does it that he has such a range between his brightest white and he blackest black. Also i love in this image how he has made the face a bit on the sharp side with side lightning and the over all somber mood of this photo. The well known story behind Karsh taking this photos is that he only had two minutes to take Churchill's portrait, and he managed to capture the scowl  by plucking Churchill's cigar from his mouth moments before taking the photo. Karsh saw an opportunity and then captured it on film in a superb way.

 
The Image of Humphrey Bogart seems to be more dramatized and pulls us in by the way his face is highlighted. I love when I found out that Karsh used separate lighting for his hands in many of his photo shoots. I think this image is a perfect example of this. I love the lack of background information so are kept just focused on the subject however he still creates a non- static photo because of the cigarette smoke movement.Once again I enjoy the huge range of contrast here. I would assume he would be using some kind of magenta filter in the darkroom process.

  For my last image I chose the Queen of England and her husband not because it was my very favorite but because of how Karsh used his lightning technique. I Liked how it seemed to me that there are two different lights used on the two subjects. For some reason the Queen seems more regal to me, maybe because of the effect of the almost halo look skimming her head. I also like how it seems that that Prince Philip is a thinker with the highlight hitting his forehead.  The composition of this image is also interesting as it looks like the Prince has the Queen's back and is going to protect her from anything. I love the soft light on her face and the more tonal depth on his, there seems to be a big play in light and dark between them. The lines in the background also help pull our eye to Queen Elizabeth.

Love, Envy, and Peace Oh MY!

What a Challenge this assignment was for me. I racked my brain for days trying to decide what Love, Envy and Peace meant to me and how I could portray it through photography. What ended up happening was the night before it was due I  staying up till almost 3 am to finish it on time. OK So I'm pretty sure that I'm not suppose to optimize my picture so much that I'm green but it was so fun it was impossible to resist. What I loved about this assignment besides doing it after 7 hours of school then 4 and 1/2 hours of work and many cups of tea later, was the play involved. I drew up a final plan the night before and then took the time to frame each shot. Some were a bit more easy and others I might re-think next time as shooting a self portrait was extremely taxing and many images were unusable as they were out of focus. This is my favorite picture simply because it was great fun getting into the role of Envy she is dangerous and can take over anyone of us at anytime. I took a lot of examples trying to achieve the right mood, angle and overall composition.
 
GODDESS ENVY

100 Shots Assignment

So this weeks assignment in Creative Imaging was to take 100 consecutive shots of an object. I chose my boyfriends new vintage hat that looks quite dashing on him I might add. I was perplexed when first given this this assignment but then had a chance to see an example of 100 pictures of a fork. In the example the fork never really  moved and yet you saw nothing else besides the fork. It captured my imagination the way they were able to make it so graphic and surreal yet it was just a fork.So with that in mind, I took my hat, some flowers and a friend and we went on a hunt in the Exchange District for a good location. I have to admit it was really fun. I was stumped around frame 37 then we brain stormed a bit and wham-oh I ended up going over by 10 to 15 pictures without noticing. I love that I see more and more all the time and  I am going to keep playing and keep practicing at being a good seer.

Assignment: Simple Subject Matter

Photography By Yousuf Karsh

So today I am blogging about my Analogue Technique  class assignment:  SIMPLE SUBJECT MATTER
 For this I have chosen a portraiture of Audrey Hepburn done by YOUSUF KARSH. I had the pleasure of going to see his exhibit this summer at WAG and felt a strong connection to his work. What I think Karsh really conveyed to me was how simple subject composition can really make some truly stunning and moving images. I stood in front of his photo's for hours with my boyfriend that day. Each photograph creating and stirring more and more inspiration and awe for me the longer I stood in it's presence. The light and shadows in this and all of his work are simply stunning, creating movement for the eye but with a elegant focus on lines and composition. Karsh has added to my love of Black & White photography with the depth of tones he is able to capture. The shadows and light in this photo of Audrey Hepburn pulls you into her features showcasing her trademark look. Karsh will be someone I study and admire for the rest of my life.