Illustrated Discussion

Illustrated Discussion:

Foreground and Background:


Berenice Abbott:(17 July,1898-9 December, 1991)
She was an American photographer best known for her portraits of between the wars. In early 1929 she went to New York looking for a publisher but soon saw the city's photographic potential. She returned to Paris and closed her studio before returning to New York. The first photographs she took were on a Kurt-Bentzin camera, producing 8 x 10 inch negatives. Her main focus was framing the subject and the spaces in-between the frame. 

This is the view from one of the skyscrapers in New York at night, I like the way she has shot this image as she has removed herself from the chaos of everyday life and become an observer. 

I like her style as a photographer as she always seems distant from the photographs she has taken. However, her work is centered around New York and I wouldn't be able to commute to a large city for this exam. 


Tony Ray-Jones: (7 June,1941-13 March,1972)
He was an English photographer, he usually recorded activity in the middle distance. 

This photograph has a sick sense of irony. The cow is standing in a restaurant, shortening the distance from the source of food to the consumption of it. 

I like his images as they are very descriptive, it's almost as if you've walked into a small snippet of his life with every shot. On the other hand, I would describe his images as documentary rather than foreground and background as they are very mundane in the way they're shot.   

Candida Hofer:(Born 1944)She is German-based photographer and former student of Hilla and Bernd Becher. Like her mentors she has taken a strictly technical approach to the interiors of similarly-shaped buildings.  Hofer has captured a view of a library. The rows and rows of shelves stretch out into the distance, like the stories and separate universes the books contain.I love how she draws you into the images, it's like she's letting you explore the building for yourself and she's simply giving you a tour. The only drawback is that her photos are limited to long buildings, which aren't in high supply in England.I don't think I will pursue Foreground and Background as for me the images are distant from their subjects, showing only a glimpse of their world that is far more complicated that the shots show, consequently it lacks depth in the direction of the images subjects.   Framing Devices:Saul Leiter:(3 December,1923-26 November,2013)
He was an American Photographer that used windows as a framing device, often the window was foggy, subsequently obscuring the identity of the subject.

You can tell the gender and the basic outline of this man in a suit,suggesting that he's middle classed in the 20 century, all other aspects are a mystery. By removing his identity Leiter is forcing us to form an opinion based on the limited knowledge we are presented. I love how his photos are like a diary of the past in Retro America and I enjoy how his subjects are oblivious, and consequently behaving naturally. His shots would be hard to replicate in modern times as people are always expecting to be watched and so want to more strictly control how they portray themselves to the world, leading to less and less people giving permission for photographs. 
John Szarkowski:(18 December , 1925 – 7 July , 2007)He was an American photographer that focused on the framing of his images, best known for his work on the "Photographer's eye".  

The fact that this derelict building has no roof shows how it has fallen into disrepair, however the beautiful clouds symbolise a sense of hope and positivity.I don't like his style of photography. As photos are subjective to the viewer people will misinterpret or misunderstand photos. In his case I simply don't understand his images, this may have been his initial idea as it made me think of different meanings behind his images.   Eugene Atget: ( February12 1857- August 4 1927)

Eugene Atget was a pioneer in documentary photography, his main focus being the streets and architecture of Paris, before they were consumed by modernisation.

This large feat of architecture was most probably in Atget's home, France, where he documented many buildings. I like the way he has chosen to include the reflection in the water of the building. 

I like Atget's work as he was a rebel against time. He tried desperatiely to document the world he lived in and loved before time stole it from him. His photographs are beautifully meloncholy as we are unable to visit the places he's been, but perhaps some would aregue that that's the purpose of a good photograph: to document something that will vanish beofre your eyes. 

I like this topic as there are many different direction I could take it. However,I will not be using framing devices for my exam topic as most framing devices seem like cliches, and I find them over-used due to everybody's acess to a camera has lead to repetition. 

Juxtaposition: 

Uta Barth: (29 January 1958)

Uta Barth takes atmospheric photographs of streets out of focus to allow the viewer to assume some control over what they're seeing by forcing their imagination to fill in the blanks that the lack of focus creates. 

This image is of  a traffic-light junction in America. The blurriness suggests that the viewer has been in an sccident and is still shell-shocked from the impact. 

I like the very fact that her work is visually challenging, it truly makes you think about her images and their subjects. I might use her in my work as I like the idea of getitng the viewer's imagination to complete the image, and the emotions this process stirs in the viewer. 

Frank Gohlke:  (3 April 1942)

Frank Gohlke uses juxtapositon in his images like a master of the  subject. Most of his images are in black and white which stresses the emotions behind them, which are mainly of a distant sense of nostalgia. 

This is a photograph of what remains of a vast wood in America after a forest fire. This image creates a deep sorrow when considered thuroughly. Due to the grand scale of this tradgedy it is inevitable that animals would have died and their homes destroyed. 

I would like to use Frank Gohlke's style in my exam as he uses juxtaposition to inspire emotions in the viewer that could have been overlooked if the shot was taken by another photographer.

Henri Cartier-Bresson:(August 22,1908 -August 3,2004)

Henri Cartier-Bresson was best known for his works toward the decisive moment, capturing shots that vanish within seconds after he took them. His skills were undeniable and he was capable of seeing the world like very few do, and sharing his view world.  

This is the view of a woman ascending the stairs out of a subway, and the pidgens are flying out of their path. There's a deep symbolism behind this image as nature has to move as human storm through, leaving chaos in their wake. 

Evaluating my options:

I don't think I will be using his style in my work as he uses a lot of black and white photography and different tones in his work that I don't think I 'd be able to replicate. 

I'm considering using juxtaposition for my exam as I like the contrast that the images have and the way this makes the viewer feel.