[Read more…]“Surrealism is not a style but a state of mind. It aims to subvert reality.”
Tate Modern, describing the Surrealism Beyond Boarders Exhibition, February 2022.
Surrealist Photography
Roland Barthes’ Camera Lucida
Roland Barthes (1915-1980) was a French philosopher and literary theorist, he was not a photographer. This book deals with the question: what is a photograph? from that perspective.
Barthes describes the essence of photography as distinct from both art and history.
Art, he contests, is the result of a creative process undertaken by an artist; whereas a photograph is primarily the preservation of “something that was”.
History is a perspective on past events; always open to challenge and contradiction. A photograph, by contrast, is undeniably “something that was”, and it is up to the viewer to infer meaning. A meaning which, as I show below, may change from person to person or evolve over time.
The photographer, and the subject, if it is a person aware of being photographed, can suggest an implied meaning. However, without knowledge of this intent, the viewer may see the image differently, and derive a meaning entirely personal to them.
Tim Flack’s fine book on horse photography, ‘Equus’, ends with this quote from Barthes’ book: “Ultimately a photograph looks like anyone except the person it represents.”
[Read more…]LAB Colour
Photoshop’s route to more vibrant colours via an alternative colour space. This post looks at the Photoshop LAB colour space:
- how it mirrors the biology of human vision at a deeper level than the RGB of the retina’s cones
- how it can be effectively manipulated.
Dynamic Abstraction through Multiple-Exposure
Composition – Thoughts at 2,000 Hours
Further Musings on Composition
Thoughts at 2,000 Hours
My aim with this post is to dig a little deeper into the area of composition. My first post on this subject: “Composition – Early Thoughts” recognized that this was an area of potential for growth, i.e., weakness, for me and laid out the basics of what I knew, pretty much at the start of my 10,000 hour project. In the 16 months since that post, and 2,000 hours of deliberate practice later, I understand a little more about both the psychology that underpins best photographic practice and the practical application of this knowledge.
As photographers we strive to create an image that:
- Piques and maintains the viewer’s interest
- Guides the viewer around the image concentrating on the key subject
- Conveys the desired story or emotion
- Achieves the above in the simplest, most efficient manner.
Whilst my first post covered the rules of composition, I tend these days to think in terms of pictorial elements and how their placement contributes or otherwise towards a successful image.
I am always delighted to receive feedback, and feedback is essential for this project as a whole. So, if you have any comments, ideas or suggestions, please post them below.
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