I trust you egged some houses over the weekend like the rowdy students I know you are 🙂 The highlights for the #juxtschoolhouse tag have gotten more and more fantastic. So much so we are moving the hughlights to their own post on the weekend. I can’t wait for you to see what they have come up with this time!
This week I am going to give you an actual assignment! So get out your assignment books. Your assignment is a photographic essay. Now before you totally panic you can make this as easy or as hard as you want. And you already do this all the time, you just didn’t realize it. First, lets define photographic essay, shall we?
A photographic essay is a grouping of at least 5 photos that details an event, a person, or an idea. It can be intended to evoke emotion or range of emotions. It can be purely photographic, can contain captions, or an entire story to accompany the photos. Have you seen the life of Chloe? It’s written by my dear Ale and is a great example of photos with stories. Or you can check out BP’s story on the lucha libresfor a more autobiographical essay. Another one of our Juxters, Craig, creates whimsical and dark narratives around his images.
There are two types of essays- the thematic and the narrative. A narrative essay tells a story through a sequence of events. A narritive can chronical a specific event like a birth or a festival. A thematic essay is centered around one main theme and all the images pertain to that specific theme. Think of your shots as paragrpahs in a story. What photo is strongest? Which photo evokes the most emotion? What are your “supporting” photos that fill out your essay? What idea do you want the viewer to walk away with?
Once you have settled on a type of essay it is important to have a few key components to round out your essay.
Strong images
A clear theme or story line
Variety of perspectives within the choosen photos
So I set out to do this as a challenge to myself. I began brain storming a topic that I could shoot easily. My 8 month old doesn’t let me get out much to shoot so I had to make it count when I got to go. I found that a broad topic like “small towns” wasn’t challenging enough. So I kept whittling away at my idea. Recently, I visited a town called Winchester to shoot the downtown area. It’s a small central KY town and while I was walking around I was amazed at how dilapidated it was. All of the buildings seem to have been built around the same time and only a few have been updated. Many of the buildings felt like tenements with boarded up windows in one place and curtains hanging in another. The shops varied from fancy coffee shops and nice hardware stores to empty facades and junk shops. Of all the buildings in the 5 block radius only the courthouse looked new. The first time I shot there I did it in broad strokes to get a better feel for the area. The second time I went back I shot with a more focused intent. My essay is by no means finished but I will share a few shots here so you can get a visual on what I saw. Through my trip to Winchester and my love for the forgotten, I hit upon a topic that spoke to me. Beauty in decay. And more specifically, decay in the small towns that surround me. My essay has turned into a labor of love.
I have a deep love for Kentucky and all it’s small nooks and crannies.
So back to your essay. Start with an idea. It doesn’t have to be fancy, it can simply be shots from your day or all the shoes of your coworkers. Or you can create photographs or art around an emotion whether that’s joy or loneliness. Start broad and work your way down to a topic that suits you. The only requirement is that your essay communicates an idea or story.Because this is a large assignment I’m giving you until the first of January to finish. Plenty of time to pick a style of essay, choose a topic, and get to shooting. I am excited to see how you challenge yourself with this essay.
Gathering Our Thoughts with Collective Comprehension by Anna C.
What I love about Juxt is our ability not only to create visual images but then marry our images with stories, lessons, or emotions.
We bare our hearts daily to anyone willing to take a few moments to sit down with us. We shoot and we write, we share and we try to put into words the emotion that sits behind the lens. And I can tell you, as the emotional trainwreck that is me, it isn’t always easy to find that one elusive phrase that fits exactly. I write and shoot to loosen the knots, to shake free from the tension bound between my shoulders. What I am finding more and more is that even if I didn’t know it when I shot that building, barn, or forgotten item they all demostrate my state of being. A shot may be good composotionally but the narrative that accompanies it is what makes it great.
Enter Collective Comprehension @collectivecomprehension stage left. Collective Comprehension is the marriage of art and words that I mentioned earlier. A work is posted, choosen from the #collectivecomprehension gallery, and the all of IG is invited to write a caption. This caption can take any form, whether it be a story, a poem, or just a single thought. This growing community is bursting at the seams with creativity.
The brains behind the Collective Comprehension are Renee Mair (@this_cool_chick) and Danielle Maragos (@tickledpink509). When asked how CC got started Danielle explained,
Collective Comprehension was born by an idea and the combining of two creative souls, I handle daily postings that both Renee and I agree on, as well as our tumblr page which we just started forming our Wednesday Writers Q&A to get to know our writers better. Both Renee and I are kindred spirits and by uniting we’ve made this bigger than we ever imagined. CC is all about self expression and interpretation it’s lovely to see our loyal followers and their creative minds. There’s not a day that goes by that I’m not in awe of the writing that goes on!! I will say that not only is Renee my partner but a true friend, we mesh well which has made the success of CC so positive. I’m just happy to be apart of something so extraordinary!!
Renee’s personal stream is a cacophony of color and form with a air of the fantastic. Renee describes her work as images that are shocking, extremely colorful sometimes sexy but hopefully – always thought provoking. Mixed throughout my work are cartoon pop art and vibrant images with a message.
Danielle is a self described painter and enjoys the freedom of creativity that mobile art affords her. Outside of Instagram I’m a avid painter and a huge fan of abstract painting, I’m no pro total armature but editing on IG has given me a outlet to express my love of abstract through technology. I also play the violin and I’m a huge fan of many French composers!
I asked the ladies about the process of Collective Comprehension and they explained the nuts and bolts to me.
One of us selects a pic from the #collectivecomprehension tag and then we post it (a new one daily). We then simply invite whoever is inspired to write anything that the image provokes in the comments section. We try to use all different types of images. We give one highlight and 3 honorable mentions daily.
I read through some of the comments and the creativity astounded me.
Edit by @vintagesoul81
Her screams teared at the glass. She writhed and scratched like a cat trapped in a hot house. It held. Her outburst literally scorched her wing tips. She slumped over, dejected, trapped to avoid filament. She focused on forming a storm of sand, swirling it into a fist. Somewhere outside a women cursed all jinns as an unexpected gust threatened to steal her scarf- too weak by@dezadie
Edit by @level80
Red soles/Empty souls/Fiercely walking on the edge of life/Both day and night to be precise/”Perfection” the dream destination/Nevermind my imperfections revealed in my reflections/a desperate need to be in season/Trust me I have many reasons/Vanity, popularity, sanity?/Since it’s up to me to define reality/I asked myself finally/Do I fail to save my sanity?/Or walk on for vanity insanity. By @thebeautyofwriting
The above posts are just a small taste of the beauty of Collective Comprehension. Artists coming together to share photographs and thoughts. If you would like to join in the experience please feel free to join in-the comments section is always open.
Below you will find more from the #collectivecomprehension gallery:
Class Review.(Click to see all of the School House lessons)
Well class we have reached the end of the elements of design. I know at times they seem rote but they are integral to solid composition. Last time we finished talking about texture and what it lends to our photos. Here are some examples from our #juxtschoolhouse tag.
Photo by @senor_p
I adore the vivid peeling colors against the rusty padlock in the above photo. I want to run my fingers across the rust stains. You really get the feeling of age and use with
Photo by David @painterdave
How fantastic is the bark intertwined with the fence? There is so much to love about this photo by @painterdave.
So this week we journey on through the elements to perspective.
Perspective in a photograph tells the eye about the depth of the scene. How the photographer uses the elements within the photo will either give the viewer some insight or will allow the depth and scale to remian a mystery. These markers help us decide what we are looking at and from what depth. Shooting with an iPhone to show depth can sometimes be tricky becuase of the lack of aperatures. In effect, it can flatten or distort the space between you and the background.
There are three basic points of view: birds eye, worms eye and at eye level. All of these views have to do with our horizon line and where we are in relation to it.
We have all seen the shots of sky scrapers where the angle is straight up the side of the building. This exaggerates an already steep rise. It gives the viewer a sense of smallness when gazing up at a tall building. This is worm’s eye view. This view encompasses anything below eye level or from an inferior position. It is up to the shooter how far beneath eye level they want to shoot. This view doesn’t always work and depends solely on the subject but it can make a more dynamic composition when done correctly. Don’t be afraid to get low to the ground and change your angle from time to time.
Bird’s eye view is anything above eye level and, and like worm’s eye view, the angle is left to the shooter to play with. Just because it is called bird’s eye view doesn’t mean you have to take ariel photos it just means get a little bit higher than normal.
Changing your perspective can bring new flavor to your work. Try it out see if a new perspective works for you.
There are a few different ways to clue your viewer in to how large the space is in your photos. One easy way is showing size. We learn at an early age that when something is further away it looks smaller. For instance, if you place two people in a hallway one at the end and one close to you the one farther away will seem smaller eventhough their size is similar.
The sharpness of an object’s edges can also denote depth. Subjects in the foreground will be sharper than subjects in the background. Another option is to overlap objects within your compostion. This will further exaggerate your depth. Placing something in the immediate foreground forces the eye to take it in before looking beyond to the rest of the space. You can also utilize texture to help with communicating depth. The texture closest to the lens will be the most pronounced while the texture as it goes back into the photo will lose detail.
That’s a wrap! We can put the Elements of Design to bed. Although, I’m pretty sure they will come back to visit from time to time.
Class Review.(Click to see all of the School House lessons)
Hey class last time we chatted about texture. Which is one of my favorite things to photograph. I’ve been known to cry over wood grain although keep that between us okay? I’m a sap. (Get it?! A sap? Hahaha) *ahem* So, last week we talked about using texture to deepen your composition and we will continue in that same vein this week. Here is a highlight from a classmate, @kiwinan Joy, demonstrating texture. I am also more than slightly in love with the lines.
Today we will be covering contrast, curves, and pattern in texture photography. Don’t let the title “texture photography” scare you, it’s more about being aware of what your subject has to offer.
Contrast is a huge component to any photo and can speak to tone or light. Within texture photography we will be taking both into account. There are times the subject of the photo has competing textures tonally and one will highlight the other. Other times the background can highlight the subject. Below the soft texture of the grass deepens the impact of the hard rusted metal while they are also complementary colors. The textures of the background and subject coupled with the tonal values helps to communicate the heavy rusted metal to the viewer.
The second area we are going to chat about it curves within our photos. When I say curves what I mean is lines or the inference of lines. Now we know already from an earlier school house that lines can lead the eye. Curves have the same ability the only difference is that these curves have to do with the texture of your subject.
The last facet to texture we are going to talk about it pattern. Pattern is pleasing to the eye and also can denote symmetry. Pattern also creates rhythm within your composition. Rhythm creates movement and allows the eye to move through the photo.
Exploring Life’s Fragility it Egmont van Dyck by Anna C
Anna’s Introduction
I first came across Egmont van Dyck a few months ago when Jen and I first started the #stilllifelounge. The image he submitted was not only thoughtful, but a true still life utilizing light and subject matter. During the interview process, I found Egmont to be thoughtful, kind, and creative. That is a hat trick in my book. I cannot begin to tell you how impressed I am with Egmont, it is not often you stumble upon such a refined individual.
A: Anna E: Egmont
A: What does your life look like away from the computer?
E: One might say the MacBook Pro laptop, iPad 1 are tethered to me like an umbilical cord, just as much as the iPhone 4S. However there are times, though not enough, when I simple place one on top of the other, then walk away and into the garden, but most likely a set of mundane household chores require my attention. No one will do your laundry, make the bed or make dinner, unless you do it yourself and so I have developed a passion for cooking and especially baking.
I do try to balance responsibility to the family with my creativity urges, but even here the challenge for me, as I have varied interests. Weeks or months may go without taking any photographs because the creative energies flow in a different direction, for I also paint large scale multi-medium sized abstracts. These can take weeks to several months to complete and in some cases 1-2 years. Yet as of last November I have not painted and the iPhone is in large part responsible.
I have not worked since 2003 due to numerous health issues that continue to effect my daily activities and since I am now staying home more, interest in photography waned. It was not until my son presented me with a new iPhone 4S for Christmas, which ignited my interested in photography a couple of months later. Because I was so taken with what the iPhone 4S is capable of, I secured a dot com name and started constructing The iPhone Arts (A) website, which went public at the end of April.
A: How does your life influence your work
E: There were a few pivotal moments in which life had a direct influence in what I was creating. At first it was just taking pictures of abandoned houses in Hercules, California, seven years ago. Within weeks, the project revealed itself to be the unveiling of a deep family secrete, made public.
From over 400 images, I had selected only ten photographs which reflected my story of having been abused mentally, physically and sexual by my mother.
In 2011 the original Black & White series was revisited, taking the original digital files, reworking them in Photoshop and this time decided they were more powerful in color.
The ‘Family Secrets Revisited’ was posted to The Artist Within Us website in August 2011, with a new introduction and epilogue.
Within a couple of months after the completing the first version ‘Family Secrets’, I underwent open heart triple by-pass surgery. During the months of recovery and physical therapy, I would walk the street of Berkeley, where I discovered the beauty of tattered pieces of paper remains on telephone poles.
There are certain streets where telephone poles are used as advertisement billboards, by having flyers stapled to them. Over time, layers of paper fragments and thousands of staples later, these are nicely conditioned by the elements of weather, a nice layer of abstract patterns developed, to which I was deeply attracted to as a source of inspiration.
I have now been photographing these telephone poles for seven years, first with a 5 MB fixed lens Sony digital camera, then using a Nikon D70 and finally in 2010, I began capturing my images with the Nikon in HDR. As the body of worked developed, I was also very curious how I could transform what I was so intensely photographing into large abstract paintings.
A solution was finally found when I created ‘White in White’ a 36 x 48 inch multi-medium painting in 2011.
Though I felt by now I had exhausted the subject matter which I called ‘Typography Graveyard,’ but then I started using my iPhone whenever I needed to visit any of my doctors, I would take long walks after the appointment in order to capture more images, using either Hipstamatic with different film and lens combinations or just straight photography using 6×6.
A: Tell me about your website and how you are using it to give more exposure to mobile photography?
E: Apart from establishing The iPhone Arts website, promoting the hashtag #the_iphone_arts on Instagram, which features other iPhoneographers through my ‘Weekly Showcase’ and ‘Curator’s Choice,’ I am still in the process to create three small collections of high quality iPhone captured.
A series of three different styles of fine art photography have been in the works whenever time and opportunity permit. Each of the series will be different from the other, but reflect my personal passion and love. They are ‘Abstract Realism,’ a description I coined in 2008, when I tried to describe what ’Typography Graveyard’ is. The other series reflects what I excelled in those years as an advertising and editorial photographer, which was creating still-life table top sets.
Lastly, a love for documentary/journalism style photography, which dates back to when I was 14 and first began taking pictures with a plastic Brownie 120 film camera.
So when I visited San Francisco’s Chinatown last Easter of this year and used my iPhone, was delighted by the results. Since than I have taken several trips to Chinatown, trying to capture the faces of the Chinese people and their environment. Unfortunately a few weeks ago, due to a human error I lost about 900 images which had not been backed up and recovery was not possible, setting back this project by 6-8 months from completion.
A: Do you have a favorite image? If so which one and why?
E: There is one, ‘The arrival of winter as autumn passes’ but it was not taken with an iPhone. It was taken a few days after my heart attack, three weeks before the open heart surgery and reflects death not being far away. But since we are talking about mobile photography, there are two and they are different as night and day.
Yesterday I lit a candle to mark the fourth birthday in my second life, commemorating the day I was to have passed only to cheat death, when doctors performed a triple-by-pass open-heart surgery. The residual consequences have been mixed and though I am grateful to be alive, the side effects of the surgery have become an almost daily battle. Especially the bouts with depression have become more numerous these last one and half years, lasting longer and becoming more sever, that I have even begun to question if the quality of life gained has been worth this daily struggle. – taken fromLife’s Fragility
Personally I believe it takes one thousand exposures before you have the one perfect image. Though I have reached 9000 exposures with the iPhone, only a handful of photographs I feel will stand the test of time.
A Squirrels Bounty
During a clean up of the backyard, I discovered numerous walnuts a squirrels had hidden away among the fallen Sequoia needles that covered the ground underneath the tall coastal redwood tree, including a several empty half shells. I immediately feel in love with their texture, setting each new discovery aside as my own little treasure.
A few day later I set up a table next to a window for the expressed purpose of photographing the squirrels bounty. First I tried using a few old books as a surface, but it just did not look right. Instead I pulled from storage roof shingles I had collected from an abandoned house for the sole purpose of reusing them in a painting or as a prop. Because I elected not to have any direct light onto the table-top set, I used fill cards to help bounce back any light and soften the shadows. After about 30 plus exposures with the iPhone 4S, capturing various different angles and approaches, I felt I had what I wanted.
While studying the images I had just taken, the light from the window began to strike the set. There was a warm breeze also blowing, ruffling the leaves in the tree just outside the window, ever changing the light on the walnuts.
I quickly seized the moment and started all over, taking another dozen and a half or so exposures. The breeze kept changing the appearance of the highlights and shadows on the walnuts. I went from shooting B/W to color and back again, using Hipstamatic John S lens with Claunch 72 Monochrome, Kodot X-Grizzled and Salvador DreamCanvas film cartridges. After editing all the images I selected the Hipstamatic, Kodot X-Grizzled color version converted to B/W.
Though it was a planned image, a Muse intervened on my behalf, showing me another way and with her help, I achieved a better photograph. It is life’s unexpected moments that can take a good image and make and make it memorable and even exceptional.
Since I did mention there were two favorite photographs, I feel it will emerge from the Chinatown series, but not having stood the test of time, I consider being only infatuated with the image.
Here is the duo-toned version which is the version that is my favorite.
This is the Seattle acapella group, A Moment in Time. Their music stopped me in my tracks. I write to you all about my bromance with my BFAM. These guys remind me of him. The videos are of this group. My video skills are no good but I wanted ya’ll to hear the soul and spirit of these guys. Hopefully it’ll touch you as it did in this moment in time.
I recently had the opportunity to work on a promo video for the DPReview Connect Contest and talked about the connection that mobile photography/arts is more in tuned to not just the art aspects (which I believe is fundamental) but also about the relationship building that happens on the social networks that are unparallel to anything else that has happened globally.
I remember my world was based on relationships and interactions. It really was about the vicinity. It was always an experience to travel across the Puget Sound to get to Seattle when I was younger. It was exciting to think about meeting people. Those were limited though. The vicinity still kept any relationships to grow. Don’t get me wrong, the telephone was cool but it wasn’t what it was now.
But the mobile…shit the mobile has made it a totally different story.
I have the opportunity to meet and interact with people on a daily basis. I get to see their world on a daily basis. I get to hear their stories on a daily basis.
This discussion is left out of a lot of the conversations I see on any site about mobile photography / mobile arts/ iphoneography / any type of mobile anything. AND when I do, it’s about analytics, its about likes, its about follows. This is where I am coming from for this post.
I have made dear friends, brothers and sisters, all virtual from these social networks. I met these artists, gain mutual respect for them, discussed surface stories, dug into deeper life stories, hear the tragedies and comedies that they encounter daily, weekly, so on and so forth. I get to view the art that they share with the world to communicate these tragedies and comedies. It’s a crazy world.
For many of you who interact with me on any of these networks, you know about my BFAM. BFAM stands for Brother From Another Mother. Before I go into more detail about this BFAM of mine, I’d be remissed to not mention the other folks who I have created nicknames for – mostly for my sanity – DB, Fam, BWF, LILB, Sista M…there’s so many…but it all started from BFAM.
BFAM and I connected on many avenues. Again it was all visual based right?
“Great shot my friend”
“Nice caption with that Brad”
“Brilliant lyrics on that shot, Ale”
This all grew from the visual to then the audible. We started the #LifeToMusic tag and IG Band with many other people who loved the idea of music captions to our photographs. We challenged each other on our art and I’ve always been proud when Ale was able to tell me my work is progressing.
Our first Life To Music challenge contest was The Beatles. A lot of you all didn’t know but I started this contest not just to bring the community together, but Ale was going through hard times and I wanted for him to log onto IG and see the beauty of some of the art that people would put together under LTM. That he as the “Axl Rose” and I as the “Slash”, was able to bring together a community of like-minded folks within a larger community of like-minded folks under not just visual but sound.
We were going to put each other “On the Couch” and present each other to all of you, only as BFAMs can.
I wanted to introduce you all to the man who many of us know already. He doesn’t need any introduction really.
BFAM.
Alessio Castaldo. Principle of the Minimals. Juxter. Life To Music DJ. AXL.
BP: Alessio Castaldo. Photographer. Lover of Music. Lover of life. Storyteller. Lover. Father. What are some of the things you feel people out in the virtual world would really want to know about Ale?
Ale: Personally I think I am the one in need of listening to others stories, not many others are interested in mine. I don’t think it would matter even with all the words I’ve used are boxes full of memories and images and perfumes to link to stories of my forty years of life. Maybe I am into any of that words, but I’m not specifically one of those. One of the stories of my life is just that, the being everything and nothing at the same time. Maybe that’s why I always was “the strange guy”, some times dark and romantic, other times the bright and contagious smiley kind of guy.
…Til we’re talking about it, not stepping around it
Maybe I don’t want to take advice from fools
I’ll just figure everything is cool
Until I hear it from you… (Gin Blossoms, TIL I HEAR IT FROM YOU)
Storyteller I think is the best definition I could possibly ask for my epitaph, like “sometimes, in his bright days, he was able to listen and to tell some good stories about Life…”
BP: In you’re art, you capture the tender side of life. A lot of things that many street photographers may miss when they shoot are the people. By this I mean, people are subjects or a part of the composition, yet in your work, the people are the composition. What do you see when you walk the streets? What captures your eye?
Ale: The tender side of life might be the perfect novel I am trying to write and the best definition possible for my curiosity over people. I am probably not a streetphotographer, or not only one. I am nothing more than a silent eye looking at people, the way they move the expressions on their faces, the poses and the expressiveness are my fav keys to profile persons. Yes, I am a profiler.
Do you remember when we talked about trying to get closer and closer? You seemed to be so attracted by people’s faces. Their big smiles or the mad and angry facial expressions around your world of characters. We were both tryin to catch a singular act of an extended play, and our characters were just entering the stage.
BP: You helped me greatly in the continuing development of my work. Recently our brother from The Minimals asked about our work when you and I connected. We were really heavy in color and yet I feel that color or not, we still captured the same photograph, whether highley edited or not, stripped down it was still the same photograph. What are the top 5 tips for up and coming photographers and fans of your work?
Ale: Exactly BFAM, the same desire to tell a story!
In colors or in black and white, with one or two apps, the touch remains the same. We are tryin to tell a story. Maybe many times we don’t even get close to that, maybe we lose on quality, maybe we can’t resist the multiple boosts we receive day by day. I mean the music, the social, the games and the fun might bring us from here to there sometimes. But i know that when we reach the score, it’s all about the story told. No “cool” or “you rock” count when we break the surface and reach the core of the story behind the photo.
No frills, less edits…
My tips are run away from the scientists, the big rockstars are so often full of themselves they are not worth your time. Interact with the kind souls, often a pic tells a lot about its author. Watch photography, eat photography, dream photography. look at books made of photography. Search for photography on the Web, look at all kinds of it, don’t get stuck on one “style”, there are many possibilities you need to explore and no fear in doin it. If you stop at one flavor, you will miss the best from life.
So now you know. My BFAM is the coolest ain’t he.
There are many of us out there in the world who love Ale. This post would contain thousands and thousands of names of people who have been touched by Alessio Castaldo. His art, his passion, his Italian romantic personality.
If you feel the same way, leave him a comment. Send him an email. Message him on Kik. Hit him up on all the dang social networks he is on and balancing.
Last week we started talking about the elements of design with light. We have already discussed lines thoroughly so we are half way there! Here are a couple of examples from our #juxtschoolhouse tag that are fantastic.
“GO BIG” was shot in Half Moon Bay, CA. I sat on the edge Hwy 1 watching and taking pictures of a group of surfers fighting for a small set of waves for about 30 minutes when this one lone huge wave came rolling in on the scene. I immediately poised my lens as the surfer paddled into the wave. Popping up to his feet, he instantly switched back into the break and caught air off the monster as my camera lens clicked shut. -Brent, @sleekmaus
August 15: Everything looks better when you’re on vacation. I had been playing around with Foxy and Pistil (my Hipstacombo-of-the-moment) a lot this week on the Big Island of Hawai’i—it seemed to make the sand and water quietly glow. That being said, this photograph of my son’s gothic sand fortress required little editing after processing in Hipstamatic. (Nine times out of ten, I’ll remove the frame off of a Hipstamatic image; I did that here.) And while I can’t give you specific levels of each editing tool that I used in Snapseed, I CAN tell you that this is my go-to app for most post-process adjustments. Undoubtedly, I added a tiny bit of drama and contrast in this image, as well as brightened up the blue where my son is guarding the castle just offshore.. – Suzanne, @_suzanne_
This week we are going back to kindergarten talking about shapes. (If your like me, your hoping for a snack and nap time too!) Basic drawing 101 tells us that everything can be broken down into a series of shapes, and photographs are no different. What I want to call your attention to though is that the entire picture plane comes into play not just the objects.
Offset Spiral
You can use your entire photo to echo shapes and create a more dynamic composition using shapes to create a composition. Look at your key elements. Do these elements create a triangle or square? It’s sort of like a game of connect the dots. You have three objects in your photo, arrange them or move until they create a triangle. The entire picture plane can also be divided into two equal triangles like we talked about with lines. Leading lines often divide picture planes into smaller sets of triangles.
The most obvious way to find or shoot rectangles is by using the horizon line. Off setting the horizon line can have an immediate effect on your composition. It is then divided into two unequal rectangles. You can also echo the unequal rectangles by photographing another smaller rectangular object.
Overall, using repeative shapes within your composition can make for a pleasing photo. There are of course many things to take into account while shooting, and shapes are only one thing to consider.
I write today broken hearted. Over the past few weeks I have tried to sit down and write. Purge myself of the heartache, share it, own it, but have ended up wearing it like a shroud. I have pulled the sadness down over my eyes, hoping to blot out my heart that threatens to pull apart at the seams. So many of those that I love are broken in body or spirit or have left me altogether. I’ve written of onions and storms, chains and bridges but I can’t seem to find the words for this raw place deep in me. I have craved a cathartic moment to move me out of this position of writhing. An idea, something to focus on, to roll over in my mind and stroke to life with words. The need to forget my heart and the pain that builds daily has me trapped like a bird beating its wings against a cage. I’ve tried to lock it down, push it away. I know rationally that because I love I also hurt, that the openness of truly caring can also bring deep despair. But I find pain leaves me in a place that doesn’t obey rationality.
I had the honor of sitting beside life long friends in a hospice ward while their mother lay dying. I cannot begin to tell you of the sweet moments laced with such profound sadness that passed between us. There are no words to encapsulate this woman’s life and the love she shared with her family and friends. I can tell you that as soon as the door closed it opened again bringing more people to honor the woman she was in life. There was no ebb in the tide of people that came, no pause in the outpouring of love on her daughters who stood bravely beside their mother’s bed. It is a different kind of courageous that walks on in the face of loss.
I have pulled at these chains that bind my heart and weigh me down. But there is no neat little box to put raw emotion in, there are no words to describe the brokenness of sickness and loss. The heartbreak just is and we must revel in it to be able to walk through it. That is the only truth my grief has brought.
So in hopes to continue to learn more about photography and the art of it, I’ve decided to study.
We, at Juxt, have interviewed a lot of amazing mobile photographers and artists over the last 9 months. A lot of these folks have inspired many of us in the style that we shoot or with the subject matter we choose. I have many who inspire me. Everyone has mention of their favorite photographers. Some folks have the background from school and can pinpoint who inspires them and what they look for when they shoot and take photos. I need to study. So I started in the beginning of the summer on this search for my connection outside of any of the social networks and outside of the big websites that show great photography.
I’ve spent more time away from Instagram and the other social networks including limiting how much I post and return comments. If you’re reading this then now you know why I’ve been real bad about getting back to you. I just felt that some of the social network platforms dictate what gets on their popular page or who’s on their suggested user list. I’ve been showcasing the shots from folks who I’ve seen on IG when I do go through and highlighting them every Sunday. That has been enriching because I get to see artist work that I may or may not get to see because of the way the networks are set up.
I thought to myself, “Self – outside of these folks, where else have you reached to find some inspiration?”
Again, I needed to research.
How can I narrow down my self-imposed lessons?
The world of photography is so immense.
I decided to spend some time with photographs that I can access by way of the internet, or MOHAI, or the local libraries. I mean why not. When I was in school I remember having to ask the librarian to help me break out the micro-fiche reader to look up old articles and old photos. Why not use some of my time and learn the craft that I am so passionate about right now. Also during all my down time (of which I don’t have – thank goodness I have a mobile smart phone huh) I would hit up the major news hubs – NY Times, Seattle Times, LA Times etc to see what their photographers shoot for.
How do I narrow it down?
Well I don’t and can’t. Plain and simple. I can handle only perusing so much and the truth – I have to be in that mood to look through. I’ll bookmark and jot down names and titles of photos when I come across them. I’d write down the reason why they got me and revisit. This process is definitely on-going.
So in doing so, let me set the stage for you:
How Much Things Cost Back Then
Average Cost of new house $32,500.00
Average Income per year $12,900.00
Average Monthly Rent $175.00
Cost of a gallon of Gas 40 cents
AMC Javelin car $2,900.00
A Dozen Eggs 45 cents
Some Historical Events That Year
The first handheld cellular phone call is made by Martin Cooper in NYC,
Ferdinand Marcos declares that he is “The President for Life” in the Philippines,
Elvis Presly performs on live TV from Hawaii,
Bruce Lee dies,
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries announce they will restrict flow of crude oil to countries supporting Israel,
Roe v Wade makes abortion a US constitutional right,
The Secretariat wins the Kentucky Derby,
US Troops are withdrawn from Vietnam and US involvement ends,
World Trade Center officially opens in NYC,
Miami Dolphins are the Superbowl Worlds Champ,
Watergate hearings begin and Nixon eventually impeached,
American Indian Movement siezes Wounded Knee in South Dakota,
The Sears Tower opens in Chicago and becomes the tallest building in the world,
The Exorcist and American Graffiti is out in theaters,
AND
1973 was the year I was born (along with Mario Lopez, Tyra Banks, and Kate Beckinsale). =)
So here are some photos that I found taken that year. I’ve found hundreds actually on the verge of finding thousands. These are the ones that I think influence my eye as well as subject matter in my work THUS far. There’s tons more I’d like to show. If I can make sure to find the photographer and give them credit, I will show them in future posts. I won’t show the photo if I don’t know who took it and can’t give credit.
I love these images because they are the ones I feel I can relate to.
What inspires you?
Interested in joining this project?
Research the year you were born. Find those images. Email me and let’s see what your born year in photography looked like and how it may have influenced you. If I get enough interest, then I’ll post up those photos with why they are those individual artists influences.
I hope you had a good couple weeks shooting negative space and learning the relationship between your subject and the area around it. Negative space can be really fun to shoot-if it’s not fun it’s not worth doing.
So this week we are going to embark upon a trek through the elements of design. We are only going to talk about a couple today. Wouldn’t want to bore you, now would I? The elements we are going to chat about over the next few weeks are light, lines, texture, shapes, and perspective. We have already spoken about lines but we will breifly come back to them just as a reminder.
So which one to choose for today?
I think light. If you know me you know I am a sucker for dramtic light. I really don’t think there is any thing more fabulous as inky blacks contrasting against color. Sigh. It’s just so good.
Without light (and I think this probably goes without saying) we couldn’t have lines and shapes to photograph. Depending on when you shoot the light will create different hues of color. Depending on what type of contrast or mood you want to communicate to the viewer will be dependant on the light. Granted, you can change all of this post procesing but it is wise to consider all of this before hand.
Speaking of contrast, light also creates contrast within a compostion. You can make it as dramtatic as you want but be careful to not detract from the subject. Contrast in colors can create a very dramatic compostion.
I am the kind of girl that points and shoots, followed up by a minimal edit. Because of that I am comstantly amazed at what artists can do with an iPhone. Whatever you want to call it- digital collage, iphone art, mixed media, or wicked awesomeness- is up to you and no matter what you call it the patience and talent it takes to pull it off is amazing. So needless to say when I ran across Beth’s feed I was first blown away, then floored that she used her kiddos as models many times. That’s what I call creative parenting 😉 Her images contain mystery, whimsy, and surreal elements. I ask you does it get better than this?
A: Anna B: Beth
A:Tell me how being a mom has changed your perspective in art.
B: Well to start with, I am more focused on art practices that require a lot more patience and persistence. For example, I do a lot of drawing that requires an enormous amount of detail and pattern work that can be quite pain stacking at times.Before becoming a mom I would have never foreseen that my art would have taken this path. And the same goes for my photography. The amount of time I spend editing on a tiny little iphone screen is pretty crazy. What changed it? I am not quite sure, but I do know that motherhood changed me as a person and challenged my creativity making me moredetermined to never lose my art practice. For once in my life, I have not needed to search far and wide for a subject matter.Being a mother has really allowed me to tune into myself and re appreciate beauty around me, especially in the simple things. I love using my children as a subject matter and often feel like magic has appeared all over again, as theirimagination is something I wish I still had. So to be able to observe and photograph all these elements on a daily basis without them even knowing about, for me is definitely inspirational.
A: what drives you to create?
B: Creativity is something that has always been in my life since a very young age. I am driven daily to create art, whether it is a painting, a drawing or photography. However, being a mother and witnessing the beauty of children has really triggered my imagination at this stage in my life. I am so busy running around in the day that having my iphone on me at all times allows me to take so many photos easily and spontaneously, capturing pure and genuine moments.
Since I bought my first iphone 6 months ago, I immediately downloaded the Hipstamatic App as I had seen a few images from friends that were using it. From here it was a matter of finding other apps that then allowed me to develop techniques to further edit my images.
I really like to mix up my edits a bit, as I couldn’t think of any worse than be bound to one particular style. My creativity is fuelled by also exposing myself to constant inspiration, whether it is in art galleries, beautiful art books, magazines, researching artists via the internet and of late discovering the world of talent in mobile photography. I think that mobile photography has played a really big role in my creativity over the past 6 months. Its almost like opening a new page to your favourite art book everyday only to discover more and more inspiration and amazing talent.
A: What’s your biggest influence?
B: Right now the biggest influence for my current work is mobile photography without a doubt. I am constantly discovering amazing photography and art on a daily basis. Of course I still find great inspiration with my favourite artists such as Bruno Leti, Godwin Bradbeer, Doug Wright, Matthew Jonhston, and Paul Klee.
As for my influence in Photography outside the Mobile photography world, I would have to say that Bill Henson is my main and biggest influence. However, more recently Christopher Relanders work was suggested by @medes101 who does of a lot of breathtaking and quality double exposure photographs, of which I have also been experimenting with.
As far as influences with mobile photographers on IG I absolutely love @jumpstick, @earlybirdninja, @finn, @janske, @_malcome, @saraswebb, and @videotap3….. the list is endless really.
A: Tell me about you outside our pocket world..
B: I live in Australia, in a small town called Castlemaine. I am in my early 30’s with four children aged six and under. Life for me is quite crazy. I am constantly on the move, buttering sandwiches, changing nappies, singing lullaby’s, and in moments of peace I am able to only then concentrate on my iphone photography and editing. This is why it works so well for me, as it’s always accessible. I have developed quite a passion with the art of mobile photography and love IG’s potential to showcase my development with the world. I feel I am connected.
I studied a Fine Arts Painting Degree at University and later went back to University to complete a Diploma in Interior Design and then Teaching. But it was during my Fine Arts Degree that I was tutored by prominent Australian Photographer Dena Lester and other Australian artists. Photography for me is something that I have always been into. However before I got hold of my iphone, I usually used my very basic but wonderful Pentax K1000. I grew up with my own darkroom attached to my home, and pretty much spent my entire teenage and early to mid 20’s in there. My previous photographic work was always of very large scale sometimes taking up a whole wall. I found a great release in expressing myself when I could be encompassed in my development techniques. So to edit and develop my photos on such a tiny mobile screen fascinates me and defiantly comes as a challenge, of which of course I love.
A: What are your thoughts on the longevity of digital art?
B: I believe that mobile photography has come a long way in that people are slowly accepting it as a form of art but it still does has a fair way to go. Even though there is still and probably always will be a certain amount of snobbery towards using an iphone to photograph and edit shots, at the end of the day it is just another tool. It is a camera. And I believe that good photography speaks for itself. I have learnt that anyone can use whatever camera whether it’s an iphone, $3000 camera or $10 disposable to take a photo, but it’s about injecting yourself into your images that makes them speak for themselves. Photographing and editing an image with your mind, heart, hips and soul. It has to come from within and tell the viewer about you as an artist through a means of creative expression.
But considering this type of technology is allowing people universally to felicitate their device and various apps to be creative, I believe it can only a good thing. And I think it’s only going to get better. The cameras will only get better in terms of resolution and image quality. And hopefully if more work is shown in print in art spaces and galleries worldwide, something that obviously is tangible, then the longevity of digital art will live as long as any other art forms.
Last week we spoke about diagonal lines in class. I really love all the varities of lines you can choose from to make your composition more dynamic. Here is a highlight from last weeks class.
Image by Hong Oei, @hongoei
Alright class our new subject is negative space. Think about New York or some big city. Imagine your walking down the street and you happen to look up at the skyscrapers. Now the buildings themselves are lovely but what I want you to pay attention to is the space in between all the buildings. See how it has a shape all it’s own? That’s negative space.
Negative meaning there is nothing taking it up. The buildings themselves are positive space the air around them is negative space. Sometimes the space left by the outline of an object in a photo can be just as interesting as the subject itself.
Finding interesting negative space can be hard at times becuase you are having to think in reverse. Instead of looking at the subject, you’re looking at the space around and between the subject. I am betting if you go through your roll you will find plenty of great negative space.
When you’re out shooting in the next couple weeks look for negative space! Post them up and tag them #juxtschoolhouse cant wait to see what you all find.
Photo by @senor_p 
A Squirrels Bounty
This is the Seattle acapella group, A Moment in Time. Their music stopped me in my tracks. I write to you all about my bromance with my 
Ernie and Genevieve, 1973, Grover, Colorado by Jerry Downs 
Rick Griffin, 1973, San Francisco, California by Art Brewer 
Closed do to Gasonline Shortage, June 1973, Portland, Oregon by David Falconer
