Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Taylor Quinley Artist Post 16

Seth Casteel 






The photographer for this project is Seth Casteel. Castle is a photographer from California. He used “Underwater Dogs” and “Underwater Puppies” for his inspiration. He took kittens who were either without homes or recently adopted for this project. Even though these photos are extremely cute there was a message behind all of it. There are between 30 and 40 million stray cats in the USA. about 1.4 million of them are euthanized in shelters. This project started when he decided to photograph a litter of kittens for a shelter, and within an hour every kitten was adopted. He found that this was more difficult for him than photographing dogs. Dogs are easier to please, he spend many hours trying to get the cats to come out from hiding. Based on the photos it seems as though his shutter speed was extremely fast due to the lack of motion blur. Also for most of them, the background is blurred due to the short depth of field. A lot of these images seem extremely saturated though. That is the only thing I dislike about a few of these. Overall I really enjoy these pictures and this they are adorable and fun.

Grant Layne - Artist Post #19

Ed Freeman



Ed Freeman is a traveler and photographer who make pictures of remote desert landscapes.  Although it is unclear what shutter speed he used for his project desert reality it appears Freeman used a moderate to fairly small aperture. The pictures appear to be extremely vibrant and saturated.  Also, Freeman admitted to digitally switch out the sky of these pictures creates a different affect.
Freeman’s goal for Desert Reality was to bring attention to the remote tranquility of the desert that the everyday person overlooks.  Many of his pictures from this project appear to be frozen in time due to the lack of interest in progression in these areas.
            I enjoy Freeman’s pictures but I question his editing process. Since his goal was to bring attention to the remoteness, I would have liked to see what the original skies looked like even though they were polluted. 

            

Monday, November 28, 2016

Calah Jones Artist Post 16




  1. Diane Arbus worked with a meter less Nikon F camera.  She shot with rolls in nearly every portrait orientation.  Arbus also worked with an  Rollei Wide Rolleiflex which took her a year to adjust to after her Nikon. This altered the proportions of her portraits with such a wide angle lens.  She later uses a Mamiya C33 with a 5mm, 80mm, and 135mm lens. This helped give a great depth of field for her backgrounds in her images. After the Mamiya C33, she used a Pentax 6x7 to make more narrative pictures that are eye level.
  2. Arbus's pictures are mostly portraits and in back and white. They capture features and body gestures. She captured emotion and scene.  Her pictures have a story and a background to tell that she explains as the "sense of absurdities of society created a big nut house the same size a the world."
  3. Arbus's pictures are very intriguing because they capture many different moments in peoples lives.  I like how she has different emotions, like bored, sad and crying, angry, proud... You can feel the emotion in the picture.  I think you can feel it better because of her choice of perspective and the fact there is no color so you're forced to look directly at the person.

Nikkia Logan Artist Post 16

Elena Anosova




































Elena Anosova made these images in the wilderness of Russia. People who live there today still have a large belief in legends and mythology. Each image shows a theme of texture. There is also a sense of environment and elements in nature.

The last two images have a mystical look to them. The fog cuts off the path and leaves a concept of mystery beyond. The picture grabs the viewer's attention as well as keeps it. Other than mystery, Anosova may have been trying to portray the small town beliefs and history.

I think the wilderness and environment is important to the people of the town in Russia. It is very possible she could be documenting the beauty of the natural environment and the link between it and the people. I can relate to the concept because in society there is so much going on and not enough time to regroup. There are things going on in the pictures, but there is a sense of tranquility and calmness.








Cory Hogan - Artist Post #12

Alex Webb




1. Alex Webb goes out searching for scenes that seem as if they were straight from a movie or a play. The pictures in the piece are all horizontal with what appears to be a 3:4 ratio. It seems as though he uses many different f stops and shutter speeds based on the picture he makes.
2. Alex Webb took this set throughout Mexico. Webb looks around for different scenes with nice bright and warm colors and interesting light. He always attempts to blur the lines between art, documentary, and photojournalism. 

3. I really enjoy the colors in these pictures. Each of them have interesting shades and tones without the saturations feeling too overpowering.  Each of the images feel as if there is a story about them and what has caused it but there aren't any answers which makes me very curious about them.

Julius Ayo Artist Post 16

Elena Anosova





1. The photos above are from Elena Anosova's project titled "Out of the Way." I'm not sure if the photos were taken with film or digital. They are well-exposed and there is emphasis on color and and not so much on composition. It seems like there are specific subjects that Anosova was trying to capture in her photos. For composition, there is emphasis on motion and how the still subjects are centered either behind or in front of a moving environment.

2. I feel an atmosphere of isolation. These photos are very ambient and feel very confident in what they are trying to portray. Anosova is certain on what she wants to show in her photos. Although the theme is isolation, the focus became more about the environment rather than the subjects living in isolation. These photos show more about the living conditions and what it is like to live in these settings rather than focusing on the subjects themselves.

3. I was really attracted to these photos once I saw them. I like how there is emphasis on texture. It feels like I  can touch these photos. From the pink flower wallpaper, to the silky, transparent curtains, and the deep textures of falling snow, there is beauty in something that is almost tactile at least in the viewer's eyes. Although these photos were meticulously taken, the end products seem very natural and not forced which I really admire. 

Kerry Goodman Post #16

Mary Turner


1. Mary Turner is a photographer from the UK. She used to be a news anker that took enjoyment in taking pictures of the news stories she would cover. Eventually she decided to make photography her main medium for her stories and made them into her profession. She has many photographs that are in museums  and books because of how well she captures a story in her art.
2. Her style uses heavy amounts of light and subject positioning to tell a story. She aims to talk about social issues through her art like poverty, racial issues, cultural norms, and civil injustices. Her art is very well received among the art community. She has a great ability to make sure the symbolism of her photographs are shown.
3. Turner's art really is impressive. To manipulate so much in a picture frame and make it work is a great ability she has obtained. I find her artwork very appealing due to the curious stories she weaves through her art. You can even tell her new reporter experience shows trough her art, due to the high emotional tension she aims to achieve.

Callie Ward Artist post 15



David LaChapelle

1. David LaChapelle was a photographer who liked made of scenes and people. He would work well with makeup, costumes, atmosphere vibes and backgrounds to create a sense of a "made-up world". Under each picture he said it reveals a hidden message. For a while he was also shooting advertisement campaigns. Then he moved on to art history and tried incorporating it into todays world by giving it more of an edge.
2. He is one of those photographers who became very successful creating an older photo and transforming it into a modern-day edge photo. His photos look as if they would fit into a city gallery like New York.
3. You can tell he likes playing around with older images to create a modern day image by using the right kind of scenery, makeup and people like celebrities. A lot of his other photos look realistic but still touched up by makeup and clothing. He tried mimicking the bottom photo that marilyn monroe did and it came out very similar. 

Callie Ward Artist Post 16


                                                Annie Leibovitz

1. Anne Leibovitz enjoys creating pictures of magical scenes like the first picture at the top. Not only does she enjoy making pictures of mysterious/magical scenes but also in the moment like the second and third picture above listed. She's known as being a photographer for the Rolling Stones Magazine. 
2. "Liebovitz chose to feature mostly clothed women from a variety of backgrounds and ages in contrast to the images of scantily clad models from previous calendars". Her projects have a deeper meaning behind them but she tries to capture in the moments. 
3. Her first picture reminds me of cinderella because of the big blue dress, her running down the stairs and the gloomy sky. The second picture may look somewhat sad but to me the little girl looks pretty by the way the light is captured in her face and eyes. Im not sure what mood Anne is trying to give by the light in her face but dark lighting in the background. The last picture shows a woman either putting makeup on her face or a face mask. It gives people what women tend to go through on a daily bases. 

Meaghan Mozingo - Artist post #13


Sudi Jp





1) Sudi Jp is a photographer form Japan. She started photography about 10 years ago, and within in two months she started winning awards for her photos. Her photos can be found in photography magazines along with companies and private homes.
2) Sudi Jp predominately works with light and shadow. Her photos are primarily dark and under exposed with some being black and white. I think she uses her space very well. Many of her photos contain a lot of black space with spills of light.
3) In the first photo Sudi Jp uses distance and a small aperture creating a deep depth of field. she underexposes creating  little to no detail in the shadows allowing the light to be a focus. The figure in the window is well framed, and the window shade is slightly elevated casting a little bit of white light. a nice addition to the yellow light.
  The 2nd photo, is underexposed which allows the shadows to stand out. The bottom of the photo is black which provides a nice platform for the stairs and railing. There are a few different layers to this photo. The viewer sees hints of a shadow from a tree along with cracks from the building and the prominent shadows from the railing. I think it is framed nicely allowing some nice lines and shapes. the white figure in the center adds a nice touch to the photo.
   The third photo, is in black and white. This is a great example how Sudi Jp crops her subjects so the shadows are the main focus. The light fills the center beautifully picking up some of the texture of the street. the shadows of the subjects offer some nice shapes. The right and left sides are well balanced and both have interesting shapes and lines. The grate in the center is perfectly framed. It has its own space and fills the center and compliments the sides nicely.

Jennifer Livingston - Artists Post 15

Ben Canales



1) In an interview Ben Canales talks about his approach to night photography. He uses a combination of Stellurium, and Darkskyfinder.com when researching places. Canales prefers to use a 24 mm lens, and will often shoot in the summertime when the milky way is at is brightest. Something else that he brings with him when he takes night shots is hand warmers, and a tripod. He has a pair of hand warmers for himself, as well as to wrap around the camera so it doesn't fog up.

2) Each of the three images done by Canales are all night shots of the night sky. He uses a wide lens to get as much of the scene as possible. I particularly like the first and last because his tent adds a pop of yellow-orange. To add light into an image he will use a head lamp or even a lantern.

3) I enjoy the images that Canales has taken, as well as his advice for starting photographers just getting into night photography. He gives plenty of tips and techniques. Such as using hand warmers around the lens of the camera so it doesn't fog up. I probably wouldn't have thought to use them for the camera.

Daniel Brehun - Artist Post #16

Nadine Rovner



   Nadine Rovner is a New York photographer that has had two galleries one in Philadelphia the other in San Diego. She also has a Gallery Stock in New York as well. You can see that she doesnt have many things yet but she is working towards getting herself known. 

   In the second photo this was apart of a album of photos titled Road Trip. The photos in general were very well composed and colorful images. As you can see here in the second photo the range of similar colors flow very well together. The color off of the trees reflecting off of the car looks beautiful with the tan brown color underneath the trees. In her second album There's no place like here  you can definitely get that sense of emotion and feeling from the title in the characters in the pictures. The two people in the first and last photo represent their settings perfectly and give off a story vibe to them like there is something to be said. 

   I think Rovner tries to amuse her audience with her photography with also adding some curiosity there as well. With her having an album labeled iPhone I believe that is also showing the viewer that she can go outside of the box when needed.

Sunday, November 27, 2016

Olga Morozova, Artist Post # 16



1) Daniella Zalcman is a documentary photographer based between London and New York. Her work tends to focus on the legacies of western colonization, from the rise of homophobia in East Africa to the forced assimilation of indigenous children in North America. One of her famous projects is “Signs of your identity” which focusses on the legacy of the Indian Residential schools in Canada in 1840. In her project Zalcman uses multiple exposures to create an abstract way to tell the story. The artist mostly used her  iPhone 5S to generate poetic black and white portraits, overlaid with landscapes and natural details.

2) This project is about crises of indigenous community in Canada in 1840. Indian Residential schools were intended to assimilate young indigenous students into western Canadian culture, but used brutalizing tactics to achieve their goals. For the artist it is important to tell this story, to let people know what happened. She says that these are stories that you would never learn in a history class. So her primary goal is make a book of these photographs and to get this book into schools as a teaching tool.

3) It is true that history is written by those who won. How often do we know only one side of a story? Thanks to this photographer we can witness the tragic story of the Indigenous communities in Canada not only focusing on the past, but also on the present moment since the artist interviewed a significant amount of indigenous people linked to the Indian Residential Schools. We need this kind of stories that let us to see a glimpse of the truthful past, so we would be able not to repeat same tragic stories all over again. Also I think this is probably the best technique that the artist could have used to tell this story: not using just a simple portrait shots or photographing the legacy of the schools, but rather combining the photographs to create the illusion or an abstraction, giving us a feeling of what happened rather than facts.