This is a photo taken by James Nord. I found this on his tumblr page. The overall theme of his page seems to be mostly outdoor shots with nature filled frames. He seems to steer away from typical portraiture or close up facial photos. He builds the rest of the frame around his subjects. I think he likes to catch or imply action in his photos but the people in his photos do not take up a dominant portion of the frame. He uses what seems to be very accurate color correction and doesn’t over use photoshop. What I like about his work is that he seems to be capturing photos from his everyday life. From what I have seen of his work so far i think he is kind of like me in that he likes to keep it simple. What I like about this photo especially, is the prospective. The photo itself makes me feel like im being pulled behid the skaeboardd. U can tell that there are other people in the picture but they are blurred from shooting with a larger aperture.
-Nick Jackson
Amber Marie Dodson: This interactive video’s intentions is to help viewers interpret Van Gogh’s painting by adding movement to the painting. Therefore, I decided I would take the challenge and see if this interactive video was helpful to me in interpreting this painting. After watching the interactive video, I am shocked from seeing this painting come to life. I believe this interactive video does help the viewers. Even though the painting is moving, I loved how Petros Vrellis’s interactive video maintained the originality of Van Gogh’s painting. In addition, Petro Vrellis’s interactive aspect allows individuals to put their own spin on Van Gogh’s painting. The music in this interactive video concerned me. I felt like the music altered the viewer’s interpretation on Van Gogh’s painting. The music appeared dreary, but I also felt a calming effect as well. If another style of music was selected for this painting, I could see myself interpreting this painting in a completely different perspective. When I muted the volume, I felt like this interactive video allowed me to be in control. As the viewer, I enjoyed being able to decide on my own the possible different moods, which may have been idealized by Van Gogh for this painting.
I first stumbled across this photograph on my personal Tumblr site. Looking back to try and find the artist and any information as to what they were thinking was a little more difficult. I found the link to a Flickr page and immediately thought it might be another students work. This actually belongs to Lucas Chimello Simões of São Paulo, Brazil.
This photo is part of a series he entitled Dry Your Tears. And quite literally used fire to dry the subjects tears. I do believe, though I had to do some translating from Spanish, that Simões shot the photos with a Sony camera, printed them, then proceeded to burn the area in around the person’s eyes.
I think that this is a very powerful way to express such a subdued, usually private, event. Tears show us what makes us vulnerable as human beings and this depiction of burning them out of our mind is harsh but very vibrant and capturing.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lucsa/3861880183/in/photostream/
~Jordan Christie
http://marcpaeps.com/#/commissioned/recent%20work/3nit.id=8&lang=1
I was looking through some of the photographs by the artist I had mentioned earlier, Marc Paeps, and found this! When I was shooting my Running Away Narrative, there was literally a pink balloon floating down the street and I captured it “running away” from us. Thought it was ironic enough to share!
~Jordan Christie
This photograph was taken by Stanley Kubrick in 1946. It is in the series, Park Benches and is called Love is Everywhere. The photograph was published in LOOK Magazine, one of the 20th century’s most influential pictorial magazines. I really like the title because it does prove that love is everywhere, even in a fire escape. My favorite part of this photograph is the look on the couples face. It looks as if they just got caught “flirting”. Since her legs are still partially inside the window, it looks as if she is ready to climb back inside at any moment to avoid getting caught by her parents. Even though they are “caught” in this photograph, they still have their arms wrapped around each other which I find very funny. Most people that get caught drop their arms down to their side but it is as if they don’t care that they got caught or it happened so fast that they didn’t have time. This picture was taken at the perfect angle to tell exactly what is going on. I really enjoy old photographs because I feel that they are genuine. There wasn’t much editing that happened in old photographs, so I feel more like a real life event. With today’s photos you never know what has been edited and what has not so it is hard to determine the “truth”.
Brandy C.
This is a photograph by Annie Leibovitz titled The White Stripes. Leibovitz is known for her celebrity portraiture and her use of costumes and whimsy. This photographic is of the band the White Stripes who are known for their eclectic and fanciful sound and their use of dreamlike live performances. Even though Leibovitz takes this to a new level in this photograph, she is very much able to capture the essence of the White Stripes and the imagery they are going for. It’s a very gloomy day, which matches their expressions and the background is obviously very run down, remarking on both the weather and the members of the band themselves. Overall, this is a very intriguing photographic and very well done. It’s composition is enlightening both about the band as a whole and about each member individually.
Brittney D Koehnlein
http://elmo.academyart.edu/blog/?p=29
Minkkinen is known for his black and white abstract pieces which juxtapose bodies and landscapes in surprising ways: he “directs scenes in which his body — or a portion of it — appears as an integral part of the landscape — such as an outcropping or rock formation”
I really liked the creativity of Minkkinen’s photos. I especially enjoyed the picture of the hands pulling the buildings apart. I gives you a feeling of fantasy. Although we know we can not pull apart two huge buildings with our hands he makes it look like you can. He gives is subject super hero like powers.
He mainly uses body parts to make unrealistic photos that look amazing. Using body parts like you would not think to. He poses himself in may of his photos which I find even more amazing. He says he knows where to pose, pushes the button and then jumps into place. I find it very inspiring that he uses himself as the subject of most of his photos. He has many other interesting photos on his website.
http://www.arno-rafael-minkkinen.com/intro.html
Kristy Allen
I found this blog and “Mirror of Youth” Series post online and thought that it was neat and well executed. This is a series that shows people (usually of older stature) that are looking into a mirror representing their past and what they were like in their early adult years. I thought that this was not only an interesting concept but was well done with the lighting and color effects used in this project. Due to the lack of vibrant colors and inclusion of dimmer colors, the pictures represent memories of the past and represent a state of reflection or remembrance. The mirrored images were also very well done, as each mirrored image seemed to be in the same stance as the person who is observing their past. It almost seems as if each person’s past and present is communicating with one another through their stares and facial expressions. The photo that I chose to post with the blog I particularly liked because I thought that the communication between past and present man was more evident in this photo. The older representation of the man seems to be looking back at his youth with a smile of pride and happiness; glad for who he has been, where he’s gone, and where he’s ended up.
—-Rachel Hale
Web link: http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/mirror-of-youth-8-photos
I first heard about American photojournalist Betty Press on NPR. She lived in Africa from 1987 to 1995 where she worked as a freelance photographer. She took photographs in several African countries and created a stunning series of black and white photos called “I Am Because We Are: African Wisdom In Image and Proverb.”
The media usually portrays Africa as a continent troubled by war, poverty, corruption, and famine. Betty Press wanted to portray a different image of Africa by focusing instead on the beauty, creativity, culture, and strength of the African people. I like how she captures little moments in people’s daily lives that provide us with an intimate glimpse of who they are. Each image tells a story not only about the people themselves, but also about the history and political struggles of their country.
The first image was taken in Eritrea shortly after the long civil war for independence from Ethiopia. Here, two children are dancing their way home from a soccer game, showing that life goes on even during war and also expresses greater hope for the future. I love how the silhouette of the two boys stands out so vividly against the beautiful sky and truly captures their joy. There is a greater theme across all 125 photographs about the concept of Ubuntu, an African humanist philosophy about our interconnectedness and the responsibility we have for one another. I found her series to be very expressive, inspiring, and full of life. I look forward to viewing more of her work.
You can view a portion of the series here: http://www.npr.org/blogs/pictureshow/2011/11/20/142522652/a-photographer-changes-the-focus-in-africa
More info about the artist: http://www.bettypress.com/index.php#mi=1&pt=0&pi=2&s=0&p=0&a=0&at=0
-Lyndsey Jefferson
http://jamespblair.com/JourneyIntoChaos/Beginnings.html#6
James P. Blair has had a very successful career as a professional photographer. He had worked for National Geographic Magazine as a photographer for over thirty years. He had more than 2000 photographs published in their magazines. He was able to capture and document so many historically events around the world. I find it very fascinating to be able to capture such historical events with a photo. The picture at the top of this link is of Martin Luther King Jr’s speech. Blair stated he wasn’t even on assignment during this photo. He was just there to hear what everyone was talking about. It really shows how passionate he was about history and photography and using the two together.
In the picture below he has depicted an Ethiopian mother cooking corn bread for her five children. I also found the script below the picture very informative and interesting. It really puts things into perspective. In our country most of us do not have to worry about having enough food, whereas so many other countries struggle to find food for their families.
In this particular photograph, I really like the use of the natural light to highlight the woman preparing the food. It also puts an angelic feeling on the child’s face. I feel like you can really tell he is so innocent as he sits there and waits for the food his mother is preparing. I also feel having the light this way really puts emphasis on the importance of the mother and the child. It shows that she is the one providing the food, and that the man in the shadow may not be of much importance. They really want you to focus on the two of them.
This picture definitely puts things into perspective for you. Makes me glad we do not have to suffer through these things, but reminds be to be grateful daily for the things that I have.
Kristy Allen
