Thank you Jim for taking the time to bring your thoughts together. I couldn't agree more when you say "If you want to improve your photography (art) you have got to understand it like we understand everything…with language." I recently saw a YouTube video of musicial Jacob Collier where he had to play, in real time, Danny Boy in a way that reflected an emotion (which got increasingly abstract). I am no musician, but what was amazing was how well Jacob could put into words what that emotion meant - my takeaway: How can I evoke an emotion in an image if I can't describe that emotion in words?
Interesting post, Jim. I am not familiar with this book and will try to check it out although the size of it scares me… One thing I wanted to mention is that the large prints created by many of the photographers you mentioned are done using a technical camera. The use of such camera allows them to shift the plane of the image up or down, controlling the image in a subtle but meaningful way. You can sense it in many of the photos you shared. These days one can use a tilt shift lens on “plain” digital cameras and achieve a similar result. As I’ve been using such lenses for a while I would say it was a ground breaking discovery when I realized I can leave my 4x5 behind and use a TS lens for my art, not just for work. I rarely make a photo without using a lens that allows me to shift up and alter the horizon level, even if just a bit. One can also do a similar crop in post production by shooting wider and then cropping “up”. This might be something you want to try with your iPhone photos, to give them a bit more architectural look. Cheers and enjoy the rest of your time in Japan.
Thank you Jim for taking the time to bring your thoughts together. I couldn't agree more when you say "If you want to improve your photography (art) you have got to understand it like we understand everything…with language." I recently saw a YouTube video of musicial Jacob Collier where he had to play, in real time, Danny Boy in a way that reflected an emotion (which got increasingly abstract). I am no musician, but what was amazing was how well Jacob could put into words what that emotion meant - my takeaway: How can I evoke an emotion in an image if I can't describe that emotion in words?
Interesting post, Jim. I am not familiar with this book and will try to check it out although the size of it scares me… One thing I wanted to mention is that the large prints created by many of the photographers you mentioned are done using a technical camera. The use of such camera allows them to shift the plane of the image up or down, controlling the image in a subtle but meaningful way. You can sense it in many of the photos you shared. These days one can use a tilt shift lens on “plain” digital cameras and achieve a similar result. As I’ve been using such lenses for a while I would say it was a ground breaking discovery when I realized I can leave my 4x5 behind and use a TS lens for my art, not just for work. I rarely make a photo without using a lens that allows me to shift up and alter the horizon level, even if just a bit. One can also do a similar crop in post production by shooting wider and then cropping “up”. This might be something you want to try with your iPhone photos, to give them a bit more architectural look. Cheers and enjoy the rest of your time in Japan.