Style Week Posts:
Selina Maitreya Day One
Daron Shade Day Two
Christian O’Dell Day Three
Ivar Teunissen
Kirk Tuck Day Five
I recommend starting at the beginning if you haven’t already.
Today I wanted to take a few minutes and talk about the ‘presentation’ of the subject to the viewer. To me, that is a part of style that I always see.
There are shooters who put you ‘in the moment’ with the lens choice and aperture and point-of-view. The POV can be seemingly ‘in the mix’ so to speak.
Josef Koudelka comes to mind for this type of presentation. His work is often with the ‘normal’ or only slightly wide lens. The purpose is to bring the viewer in to the scene, make them a part of it.
Another photographer who I love is Mary Ellen Mark. Her wonderful stories and images have captivated me for decades.
Her work is direct, a POV that allows access and entry to the subjects in front of her lens. Lens choice, angle, light and cropping all play a part in her work, and Koudelka’s. Take some time and review their work.
Another, similar style, is the ‘classic’ or ‘confrontational’ presentation of Diane Arbus. Her work inspired legions of photographers who simply want to show people with and without context.
Her series on photographing Twins still has an impact on young photographers. And we can go further back to the portraits of Edward Weston and Stieglitz to see where her inspiration may have been.
Richard Avedon and Irving Penn approached the presentation of the subject in what I refer to as minimalist. Preferring the control of the studio, and the seamless or cloth draped background, both gave us subject and light… and shadow. Presenting the subject as the ‘hero’ of the shot.
All of these photographers have a ‘style’ when shooting portraits. Some choose to include the ‘chaos’ of the real world, and some choose to isolate the subject, presenting them as an entity without context.
Assignment:
Look at three of your portraits and ask yourself what your work is leaning toward. Is it contextual environmental, or do you prefer the clean space of seamless? It isn’t an either or, of course. It is more of a point of discovery for you and your work.
Now, let’s hear from Christian O’Dell. Christian is one of my Twitter friends and we had a chance to discuss style and what he is working on in Tulsa, OK. Audio File Here.
Here are a few of Christian’s images.
Thanks – sorry I was late with this update. I was in the air all morning heading up to Spokane.
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