Wednesday 18 February 2009

Still Thinking...

My thought from yesterday wouldn't work.
There are images I simply can't recreate.

I'm going to pick 6 specific images to re-photograph and concentrate on them. If one doesn't work then I'll choose another until I'm happy with the series.

I've decided I'm going to use medium format, I'll take my DSLR with me for back up shots(and to act as a light metre).

Right decision made. 1 week to shoot, 1 week to print, 1 week to get the exhibition ready.

Tuesday 17 February 2009

A thought...

Maybe I should concentrate on one specific volume of Victorian Nottingham and re-photograph every image over a certain number of pages.

That way there will be a flow to the work and the use of the page layout would make sense a little more.

Also, I'm leaning towards b+w medium format - it's relatively quick and I can crop in the dark room. Also I won't have to rely on anyone else to print for me.

Argh, I need to be more decisive!

Re-photographs

New photos up on flickr.

I've been trying to re-photograph the streets of Nottingham, taking similar angles to old Victorian images. I'm not going to create a kind of photo-montage type project, replacing a piece of an old photograph with it's modern equivalent. I'm actually rephotographing whole photographs.

It has been quite tricky so far, I've been using a wide angle lens on my DSLR (a format obviously not used by Victorian photographers) so getting the right angle and trying to fit everything into the frame has posed a few problems.

I'm considering black and white, medium format but I really don't want to get bogged down by film at this late stage.

Also I still have the problem of displaying the old images. I'm currently referencing 3 volumes of a journal called Victorian Nottingham, it was published by the Evening Post. I'm thinking of scanning in the images (with whatever text is around it) and printing them on photo-quality paper. Then I can display them underneath/next to my own prints. The A4 page layout will be familiar to the viewer so I don't think it's necessary to print them to the size of my own images. The original images would essentially be a form of supporting text, they give my own images a context so it is important they are included in the exhibition.

Wednesday 4 February 2009

Gregory Crewdson



I saw this while it was being exhibited at the V&A. I thought the whole series was amazing. The way they create a feeling of suspense, as if they were taken out of a film, is incredible. The colours look so smooth, I think they show that the digital process is a credible way of working in the art world. It seems to me that there are a lot of traditionalists who turn there noses up at digital work. I'm pretty sure Crewdson's images have done a lot to change peoples perceptions of digital photography.

Simon Norfolk



Norfolk's landscapes from Afghanistan are quite haunting but often contain a little glimpse of hope. For example, in this image it shows a man selling balloons. When the Taleban were in power they had banned balloons. A balloon is now a relatively cheap treat for Afghan children. I think it's amazing that someone can go into such a hostile environment and tkae pictures like this.

Bernd and Hilla Becher



The Becher's work is a study of industry in the western world. Although the subjects can be considered quite boring the scale of the buildings they photographed and the quantity of those photographs really is quite impressive. Again, like Knight's book 'Skinhead', this is a very detailed study rather than just a set of photographs of industrial architecture. I suppose this relates to my project in terms of photographing buildings but the methodology is quite different.

Tuesday 3 February 2009

Nick Knight



The book Skinhead made me want to photograph people who could be considered 'different' and also the working class. People who aren't into mainstream culture interest me. Maybe it's because they reject the idea of conformity, conforming has always seemed quite a boring way of living to me. It's a little ironic that people who label themselves as a non-conformist often conform to the fashion, attitude, music and culture of their chosen social group.
The book is a detailed study of skinhead culture, it's not just a set of photographs. Knight said something along the lines of 'This isn't the truth, but it is my truth' (maybe paraphrasing a little there). That attitude towards taking photographs reverberated with me. It gave me a sense that even though my photographs can be criticised it is still what I witnessed and that they will always reflect that.

Jeff Wall







I saw an exhibiton by him at the Tate Modern (I think) while I was still at school. I had a postcard of both these images on the inside cover of my A-level folder so I saw them in every class I had. I always thought of him as an interesting photographer, his images were quite surreal but still believable. He seemed like THE professional, everything about his work is well thought out. His post production work, his ideas etc. The fact that he believes his work is documentary is interesting as well. It shows your images can be extremely creative and staged but because you are stil making comments about the world around you it can be considered documentary.

Henri Cartier-Bresson



Although it maybe a cliche to pick one of the 'Old Masters' as an inspiration, Cartier-Bresson was one of the first photographers I really 'got into'.
There's an element of spontaneity to his work yet it doesn't look rushed. The compositions are clever and often quite humourous. I found it hard to pick one image that inspired me and I couldn't find the ones I first thought of. (A stormy River Hudson and/or a moss covered boat in Ireland). I chose this because it demonstrates the photographers ability to create clever images.

Monday 2 February 2009

Flickr...

Here's my page if you want to look/leave comments etc.

www.flickr.com/wharvey




I've just been taking pictures of the buildings that inspired the project. I'm yet to start on the 're-photography' aspect. Simple reason being I haven't found anything I want to re-photograph yet.
Also how would re-photography work as an exhibition, I would have to show the original image to provide a context. Unless I use some text to direct the viewer to where they can find said image. Also Tom (Matthew) has already said I could encounter some copyright issues but it shouldn't be a problem with images over 100 years old. I think if I did show the original images the biggest problem would be enlarging them to the same size as my own prints. Also the originals would be in black and white, should I stick with colour to illustrate that my photographs are contemporary or should I change them to black and white to get a sense of uniformity to all the images?

Lots of questions, any comments would be much appreciated.

Project Brief...

This is what i've got so far, any help would be much appreciated.

"My project aims to address the ideas of reuse and disuse of the old and new regarding the architecture of Nottingham. My initial inspiration was the old Victorian lace mills which had either fallen into disrepair or been converted into student accommodation. What struck me about these buildings is that their current use (if they have one) is quite modest when compared to their dominating presence over the Nottingham skyline. Although these grand buildings instigated this project I intend to photograph smaller structures, such as houses, as well. I want to create documents about the industrial revolution and its legacy in Nottingham and this entails looking at what remains of the buildings that housed and entertained the workers of Victorian Nottingham. I will be looking at early photographs of Nottingham and I will look to re-photograph them myself. This will illustrate my ideas of change in Nottingham, in terms of architecture and also the society in which we live in today compared to that of the Victorian era. I will seek background information on the buildings that I photograph, such as past and present use etc.

I intend to use a simple digital work process. A DSLR and limited post production work will be enough to portray my ideas. I will be using digital because it will allow me to have a relatively quick turnaround of work in comparison to analogue. Also it will allow me to upload photographs to my blog and flickr account quickly.
The DSLR will allow me to have mobility and flexibility which will suit the way in which I intend to photograph my subjects, something which a larger format will limit me on.

My aim for this project is to result in a successful exhibition situated within the subject itself, the city of Nottingham. I also want to improve my digital workflow, although I have learned a lot about the digital process I have yet to put the majority of that into practice."

P.S. My laptop has decided to fail on me (why during a project focused around digital photography??), hopefully it will be fixed soon enough, I will try my best to give feedback via the blogs. I'll also try and get some photos up on flickr and here as well.