Through The Lens

I do it because I enjoy it.

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February 2013 - Love Letter To His Mum

February, the month the world gets torn into two sides; the ones that embrace and celebrate the long lived Valentines tradition, showering their partners in gifts and kisses. Then there is the other camp who often are annoyed at the fact they are single or rebel against the tradition purely because they feel like it is a money making scam that shouldn’t be bought into.

Whatever camp you find yourself slotted into there should be no doubt in the love and affection you share with family members. That is why I have decided to concentrate this months piece on a photographer who published his love for his mum using photography.

Juergen Teller is well known as a fashion photographer despite him not wanting this label. He prefers to be known as just a photographer and I believe he should be classed as just that. Even his fashion photographs shine through with his own personality that of which sets him apart from the homogenous fashion photographers out there.

He was born in Germany in 1964 and moved to London in 1986. He recently produced a set of photographs that are nothing related to fashion and they achieved just as big a response as his work for Marc Jacobs or Vogue had.

The photographic set under discussion is titled Irene im Wald and Teller has described it as a love letter to his mother.

In the exhibition at The Journal Gallery in Brooklyn, he has used photography and text to produce an intimate insight into his childhood in Germany. Unfortunately I could not find any of the text to feature alongside the images. I assume the text adds another element to the images and it is a shame I could not find it.

‘Irene im Wald’ is named after his own mother, Irene and the photographs feature her wandering through the woods near his home in Nuremberg.

The woods have sentimental value for him and you really feel the sense of nostalgia shining prominently through the images.

I always find that whenever I personally take a photograph there is something to the object, person or place that I find relates to my past or present. It could just be that in that moment someone has done something that I want to be reminded of. The photograph I take may not feature anything to do with that memory but in the end it will act as a trigger for the nostalgic remnants of the instance.

I click the button on my camera in order to be forever reminded of whatever it is I want to remember. The photograph then becomes a resemblance of that instance which will hold nostalgic values whenever I look at it.

The woods in Teller’s photograph may not have any significance to anyone else except him. He has photographed them in such a way that makes you want to question why they are so important to him. I therefore think that the words that are featured alongside the photographs do help explain the significance of the woods further.

Looking at the photographs as a set you grasp at a slight understanding of the relationship between Teller and his mother without fully recognising what it was truly like. The photograph of Irene standing in the distance atop a mound of dirt makes me question whether there was a lack of closeness between mother and son. The fact that she is featured on her own in the photographs also implies remoteness. The lack of knowledge presented in the images about what their relationship consisted of only heightens the personality of the photographs.

The fact that he calls it a love note to his mother makes me wonder if he is trying to tell her how he felt because he never really could using speech.

I like the almost, but not quite, sepia tone to his photographs. I feel that this intensifies the idea of nostalgia towards his childhood. Sepia is normally really brown but these images have a yellowed tint to them which reminds me of a faded sepia photograph I would find in my Gran’s photo albums.

The images featured in The London Gallery is the first of what Teller sees to be a four part series featured in the same woods. This may mean that the relationship with his mother will develop further throughout the remaining three sets.

Taking photographs of family will forever be an important aspect to people’s lives. Never miss an opportunity to capture the ones you love because photographs can bring back so many forgotten memories

http://www.westerneye.net/comment/2013/02/photography-blog-love-letter-to-his-mum/

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January 2013 - Adventures of the small people.

For this months photography blog I turned to Instagram for inspiration. As many of you will know, Instagram is a photo-sharing come social networking service. It allows its users to take photographs and then add a digital filter. 

Lending some style guides from what once was a popular camera, the Kodak Instamatic and Polaroid, the square shaping is what makes it different from the usual 4:3 aspect ratio we are used to with mobile phones. 

What some of you may not know is were it all began, so here is a little history: Kevin Systrom and Mike Kreiger launched the site in October 2010 and it rapidly became popular. As of September 2012 Facebook bought the company for a whopping $300 million in cash and 23 million shares of stock, with plans to keep it independently managed.

A popular feature that was added to the app in January 2011 known as the hashtag helps users popularise their photographs. It was through such hashtagging that I found my next talented photographer.

User Mike Rubenstein, found at @rubicantekid, takes photographs of his miniature drawings, creating something different from your average picture of food, clothing or cosmetic product. 

Rubenstein currently works as an illustrator and whilst on the job he dreamt up an imaginative way to use his Instgram account. The idea developed from one bored happenstance whilst drawing on a post-it note.

He draws pictures of people and places them next to objects that you could normally hold in your hand.   

In an interview with Instagram he said: “The first of these little people was really just a doodle from a post-it note, but I got such a kick out of how the photo came out that I started looking around my desk to see what sort of stuff I had lying around… and at this point I can’t look at anything without wondering if a little paper guy might look good alongside it.”

Many people take photographs of the objects he places his drawings next to. What sets Rubenstein apart is the clever way in which he adds interest to the boring, run of the mill pictures of food by adding these comical drawings. 

In each photograph, the little drawings not only add a sense of entertainment, they also form a story.     The whole thing reminds me of the film, Honey I Shrunk the Kids. If you haven’t seen the film, it is about a dad who invents a machine that shrinks things. By accident his children get shrunk by the machine and the film depicts their struggles in trying to maneuver around the giant house.

If you could conjure up an image of yourself the size of the drawings, you can imagine what life would be like for the little characters. Robenstein also adds a caption to go with each photograph which also adds to the hilarity.  

“The whole fun of the project is in shifting the context of everyday things through these little cutouts,” says Mike.

What I like most about Instagram is the way in which people like Robenstein can express their talents freely, for the world to see using photography. I know I will be looking forward to seeing what other adventures these little, paper people get up to on my Instagram feed. 

http://www.westerneye.net/comment/2013/01/photography-blog-adventures-of-the-small-people/

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December 2012 - Start A War

With the busy end of term submissions, the sigh of relief once it had all been handed in and the excitement of returning home for Christmas, I had forgotten all about this piece. With a reminder from the editor I began the task of finding a photographer I felt worthy of writing and sharing with readers. Turning to a favourite website, Dazed Digital, I found photographer Kevin Morosky.

Morosky is a London based photographer who co founded the company Gloria Loves Valentine with Daren Montague. He has described the company as a gang who throws up cameras and paintbrushes rather than gang signs. Striking out against ‘spoiled rich kids and arse-lickers with no talent’ the company is made up of a group of young creatives who have a passion for photography and videography.

Morosky has photographed celebrities Misha Barton, Billy Piper, Kelly Rowland and Ashley Madekwe. Most recently he has produced an online series titled Start a War which is his way of transforming a song written by some of his close friends We The Committee into visual imagery.

The song is also called ‘Start a War’ and depicts the troubles that can occur whilst in a relationship with someone who isn’t right for you. How leaving them for the unknown is a struggle.

I imagine many people go through this whilst in a relationship. You don’t quite know how you managed without this person and can’t envision a point were you are fine without them.

Morosky’s pictures depict a flawed love. Imperfect but the girl loves the love that she is in. She cannot escape or leave it because the lines between doing better or settling for what she has have merged. She no longer knows who she truly is without her man and doesn’t know who she could be.

His images are erotic yet painful. In some photographs you can see the sadness in the girls eyes but in others you can see the longing for her tattooed lover that she can’t leave behind.

In the photograph of them facing each other, the guy seems happy and the girl looks as though she is remembering why she is fighting for the relationship. The glimmer of laughter makes up for all the fighting and sadness.

The close up shots add interest to the photographs. The shapes of the body are explored and tension is pouring out of the images, reminding me of personal relationship tragedies and blessings. I can feel the war that is going on in the girl’s head. Thinking how to escape and survive but worrying about the loss of all she knows.

He uses extremely narrow depth of field in some of his photographs which creates mystery. The blurred imagery may connote the girls unsure feelings and thoughts. It makes the photographs softer inventing sorrow and sadness feelings towards the couple.

The colouring to the photographs also compliments the theme of the song’s lyrics. It is soft and pale which makes sure their is no energetic or lively feeling to the photographs.

I am glad I turned to Dazed Digital to find this young photographer. I think he is very talented at not only taking photographs, but telling a story and depicting feelings from his subjects by using various technical techniques.

http://www.westerneye.net/comment/2012/12/photography-blog-kevin-morosky/

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November 2012 - Explosive Photography

We all know that at the beginning of November fireworks fill our skies and bonfires ruin our fields. With this in mind I would like to introduce a style of photography that takes the explosive month literally.

A variety of people have experimented with capturing things explode and I feel it creates an impressive photograph.

I would have thought that in order to create these photographs you would need an extremely fast shutter speed, I was wrong, you need so much more skill. Photographer Alan Saller actually used a camera (Nikon 40X) which actually has a fairly slow shutter speed.

Therefore, in order to freeze time like he has done, he made his own high speed flash unit. A normal photographic flash unit gives a flash that lasts around a millisecond. Alan created one that produced a flash of a millionth of a second allowing him to capture something beyond the human eyes possibilities. He also used an automatic trigger mechanism which triggered the flash as the pellet passed through a laser beam.

The photographs were taken in darkness and while the camera shutter is open, the high speed flash captures the image. This allows a more accurate capture of the pellet moving through the object.

I think his photographs are exciting and dangerous. What I find so interesting is the way in which photographs can freeze a single moment in time. In this case the photograph goes one step further and freezes a moment that we should never be able to physically see with our own eyes.

Alan has commented that it is a stressful process as it takes so long to set up and then it is over in less than a second. Can you imagine the mess that this style of photography leaves behind?

It is an elegant and artistic way of simply blowing things.

There have been other photographers that have worked in a similar style. Johnny Lee and Mark Watson capture images of hammers hitting bottles and pellet’s striking through fruit. What makes Alan’s images stand out are the bright colours and the fascinating textures.

Like Alan, London photographer Edward Horsford uses a range of coloured backgrounds but his subjects are different. He captures the popping of balloons using a similar method to Alan.

The amount of planning, skill and procession that goes into this kind of photography is phenomenal. So much time goes into actually setting up for a single shoot. Even before the shoot begins these photographers have spent time building their own devices that allows them to capture such an unbelievable final image.

I take my hat off to these photographic artists.

http://www.westerneye.net/comment/2012/11/photography-blog-colour-delights/

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October 2012

What a great place to begin a blog that aims to acknowledge the wonderful thing that is photography and the photographers that inspire and entertain our lives.

The month of spooks, October, will be where I introduce a photographer I found a few years ago. The photographer has that spooky, haunted edge to her images, which is why she is perfect for this post.

Denise Grunstein is one of the most well known and respected Swedish photographers and her images speak to you in a very chilling way. Grunstein was born in 1950 in Helsinki and now lives and works in Stockholm.

I found little information about the photographer herself. However, her photography is still worth a look. Her collection of work can be viewed here.

In discussing her work, I find the misty images featuring scarecrow like dolls incredibly freaky. The hooded figures lack emotion and identity, which leads me to believe she intends these lifeless figures to be surrounded by fear and questioning.

The pink tutu, netted skirts, large coats, funny masks and props remind me of Halloween night itself. So many times have I raided my grandma’s attic for strange items of clothing so that I can piece them together with oversized shoes and fake blood to scare my neighbours.

Grunstein’s images with the smoke and scarecrow dolls all seem very fancy dress and intimidating, just like the trick or treaters that ring our doorbells on the 31st October.

A lot of her exhibition work follows the same unmistakable spooky feeling. Grunstein tries to signify a sense of loss and loneliness within her work. The way the people’s faces are covered by scarves, rags or hair lead me to believe they are uncomfortable with their appearance as if they are scared to be who they truly are. Even her fashionista style work has hidden faces and creates hair-raising chills.

Many of the environments her models are placed within seem abandoned, which again adds an uncomfortable and chilling atmosphere.

The majority of the models Grunstein uses are female, suggesting some feminist accusation. It could be that the hidden female faces connotes the suppression of women, how we were once (and possibly still, some may argue) not heard or looked upon for advice. I guess the question can linger in the air as to whether she is foregoing down the road of feminist activism within her work.

Her more recent work moves towards a more simplistic air yet still containing a feminine, lonely and eerie atmosphere. The lighting in her new pieces has also altered. Her images are now brighter and clearer, lacking the mist and greyscale like her advertising pieces.

I am fascinated by the work of Denise Grunstein and hope to discover more of her nightmarish photographs in the future. Maybe this year my Halloween costume can play homage to her zombie like models in the misty images.

Happy Halloween…

http://www.westerneye.net/life-style/2012/10/photography-blog-denise-grunstein/

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I predict this will be another one of those films that conjure memories of university at a time so relevant to my life. Toy Story 3 came out just as I left home for university like Andy in the film. Not only do these types of films attract children because of their funny cartoon characters, they also relate to older people for the content. I can't wait for it to hit the cinema screens!  

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Slightly over exposed as it happened so fast.

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The very much anticipated second Taken film hit the cinema screens last week. I think everyone who watched Taken 1 may have been slightly disappointed as Taken 2, in my opinion it lacked the drugs, sex and originality that we saw first time round.

Bryan Mills (Lee Neeson) in the first film, introduced us to his very particular set of skills that he acquired during his job in the CIA. These skills and the way he stalks around foreign countries as if nothing can touch him are what sets him apart from any other hero. The way he begins a lot of his sentences with "Listen to me very carefully..." combined with "they are going to come for you" entice the audience into an 'on the edge of your seat' thrill. How Mills is always ahead of his enemies when in combat and the ever searching, tracking and killing seen in the first film left us wanting more. These thrills are precent in the sequel but only in small glimpses do we gain those feelings we had become accustomed to.

There were moments when I swiftly inhaled as his ex wife's life lay in the balance and the close encounters his daughter comes across did provide some sort of bodily tremor. However, mixed with his over protective father routine, constantly worrying about his families safety to the extent of embarrassment may be the reason why the sequel just didn't cut the mustard sat next to its predecessor. I think they over killed the protectiveness and ended it on such a cliche.

Do we blame new director Olivier Megaton who replaced Taken’s Pierre Morel or was the first film just one of those iconic, un-followable masterpieces that should have been left well alone? I have to say the hand held camera shots and fast past cutting did cause a sense of confusion during some vital fighting scenes. The car chase scene for example, had so many cut aways to gears and the speedometer. I found myself having to concentrate extra hard to follow what was happening. Maybe the fast and confusing cuts are due to the fact that co-writers Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen haven't come up with enough 'edge of your seat' possibilities for the family to fall into. 

The film has come full circle from the Albanian thugs being hunted to the thugs becoming the hunters. It was a lot more fun when Mills was searching for his daughter than his daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace) trying to clumsily, without the same set of skills as her father, to trace her dad.    

I repeat, why the cliche ending? For me there needed to be another deep voiced, chilling speech meant to scare and threaten rather than the father's 'how to parallel park' advice we received.