Photography @hailey-mullen - Tumblr Blog

"Bullet Through Bubble"

Harold Edgerton

Schlieren interference method

Stopping Time (1987)

I chose this picture because it really blew my mind how someone was able to capture a bullet popping a bubble, and managed to get them in the same shot. I learned in the description that the yellow line seen in front of the bullet is actually a shock wave created by the bullet. I am really interested in learning more about the method Edgerton used to create this photograph.

"Pool"

Harold Edgerton

Unknown Medium

Stopping Time (1987)

Here is another negative of Edgerton's that he captures with several flashes. I really loved this photo because I like how you can precisely follow the path of the ball as the player shoots it. I think it was a clever idea to shoot this from straight above, because it really allows you to see a glimpse of the whole table.

"Coin Toss"

Harold Edgerton

Negative

Stopping Time (1987)

In this negative, Edgerton manages to capture the arbitrary spins and flips of a coin as it is tossed through the air. I really liked the transparency of the coin that we see here, which is obviously not a characteristic of a metal coin, but resembles the motion blur we see in real life when a coin is being spun. Although the coin is transparent and blurry at some points, I really like how the coin is very clear at the apex of its path, where it supposedly stops momentarily in air as it changes direction.

"Milk Drop Coronet"

Harold Edgerton

Medium Unknown

Stopping Time (1987)

I never would have guessed that this were a drop of milk if I were not given any context. Instead, at first glance it appears to be a crown to me. Its amazing how a photograph can transform things into something completely different. I learned that this photo took Edgerton 25 years to perfect, because he was not satisfied with the way the tips of the milk "crown" were not perfectly uniform. Now, whenever I am having trouble with a project, I can just be grateful that it doesn't take me 25 years to perfect it!

"Water from a Faucet"

Harold Edgerton

Flash Photograph

Stopping Time (1987)

Here is the very first photograph that Edgerton took with flash in 1932. He used a strobe light as his flash. I really love how something so simple that we see everyday, such as water running from a faucet, is transformed when it is frozen in time. It almost looks like this is a blown-glass sculpture, an icicle, or a crystal. I find it really beautiful how the light illuminates the various shapes made by the flowing water.

"Softball Batter"

Harold Edgerton

Medium Unknown

Stopping Time (1987)

Edgerton includes an entire section of his book that focuses on sports photography, and I chose this one due to being on the softball team. I actually did a project on the physics of a ball impacting a bat once, so it was awesome to see this picture of a bat denting a ball on impact. It's crazy to think how this happens on impact, but the ball recoils to its normal shape. I thought it was really cool how Edgerton took many of his sports photos. He set up a microphone near the ball in a darkened room, and when the sound of the ball hitting the bat occurred, the flash went off. I thought this was very clever, but also wonder how this batter managed to hit the ball in the dark!

"Violinist"

Harold Edgerton

Medium Unknown

Stopping Time (1987)

In this photo, two small light bulbs were attached to the ends of the violinist's bow as he played in total darkness while the shutter of the camera remained open. Edgerton was able to capture his body with one quick flash, and the only other light was that of the bow. I chose this because I like how experimental Edgerton's photography is. It really makes me consider all of the different methods one can use when making photographs, which I thought related well to our final project of the "Hybrid Photograph." I'm really interested in looking into other types of experimental photography like this!

"Shooting the Apple"

Harold Edgerton

Medium Unknown

Stopping Time (1987)

Here is another great image where Edgerton manages to stop time in its tracks. I am unsure of what the shutter speed needed to take this image was, but I can imagine one would need some type of high tech camera to capture a bullet perfectly still on film. What I liked most about this picture is how the apple breaks. If the bullet were not in the picture, it would be hard to say which end it entered and which it exited. The pattern of breakage the bullet created on either end looks extremely similar, and I am surprised by the outward fraying of the apple on the entrance side, I would have suspected it to be indented. I'm also surprised that the apple seems not to have moved at all; I would have thought that a bullet would have knocked it off its pedestal. I wonder how many attempts this shot took to get it just right!

"Safety Glass Cracking"

Harold Edgerton

No camera, film on glass

Stopping Time (1987)

This photo is amazing! Edgerton came up with so many innovative ways of taking pictures, and this one without even using a camera! This was created in 1938. This photo was taken by placing film directly on the glass sheet, and the sound of the impact on the glass by a plunger triggered an electronic timing circuit that controlled the moment of exposure. This was exposed at 1/1,000,000 of a second, I didn't even know that was possible! The pattern of the cracks racing through the glass was then cast onto the film by a brief flash. It's amazing all of the ways we can produce photographs!

"Back Dive"

Harold Edgerton

Multiflash

Stopping Time (1987)

When I found this book in the library, I thought it was extremely interesting. I learned that Edgerton was an engineer at MIT, and took up an interest in breaking the bounds of photography beginning in the 1930s. This photo was taken in 1954, and Edgerton was enlisted by Burt West, the famous diver seen in this photo, to prepare a manual for divers. This procedure lasted less than half a second which really amazed me. I found it really cool that Edgerton was able to produce something this magnificent looking over 60 years ago. I really like how the image of the diver is almost ghostly, and how we can see every distinct motion he goes through.

"Untitled"

Vivian Maier

Medium Format

Street Photography (2011)

I really like the setup of this scene. It is different from many of Maier's other photos just due to the fact that it is taken inside a car rather than out on the street where people are exposed to public. This man was obviously trying to find some privacy so we could sleep, and sought refuge in this car. Again, we see how Maier chooses not to capture her subject's face. This reminds me of the picture with the balloon, because we can see this man's hat, yet he seems to be a headless body. I really like the crispness of the foreground contrasted with the blurriness of the buildings in the background that we see in the window.

"Untitled"

Vivian Maier

Medium Format

Street Photography

I thought this was a really nice picture because it has such a large range of grays. This is a really great exposure because we see the bright whites in the highlights along the pavement, but there is still a distinct border along the edge of the picture. I also liked it because it is such an odd scene. The young girl is shoving something huge into a baby carriage, and a young boy is staring, mouth open, at something in the sky or on the roof of a building. I am curious where the parent in this scene is.

"Untitled"

Vivian Maier

Medium Format

Street Photography (2011)

I found the sassiness of all four subjects in this photo very amusing. Their facial expressions and body language is all very similar, and I wonder if the photographer asked them to pose like this, or asked them to express a certain emotion. I also thought it was funny how the two children seem to be mimicking their mothers. The boy has his hips pushed forward like how the woman on the left is standing, and the girl has her hands placed on her hips like the woman on the right. I wonder why the woman on the far right is the only one looking at the camera. I think the city scene provides a perfect background for this attitude-filled photo.

"Untitled"

Vivian Maier

Medium Format

Street Photography (2011)

I found this technique of leaving out faces a theme in a many of Maier's photos. It would have been very interesting to ask her the reasoning behind this if her work had been discovered earlier. Besides this, I thought this picture had great contrast, while not losing texture and small details. For example, the back of the bench is very bright, yet Maier still manages to capture the all of the texture of the stone so it is not blown out. I also just thought it was really amusing how perfectly this balloon blocked out this mans face, almost taking the place of his head with the balloon wearing his hat.

"Untitled"

Vivian Maier

Medium Format

Street Photography (2011)

I was drawn to this picture due to the repeating patterns and parallel lines throughout. There are so many different places where this is seen: the vertical lines of the columns, the horizontal shadows they cast, the repeating street lamps on the other side. We even get a small sample of this in the window shade in the top right. Finally, the woman's figure makes a final repeated image in the window's reflection. I thought being able to capture all of these things into one image was really cool.

"Untitled"

Vivian Maier

Medium Format

Street Photography (2011)

I thought this photo related to my previous post in a way because it also looks to be a mother and a daughter, yet again, Maier cuts out the mother's face. Here, the little girl is more obviously the focus, and her emotions draw the viewer into the photo. Why is she crying? There seems to be some commotion going on, as evidenced by the motion blur of the mother's arm. I thought the little girl's face is highlighted well here, and it really drew my eye due to the brightness.

"Untitled"

Vivian Maier

Medium Format

I chose this picture because it was a different look than some of Maier's Chicago "Street Photography." Instead, we see a more relaxed atmosphere here at a beach. I think this scene has a lot more greys than some of her other photos, which have more contrast and more pure blacks and whites. I found it odd but appealing how Maier chose to photograph this woman's back rather than having her turn slightly or moving to get her face in the shot. It is not the typical way we picture a photo of a mother and a daughter, and it is also difficult to decide who is actually the main subject. I think these questions are what makes it a great photo.

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