Michael Philip Manheim

Now a fine art photographer, going back into the photojournalism files

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"An Early Experiment with Light." An Interview with Michael Philip Manheim

“An Early Experiment with Light.” An Interview with Michael Philip Manheim

“This was an early experiment with light, in my amateur photographer era. I learned, practiced, experimented, tried out the twists and turns that led to becoming a professional photographer. My explorations ranged from lighting, in this “Girl Smoking” photograph in 1959, to the kinds of photojournalism that I admired in the picture magazines of the time.” Michael Philip Manheim sat down for this…

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A New Book of Photography: The Smoking Fifties

Michael Philip Manheim has just released the second in a series of nostalgic photography, this time capturing the “Smoking” Fifties. The 1950s were a time of change and energy for Manheim, then a young photographer testing his eye and equipment to capture a moment in time. This collection of black and white photos from the archives of Michael Philip Manheim presents small-town life in the 1950s.…

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Alma Mater

University of Pennsylvania boosters hailed the alma mater at a football game. I used a telephoto lens to compress the crowd, and picked the decisive moment to capture the enthusiasm.   The past and the present are closer than we often realize,so I’m going back into the archives to see what I saw long ago First up is this sampling of my documentary photography, a nostalgic collection of How Once…

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The Cyclist

Now I had an advanced twin-lens reflex, when I was fifteen years old and entranced with what I could do in photography. I was at our annual Halloween parade, and film was slow in those days. My Rollei’s lens was f3.5 and there was no way I could stop the action as the rider on an old-fashioned bicycle whizzed by. I did the only thing I could think of and panned with the action. It was my first…

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Little Sister

Little did I know, in creating this snapshot of my four-year-old sister, that photography would someday become my career. I was seven years old and using a twin-lens box camera that my older cousin Bill had given to me. When I became enamored of photography as a teen, I had also become enamored of cameras. I soon learned, however, that it’s content that counts. Cameras are only tools to extend…

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Boys

In the Moment When you’re seeking spontaneity in street photography, you want to keep moving and to keep alert. My camera was preset for exposure, back in the days when color slide film demanded more precision than digital today. But that’s not the point. What I’m stressing is that this magic moment was just that—a moment—that would have gone by had I not been alert and responsive. Point being:…

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The Smoking Fifties

Back in the 1950s, smoking was fashionable. Ads even touted health benefits. I was experimenting with lighting effects during that time. Pat was a smoker, so we got together to create this photograph.   The past and the present are closer than we often realize,so I’m going back into the archives to see what I saw long ago First up is this sampling of my documentary photography, a nostalgic…

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Stay Up To Date - Join Michael Manheim's Email List

Stay Up To Date – Join Michael Manheim’s Email List

See Saw [envira-gallery id=”1211″] Join Michael’s MaiilChimp mailing list to get news and information about his life in photography and his publications. You’ll also receive notifications of gallery shows and stay up to date on all of his blog posts. Michael’s mailing list is secure and respects your privacy. Sign up now for monthly updates and information! Subscribe to our mailing list *…

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A Boy Lost in Play

A Boy Lost in Play

I call this Reverie, a boy lost in play at Artillery Park in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. I was out strolling with camera, came upon him out with his grandfather, and moved in until this composition appeared just as his expression put him in another world.   The past and the present are closer than we often realize,so I’m going back into the archives to see what I saw long ago First up is this…

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Flash! Action and Steel

Flash! Action and Steel

After World War II ended in 1945, factories were smoking with consumer production once again. “Flash” was slang for action, but literal when steel was formed, molten pig iron poured into molds at the American Steel Foundries, in Alliance, Ohio. My passion for photography was smoking too, when I entered Alliance High School in 1955. Leland H. “Whit” Whitacre not only taught photography, he created…

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Moving On

I learned more about the process, more about the marketing, more about the human condition. I gravitated to photojournalism, happy with candid photography…   …and grateful to people willing to share their lives for my magazine assignments: College-educated police, from the April 1971 issue of Pageant magazine. Photojournalism sharpened skills that applied as I tried out other phases of…

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The Tool at Hand

The Tool at Hand

I was visiting with my friend Jack Waugh and realizing that he needed an updated portrait. He agreed, and we tried out different locations, including at his computer and in his library. As is normal for me, in portrait situations, each venue looked good, and presented a good portrait. But as is also normal, I kept pondering what we hadn’t tried. Well, Jack is an historian as well as a writer,…

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Bringing Darkroom Awareness to the Digital Age

Bringing Darkroom Awareness to the Digital Age

May 20, 1956 one month before my 16th birthday One month from my 16th birthday, I created this 1956 version of a “selfie.” Easy to do when you’re photographing into a mirror.  The alternative was to use a self-timer. In either case, it was difficult to line up with a rangefinder camera that resisted getting two edges of the mirror’s frame straight. So what to do? Easy enough – just wait! In our…

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New Gallery: At the Circus (1957)

New Gallery: At the Circus (1957)

At the Circus (1957) [envira-gallery id=”1105″]

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Art Should Be Everywhere

Art Should Be Everywhere

Art should be everywhere – or so the gallery site Daylighted declares. As part of this tribute, Daylighted has chosen me as its Featured Artist. Daylighted is a service that places visual artists into non-traditional exhibition spaces such as hotels, restaurants, coffee shops and more. It seeks to “change the way you see art. Daylighted transforms places…into digital art galleries and offer[s]…

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What Gives A Picture Life? Beyond Empty Photographs.

What Gives A Picture Life? Beyond Empty Photographs.

I see too many empty photographs passing for art these days. George Eastman created a world of photographers in 1888 with cameras that lived up to the slogan, “you press the button, we do the rest.” Today’s cameras make taking pictures a snap. Point and shoot techniques can lead to empty, lifeless photos. Let’s take the concept of picture-taking one or two steps further, from merely taking…

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My portfolio of images is eligible to be part of a special digital display at the Louvre Museum in Paris. Please vote and post a comment to help get me there. Click here: michaelphilipmanheim.see.me/exposure2015