Look!: May 2014

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Betwixt and Between

A connection between opposites.
An entrance and an exit.
Boundaries between where we are, and the world beyond, where imagination takes flight.
A recurring opportunity to transition,
to change perspective,
to look and see something new.

Do these images show an indoor scene, or an outdoor one?
During the day, or night?
Do they speak to waking or dreaming?

I hope you'll find the answer is "Yes."

Monday, May 26, 2014

Expectation

"Yellow is the color of sunshine. It's associated with joy, happiness, intellect, and energy. Yellow produces a warming effect, arouses cheerfulness, stimulates mental activity, and generates muscle energy.Yellow is often associated with food." (Color Wheel Pro)

I love the simplicity of this image. The neutral tones allow the yellow to shine, in the optimistic way yellow does. The composition is simple as well - three white lines, three black lines, and one yellow circle. No attempt at perfection is made: the pineapple end hasn't been cut evenly, neither was it placed in the center of the composition. The window sill is clearly old and many-times repainted, and has flecks of dust - Mom, don't look :)

Beyond the simplicity, I love the ease and feeling of expectation that this image evokes. Both the image and the color are forward-looking. The freshly cut end of a pineapple calls to mind the process of food preparation, perhaps being chopped for a summer picnic with friends. The imperfections in the pineapple slice and window sill are comforting in a way, showing a lived-in life without pretense.

As with my other work, a clear love of texture is displayed. I mean, LOOK at that pineapple rind. Please. Click the image to make it bigger if you have to, or zoom in or something. Can you see the crisp edge of the hard rind? The juicy yellow fruit? The tough white and tan center? Even the brush strokes on the window sill from the latest repainting are clear.

I hope to share more images like this one in the coming months. I've been inspired by Sally Mann's work, shot mainly at home, and by Mann and Leibovitz' exhortation that young photographers shoot what they love. Here's to what's next.

Cheers!

Friday, May 23, 2014

Shock

Notice a lot of uncropped images lately? On purpose, I promise. I'm trying to take advantage of the full frame available on my Nikon, which requires that I prioritize composition during shooting, and leads to higher quality images. Hurrah!

In other news: if you haven't seen the Caio's show at ICP, get yourself over there. Stat.

Thirdly, I'm interested in your lens recommendations for an event in June. Looking at a 1.4 like this - good plan?