Marquinius
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Re: FROM BASICS TO FINE ART....
ehrm ... let's see if you are still in high clouds about it after page 200 and then I will have a look at it.
Just warn me, Okay?
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Marco
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4/Oct/14, 5:57 pm
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Elines
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Re: FROM BASICS TO FINE ART....
I'll try very hard not to leap ahead but just take my time over it so that I get to page 200 in the right order - might actually encourage me to read it a bit faster.
?do I take it that you have already read it or heard something about it?
EDIT - I wouldn't say that I am in the clouds about it (not yet anyway) but I am certainly finding it thought provoking.
And at my age anything that keeps the grey matter churning over is very much a good thing
Last edited by Elines, 4/Oct/14, 6:15 pm
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Chris
One day I might grow up, but I hope not
Say YES unless good reason to contrary
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4/Oct/14, 6:10 pm
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Marquinius
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Re: FROM BASICS TO FINE ART....
"grey matter churning" ... I wish it would stop sometimes, if only for an hour or so
No, haven't heard or read about it, but am curious / interested as you brought up quite a few thought provoking (or perhaps sometimes even "weird") emotions in your post.
Keep reading and I'll keep track.
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Marco
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4/Oct/14, 6:50 pm
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Digital Finger
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Re: FROM BASICS TO FINE ART....
quote:
Elines so there is no way that I would normally have read a chapter entitled, 'Personal visual language and the Jungian theory of archetypes'. And I actually found the section very interesting.
I'm sad I know but this sort of thing is right up my street!
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I am a part of what I am, not apart from what I dream,
That's a part of what I seem, but not apart from what I am
~ Simon
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4/Oct/14, 7:52 pm
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Elines
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Re: FROM BASICS TO FINE ART....
quote:
Marquinius wrote:
ehrm ... let's see if you are still in high clouds about it after page 200 and then I will have a look at it.
Just warn me, Okay?
Well …. I am now at a little over page 200 (out of 424). And I am still extremely impressed and recommend it to any photographer to read, and more importantly - to try and practice what it suggests. In fact it will be well worth re-re-re- reading
Alan Jones on the forum has also commented favourably on it:
http://bthedigitalmonochromeforum.runboard.com/t200882
I’m not aiming to do a ‘proper’ report; rather, it is more of a personal view at this stage. And I won’t be doing it chapter by chapter.
It really is from ‘basics’ (eg an excellent section on composition, from which I learned several things) to ‘fine art’, by which I mean creating a photographic work of art which may be some way removed from the original photograph. And I don’t mean the mere random application of a load of Photoshop filters.
The starting point is (our old favourite) – vision. They have a lot to say on this and both authors give their views on an approach to help you develop your own vision. So that you don’t just end copying the way they produce their fantastic black and white images.
They introduce a lot of new concepts (new to me that is) For example:
• Equivalence – from Alfred Stieglitz
• (en)Visionography (and that is how you are supposed to write it)
• Photography Drawing
• The Rule of Grays
In addition to reading the conceptual stuff in the book I have also broadened my reading, for example to history of art and philosophy of art, in particular, Minor White’s article, ‘Equivalence: The Perennial Trend, for example to be found at:
http://jnevins.com/whitereading.htm
(Incidentally …. That version of the article refers to 4 photos by MW to illustrate the points he is making but they were not present – if anyone knows where they can be found on the internet could you please add a link?)
Have to say I’m not sure my brain can cope with it all as this stuff is much deeper than I usually go.
But don’t think the book is all arty farty. It isn’t. There is lots of good practical advice.
One bit that struck me (obvious when you know it but never seen it before) was that if your camera doesn’t have a moveable screen on the back, and you don’t want to splash out on a right angle viewer, you could link it to your smart phone or tablet. (Actually I don’t have either but still a good idea.)
Early in the book there is a suggested exercise involving the photographing of a building in different types of light so that you can begin to learn how a building changes under different conditions.
For those with a strong interest in architectural photography there is a lot of practical advice, and a lot said on why tilt-shift lenses are best for it - not that I will be getting one – they cost about £1500.
But the authors also suggest that a cheaper alternative is to use software to correct the ‘keystone’ effect, and also why you won’t get as good a result as using a tilt-shift lens.
Although architecture generally is not a strong interest of mine there was still stuff that I could use - for example advice on photographing architectural details, in which I am interested. And I can see that the general principles and advice given in the book should be transferable to other types of photography.
So … all good stuff so far but – for me – the real test is ‘what impact will the book have on my photography?’ At this stage I have made use of specific suggestions on composition (which worked) but it is too soon to say if I will be producing radically new stuff that I really, really like. But at least it is possible.
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Chris
One day I might grow up, but I hope not
Say YES unless good reason to contrary
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26/Oct/14, 6:43 pm
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Clactonian
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Re: FROM BASICS TO FINE ART....
I admire your perseverance with this book Chris. I have a bookshelf full of similar tomes which I purchased at the start of my degree course in photography (sadly dropped because of family issues) but they always send me to sleep after a while.
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Thanks for viewing, Mike
I always welcome critique of my images but prefer to try recommended edits myself.
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27/Oct/14, 10:34 am
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Elines
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Re: FROM BASICS TO FINE ART....
quote:
Clactonian wrote:
................. I have a bookshelf full of similar tomes ............. but they always send me to sleep after a while.
Yes - same here but I am finding this one very thought provoking.
There are one or two passages that I don't quite grasp at first reading but so far they have become clearer later and if there are any I still don't understand when I have read it all then I may well raise them on here, and with the authors
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Chris
One day I might grow up, but I hope not
Say YES unless good reason to contrary
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27/Oct/14, 11:22 am
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Marquinius
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Re: FROM BASICS TO FINE ART....
Kind of reminds me reading Susan Sontag "on photography".
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Marco
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28/Oct/14, 6:02 am
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Elines
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Re: FROM BASICS TO FINE ART....
quote:
Marquinius wrote:
Kind of reminds me reading Susan Sontag "on photography".
Marco - could you expand a little please?
I'm not sure what you are saying. I looked up her book on Amazon .co.uk and - as is often the case - there is a wide range of views. And I haven't read it myself
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Chris
One day I might grow up, but I hope not
Say YES unless good reason to contrary
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28/Oct/14, 8:49 am
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