Street Photography Research

In the feedback I received to Assignment Two, my tutor recommended I also look at the following street photographers:

• Joel Sternfeld
• Stephen Shore
• Saul Leiter
• William Eggleston
• Helen Levitt.

Joel Sternfeld

Sternfeld's website doesn't appear to work, so I had to look around through google images and so on.  No doubting the artistic qualities of Sternfeld's images, but the people shots looked posed to me, not candid.  To me this makes the photographs more documentary than street.  To understand them, I would therefore need some context about their story, why they were being photographed, connection with their environment.  Not really what I'm looking for in street photography.  

Stephen Shore

To research Shore, I looked at his website.  Now I'm confused, I wouldn't describe this as Street Photography either, although the American Surfaces images could be.  I did like the Israel/West Bank series though, as having read the book Extreme Rambling by Mark Thomas, which documents his journey along the separation barrier between Israel and the West Bank, and have been wondering what it would be like to repeat the exercise and document the differences in people's lives.

Saul Leiter

I am familiar with Leiter, in fact, Matt Stuart once said that one of my images of Piccadilly Circus looked like one of his :)  (see https://www.flickr.com/photos/alisonadcock/14045898482/), which is nice!

Leiter, who started out as a fashion photographer, was a great pioneer of colour and abstract Street Photography;  he does not seem to have his own site, and sadly he passed away in 2013.  So I turned to lensculture magazine for material to look at.  I like these images; I particularly like Snow (1960) published in The Guardian in his obituary article: http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2013/nov/29/saul-leiter.  I love the colour, condensation, sense of cold, simple palette, sense of fleeting moment; and you can see this influence in Nick Turpin's recent work "Through a Glass Darkly", beautiful but calm and peaceful images.  

William Eggleston

Eggleson's own website doesn't show his images.  I saw a couple of other articles and got the sense that he was a great pioneer of colour photography also (how many pioneers do we need?) but in the end, I turned to Eric Kim's Photography blog for some information.   Like Kim, I looked at the pictures of seemingly banal everyday subjects and wondered what....?  I can see the lessons are important, photograph where you live etc, I tried this with Feltham, my local neighbourhood, both for the Bleeding London project (which I got really tired of) and Assignment One.  I didn't like doing it.  I want to make images that are funny, confusing, perplexing, even surreal, but not banal and everyday.

Helen Levitt

Briefly looking at Google images before I tried to find a specific website, and I saw instantly that her work is more akin to what I can relate to, and bears similarities to that of Vivian Meier.  Also sadly no longer with us, and not having a website of her own, I turned again to lensculture magazine to an article entitled New York Streets 1938 to 1990 showing both her black and white image and super saturated colour shots.  The image of the girl by the green car taken in New York in 1970 I had seen before at the Question of Colour exhibition at Somerset House a couple of years ago.  I like her work and have put Slide Show on my Amazon wishlist!  I think that looking at a collection of Street Photography that has built up over a period of time is very interesting - it shows society, history, culture and change.
Websites:

• 10 Lessons William Eggleston Has Taught Me About Street Photography in Eric Kim Photography available from http://erickimphotography.com/blog/2013/04/01/10-lessons-william-eggleston-has-taught-me-about-street-photography/ [accessed 25 January 2015]
• Helen Levitt: New York Streets 1938 to 1990s in lensculture magazine available from https://www.lensculture.com/articles/helen-levitt-helen-levitt-new-york-streets-1938-to-1990s [accessed 25 January 2015]
• Nick Turpin: Through a Glass Darkly available from http://nickturpin.com/portfolio/winter-bus/ [accessed 25 January 2015]
• Saul Leiter: 1950-60s color and black-and-white in lensculture magazine available from  https://www.lensculture.com/articles/saul-leiter-saul-leiter-1950-60s-color-and-black-and-white [accessed 25 January 2015]
• Saul Leiter Obituary in The Guardian available from http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2013/nov/29/saul-leiter [accessed 25 January 2015] 
• Stephen Shore available from http://stephenshore.net/index.php [accessed 25 January 2015]

Own work referred to:

• Cartier Bresson: A Question of Colour 11/11/2012 in Alison Adcock Scrapbook blog (as part of TAOP) available from http://jointheaascrapbook.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/cartier-bresson-question-of-colour.html [accessed 25 January 2014]

Dana Popa: Not Natasha

As part of my feedback for Assignment Two, my tutor recommended I look at Dana Popa's "Not Natasha" series as an example of getting deeper into one subject.

My first reactions looking through the images were about shock, horror, how appalling that situation is (beyond appalling), but also how sensitive the images are.  Not Natasha is a series about sex trafficking in Eastern Europe and the impact it has on the victim's lives and their families.  More information about the series is available from lens culture.

Looking through the images you see evidence of how young the girls are, how unhappy they are, the damage they are suffering (scars from self-harming), how cheap their lives are, how they have been objectified, abused, tortured, how their families are ripped apart, their lives devastated by the kidnappings, some are even betrayed by their families (one girl was sold by her fiance) and to be frank, it's sickening.  Sickening that human beings can be so depraved and vile to other human beings.  In some images you see the victims, in others you see their environment, and evidence of their existence (traces) or their situations.  And although these images have been sympathetically shot, there is no doubt that Popa is engaged and on some level also feeling their pain, I find them chilling.  It is a horror story equal to that of conflict photography. 

In terms of photographer's engagement - it's clear that she had researched her subject, and spent a lot of time with the girls getting to know them and their story, traveling to do so.  She must have also taken many risks with her own safety to do so.  She spoke with seventeen different women to gain an insight into their lives and in doing so must have had been able to show a protective, sympathetic and supportive approach.  To get people to open up on a subject like this must be very challenging emotionally, for both subject and photographer.  I wonder if Popa needed emotional support herself to be able to produce a body of work that is subjective, but also stands up as a solid documentary.

One thing I noticed, which contradicts the advice I have been given about putting a series together is the format of the photographs.  I have been told repeatedly that a series should be visually consistent, which this is in tone/colour/subject/emotion - but not in format.  She has mixed horizontal/vertical rectangles with squares, some with a white border, some with no border, some with text, some without text.  What does this mean?  It's obviously deliberate.  Is it a commentary on complexity?

How does this relate to my work?  Why was this recommended to me?  The recommendation came as a result of my work for Assignment Two which was street/travel photography in theme.  My approach to street photography is not a documentary/reportage approach like this, but a spontaneous and impulsive exploration of random events looking for twists and irony in every day life.  I like to combine it with the travel element as this gives me a fresh and curious perspective; I notice more when I'm abroad than I do at home.  It's new, different and exciting, and to be honest, I get an adrenaline surge from doing it.  Even planning the trips gives me a rush.

So at the moment, I can only relate to this work coming from a position of both deep sympathy and appreciation of the amazing photographic skill and engagement.  I have thought a lot about where my photography is going over the past couple of years, and I'm happy with the direction it's heading at the moment.  I'm having a lot of fun with it, and for me, right now, that's what I want.  After a 50 hour working week, 15 hours of commuting, squeezing in friends, family and degree work (see Assignment Three for that context!) - all nice problems to have, but I do need to let off steam (not make more steam).  I realise that as this degree progresses, I may need to dig a lot deeper than I am at present, but I don't think I could take on something as committed and engaging as this right now.  BUT as time goes on, I'm sure I will, particularly once I have retired or maybe even once I've found something that I desperately want to document.  I can see myself in the future, once I have more time, making documentaries/reportage articles about animal conservation and protection issues.  That's why I'm dabbling in Wildlife Photography as well! 

I have also been thinking about documenting journeys along barriers, e.g. Israel/West Bank and making comparisons between people's lives.

Websites:

• not Natasha by Dana Popa available from http://www.danapopa.com/gallery.php?ProjectID=218/photos/gallery/not_natasha_for_the_website_32-2.jpg [accessed 25 January 2015]
• not Natasha in lensculture magazine available from https://www.lensculture.com/articles/dana-popa-not-natasha [accessed 25 January 2015]

Practising Street Photography

I recently spent two weeks in Japan (over Christmas and New Year) which gave me a fantastic opportunity to practice my Street Photography - and what an amazing location to do so!  This was the first real opportunity I'd had since returning from my Varanasi trip on a Maciej Dakowicz Street Photography Workshop.  I didn't have an agenda for my Street Photography in Japan (apart from shooting Assignment Three if I could); I just took it as it happened - which is how I like to practice anyway.  And I think that subconsciously I was trying to practice the approaches I had learnt in Varanasi:

Exposing for highlights

Tokyo

Capturing a "moment"

Tokyo

Layering your subjects with no overlaps

Tokyo

Getting close to take portraits

Hiroshima

Finding humour

Tokyo

Putting the subject inside frames

Osaka

Creating a mystery

Hiroshima

Spotting an illusion

Osaka

Using backgrounds

Tokyo

Putting the focus point in the correct place (subject of story)

Jigokudani

Using colours effectively

Tokyo

And two additional approaches:

Echo

Tokyo

Abstract

Tokyo

The overriding observation is that the results of these outings are very similar in style to my photos from Varanasi, however this is not surprising given that this was the first chance I'd had to practice.  And I am really pleased with the results!  But they are of course also quite similar to the style of other people's who have just done their first workshop with Dakowicz.  In March I am going to Myanmar for my second workshop; aside from getting better at these basic styles, my objective for my next trip is to find a more original style plus also to improve my framing (still relying on cropping but don't tell Dakowicz!).

The full set can be found on my flickr site: https://www.flickr.com/photos/alisonadcock/sets/72157649453566929/

p.s. I also got some nice wildlife from Jigokudani on this trip!

Feedback and response to Assignment Two: Photographing the unseen - Wonder

Fantastic and encouraging feedback to Assignment Two from my tutor :)

I had fulfilled the brief and produced a tightly edited set that illustrated various conflicting interpretations of the concept of "wonder" in street photography style, with a recommendation for future work to explore the idea of focusing on one aspect of an idea and pushing deeper within the same idea, rather than laterally around the idea (I will try to do this for Assignment Three).  My tutor recommended I research Dana Popa's "Not Natasha" series for a deep and personal insight into trafficking to get an idea of researching deeper into a theme, which I will in preparation for Assignment Three.  She mentioned the risks of choosing a travel theme for an assignment but this had been a consistent approach.  I will however be attempting this again in Japan for Assignment Three?

From a technical perspective, the feedback I received was that the images are strong, with colour and depth of saturation making them stand out.   The focus is good and detail unusual for this stage of my development in street photography, with compelling compositions and the impression of being close to the communities I photographed.  The tight editing had worked well and something to remember and keep up for future assignments.

To be honest, this is better feedback than I could have hoped for!

The only picture my tutor did query was Picture 6 - the dog and the shadow:

With this photo, I was trying to achieve a sense of mystery.  While I was shooting it I had held the position for about 15mins over the real dog - I was practicing exposing for highlights against shadows, and was waiting for something interesting to happen while watching the shadows change.  Finally a second dog came into view, but of course all you can see of the second dog is its shadow, which at first is confusing as it looks like the real dog has its shadow in the wrong place.  But, at the time, when this great dog-shape came into view through the view finder, it actually felt quite sinister - it completely changed the light for one thing, but it also felt like the shadow dog was creeping past the sleeping dog.  When I then put together my series and paired it backwards with the policeman looking alarmed and forwards with the child hiding behind bars, I was trying to get a sense of a frightening aspect of wonder across.  I do have some other mystery shots I could substitute - but I felt that this one worked the best in terms of the peeling onions and transition from positive to negative concept of wonder.

Finally, to explore street photography further, she recommended researching further:

• Joel Sternfeld
• Stephen Shore
• Saul Leiter
• William Eggleston
• Helen Levitt.

I'm already familiar with Saul Leiter, although I haven't previously mentioned him in my blog, but the others are new.  I will certainly research these photographers!

Part Three - Putting yourself in the picture: Project Two - Masquerades: Exercise 2 - Childhood memory

This exercise asks us to recreate a childhood memory in a photograph.  I explored this topic quite deeply in the Digital Photographic Practice module, which I did not complete and therefore have not submitted for assessment.  Rather than repeat the exercise, I will refer to this one instead, the work for which can be found via this link: http://jointheaadpp.blogspot.co.uk/p/blog-page.html and then following the various links under Assignment Three: Monochrome.  The photography was executed in May 2014, so still relatively recently and consisted of trying to rediscover my childhood memories of Felixstowe, where I spent my childhood holidays with my grandparents, parents and sister.

Here are my further thoughts about this exercise:

• The memory involved me directly and was all about my own fondness and attachment to the place that houses the memories of my grandparents.
• I did not include my adult self in the photographs; this about what I had seen with my eyes as a child and wanted to see again as an adult.
• I neither recreated the memory literally, as I was prepared for a) time moving on and b) not recreating scenes. I was just revisiting locations that I associated with those memories, nor did I recreate it metaphorically.  I think the end result is actually like a retrospective documentary.
• I did accompany the images with text; I put together a presentation which I have uploaded below.
• The photographs mostly resembled my memories; I was surprised at how little had changed and also that the scenes I visited where in such a good state of repair.  Felixstowe had obviously taken care of itself!  But, one noticeable difference, which is predictable, is that the buildings were a lot smaller.
• If I went back now to repeat the exercise, with the same focus on location, the subject matter would be the same, photography might be better compositionly (think I've improved!) but would I have got the same amazing sky?  Actually, I intend to go back to Felixstowe in 2015, but to carry out some seaside street photography, rather than recreation of memories.  

Here is the presentation I created:

Part Two - Narrative: Reflections

Wow - my feet haven't touched the ground!  But instead of feeling tired, as I did at the end of Part One, I feel inspired, energised and ready for Part Three.  I did have a bit of a blip though during Part Two, maybe a part of the come down from my trip to India, but I went through a bit of block with my course work, as in not wanting to do it.  I kept asking myself why I'd chosen this academic route, when basically all I want to do is get out and take photos!  I've resolved that now (yesterday actually), the bigger picture is that one day, I'd like to make a living from photography, and that will include teaching, so I need the broader understanding and skill set and have to be careful not to lose sight of that.  I do however need to revise my timetable a bit, as I'm not getting out as much as I'd like, and at the end of the day, I need to practice to progress my personal ambitions.  I currently allow 2-3 weekends a month to complete my course work, and then I read/research/surf on my daily commute.  I think I need to try, as hard as it is, to "work after work", to put in one evening a week for course work.  That means also putting it on my office calendar to avoid staying late at work.  I will start doing this in the New Year, and this will free up a bit more time at weekends for practicing my street photography :)

So, during Part Two I have (in no particular order):

• Taken part in a week-long Street Photography workshop in Varanasi, India with Maciej Dakowicz 
• Learnt a lot about different ways of supplementing images with text and what that achieves
• Learnt about loss of authorial control
• Learnt about the difference between relay and anchor text
• Understood how images can be ambiguous if not supported by text
• Learnt about photographing the unseen
• Met Dougie Wallace again at his Shoreditch Wildlife launch event
• Reviewed 2 exhibitions
• Read 0 photography books!!  (ooops.....)
• Won a photography competition at work!  Yay!
• Had one of my photographs used by Maciej Dakowicz on his website :o)

But, most importantly, a while ago, I wasn't sure where my photography was heading.  I was flitting between street, travel, wildlife, landscape, conceptual, art, documentary, trying out photojournalism....I had no idea where I was going.  Following my experience in Varanasi, I now known for certain exactly where I'm going.  I found this blend of street/travel photography very exciting and challenging - and this is what I want to do - every day that I can!

Finally, I need to do something about the tag list for this blog -it's getting a bit long....not quite sure what to do about it, but I'll give it some thought.

Fotoura - Street Awards 2014 Exhibition

I stopped by the Fotoura Street Awards 2014 Exhibition on Friday:

I had offered to take a photography for Larry Hallegua, who was one of the finalists.  Hallegua was previously a participant on a Maciej Dakowicz workshop, so this gives me great hope!!

Here is Hallegua's series as exhibited:

I really like the way the series is constructed with the linkage in theme and composition between each photograph.  The "wish I'd seen that" shot for me is the third one, of the two airline pilots/stewards playing with their phones hiding behind their luggage and hats.  I love the confusing illusion Hallegua has created.

I also enjoyed looking at another finalist, Gareth Bragdon, who I've been following on Flickr for a while:

Bragdon creates a bizarre, mysterious, sinister almost ghoulish world in his photography and it's just wonderful to look at.  How he sees a situation and translates into these strange scenes is just amazing.

Congratulations to both of them!


Websites

• Fotoura Street Awards 2014 Exhibition available from http://fotoura.com/photography-exhibitions/street-awards-2014-exhibition/ [accessed 23 November 2014]
• Gareth Bragdon on Flickr available from https://www.flickr.com/photos/garethbragdon/ [accessed 23 November 2014]
• Larry Hallegua available from http://www.larryhallegua.com/ [accessed 23 November 2014]
• Maciej Dakowicz Photography Workshops available from http://www.maciejdakowicz.com/photography-workshops/ [accessed 23 November 2014]