Vaseline Photography cont.

   

"Night Color" by Joshua Sinn

I saw these night photographs and instantly thought of my independent work with vaseline. I love the way color is used in these, and may want to try either using a vaseline-coated lens at night-time or framing a neon sign (or another urban source of light) using the vaseline on the lens. These photographs feel very eery and lonesome, and I love the way the blurriness -- which is probably created by fog here -- conveys that feeling. I'm especially curious as to how they made the car appear that shade of purple in the picture on the right, but I'm guessing it was some sort of projection light. If they make flashlights that cast color, that would also be something I would want to test with vaseline photography.

"Multiples" Idea

I am planning on shooting photos of quirky and unique houses around Portland and then piecing the images together to imitate Hockney's cubist style. I think this will work well because houses have a lot of single aspects that, put together, make up the design. This will translate well into a one-dimensional plane. I'm really excited to try this because there is a cluster of three houses right by my synagogue that are vibrant and unusual, and I have been wanting to shoot them for years -- now I've finally found a project that will allow me to do so.

Perception & Space

David Hockney:

"Merced River, Yosemite Valley"

"Sun On The Pool Los Angeles"

Cubism: an early 20th-century style and movement in art, esp. painting, in which perspective with a single viewpoint was abandoned and use was made of simple geometric shapes, interlocking planes, 

and, later, collage. 

"mann island liverpool cubism" By Stephen McNally

"Nature's Cubism" By Kombizz Kashani

Joshua Naylor:

Szymon Roginski:

Roginski's work is what I want to try to emulate in my body of work on multiple perspectives. These photographs were achieved by cutting out printed images into gemoetric shapes and then reassembling them. For mine, I want to try to cut many different pictures into geometric shapes and then create a new image out of that. 

Diptychs & Triptychs

Diptych: A photograph that uses two different or identical images side by side to form one single artistic statement.

"Yakutania Point" By Mike K 

"diptych" By Just Mary

(This one is my personal favorite. I love how the dirt around the frame acts as a sort of vignette and gives the photo an unusually intimate feel. The lighting conveys an early summer evening, which evokes a lot of emotion.)

"diptych" By gfpeck

Triptych: A photograph that uses three different or identical images side by side to form one single artistic statement. 

"Triptych Roundabout" By Eddie Miller 

"Gapstow Bridge - Triptych" By Patrick

"Triptych of man and dogs in Hagley Park" By John Doogan

Sepia-Toned Infrared Film

I have wanted to shoot with infrared film for a very long time, and hope to finally be able to do so within the next quarter or so. I'm interested in trying something different from simple black-and-white photography for my next project, though, and am feeling very inspired by sepia toning at the moment. I like the retro and surreal feel it gives to infrared landscapes.

Expressive Self Portrait: Life in Water

For as long as I can remember, I've spent most of my time in or around the water. This is always through swim team, water polo, or working as a lifeguard. Because this is such a significant part of my life, I decided to show how all my aquatic activities fit together by putting on different articles of clothing and accessories that go with each activity. I think it accurately represents the kind of mismatched way all of these pastimes go together, and my facial expressions convey how I often feel about having all of these activities: frazzled, and at times annoyed, but always genuinely happy about spending my time doing them. I don't know where I would be if I didn't feel at home in the water, and it's the way that all my aquatic activities perfectly fit together that make me feel that way.  

Chuck Close -- Tapestries

The photograph/tapestry I chose to focus on is titled "Lorna." This is, clearly, an image of an African American woman. She is smiling coyly at the camera, and the photograph is in black and white. One of the first things the viewer notices when observing the photograph is the "shininess" of her face, which Close probably achieved by boosting the contrast to bring out the white tones in her face. By doing so, he has given her face a slightly surreal and glossy look, which was fascinating to see transferred onto a tapestry -- the ability to portray three-dimensional texture on fabric is always amazing to me. "Lorna" makes me feel as if I've regressed into a childlike state, because of the stern yet playful look on the subject's face. It seems to mimic a mother looking upon her child. The angle of the shot is the main technique Close used to achieve this effect, in my opinion. By making her look down upon the viewer, this feeling of condescension is amplified in a physical sense as well as an emotional one. The shallow depth of field is crucial as well, because it allows the viewer to feel closer to the subject and therefore experience a more intense emotional response. This photograph is very inspirational to me, because I am working with vaseline and blurred focus for my independent work, and this is used (or at least portrayed) quite skillfully in this image. It goes hand-in-hand with depth of field in this sense to reiterate the focus on the face and the expression of this woman.

Jacob Sutton: Vaseline Photography

For my first project, I have decided to explore the technique of shooting through a vaseline coated lens. After discovering Jacob Sutton's "Underwater Portraits," my focus turned specifically to using vaseline to create an ethereal effect with portraits. His portraits are some of the most beautiful I've ever seen, because the subjects almost look as if they're drowning -- but in a serene and peaceful way. I am going to try to emulate this style by putting my subjects in a bathtub full of water (or a milkier substance), and then putting vaseline around their face as a sort of gradual frame.

Self Portraits

I think this first photograph really captures the way that I often tend to do ridiculous things in earnest, especially when I was little. I also think that confused yet skeptical look I have on my face is one that I have carried with me as I've grown up, and resonates with me as one that I still use today. I'm not playing with my sunglasses in order to make people laugh: I can tell that this was just something I felt like doing, and ended up being funny. I like to think that's how I am now as well, in terms of being unintentionally funny because it's simply a core part of my personality. I think the more recent picture really captures the way I look when I'm just in my natural state. People always tell me that I make this face all the time when I'm laughing, or talking with people about something I find enjoyable. Basically, it's my happy face. I tend to find happiness most through humor, whether it's by me saying something funny or by hearing someone else. I think that I tend to give off a somehwat shy yet friendly demeanor, and that part of me is shown well in the photo. I like to keep a balance between being funny and happy and making sure that I'm still taking life seriously, and I think the combination of these two photos captures this well. Sometimes I think that the young photo of me looks like I'm seeing into my future with a scared but determined look, while still being funny. I hope this is an attitude and perspective I take with me throughout my life, because balance is key to me.

Thinking Sideways

My Summer

The best thing I did this summer was spend a day on one of the Western peninsulas in Iceland. After doing a day hike up one of the craters out there, we went far out to one of the farms that ran a very small and isolated public geothermal pool. With giant black mountains on the right and the sea and ocean breeze on the left, it was one of the most beautiful places I had ever been. I think this picture accurately depicts the serenity and raw beauty of the environment, and also how unavoidable the Icelandic landscape is.