Angelo gave the first "f8 tech talk" of 2018 today...combining some history of the digital era with some of the Photoshop digital techniques he uses in his own post production.
He revisited some basics of digital photography with an emphasis on the importance of capturing RAW images and why we need Curves. Then he discussed three filters: 'Shake Reduction', 'Apply Image', and 'Blend'. We reviewed dynamic range as it applied to our eyes...our cameras...our monitors and finally our prints. Our eyes have a dynamic range of about 20 Our cameras (digital sensors) have range of about 13 +/- Our monitors have range of 10-12 Our prints have range of 8 Angelo then talked about the Histogram and its usable and useful parts.This was followed by a discussion of the three filters above. Since I cannot recount the details of each, I have links below to the three filters plus the white paper he sent out earlier today on "linear gamma" Linear Gamma / Bruce Fraser Shake reduction Photoshop Shake Reduction Apply Image Photoshop Apply Image Blending Mode Photoshop Blending Mode
1 Comment
"Photographing is editing" Walker Evans Before we started on the discussion of the day, we noted the new exhibit of Rene's work at Jones Coffee. We are lucky enough to have this space to hang our work. The images are changed periodically. Please let Rene know if you would like to hang your work at Jones. The remainder of the session was devoted to curation of a set of images Bill was planning to submit to an Aperture Magazine contest. The contest itself required 10 images that linked to a short narrative. Bill had a set of about 20 images that needed curating down to ten. First, the narrative that will be submitted. See below... The title of the series is "De/Faced: De/Based: "Putting uninvited writing, graffiti or art on city walls is considered, at its least, a nuisance and at its worse criminal. It is one of the cardinal signs of urban de-gentrification. It is ignored, erased, whitewashed and in many cases covered over with all manner of city detritus. As a photographer and Visual Hunter in the past 6 years I have traveled to many countries and cities visually searching for the right juxtaposition of elements on city walls that turned these images into transformative photographic art. Along the way, I’ve been intrigued by the faces that stare back at me from these walls and the narrative mystery they portray …all seemingly with the same message to be seen and immortalized. All these faces are, in fact, ephemeral…my images are not." / Bill Wishner The underlying visual narrative was that of "mystery" Below are several images from the 10 set that was curated at the session The series is to be submitted in several weeks...stay tuned for results of contest. We spent a few moments discussing street photography in general and more specifically a updated book by Colin Westerbeck & Joel Myerowitz entitled "Bystander" check out this NYT article on Joel Myerowitz and Street Photography Myerowitz "In this book, the authors explore and discuss the development of one of the most interesting and dynamic of photographic genres. Hailed as a landmark work when it was first published in 1994, Bystander is widely regarded by street photographers as the "bible" of street photography." (from Amazon website) Westerbeck is giving a series of lectures shortly called "Face Time" exploring the history of portrait photography @ Los Angeles Center of Photography...by reservation. A great photo essay on the making of pencils...check out the link below to the essay and images Fine Lines / Photographer Chris Payne Lastly, we discussed a seminar that will be held during this year's Pasadena Lit Fest in May. The subject will be the juxtaposition of words and images. The working title will be "A picture is worth a thousand words...and vice versa." Bill will participate along with Debe Arlook and Brian Biery. More later...stay tuned
“It was the wildest untouched Africa and it was magic” Jane Goodall Today we were privileged to have Rod Williams do his first f8 Pasadena Salon presentation and see the magic of his African safari images. In November he traveled to Tanzania, and the Ngorongoro Crater parks. The park is part of the larger Ngorongoro Conservation Area, where “Big Five” viewing is very good and a setting that is jaw-dropping beautiful. ‘Ngorongoro’, or ‘the Crater’ as it is well known, is one of the most beautiful places to be on safari in the whole of Africa! Lucky Rod and family. Armed with too many lenses, it was his visual intent to photographic the birds and, of course, the flora and fauna of the crater. In our meeting today, he reviewed his images with commentary on the trip itself and the locals he encountered. To many images to post so I used my editorial powers to keep the number reasonable. Below are just two examples of his "big game" visual shooting. And, of course, Rod's African birds whose names I can't remember,,,I just picked the pretty ones! Thanks, Rod for sharing your trip and images
Last, but not least, Rene recommended a movie called "Blurred Lines"....you can find it on Netflix. It 's a documentary on the world of art...though not specifically about photography. Humphrey Bogart as Rick Blaine: "Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship" from Casablanca (1941) We start off our new f8 Pasadena Salon new year with a thank you note from Scott Ward at the Armory Center for the Arts for our donation to their scholarship fund for young photographers in their program. Bill discussed his experience at Art Week Miami / Art Basal-Art Miami in December. In addition to the two biggest shows there were at least 7-8 other art fairs at the same time. Art week is 90% art and maybe 10% photography. There are galleries from all over the world. Bill was represented by AC Gallery here in LA who now has a brick and mortar space in Wynwood Miami. Wynwood is the "artsy" section of Miami filled with wall/mural art and funky galleries. Bill's work was entirely his Art of the City Wall series...resin coated images. Bill & Kathy made the rounds of the fairs...took in the arts and had a great learning experience understanding how photography makes up a part of the art world. Across the street from AC Gallery in Miami was the Rubell Family Collection, a private museum. It was very eclectic and among the galleries was the mannequin creations of Frank Benson...see example below Richard showed several iPhone shots he had printed on metal...sharp images with good prints by a company in Gardena CA...you can check out their website link https://www.presentationmedia.com Howard wandered out with his camera after the Rose Parade to capture some clever post parade images...one of which is below Cyndi Bemel talked about and showed her images from a recent assignment with the Jewish Journal...their first annual "Mensch List"...below are several images Finally we noted the Walker Evans retrospective exhibit at SF MOMA...Bill noted he was a great influence on his work as a "visual hunter"
|
|