Reciprocity Failure on Portraits:
[portraits] gives us reason to pause, focus and reflect at the wonder and challenges of their lives... as well as our own. You can't ask more of any portrait. [previously here]via Russell Frederick by Reciprocity Failure.
Entered this photo in the Art and About 2016, Australian Life Competition. A great quote about portraits and it is what inspired me to enter a portrait this year.
Richard B. Woodward on Walker Evans:
Walker Evans’s subjects were never sensational or celebrities—his genius was in his ability to exploit the medium’s natural bias, to find beauty in the mundane.via ‘Walker Evans: Depth of Field’ Review: Unwinding the DNA of American Photography by William Meyers.
Darren Campion on Relationships:
We are the sum of our relationships, whatever form they might take.via Paolo Morales by Darren Campion.
Vinson Cunningham on Portraits:
One of the great joys [..] of looking at a portrait is the imperfectible act of reading a face. Is that a smile or a leer? Anguish or insight? Focus or fear?via Humans of New York and the Cavalier Consumption of Others by Vinson Cunningham.
Joel Meyerowitz on Reflection:
Reflection; the act of, not the image of, is a way of reconsidering where we are in relation to reality. Reflecting pools have for a long time been places where one could contemplate the difference between the illusion and the real.via On Reflection by Joel Meyerowitz.
Tanya Villanueva Tepper on Hope and Faith:
while life will go against our expectations and sometimes devastate us, time, change, hope and faith can carry us through to a life that is beautiful again. [..]via Rebirth at Ground Zero: Lessons in Life, Reverence and Resilience for a New Generation by Tanya Villanueva Tepper.True contentment is felt when we recognize all of the many moments of grace and providence which lead us to come full circle and fulfill our intention. We are at peace because we're given meaning to our experience, no matter how painful the journey was in getting there.
Tanya is right. It can be like this if you chose it to be. It all comes down to your outlook on Life. Your Intention.
Inspired by Rachel's visit to the 9/11 Memorial. Thanks Rachel.
Mike Johnstone writes:
you only need to know what you need to knowvia Mastering Photographic Technique by Mike Johnstone.
And, in the same thought, maybe to help you through any procastination:
you only need to do what you need to do
You can observe a lot by just watchingvia The future is not what it used to be. by Mike Peters.
Such a simple and true observation.
Did not even notice the face in the background when I made this photo. Only later did I observe it. Reminds me of this Poster I took on the T Station at Harvard in Boston in 2011.
Takuma Nakahira on Photography:
Just one centimetre from photographed reality is another reality beyond your imagination.via by provokelinks.tumblr.com.
Sophia Phan on James Brickwood and Portrait Phtography:
When it comes to taking portraits, James says it's all about the conversation.via Spectrum Now: photographer James Brickwood captures Ed Sheeran's softer side by Sophia Phan."You're sitting there, you're having a dialogue, you're usually talking to the subject longer because you're trying to show the private side of them – as much that's accessible."James shoots with a 50mm lens on a lot of his portraiture. Because of its focal length, you get the feeling that you're standing with the person to some extent.
Just using my iPhone for these portraits. Not sure of the focal length, but you need to get fairly close to get these kinds of portraits. Nicky is English and bought the Zebra Canvas at Chelmsford Markets and it is certainly the focal point for her Coffee Shop which is full of great art from near and far. Nice chatting to you Nicky. You have a great place and we will be back for sure.
James Brickwood on Portrait Photography:
I like to keep it quite close and intimate and I like to highlight the subject, that's why I have a clean background.via Spectrum Now: photographer James Brickwood captures Ed Sheeran's softer side by Sophia Phan.
Margaret you are a champion: a fantastic tour - I loved your enthusiasm and I learnt so much more about Trent's work. Keep doing what you are doing. Thanks for allowing me to take these photos - I think your enthusiasm for what you do, shines through strongly in these photos. Again, with thanks for the Tour and Photos.
PS - What I took from Trent's Black Rose Exhibition: The Circle of Life: Conception, Birth, Living, Dying, Death and what follows - Fate and Destiny - Luck, Chance and Serendipity (my own Trent Parke Serendipity Story).
a photograph of a person will always tell us something about the relationship between the photographer and the subject—that is, it will show the relationship as well as the subject. In most kinds of photos the relationship is so attenuated that the subject is really all that’s left. But in a snapshot the relationship is a real and enduring one, not a merely professional one that exists only for the purpose of the shoot. We can see it clearly in the photo along with the subject, and we can also see that the photo occasion itself is tangled up in it.via Relationships (*) by Looking for Snapshots (*).
For the most part his subjects are posed, yet remain very much involved in their everyday lives, aware of the photographer's presence but continued to be engaged in the environment that is so much a part of who they are. And we see them in every situation that life throws our way: the good, the bad, those truly memorable that survive us throughout our years, and those that are momentary, frivolous, lost to us if not for the miracle of the photograph. Frederick gives us reason to pause, focus and reflect at the wonder and challenges of their lives... as well as our own. You can't ask more of any portrait.via Russell Frederick (*) by Reciprocity Failure (*).
fearlessness (*) is not the same as the absence of fear (*).via We’re both scared but for different reasons (*) by Jeremy Rolleston (*).
The fearless person is well aware of the fear she faces.
The fear, though, becomes a compass, not a barrier.
It becomes a way to know what to do next, not something that has to be denied or an evil demon to be extinguished.
When we deny our fear, we make it stronger (*). And trying to deny it doesn’t make us fearless (*).
But acknowledging your fear and moving on / choosing a new [brave (*)] mindset (*) is one that permits it to exist without strengthening it or letting it control (*) you.
