Scarry

My 50mm 1.8 scares me. I must overcome...

Style

Listening to The Candid Frame Podcast #105 (with William Allard) on the train to downtown Chicago this morning got me thinking about photographic style. When listening to interviews I typicaly imagine the question being directed to me and in other podcasts someone asked a photographer about how he'd describe his "style.". I couldn't answer that for myself and figured it was because of lack of experience in broad-based photography. While listening to Allard it occurred to me I no longer care to answer that question. I prefer to let others describe my "style.". For me it seems o be more a subconscious thing rather than deliberate acts on my part. Somehow knowing my style scares me a bit. Will I feel limited and lose motivation to experiment once I know? I don't care a great deal to know. I shoot what I want in a manner I feel is both creative and challenging to me. I guess I can afford to do that since I have no clients of which to speak. :) I am, however, curious to hear what viewers of my work feel my "style" is. Guess I care a small deal to know. I'm in no rush.

Vivian Maier

Went to the Vivian Maier exhibit yesterday at the Chicago Cultural Center. Fascinating back story. I tried, as I typically do, select the one photograph that had the greatest emotional impact for me. Her exhibit, as was Sandro Miller's, was tough. Lots of emotionally moving photos and many with high visual impact. Below is the one I selected. I don't beleive it was titled - many were not. As soon as I saw it, I couldn't stop looking at it. After moving along and getting to the end, I went back for another couple of minutes. I was immediately reminded of Edward Weston's "Nude." The subject's positioning is not the same but they had, for me, the same emotional impact. The abstractness. The form. The absence of face. It all made me wonder, think and make up backstories. I looked his stains and position and all I could think about the crappy lot in life he probably had. Likely dead by now (shot in 1953) but wondered about his life and how, but for the grace of God, go I. Why him and not me?

for comparision, Weston's "Nude":

Weekly Themes

Here's the first shot of my year-long attempt to shoot a theme a week. I missed the first week, but I'm ok with that. Last week's themes was "cold" so on my way home on the Metra train on Friday I packed up and walked into the train's vestibule for my exit. When I got there I saw the barely noticeable snow falling earlier had resulted in quite an accumulation during the hour-long trip from Chicago to Elgin.  Snow accumulation in a place where  humans generally do not expect and therefore not prepared for it says to me cold.

Pic a week

The Digital Photography School challenged their subscribers to shoot a picture a day for 2011. I tried it last year and lasted about 4 hours. They have weekly themes for 2011 so I think I'll try that this year. I got this weekend left to shoot "cold". Funny thing is, it REALLY cold outside and all I want to do is be at home under some warm covers. I believe I am the type of person DPS was thinking of when they issued the challenge. People that have a passion for photography but are members of the proverbial rat race. Sometimes I fight to remain creative.