Project 3-Scans

Face Your Pocket

ICE #7

percentage

resolution

original

Ritchin-Chapter 6

This chapter was super cool to read about. I love the interactivity that takes place in photography these days. Being a digital art major, this stuff is right up my alley. The interactive portrait called portrait one was definitely interesting. I think I would be super weirded out if I had seen this back in the day when this technology was just emerging. It's like talking on Skype with someone for the first time, kinda awkward. He talks about working for The New York Times and having to do all their multimedia work which is way cool. This stuff was so new and different to the world he probably shocked some people. He talks a bit about his projects and work on photo essays and that kind of stuff intrigues me. I find it cool. The content of his work was definitely intense but none-the-less the idea of a essay based off hundreds of pictures fascinates me.

Chapter 4 Response

At the beginning of the chapter Ritchen talks about John Szarkowski and his views on photographers. I found it interesting how he categorized them with the “window” photographer and the “mirror” photographer.  The window photographer viewed photography as a means of expression whereas the mirror photographer viewed photography as a means of exploration.

Then when digital photography came around those categories no longer applied and in replacement came a completely new category called mosaic, which I found quite interesting but complicated at the same time. There are so many more components to digital photography now that it’s hard to categorize it.  Ritchen goes on in the chapter to mainly talks about photography now being linked to other media, such as other images, text and even sounds or video clips! It’s truly crazy the stuff we can get out of a one photograph these days.  They call this new view “hyperphotography”, where an image can be hyper linked to other media. Ritchen talked a bit about the shift of this once delicate image you protected by holding only the edges in fear of smudges to now the digital era of actually being able to view the interior of the image. This is quite fascinating to me! The viewer has the option to view an artist’s work however they want.  As well as each viewer is going to view and interact with it differently, getting different interpretations out of the image.  He compared these photographers to filmmakers, poets and novelists. It’s quite interesting to think about actually.  These photographers have the ability to tell a story to the viewer through a single photograph by interweaving other media into it.

Project 1: 1x8

ICE 5

Chapter 3

This chapter was extremely interesting to read. There were things he stated that I would never have thought to even do. Such as at the beginning of the chapter it was funny when he talked about the tourist going to Europe and instead of visiting the popular tourist spots and getting a picture in front of it, another idea is to photoshop yourself in it and then spend that time doing other things that you would better appreciate. He even went as far as to suggest to send out the photos before you leave for the trip so they arrive by the time you are on vacation which I found quite amusing. It's interesting to think that actually people probably do that! He just talked out the immense amount of pictures taken at the popular tourist spots and people using that data for cool project and things at universities. What he talked about that intrigued me the most was it would be an idea to use the same database that allowed photographers to see what had been there in the past. Such as what once was a forrest of trees is now a new apartment complex. That would be super cool!

ICE 4

studio

natural 

ICE # 3 Conversions

Reading Preface/Chapter 1 & 2

When I first started reading this book I thought I had bought the wrong book it is so different from other photography books I've read. He starts off talking about the transition into the "digital age"  that we are in today and how it allows us so much freedom in photography to manipulate images. He goes on in the first chapter to say that everything has gone digital. Even music and novels. He talks about the photographic disconnect which I found very intriguing and quite true. It got me thinking that some things are more photographed and seen and desired to be seen in the 2-D rather than in reality. Which is so weird and wrong when you think about it. Like the people taking pictures of the barn. They go to the barn to take a picture. Not to take in the reality which probably this barn that will never been seen as reality once you look at the image because it's an "interpretation of the real" as stated by Ritchin.
The next chapter he goes on to explain about the manipulation of photographs which intrigues me because being a digital art major I do this daily. He goes on to explain one of the first manipulations with the national geographic and the pyramids and the controversy it caused. It's weird to think about that little thing causing controversy when you think about the kinds of manipulations we do these days. Something else he said that got me thinking was now that the era of manipulating photographs is among us we are forced to believe or question weather something is real or not. He told the story of the photographs on the subway how he began to question if this scene was real or if it even ever existed. He began to freak out a bit and it got me thinking about it a lot too. It is weird to think that you can pretty much manipulate a photograph to do anything you want and not many people would know! I think about it and I believe that's also the beauty of the digital age of photography as well.

Project 1

hyped

low-key

naturalistic

ICE 2-Color Ringaround

ICE #1: Past Work/Future Aspirations

Martin Stranka is a famous photographer who is known for his surreal looking images. I love the muted colors and the overall feel of his photography just in general. His images are beautifully captured in order to make his images look not as real. It’s a dreamlike feel he seems to be going for which I love. Each image looks just a little off from reality that it makes you wander what’s up.  Some of his work seems so different that it’s kind of spooky. This really inspires me. I love the tones in each of his images. They are not the normal colors in real life. They are altered in a way, which adds to the dreamlike images. This is what I would love to explore and go for this term in photography and go for the weird and abnormal. I like the state of feeling like you are dreaming. The surreal images intrigue me in photography and I would love to further explore that this term.

Martin Stranka