Friend of The Class: Sklar

I've admired Evan Sklar's beautiful food, interior and travel pictures in magazines for years. He was kind enough to send us this folding, three-image promo. You can see Evan's work on this website, and be sure to check in on his his blog as well.

Thanks, Evan!

[I've asked some photographer friends to send the class examples of their promotional materials, so we can discuss how photographers are promoting themselves. Throughout the semester, I'll be posting examples of more promo materials - so stay tuned. - Kevin]

bio.graphy

From left to right: Jeff Hutchens, Andrew Hetherington, Barbara Cole, J. Shimon & J. Lindemann, Thayer Allyson Gowdy, Peter Yang

For inspiration in creating a written bio of yourself, accompanied by a photo (either self-portrait or a picture of taken by someone else), check out the following photographers' websites, please. They are from all different genres, and some of their bios are simple, others are lyrical, and still others are funny. Some have chosen to include a picture of themselves, like the examples above.

Ericka McConnell
Andrew Hetherington
Barbara Cole
Jeff Hutchens
Tara Donne
Kwaku Alston
Shimon & Lindemann
Thayer Allyson Gowdy
Peter Yang
Claudia Goetzelmann
Shawn Records
Jessica Antola
Brian Ulrich
Kelly Shimoda
Jesse Frohman
Natalie Fobes
Matt Eich
Robbie McClaren

Q&A: Michael Wilson

Ben Taylor © Michael Wilson

Michael Wilson is a music, portrait and fine art photographer whose clients include Warner Bros. Records, Sony Music and Elektra Records. He's a photographer's photographer, shooting with older film cameras in a variety of formats, and working long hours in his basement darkroom. To top it off, he's one of the nicest, humblest photographers around. In preparation for their assignment to shoot a cd cover, we looked at Michael's work online and at 3 of his early monographs of personal work. Then the class asked Michael these questions:

Kayla Newman: How did you start shooting cd covers?

Michael Wilson: There are probably two basic things that led to my start in making pictures for music packaging. The first being that I had enjoyed making portraits of musicians. I had always been very interested in music, and in the people who make it so when I began making portraits (as a student in college) I was quite naturally drawn to make pictures of musicians who were in my world at that time... friends and acquaintances mostly. The second was a growing awareness of the potential life for the kind of photographs that I loved and was desirous to make in the world of record packaging. As a music fan, I used to spend lots of spare time at record stores reading album covers to see who was playing on which records, who produced the record, etc... I was also very aware of the record covers... and looking at who made the photographs or who did the design. I would occasionally see records with really beautiful photography... photography that was rooted in the kind of photography that made me fall in love with pictures in the first place, and inside I'd be jumping out of my skin thinking, "I wish I could make pictures like that for music like this." At this time in my life, I was 7 years out of college, 4 years of which I'd spent in a job as a photographer's assistant/darkroom technician at a text book publisher which had an in-house photography department. The grind of doing the kind of work that we churned had gone a long way to my becoming not very interested in photography. By contrast, when I saw a Robert Frank photograph on a "New Lost City Rambler's" record, or a beautiful Simon Larbalestier photograph on a "Pixies" cover, or a Stephen Shore photograph on some record that I knew nothing about, I would remember that I really did want to make pictures. In 1989, with the encouragement of a good friend and the help of my wife, I sent off a handmade book of about 10 or 12 portraits that I liked to a woman whose name I knew only from reading the backs of record jackets... her name was Jeri Heiden and she worked at Warner Brothers Records in LA. Other than that all I knew about her was that her name was listed as Art Director on a surprisingly high percentage of the records that I saw that caught my eye as being really beautiful. It was truly one of those "nothing to lose" moments and I've come to realize that no matter how old we are or where we are in our lives... realizing that we have 'nothing to lose' is a great gift. Anyway, I received a nice note from her a few weeks later and I was very happy and I thought that was the end of that. A short time later, I got a call from a manager of a band (which was from Milwaukee area, by the way) called the BoDeans and Jeri Heiden had given him my name and suggested that I do a shoot with the band as they were going to be close to Cincinnati on tour. I did and the pictures wound up being used in their package. A few months after this, I made a trip to Los Angeles and met with Jeri Heiden in person (she was the head of the art department at Warner Bros. at that time). That meeting led to the use of a personal photograph of mine becoming the cover for the Replacements "All Shook Down" record and Jeri also hired me to shoot the band in Minneapolis. That project probably did more than any other single thing to help get me started making pictures for music.

























Lyle Lovett © Michael Wilson

Kathryn Kmet: When preparing for a musician photo shoot, does the musician tell you what they want out of the book you create, or do they trust you to create it on your artistic judgment?

Michael Wilson: Only very, very rarely have I been given direction going into a shoot and on those occasions the direction has more to do with things like, "make sure it is not too serious " or, "... you know that this artist hates to be photographed." Fortunately, most all of the time that I'm hired to photograph for a project I've been given the trust and free rein to make the pictures that I want to make. In most cases, the project is discussed beforehand with either the artist or the management, or someone at the record company so that I understand the "feel" of the record and so that they know how I go about my work. But beyond that it is usually me doing my best to make the most interesting and honest pictures that I can make.

Jenny Scheinman © Michael Wilson

Andrea Payne: How do you go about making the environment you’re shooting in comfortable for your client? How do you make them relax in front of you?

Michael Wilson: I don't know that I have any formula for this, but I do approach the portrait as a conversation and as such I follow those same instincts, behaviors and courtesies that that would lead to a (hopefully) meaningful conversation with that person or group of people. My being forthright and honest and vulnerable going into the portrait 'conversation' is where I hope to start. I'm not the kind of photographer who has a lot of ideas ahead of time or one who pre-visualizes what I'd like to come away with... so I am almost totally dependent on the subject trusting me enough to open up and welcome me in to whatever it is they might have to share. I really do think of it the same way that you think of meeting any person who you may know very little about and trying to have an honest/meaningful conversation. It takes a bit of time and it is certainly not without akward and uncomfortable moments... moments when I feel totally lost. When I feel that way, I usually will come right out and say so. Quite often that helps. I also keep in mind how much I dislike being in front of a camera -- try to understand some of the discomfort and reluctance that the subject might be feeling.























Bill Frisell © Michael Wilson

Aryn Kresol: Was your utilization of the square format influential to you photographing album covers, or did your work on covers influence your choice of format. In other words, which preceded which?

Michael Wilson: My interest in the square format came before any interest in or awareness of record covers. I became very taken with using a twin lens, square format camera when I first started making portraits in college. I had always been somewhat shy and had difficulty looking at people in the eye and when I discovered the twin lens camera I loved that I could be standing there, basically staring down at my feet, but I was looking into the ground glass of the camera and having this connection with whoever it was standing in front of the lens. As crazy as that sounds, that is where my interest in the square format started. The square certainly does lend itself to the shape of the covers, however.

Georgia Lloyd: For your album photographs, are you in charge of deciding how to design the cover, or are you only in control of the actual photograph to be used on the cover? How do you manage your framing based on this?

Michael Wilson: I have no control in the design of the covers that I work on and I don't want to control the design. I love great design, but I am not a designer. I am not thinking about the eventual design of the project or how my pictures will fit into that design when I am photographing, I just make pictures and let the designer sort out the mess.






















Mose Allison © Michael Wilson

Georgia Lloyd: Many of your album covers are monochrome rather than color. What is this reason behind this decision? Is it purely personal aesthetic, or does it serve more purpose than that?

Michael Wilson: The work I've been most interested in during my life as a photographer has always been the b/w work. Certainly, I do think that there is a distillation or intensifying reduction that occurs when the world is seen without color and this distillation can lend a special weight to b/w work which I love and look for. The more practical reason for the predominance in my work is that I've always been most interested in the work with which I've had the most intersection. By that I mean, when I develop b/w film in my basement, I see the film when I hang it up to dry, I see it again when I cut it and sleeve it, I see it again when I make the contact sheets and then I study those contact sheets quite hard. By the time I get around to making prints (or scans as it is these days) I've had a lot of intersection with the work... I feel like it is mine. I feel attached to the work. I remember when I used to shoot color transparency for assignments, I would drop the film off at the lab, pick it up the next day or so, and then have to send it off to the client right away... and my work flow was such that I really did not spend very much time with those pictures. Sometimes I'd see something color in print and not even realize that it was mine.

Sarah Moore: Do you think a degree in photography is necessary to succeed as a professional photographer?

Michael Wilson: I don't think so...(but stay in school anyway). Quite honestly, I feel very much at a loss when I'm asked questions such as this about what it takes to succeed as a professional photographer. I think that each person will have to determine the definition of success for themselves. If "succeeding as a professional photographer" means making a comfortable living, making good money, it might be wise to spend as much time around photographers and groups of photographers who have developed business models and practices that have proven successful for them... photographers who are making good money. I've been making my living as a freelance photographer since 1987 and I still feel at a loss as to how to succeed as a professional photographer. I feel incredibly fortunate (and grateful) that I have been able to make a living making pictures but the reality is that there are a lot of people looking for the same jobs and I can't imagine that this trend will change. At the end of the day, I guess my opinion is that to succeed as a professional photographer you will have to either love succeeding in your profession as a business person or you will have to just plain love making pictures... whether or not you make money.






















New Orleans © Michael Wilson

Aimee Keil: Does your personal and your professional work ever merge, or are they completely separate?

Michael Wilson: I think that my personal and professional work do merge... they are by no means completely separate. The same instinctive love of pictures, love of seeing is what drives any picture... any strong, meaningful picture, whether the initial impulse to make the picture comes from my personal interest or whether the initial impulse was that I'd been hired to make pictures for a project, it is the same love of seeing that will make either picture work. That being said, there are those times when I've been asked to make pictures of things or people or events that I have very little feeling for... when there is little more than professional obligation at work in the work it usually shows... and I usually don't want to look at it very long.

Rose Tarman: It seems many of the opportunities in your life have come about serendipitously. Do you have any particular advice for an in-progress photographer that has high hopes for the future?

Michael Wilson: As far as advice relative to a career in photography, I would go back to the ideas that I was clawing at in attempting to answer Sarah Moore' s question about what it takes to succeed as a professional photographer. The most specific and particular advice I can think to give anyone who is giving serious consideration to photography as a major part of their life is to look at as many pictures as you can... especially look at the pictures that have been made by people who have spent their lives making pictures for the love of making pictures. When you find work that moves you, be grateful and lap it up. There is probably something in that work that was motivated by the very same things that are at work in you. Make pictures whether people want you to make pictures or not... whether people pay you for your pictures or not. My experience has been that I cannot rightly determine photography's place in my life by thinking about it -- it has been by making pictures that I've come to find out photography's place in my life.

© michael senise

For the h20 assignment I wanted to create a musical artist as well as the cd. So this is my idea thus far. I have yet to come up with a name but I am thinking something along the lines of DJ Big Hands. The thought seems gross, unrealistic, and creepy. This image was shot with a tota light and later maniupulated to give it a bit of a snapshot quality. The mask is from a baby that is supposed to be used for CPR practice and the clothing is an XXXL speed suit with a black pull over hoodie to cover the rest of the subject's head. It was shot in my shower with the water running. I am still playing around with other images at the moment along with text and placement.

© Matt W. Avila

For the H2O assignment I wanted to try to take a straight forward approach, and keep it simple. I walked down to the shore of Milwaukee and tried to catch the waves hitting the concrete. I choose this particular shot of that day because of the color and the shape of the splashing water.

© Rose Tarman

As I was considering the guidelines for this project, I decided I wanted to show sides of water other than it's physicality. I considered hinting at it's presence, conveying other things through it's powers and making images that utilized non-traditional forms of water. Though the approach I chose didn't really fit within those ideas, it was a product of them. Through this image I want to capture an experience of heightened emotion, of a heart pounding and a rush gathering. I want to make those who see it feel what the model was feeling as she was getting water poured over her body. For the most part, it is successful, but I believe making the images I did was more of a progression into making more successful images than actually being the final images.

© Andrea Payne

Out of the several photos I took for the album project this is by far my favorite. The small drop of water that hangs in the subject's mouth gives me the utmost joy. I love little small details like this in a photograph, something that keeps you staring at it forever. The use of natural light also enhances this photograph by highlighting the water softly.

© Rebecca Gaimari

This was a collaborative effort between my model and myself. This was a statement made about people being one with nature. For this series of images, we filled a bath tube with a mixture of water and organic potting soil, my model then emerged herself in the tube. I chose to use the pieces of the dirt that did not dissolve to discretely cover parts of my model in this images. There was a combination of three lights: a over head light, a side light from the left, and then a flash. I then mutted the colors in the post production.

© Todd Langkamp

For this photo both the model and myself decided it would be great to go with a more humorous route. Most of the other photos are more serious or mellow in nature. By going with the humorous or even gross route we kept more with the model's personality. Because of the scene and the way that the model is dressed he suggested the band name "The Accountant Killers" or "The Commodes."

©Sarah Moore

I wanted to take a creative approach to the "H20" album theme. In all honesty this shot was pretty spontaneous. My subject was taking off his shirt so I could photograph him in the shower, and I randomly snapped a few close ups. I enjoyed the composition and wondered how I could incorporate water. The glossy highlights and fullness of the glasses lens' suddenly resembled fish bowls, and I imagined them filling with water.

© Debra K. Leal

For this assignment, I wanted to approach water in a way that was simple, yet comical. Personally, I am attracted to CD covers that offer a lot to look at, yet not in an overwhelming way. For this shoot in particular, I wanted the clean white look in a spontaneous matter. I had Cody, the model, interact with a straw and a glass of water. I photographed his interaction and proceeded to show it in a grid format.

©Kathryn S. Kmet

My main objective for this H2O photo-shoot was to create a scene involving a clothed woman immersed water. I played a lot with light mood and body language. As I shot I became in love with the natural mellow light in the bathroom. I combined the light, emotion, and post editing on the photo to emote a moment when barging into a melancholy moment. The lack of eye contact and see through clothing, assumes that the model is a very vulnerable person. I captured many different images and I think that this one works the best as far as my vision goes.

© Lara Ohland

When thinking about the album cover I wanted to create a narative through imagry that eludes to the use of water. Water drips and flys off the musician provoking the viewer to wonder about the events leading up to the photograph. Motion in visual language comunicates the transitory nature of sound. The unseen element of time has been added to the image and we become aware that what we have seen has passed.

© Aimee R. Keil

When thinking about water I continued returning to the idea that in its natural state it is not a solid form, it is a liquid. The human body is made up of over 75% water, yet it remains in a solid state. When I was shooting I continued to think about this and I began experimenting with the exposure. By overing exposing the photograph, I was able to capture the movement of the water and the body together. Neither is in a solid state, they are both in a way, a liquid.

© Aryn Kresol.

Garry Winogrand said "I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed." This statement very much reflects my own motivation behind this piece. When an idea occurs to me, I have to pursue it. Even if it turns out unfruitful, the process is still a means to quell the compulsion. Often times, as photographers, we have a certain vision (at least with pre-considered pieces) of what we want a photograph to look like. And often times, the resulting photograph is not how we first envisioned. This was not one of those times.
The construction was fairly simple: between the camera and subject, a piece of glass. Onto this piece of glass, the subject released a stream of water creating the ripples and distortion you see here. The glass acts as a barrier but also a part of the space - a place for visual engagement and interaction, not just for the subject of the photograph but for the viewer as well.
When this idea occurred to me, it was a tiny voice in my head asking, "I wonder if...". The question crept its way into my head and the only means of answering was to pursue it. I was pleased when the final image coincided with what I had previously envisioned. Ask me now what I learned when I photographed this and I will answer that I learned what this looks like photographed.

© Georgia Lloyd

For the H2O assignment, I wanted to create an image that pushed the title's concept without having actual water within the photograph. The end result is a time based sequence of the sign language motion for water. I feel satisfied with the end result as for most, it's not plainly clear what the purpose of the images is. Only those familiar with the signing will understand the cover right away. Additionally, these images were shot on a fairly plain background with soft lighting to push the calm mood that water can have.

© Priscilla Whitenight

While photographing my subject, I was thinking about the liquid and solid form water takes on. The clouds give a feeling of serenity, created by both solid and liquid water particles. I decided to divide my subject, recreate him and form him into a new individual -- this idea of transformation reminds me of water. I photographed my subject with my Mamiya C220 outside, using natural light. I chose to use my twin lens because there's something nostalgic and romantic when using medium format, especially when photographing an individual.

©Kayla Newman

When going into this project I knew I wanted to photograph real musicians, then I thought of ways to incorporate water into a space with that artist. I thought this would be an interesting place for a musician. I kind of wanted to give the photo a more solemn look, which is seen mostly through the subjects expression. Instead of using my on camera flash, I set up one hot light, and pointed it off the ceiling so the light wouldn't be harsh.

© Mandie Lousier

There is a captivating aura in instrumental music that flows from beginning to end imitating the flow of water rolling over the ground. I wanted to make this shoot more classical in genre and appearance by using the black and white photograph. The combination of wine glass, water, and candles created the sensual lighting environment I wished the subject to be in. The musician is a classical piano player who I asked to play throughout the shoot to keep the movement and to step away from the possibility of a stiff still image. I wanted the viewer to feel the fluid movement of the piano through the musician.

© Crystal Miller

When starting to shoot for this project I realized that thinking about water also made me think about oxygen and how they work hand in hand with each other. I decided to shoot my "musician" in a calm place that is alive with both water and oxygen. I wanted the cover to be more relaxing, so one could take in the place. This lake is a place I like to come and just be next to, letting myself unwind and that ultimately is the feeling I wanted to get out of the cover. At the same time I wanted to promote my "musician" and his more laid back style with the choice of clothing and the way he connects with the place through body-language mostly.

© Autumn Clark

I have a fascination with water, personally water always comforts me. I was interested in that fact as well as a study that deals with dreams and the phrase "find the word between the letters from h to o". I decided to combine both of these elements, by placing Katie Kmet in a bath filled with water and for her to appear as if she was sleeping. This photograph was shot with a Nikon D300 and just the lights that were already in the bathroom.

Reading: Andrew Phelps @ Ahorn

© Andrew Phelps, from his book Not Niigata

I read an interview recently with Andrew Phelps in the online Ahorn Magazine, and thought it was a timely read for us, in regards to project ideas and realization. Andrew is an American-born photographer living and working in Austria. Not Niigata is the latest of his interesting projects, which have included Higley and Bagdhad Suite.

Please read the Ahorn interview of Andrew Phelps here, and also check out Andrew's website and blog, Buffet.

Friends of The Class: Stein

Amy Stein sent us this postcard announcing her show, which just opened Thursday night at ClampArt (note: there's a little damage to the postcard from mailing, the oval blue shape). Be sure to read Brian Clamp's description of how Amy's work ended up on his gallery's walls here - it's a very informative statement of how the two came to work together. This show features photographs from Amy's Domesticated series, which has been published as a monograph by Critical Mass/Photolucida. I have a copy of the book, and will bring it to class on Friday.

You can see more of Amy's work on her website, follow her thoughts on her smart blog, and read two interviews with her, in our list at right.

Thanks, Amy!

[I've asked some photographer friends to send the class examples of their promotional materials, so we can discuss how photographers are promoting themselves. Throughout the semester, I'll be posting examples of more promo materials - so stay tuned. - Kevin]

Friends Of The Class: Gerber

I've asked some photographer friends to send the class examples of their promotional materials, so we can discuss how photographers are promoting themselves. Max S. Gerber sent a whole package of goodies - from postcards to posters. Even his letter to me was a stylish portrait, onto which he penned his thoughts. Throughout the semester, I'll be posting examples of more promo materials - so stay tuned.

Max is a California-based photographer who creates compelling, sensitive portraits. His work can be found in national magazines, as well as the book, My Heart Vs. The Real World, for which he photographed children with congenital heart disease. Max's photos can be seen at his website, www.msgphoto.com, and blog, The Latest Shot. And there's a wonderful interview by Charlie Rose about his book project here.

Thanks, Max!

Great Shot: Schutmaat

Bryan Schutmaat ©

Reading over Bryan Schutmaat’s interview is very inspiring to me. I’ve always felt I got into photography late in the game, but seeing Bryan’s work proves that it is never too late to become a successful photographer. He takes something simple like a bed as depicted in the photo above and turns it into something you could stare at for hours. One doesn’t realize how much beauty there is in the simple objects we encounter everyday. I love how clean and sterile his images are. The lighting source seems to be all natural in most of the photos, which only adds to the cleanliness.

To view more of Bryan Schutmaat’s work go to this website: http://www.bryanschutmaat.com/

Great Shot: Steacy

Jack Rabbit, Memphis © Will Steacy

I love Will Steacy's passion for his art, which he explains that he has devoted his life to his art, and that it is the reason he is alive. He made this realization in 2003 when he was almost murdered during a robbery at his former job at a sneaker store, and completely changed his perception on life and what was important to him. His work is about being alive and life and tries to push it with every photograph that he takes and states that you "usually have to fight for the things worth having." By addressing the overwhelming loss and despair that prevail in our urban communities, Steacy wants to make a modern day portrait of the American inner city. I love the way that Will Steacy approaches his subjects with an intensity and honesty.

More work by Will Steacy can be found at his website:

http://www.willsteacy.com/

Great Shot: Edwards

© Jon Edwards

Jon's work as a surrealist has always inspired creative thinking for photography. Most of his shots contain beautiful color, contrast and well developed angles. You may not know exactly what is happening, or being expressed but that is how you know you are looking in on Jon's world. What captivates my attention is his ability to erase or crop out details that will give us hints to reality, but is obvious that he can play with a sort of emotional reality instead.

More can be seen @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/jon-edwards/

Great Shot: Kalina

© Noah Kalina

I was drawn to Kalina's work right away because of the attention to lighting in his photographs. I find many similarities in his work to the images I created when I first started taking pictures. Dramatic lighting has always been very seductive to me as a visual artist, and I think Kalina achieves a wonderful balance beetween dramatic and soft in his lighting technique. It is very enchanting. Kalina says, "I don’t believe in photography as truth. I make myths." I think I would say the same thing about my own work, or something close to it anyway. I believe in photography as a way to visualize something you otherwise could not see....a way to create illusion.

More of Kalina's work can be seen at http://www.noahkalina.com/.

Great Shot: Collins

Prayer Flags © Lane Collins

While going through a series of interviews, artist Lane Collins really stood out to me. I am captivated by her work, which has and air of magic and whimsy to it. Collins grew up here in the states, but after college, she relocated herself to New Zealand. Her work evolves around her own personal experiences. She has experimented with images that represent the four elements, especially air. In an interview with Nymphoto, she tells us about what inspires her. "My element is air, and through research I gathered a number of words that have been associated with air in various religions and cultures throughout history - for example: life force, expansion, oneness, light, soul - and used those to guide me." The image above, which comes from her Ladakh, India series is a perfect example of this. The image has a very whimsical feel to it, with the delicate mountain peaks and the brightly colored flags under the soft glowing sunlight.

To see more of Lane Collins' work, visit her web sight www.lanecollins.com

Great Shot: Laforet

© Vincent Laforet

Before this class I had not heard of Vincent Laforet but after viewing some of his work and reading some of his interviews and his bio I can see why Kevin recommended that I look at his work. This shot by Laforet really caught my attention not only because of the beautiful imagery or the cute moment captured but because of what he said in an interview and also what has also been said by a mentor of mine and fellow photographer. That "photographs are about telling stories, sharing stories." Those are the type of photos I enjoy most and enjoy taking the most.

More of Vincent's work can be seen at http://www.vincentlaforet.com/

Great Shot: Friedman

Eucalyptus Tree © Amanda Friedman

Amanda is primarily a commercial photographer, but she also has a passion for night photography. Many of her night scape photos are shot in urban settings, often with one/multiple bright light sources, giving her photos a dreamlike feeling. She shoots in everyday areas like parks, ball fields and parking lots that we see every day, except during the "day" time. She captures uncomplicated things in such a spectacular way In this photo, Eucalyptus Tree, the form and gesture of the tree is simply beautiful. When i first came upon this photo I immediately thought of a dancer fluidly moving around in the hours of darkness. The clarity and style of her night work really fascinates me. Many of her photos are shot on foggy nights, one of my favorite times to shoot. I love how the light just seems to hang in the atmosphere around its source, timeless. I find her work so seductive and it excites me to make new work of my own.

More of her night work on her website
amandafriedman.com

Great Shot : Lavalette

© Shane Lavalette

Twenty-two year-old Shane Lavalette has accomplished quite a bit in his lifetime. A resident of Massachusetts, he travels and shares his experiences with the world through blog and print publications as well as an expanse of beautiful photographs. In his series Song to a Seagull from 2007, Lavalette gives a goodbye look to Coney Island's Astroland amusement park through photographs. He shows the place's oddities and nuances that hold a sense of comfort for us all, even if we've never been farther east than Cincinnati. This image holds some sort of nostalgia for me, though I've never been a fan of cotton candy and as a child was allowed to indulge when hell froze over. It's something in the soothing palette hazed through rough smoke and harsh angles that both quiets and excites me. The strange combination of childhood death-by-sugar, an undetermined source of smoke and a lone-but-poignant bottle of beer fit quite normally within the contents of the series. All in all I highly recommend taking a gander at Lavalette's website (which hosts links to his other endeavors).

Great Shot: Christenberry

Guinea Church, near Moundville, Alabama 1964 ©William Christenberry

William Christenberry is an artist who works in different media, such as painting, sculpture, and photography. His work is inspired by his southern upbringing in Hale County, Alabama. I find William Christenberry's ongoing work of the American South interesting because he photographs how things change in a specific area, not necessarily through time. His photographs aren't of the same things, so he's showing change through a greater perspective. His art shows not only nature, but vernacular architecture as well or the use of buildings that are found in the South. In this image the doorways frame the tree in the background, but the light adds depth and mystery to the piece. His work not only captures the silent beauty of a sometimes rustic area but it documents the artist's understanding of architecture in a simple yet poetic way.

More work by William Christenberry can be found on his website: http://www.christenberryonline.com/index.html

Great Shot: Stein

© Amy Stein

Amy Stein's interview with Making Room Magazine discussed one of her series of work called 'Stranded' in which she was inspired by Hurricane Katrina to photograph those who are stranded in between destinations and just caught in that feeling of having no able way to continue to move on their way. Her way of going out 'on the open road' and photographing/documenting the happenings of those who are stranded on the side of the road are moving. Her project in New Orleans where she scanned in people's photographs of times before Hurricane Katrina and how they were happy and were content before all their earthly possesions had passed away with the flood. I found her way of working very inspirational as she is inspired by events that have happened to America and the American people and then travels to capture these events. They are beautiful and inspiring!

Great Shot: Sasaki

© Kanako Sasaki

Sasaki's images from her series "Wanderlust" play off ideas from novels, paintings, and the artist's childhood memories. Most from the series include a female in a large scale environment. The resulting images, aesthetically, are ethereal and dreamlike, justly capturing a childlike nostalgia. The feeling that pervades the images, however, is one of being trapped. Some of the images show a girl in unplaceable locations; others show a girl laying face down, possibly physically impaired and seemingly apathetic. The figure is trapped in the mysterious locations by her own detachment and indifference.

To see other photos from Sasaki, visit her home page: http://www.kanakosasaki.com/

Great Shot: Frazier

© Danny Wilcox Frazier

I find Danny Wilcox Frazier's Driftless series to be inspiring to any young, documentary photographer. After researching Driftless and watching Frazier's videos and interviews, I was even more interested in his body of work. Frazier was born and raised in Iowa, and is still constantly asking himself, "Why am I still living in Iowa?". He is drawn to the people of Iowa and genuinely cares for them. Within each photograph of his Driftless series, it is apparent of the intimacy he shares with his subjects. Frazier will often photograph behind a window or in this particular photograph, behind sheets flying in the wind -- he always manages to capture the right moment to best describe each of his subjects. Through Frazier's photographs, he speaks about the hardship that these small Iowa communities are going through during this contemporary time. When I look at his photographs, I feel the struggle he is having as a photographer and as an Iowan. I feel I can relate with Frazier, I am on a constant struggle photographing people in Wisconsin and having to stare directly at their hardship through my lens, but I feel completely empty because in reality I wish there was more I could do to help. I hope in the near future my photographs will leave an impact on others, the way Frazier's photographs have impacted me.

The passion Frazier shows with his subjects and through his photographs is awe-inspiring. To find out more about Danny Wilcox Frazier visit, www.reduxpictures.com/portfolios/frazier or www.mediastorm.org/0025.htm to watch Frazier's videos capturing the people of Iowa and also an exclusive interview with Frazier.

Great Shot: Diefenbach

© Andrea Diefenbach

Diefenbach's photograph from her AIDs in Odessa series conveys the somber situation of her subject with out betraying her vulnerable position. Diefenbach acheives the emotive quality that her subject requires without revealing the details that belong behind closed doors. As a photographer I believe strongly that there are situations and places where cameras do not belong. Deifenbach brings the epidemic of AIDs in odessa to the rest of the world through individual stories in the most carefully crafted manner. Not only are her images beatifully crated objects but they resonate with her respect for the subject. Diefenbach's emersion in this project is evident in her work. "I found it important to follow her story even beyond her dead – how could I have stopped seeing her "
To see the entire series visit her website http://www.andreadiefenbach.com/

Great Shot: Goldin

© Nan Goldin

Nan Goldin's photographs have an underlying theme of love, gender, domesticity, and sexuality and are usually presented in the form of a slideshow; her most famous being a 45 minute show in which 800 photographs are displayed. The photograph above titled 'Nan and Brian in Bed' is one example of how she is able to capture some of the most vulnerable moments in relationships and have people view it as a type of private journal made public. The lighting and composition of this photo conveys life's realities of some relationships. The light pouring through the window creates a dividing line between Brian and Nan. He looks off into the distance, while Nan lays curled up in bed staring at him as if she is holding on to a dyeing relationship. "A lot of people seem to think that art or photogaphy is about the way things look, or the surface of things. That's not what it's about for me. It's really about relationships and feelings" (Nan Goldin).

More work by Nan Goldin can be found at, http://www.americansuburbx.com/2009/03/theory-nan-goldins-years.html

Great Shot: Seely

Metropolis 52˚29'N 1˚56W © Christina Seely

The beautifully illuminated landscapes of Christina Seely's series "Lux" has an absence of humans, but shows the proof that they are there. The outsider view of each city creates ghostly images of light that bleed into the surrounding land and sky. The color of her night photography creates luscious colors that fade away as the artificial light becomes brighter, like the image of her inspiration. Christina's obsession of the image NASA of the world at night created a seed for "Lux." The way Christina passionately described the NASA image was a new way of looking at night photography: "It is so beautiful while also being somewhat unsettling. I could not help but think about what the light on the map represents about us and how it both dominates the map in it's intense contrast to the darkness of the land and water, and how it looks a lot like bacteria spreading." The interest in the brightly lit areas combines a relationship of art and science that begins documenting the negative impact of our dependency of artificial light.

More about Christina Seely's work can be found at http://www.christinaseely.com/

Great Shot: Schwarm

Distant Fires in Chase County, Kansas - 2006 © Larry Schwarm

Larry Schwarm has engulfed my senses. His work is beautiful. When I saw Schwarm's work for the first time, the intensity of the color in his images was astounding. I enjoy the play between the utter simplicity in many of his fire/ landscapes with the powerful surge of emotion that fills the viewer brought out by the deep colors throughout the images. As artists it is our job to express the emotion for those who can't during times in need. Every year wild fires spread across our plains, force people to abandon their homes, and in the end kill some. There is a great beauty that comes out of fire as there is great destruction; I believe that Larry Schwarm has found that balance in this body of work.

More work by Larry Schwarm can be found at http://www.larryschwarm.com/.

Great Shot

©Erwin Olaf

Erwin Olaf is a very versatile photographer. He always explores through more elaborate staging and concepts in his series. I find this series, The Mother, by Erwin Olaf very interesting because of his use of black on black, and very faint lighting. The lighting creates a very soft and mysterious image which goes well with the theme. Other then the technical aspects of the photograph, I really enjoy the image because it is mysterious, and also dated. the actors are very staged and numb to each other. I seem to be attracted to mundane staging. As you look at the whole story Olaf tells if is a sequential event which helps the viewer understand. Olaf just continues to produce very luscious and beautiful prints that always catch my eye.

More Photographs from Olaf are at, www.erwinolaf.com

Great Shot: Michals

This Photograph Is My Proof © Duane Michals

Duane Michals is a photographer and a writer. As a person who draws as much inspiration from literature as I do from photography, I find his work to be greatly inspiring. An "artist formerly known as a photographer," Michals desires to go beyond description and present through photographs how he thinks and feels about the world, not as it is seen. In this image, This Photograph Is My Proof, Michals supplies the viewer with a nostalgic image, one of a man and woman paired with the following handwritten text: "This photograph is my proof. There was that afternoon, when things were still good between us, and she embraced me, and we were so happy. It did happen, she did love me. Look, see for yourself!" I find this image and conjoining message to be deeply moving because it makes me think of myself in familiar circumstances; it takes me beyond just seeing the photograph and to actually feeling what those words mean. It is great because it has multiple layers. The photograph itself acts as a facade of happiness, while the message that Michals conveys is one of nostalgia, sadness, and doubt.

If you are interested in learning more about Duane Michals and how he feels about his work, I would highly recommend watching this video interview that can be found at: www.pixchannel.com. There are also interviews with other great photographers such as Ruth Bernhard, Arnold Newman, Jerry Uelsmann, Elliot Erwitt, and more.

Q&A: Susana Raab

© Susana Raab

On the first day of class, we had a chance to visit the Dean Jensen Gallery to see Rank Strangers, an exhibit of work by Washington D.C. photographer Susana Raab. Dean spent time with us, discussing Susana's pictures, and how the show transformed from an initial idea to pictures on the gallery walls. Susana kindly agreed to participate in an interview with the class. Each student submitted 3 questions, of which I selected ten below. - Kevin J. Miyazaki

Andrea Payne: Do you prefer to work independently or is it nicer to work with a company like the New York Times? Does one give you more satisfaction than the other?

Susana Raab: I prefer to work independently, I view my paying assignments as creative exercises that will build and inform the performance of my personal work. That said, most everyone treats you exceptionally nice when you are working for the Times, so there is no denying the benefit of that aspect.

Mandie Louiser: Do you think color plays an important role in providing the intended meaning within your work?

Susana Raab: I think color helps seduce and create a mood. Of course it's very important to my fast food work because color is such an important factor in the advertising industries' strategy, and I am trying to mimic that strategy in that project. People respond to color, and understanding this does help create a more successful picture, in my opinion.

















© Susana Raab

Rebecca Gaimari: Are the people in these towns fairly willing to let you take the images?

Susana Raab: People never seem to mind me taking pictures, if they did I would just move on, there is always another photograph around the corner. I think you have to be comfortable with the idea of taking strangers pictures, and when you project confidence and security, people respond to that. On a few occasions I have had people tell me not to take their picture, to which I always acquiesce, but by the time we finish having a conversation they are literally begging me to take their photograph. Just happened last week.

Mandie Lousier: After working on a project for over a year, how do you begin making a rough edit, followed by the final edit?

Susana Raab: I love editing, and find as my projects evolve there are so many ways to edit the project. For me the most important thing is how the pictures play off each other, the flow. There are a million ways to do it, and I usually just make thumbnails and storyboard them out. After you play with editing and sequencing for long enough, the process just becomes kind of intuitive. Stephen, my partner, is usually my only other editor, he understands how I think and we banter about different sequences, but I have never been one who needed to show my work before ten different people to get a sense of how it should be edited. I know what I want to say and how I want to say it. Probably am too decisive!!!

Rose Tarman: I personally tend to work with color medium format imagery quite often, what is it that draws you to the format? How do you think it relates or fits with the subjects and ideas you portray? It can be a difficult medium to work in at times, there are challenges with speed and agility and many of your images depict candid, quick flashes and moments, which I find difficult in my own work much of the time. What are your thoughts on working with medium format?

Susana Raab: I love working in medium format analog. I love the process, how you have to be completely focused on technique the entire time, no chimping on the back of the camera, the uncertainty of the capture, and of course, the quality of the print achieved from the format. I find I respond more to prints made in medium and large formats than small. To be able to capture moments with the medium (am still working on the large format achievement of this) is just a question of practice and patience. It brings to mind Malcolm Gladwell's new book, Outliers, and the 10,000 hours spent practicing a skill before becoming intuitive or proficient in it.

















© Susana Raab

Debra Leal: With A Chicken In Love being one of my favorite images from the series, I wondered if you had to tell the models to hold the pose. If you did, do you feel that it could have been a better/more honest photograph if you hadn’t told them to pose?

Susana Raab: No posing! No models! Those are just real people, not posing, not paying attention to me. I find it amusing how seldom people will pay attention to you when you are holding a ginormous camera to your face. Of course, not using a flash during that moment helped. For me the story is truth is stranger than fiction. The photography is somewhat conceptual, but only in the way that I conceive of what I will say through the picture in my mind, not by setting up situations.

Aimee Keil: While we were visiting the Dean Jensen Gallery, he mentioned that you will be having a show in Shanghai. How do you think the Chinese culture will view these photographs?

Susana Raab: I have no idea how the Chinese will view my photography, since I have no conception of the contemporary Chinese art market. (My education sadly ends around the Terra Cotta warriors). And honestly, I just don't even think about it. It's like producing art with the intention of selling it, it is not how I operate (for my personal work). That would take the joy out of it. The joy is in the production. I don't want to overthink the process.

Priscilla Whitenight: What advice would you give young photographers who are interested in documentary and editorial photography, but have a primary focus in their fine art work?

Susana Raab: You know, I always think about Rilke, who wrote something to the effect of "You must ask yourself in the stillness of the night if I could not create would I die? If the answer is no please go and do something else." There are about a million different things you could do that would be easier than what I am trying to do. But if it is a compulsion within you, then do it. There is no path, but by being involved and pushing yourself, and working constantly you will make a way - and it is the way that is the important thing, not the result (I mean of course we don't want to die in complete obscurity, but if I am able to sustain the process than I consider that success). I am not trying to evade a clearer answer, I just feel that making a living as a photographer is about doing whatever you need to do, there is no straight way. For me producing work is the best part, making new images, and all the other stuff that goes into getting it out there is necessary drudgery. But for that 10 percent of time that I making work, it is sheer heaven. It is enough to keep me going for the other 90 percent.


















© Susana Raab

Todd Langkamp: Who are some of the people and artists who have influenced you in your work over the years?

Susana Raab: Stephen Crowley, Karl de Keyzer, Martin Parr, Margaret Bourke White, Steichen, Martin Chambi, Sam Abell, Edward Hopper, Turner, Jacob Lawrence, Alice Neel, John Singer Sargent, William Faulkner, Flannery O'Connor, Willa Cather, Wendell Berry, Ralph Stanley, Bill Monroe; it's an endless continuum!

Andrea Payne: What is the best advice you can give to a photographer who is struggling to find their voice? How did you find your voice?

Susana Raab: Well if it wasn't a struggle to find one's own voice, what would be the point? Struggle is good! I think it helps to be an independent thinker. Be sure of yourself and your intention. Read and read more. The struggle is what makes it worth doing - what gives your voice the meaning. What is it that really motivates or engages you? Also, I don't go into projects knowing what it is I'm going to say or how I'm going to say it. The discovery is in the process. Allow the process to engage you and you will find the conversation flowing. That is really what it is about, getting into a kind of flow that happens when you are fully present - when everything that you have studied or read inhabits you unconsciously and it becomes a part of your performance. It's about practice. After you practice enough it becomes innate and integral. I always think of Faulkner and James Joyce who wove so many archetypical thoughts and images throughout their texts that everything became layered with multiple meanings. I love this idea of intertextuality, because everything informs us. At whatever locus you are standing on is a composite of cultural interactions that inform you. Use this vantage point to communicate your vision to the world. When I started thinking like this, that is when my images became more layered for me (maybe not for everyone else though!). Also working in a series form helps build the conversation. The single images are not as important as the story they tell collectively. Don't read People Magazine, tune out popular culture as a primary method of information gathering, turn off the tv, and pick up a book, go for a walk. Enjoy silence. Write a letter. Go to a museum. Be engaged in your world and don't worry about getting to Point B.

Thanks all for your thoughtful questions and for visiting my show. I hope I have enlightened you on your photographic journey in some small way!
Warmly,
Susana