#1213. Week Links of Photography (25 Jun 2022)

By pascaljappy | News

Jun 25

Cine lens on Leica M3, new film stock from Santa, creative photo competition winners, multiple videos about truth, and how to convey it in photographs, the ISS in front of the moon, Hasseblad ketchup, a 200mp cellphone in the making, La Gacilly, clarity vs texture, DIY digital camera, DIY film camera, the definitive recipe for fame and fortune, my “new” obsession, the history of Zeiss, war photography, Magnum NFTs, Warhol being naughty, and more.

Still no rain (Ansel – not Robert – Adams style)
 

Clouds but no rain. And not that far away, hailstorms so powerful that houses need new roofs. It’s strange, but that feels like low entropy to me. Greater separation rather than uniformity. So it can’t be the end, right ? ๐Ÿ˜‰

Anywayyyy, I have good news.

Particularly for those who got tired of me talking about film all the time. Not that anything cured me. Surely you weren’t expecting sane news from me, good will have to do ๐Ÿ˜‰ But the HiFi bug is beginning to hit me hard again, so one obsession is quite likely to chase another. It’ll come back of course, in a cyclical mad house manner, but it’s still a rest for digi-lovers (and no, turntables aren’t going to replace film in my mad ramblings. But you may see more photographs like this one, in the near future ๐Ÿ˜‰ )

To be continued below …

Vintage light
 

Creative

  • Robert Adams books (Fraenkel)

    Fraenkel is one of the most interesting galleries out there. And Robert Adams one of the most brilliant b&w photographers. I’ll break my no-film vows briefly to wonder aloud how many of the photographs in those books would be possible to day with digital and its harsh highlights, firmly believing the answer is “not many”. Any, pretend it’s your birthday and get yourself one of those books. Or three. You will not regret it.
  • The ISS in front of our moon (James McCarthy on Reddit)

    The title says it all. But this photograph goes for creative rather than purely scientific. Here’s how it was made (a gentle nudge for telescope owners among us ๐Ÿ˜‰ ) And here’s where you can buy a print of it.
  • La Gacilly Photo Festival : Abbas : Light and Shadow (ODLP)

    If you’ve not been to La Gacilly, do consider it. Lovely scenery (Brittany) lovely little village, lovely food, and a great open air photo exhibition that never disappoints. This year appears to include a retrospective of Abbas’ work.
  • Living on the Streets in One of Americaโ€™s Richest Cities (Blind)

    Work by photographers such as Peter Turnley or, here, Robert Gumpert, blur the lines between strict documentary and fine art. Post processing is exquisite and necessarily asks the question of whether an image depicting sadness or cruelty can also be a pretty object. Does this detract from the message being conveyed or does it help it. I think it helps.
  • Elle Pรฉrez Works Between the Frame (Art21)

    Similar questions are raised here. What gets the message across? Is documentary about truth of ethical fiction? How do you convey a particular experience without making a spectacle of it? How do you juxtapose images to create layers of meaning (yes, again ๐Ÿ˜‰ ) Warning: quite graphic at times.
  • This abstract visual comment on pollution wins the Creative Photo Awards (DIY Photo)

    The title says it all. Top results from a creative photography competition. Not all appeal to me but some are brilliant, in particular the winning entry.
 
Dial 30
 

Gear

 
Orange hot poker
 

Training

  • Quick Draw (Google)

    Noone said you would get trained ๐Ÿ˜‰ You, however, can train Google’s AI to recognise doodles. And it’s strangely addictive, like playing a game of pictionary against your computer. Of course, you can also be a bad boy and draw counter examples ๐Ÿ˜‰ ๐Ÿ˜‰ But training to draw is actually super useful for composition. Give it a go ๐Ÿ™‚
  • Which One Is Better? Lightroomโ€™s Texture Slider or the Clarity Slider? (Scott Kelby)

    Both act on contrast, but at different scales. So one affects tone while the other focuses on detail.
  • What is Monochrome Photography? (The photo argus)

    Expect a lot more about monochrome photography on this blog in not very long ๐Ÿ™‚ Meanwhile, this post is a quick intro into what, why and how.
 
Dome
 

Society

 
Anthropocene
 

… continued from the top.

Back to madness. The watch photographed towards the top of this page is wonderful. It’s my “adventure” watch and bears the scratches that go with the job proudly. Although the photograph masks it, the watch is bright blue, like a smurf timekeeper. I love love love love love watches.

But that’s one madness that’s not for me anymore. As much as falling for HiFi kit is still (possibly) still in my future, more watches probably aren’t. Watches require maintenance. Costly maintenance. Get enough of those pretty monsters in your collection, and you’re looking at a decent monthly salary, just for maintenance. I kid you not. And whether I can afford that or not is irrelevant to the matter. There is a vibe that goes with the idea that doesn’t sit well with me. A bit like buying cameras that lose value and require permanent FOMO replacement. The idea of self sufficiency that comes with a mechanical watch is betrayed by the heavy reliance on frequent TLC.

As I grow older, my tastes migrate towards low-tech simplicity, low-maintenance relaxation. Others might say Zen, but I’m too scruffy for that. Hence my being drawn to film. Although, on second thought, a laptop on my knees feels a lot more low-maintenance than running to a lab and spending days scanning. So, yeah, maybe I’ll yet spring for a spring-drive or adore a Dora Goodman (hmm, that 6×12, yum.) But that will be the exception, not the rule. Digital is, and does.

 
Old, me?
 
Challenge reminder ๐Ÿ™‚

Last orders please. The challenge closes its doors in a week’s time.

For those discovering it, the idea is to submit pairs of photographs that create a special meaning to you, that is not present in either pic taken in isolation. Please send to pascal dot jappy at gmail to com, with your name and “overtone challenge” in the tile. Each photograph should be about 1500px long side and in jpeg, labelled clearly so that I won’t make a mistake assembling the pairs.

As usual, what did you think of the news, the photos and what would you like to read about in the future? Leave a comment ๐Ÿ™‚ And have a great week-end.

 

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  • jean pierre (pete) guaron says:

    Gumpert’s work really resonates with me. Over many years, I have developed very strong views about issues like poverty and homelessness. Too many times I’ve heard the “opinions” of the sneerers, absolute rubbish like “it’s their own fault – they should get a [better] job”. And absolute rubbish like “trickle down economics”.
    Seeing those images has kind of derailed any thoughts on the other topics, Pascal. I’ll move over, and leave it to the others.

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