What I could find of Emma Kisiel's work was either shot outside or inside with natural light. The one exception to this rule is a series of taxidermy animals she photographed in a museum. Regardless, Kisiel does not use her own light sources to light her work, but instead relies on her subject's given environment for light and adjusts her settings accordingly. However, since she photographs in naturally and artificially lit spaces, she does not need to "sacrifice" her pictures' quality to get enough light through the lens.
As far as subject matters goes, Kisiel shoots primarily dead animals. In her series "At Rest" she photographed roadkill, after surrounding it in flowers, stones, and other natural material, as a way of giving these animals the soul that we perceive they lack. In another series, she explores the cultural role of taxidermy in society.
I think that Kisiel's work is especially important to learn from after this week's lesson. It serves as an example of balancing the light available to you in a given environment. Clearly, Kisiel understands her camera, and knows exactly how to get the shots she wants in the environments in which she works. Thematically, I find Kisiel's use of dead animals very interesting, since it's something that must people would find repulsive. I especially like her series "At Rest". We see gaudy roadside memorials for people on a daily basis and I feel like Kisiel is pointing to the ways in which we, as humans, honor our dead.
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