Ryan Shude, Artist of the Week

Came across this digital photographer on yet again, photographyserved.com. you can check out the full portfolio on the website here: http://www.photographyserved.com/gallery/portfolio-2/1763950

and as for his personal website: http://ryanschude.com/

Ryan Shude seems to work primarily with tablo-style photography. He evidently pays attention to detail, making sure to get all colors correct and responsive to one another in his photographs. Shude resides in Los Angeles, California, but is originally from the Chicago area, and has worked in places, including the San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego. Shude works in advertising and editorial photography.

Micheal Kenna

Micheal Kenna is the exception for me. I usually tend to appreciate more color photography with a plethora of subject matter. The way that Kenna works with positive and negative space is really inspirational. He is so privileged that he was able to travel the world and the way that he captures moments in nature is beautiful. He finds so much organization and repetition in nature that many would not be able to see. He reminds me a lot of a modern day Ansel Adams in the way that he approach his subject matter. The black and white makes such a dramatic effect on the subject matter which brings certain elements that one would not notice with the distraction of color. What really caught my attention was the simplicity of the first photo I posted. I think it brings the illusion of an almost scientific feel because it looks like the tree under a microscope. The absence of an apparent background really brings light the the tree.

http://www.michaelkenna.net/

Mark Steinmetz

Mark Steinmetz has some remarkable portraits. He has a permanent exhibition in MoMA, that I've seen few times. Last week when I was looking up portrait shots online, his work showed up. Until than I forgot how much I liked his work. I found his work really inspirational especially while shooting for the last project. These portraits and many more can be found on his website http://www.marksteinmetz.net/.

Michael Ross

Michael Ross is, from what I can tell, just a free lance photographer who works in the IT department of some company. I found him on Flickr about a year ago or so. While his work does vary, what seems to stand out is his light painting. He has loads of LED tools, and takes a lot of long exposure photos. Some are more abstract, while some actually seem to have a subject or concept. He uses very bright and bold colours/lights, which makes his images really stand out. Some are a bit tacky in my opinion, but a lot of them are really interesting.

Rules Are Silly

Rule Breaking, Artist of the Week

Breaking my rules:

Earlier this week my mom sent me a link to a really incredible series of photos (that has now been made into a book) called Days With My Father, taken by Phillip Toledano. It's a truly remarkable series. Technically (what's in focus or not), emotionally, the spareness, the color palette, what is examined (the sole toothbrush in a glass), the story of it. Really amazing.

http://www.dayswithmyfather.com/#/0

Sharon Montrose

Sharon Montrose is a commercial photographer who specializes in animal portraits. Her clean, controlled style is very distinct and I thought it fitting to choose her this week because of our breaking rules assignment. In fact, Montrose seems to have a set of rules that she follows every time she shoots. Because virtually the only thing changing is the subject matter, which is in this case the different species of animal, the art is entirely weighted on them. Most commercial photographers seek out beautiful, and sometimes simple places to compliment their models but Montrose seems to do the opposite and keeps the situation the same for everyone. The artificial light and cleanliness of the backdrop make the photo seem like it was effortless to take and that all the animals were well behaved and posed, which brings up the contrast between the natural wildness of the animals and the controlled artificial set. I believe that it's this juxtaposition that makes Montrose's photography intriguing to its' viewers.

Broken Rules

Andreas H. Bitesnich

Andreas Bitesnich has developed this sort of signature tryptic look, which I think makes his pieces really easy and symmetrical to look at. Also, it's not something a lot of commercial photographers seem to do. His other ad work is more along the lines of stereotypical ads, but the way he treats the human form is really interesting, particularly with his composition. When I look at his photos, instead of seeing women and technology, it looks more like the interaction of a human sculpture and technology or intimacy and alienation. I think it's because he doesn't make the model's face or even presence a large part of the focus. As far as his portrait shooting goes, he focuses a lot on older people, but he treats them like models and supermodels and shoots them at their most open and intimate times, sometimes nude, sometimes covered in layers and layers.

Corrine Day is a self taught British photographer who brought more of a documentary style to fashion photography. She was known for forming close friendships with some of her models which led to more intimate and candid portraits. She released a book in 2000 that included personal visionaries or her close family and friends. She died August 27, 2010 of a brian tumor.

Broken

Rule Breaking + Artist Feature

Valentine Schmidt

"Valentine Schmidt’s series ‘Plunge- The Plight of the London Lido’ was taken during the winter months at four London lidos (outdoor public swimming pools). Schmidt focuses on the relationship between the floor of the pool and the surface of the water. This dynamic of architectural and natural elements is constantly in flux – affected equally by the changing seasons and by the human forces of social policy. Plunge uses the evocative qualities of the surfaces to speak to the history and demise of these beautiful and tranquil spaces. Full, or particularly when bereft of water, the Edwardian bathing spaces are honored in their various states of preservation and dereliction." -Photo District News

Ian Phillip McLaren

Ian Phillips McLaren is a photographer from Glasgow, Scotland who specializes in portraits. He has a very commercial and professional technique. His final shots are often dyptics- a close up and far shot. I feel like he takes photos how the clients want him to. He seems to make ordinary people look beautiful. The women all have a sexy look to them despite their features and age. His portraits of men look like models. Some of his shots seem to capture the personality of his subjects as well. His work reminds me of my own.

Rule Breaking.

Rule Breaking