From: Halvor (halvorb@mac.com)
Date: 04/14/02-04:21:43 AM Z
I suppose "editing out" becomes a choise of words. Which I, to some exctent
is guilty of.
Now, to discuss pictures or picture making strategies without seeing the
print's is bound to produce some missunderstandings. I will put up a web
page and add the link to my mails later.
I would however like to go on a bit more. I am supposed to give a speech on
my pictures in about two months (in Japanese, a language I master like a 4
year old child). This also beeing my first public speech, I really need to
straigthen out my thoughts and come up with something sensible about my
trees. This email exchange really got my head working again. Due to language
problems I have only been able to have intelligent conversations with two
people the last two years, so thanks.
And I suppose another mail on trees in this pool of ink(jet :) won't hurt.
(High traffic or not it is still faster and simpler than a web board). Also
we shouldn't, as alternative photographers (or should that be
photographists), let the acusation of beeing only conserned with
technological matters pass entierly by.
First, it is a bit a matter of scale, I focus on only a couple of trees
instead of a few thousand. This, yes, beeing a result of the urbanisasion of
the world & degredation of nature. Call it portraying what is left. The
single image will not reveal much, although beautiful in itself, but the
body of work will reveal what is missing. (That might, I suppose, depend on
the spectator, culturally & interest) Doing pure landscapes/trees in the
greater Tokyo area does pose quite a bit of problems. It is however also a
challenge wich can produce interesting results.
(Same as with the alternative processes; if I want a bigger print (at least
before the inkjet) the option is to either enlarge the negative which I find
a bit boring, or put many negatives together, which makes a bigger print.
Side effect beeing a more puzzled & interesting image.)
The other part is the split between reasons for making the pictures, or
along the line "it is easy to critisise but solutions can be complicated". I
mean once you have the pure landscape, what to do then ? "Admire it
intesely" ? Is that really enough ? Would like it to be that way. I havn't
entierly resolved this issue, are however working on it by making pure
landscapes.
Or again, a tree signifies a tree. Punctum. Trees are good for my head or
mental state. They can look good with the sun behind you, or slightly insane
before they get leaves, sun against camera and the right angle & printing.
No problems involved. However my internal (eternal) critic beeing a bit more
in tune with the state of the art, demands a problem orientated approach to
picture making. As society is increasingly problem orientated.....
is this what's called "beating a dead fish" or something like that?
About the paper cup. Tragic with an element of humor. It does also
illustrates the changes of picture perception over time. Most people I know
within photography today, would probaly have congratulated you instead, on a
succesfull commment on the state of Nature. Assuming you ment the cup to be
there. Which you today would have :)
Anyway Thanks to Shannon for this title may I suggest treesrule.com if you
are going to make a web page sometime. It has been inspirational.
now, there are trees to photograph.. :)
Halvor
on 13.04.02 03:49, William Marsh at redcloud54@earthlink.net wrote:
>
>
> Halvor wrote:
>>
> I don't see pure landscapes as "editing out" anything. I choose to make
>> the picture in a particular way, controlling as far as photography itself,
>> and a normal lens, will alow me to, what is in the picture. My subject
>> matter deals with the human part through the "precense of abcense"(did I
>> spell that right). In the end what you include (or not, set up against the
>> expectations for the subject matter) in the picture, is what the picture is
>> about (or at least the first building blocks before you choose developer and
>> so on), and until I know that I have to keep on with my trees.
>>
>> To make pictures is a learning process, and self imposed (or technological)
>> rules or limitations can serve to simplifiy the process.
>>
>> Stopping to make pure landscapes you have either reached a "higher" level in
>> your picture making process than me, or our processes goes in opposite
>> directions :)
>>
>> Halvor
>
>
> What I meant by "editing out" was that it is getting harder to find any
> "pure landscape" out there that is untouched by human hands, so that one
> must very often edit out a "pure" landscape subject from its
> surroundings, which may include all manner of man-madeness.
>
> For instance, the vantage point from which Ansel Adams took "Clearing
> Winter Storm, Yosemite Valley," is now a parking lot, which may as well
> have a sign up that says "Put Tripod Here." Not much room for the
> blinding flash of discovery. When I was there last, I and four other
> photographers lined up with our big cameras pointed at Ansel's picture
> (ridiculous for us to do that anyway), while in the parking lot behind
> us a bus-full of tourists pulled up and were snapping away with their
> point-and-shoots, laughing and taking pictures of each other, the bus,
> us, the valley, themselves posed in front of the valley. I turned from
> what I was doing and watched them, and guess what: THEY were the
> picture! They were the most interesting thing to look at and photograph
> in that place at that moment, so I did. The few shots I had taken of
> the valley (which was enjoying a rare snowfall at the time) absolutely sucked.
>
> One point being, "The Picture" is often not the one you came to take, be
> it landscape or otherwise. Another point being, it IS sad, but "pure"
> landscape is ceasing to exist. Human encroachment is everywhere,
> sometimes very noticeable as in road construction, sometimes not, as in
> acid rain (been to the Adirondacks lately?).
>
> Another little story: I had a show of landscapes about twenty years
> ago, printed it, framed it, hung it, lighted it, and at the opening,
> somebody took me aside and pointed out a *paper cup* floating at the
> edge of a beautiful river, in what I thought was an inspiring print. I
> hadn't seen it - all the way through the process. At the time I was
> very upset, now I look back and see that the writing was, even then, on
> the wall of my own work, screaming to be seen and photographed.
>
> Regards,
>
> Bill
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