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Category Archives: Research
Annie Leibovitz
I’ve been looking at the work of Annie Leibowitz and American portrait photographer, who puts a great emphasis on the way her subjects are posed. What I learned from her is to open up the boundaries. Her photograph of John Lennon and Yoko in bed, taken on the day John Lennon was shot, is posed in such a way you get the feeling of how much they love each other. Yoko is lying flat in a vulnerable position with her hair training straight up as if to give the impression she is being pulled. John Lennon has his naked body so tightly wrapped around her as if he’s trying to cling on and prevent her being pulled away from him. This makes John the more vulnerable of the two, you can feel his desperation to hold on to Yoko.
Another one of Annie Leibowitz photographs that caught my eye is Arnold Schwarzenegger sitting on his horse which a cigar in his mouth. As if his muscles weren’t dramatic enough some quiet harsh lighting was using directed straight as the face of the horse.
The horse is even looking down as if it’s all too much but the shadows cast are add an interesting feel to the photograph overall. I like that Arnold’s face and arm is light up perfectly with a little bit of a tease of muscle on the side. His back and other arm is then completely in shadow and adds definition and depth to the photograph.
Richard Billingham
Sometimes when researching a photographers work you discover a connection to another. I’m fascinated by photographers who’ve successfully carried out projects in and around the Black Country. I was born in the black country and although my upbringing wasn’t stereotypical, I was exposed to certain associated attributes. Whilst researching Martin Parrs work I came across his ‘black country stories’ series. One photograph from this series that stood out for me was a father and son inside a factory in Cradley Heath. I then looked at other projects carried out in Cradley heath and came across Richard Billingham.
Richard Billingham grew up in Cradley Heath with his parents, Raymond ‘Ray’, a chronic alcoholic and Elizabeth ‘Liz’, an obese chain smoker. A book was released ‘Ray’s a laugh’ by Billingham chronicling his family life in photographs. It’s a family album thats frank and honest and unlike others shows the good and the bad in a very matter of fact way. Even at the young age of 19, Billingham had the foresight to document his family life exactly as it is, warts and all.
Although the idea of photographing Ray came out of a college project Billingham couldn’t have known the importance of his photographs until later. When you look at the compositions they are awkward but this is over shadowed by the story they’re telling. In the photo of Liz stretched out on the sofa the angle is incredibly unflattering which in this instance works very well.
Some of the photos are quite tense. the one of Liz standing next to Ray with her fist clenched, Ray occupies such a small area of the frame with his face quite close to the edge and instantly evokes a feeling of frustration and a very tense moment.
It seems the more clutter in the backgrounds the better the story with every detail adding more narrative.
Ray is sat on the toilet floor and the door frame also frames the picture which ordinarily would have been in portrait format. This one is in landscape format and instantly cuts off any view above Rays head. It feels as though Ray is stuck down there. There is no space to stand up into. This is a true representation of Rays state at that time. He couldn’t have stood up either as being an alcoholic we can assume he was too intoxicated. This photograph tells that story perfectly.
I feel inspired to look through the photos I took as a child and teenager to see if I give an insight into true family life within our household. Before I do, I’m guessing, my photos are all of happy smiling family members in an average house, with average furniture and nothing really to stand out from the norm. I had my first camera at the age of 9 but only really recorded special days, special visitors and days out. What a shame it didn’t occur to me to photograph life like Richard Billingham.
Peter Dazeley
I stumbled upon the work of Peter Dazeley when working on Part Three of People and Place which was about buildings and spaces.
Dazeley, a Londoner born and bred carried out a project called London Unseen. In it, he visits buildings within London that are out of reach to the public and therefore ‘unseen’. The series includes photographs of such iconic buildings such as, Battersea power station, Big Ben’s bells and Henry VIII’s wine cellar.
I can only imagine the hoops Dazeley had to jump through to obtain permission to gain entry to these places let alone agreed to photograph them. The planning must have been immense and the execution just as intense.
What I like about Dazeleys work is that it’s quite simplistic in nature. He has the right balance of additions and omissions from his work to get across to his audience the atmosphere of a room the scale of a building.
Aldwych: The disused London Underground station was only closed in 1994 and is still visible above ground. It was used by thousands of Londoners during the Blitz.
The Bell inside Big Ben, showing its crack and hole – caused in 1859.
Dead Man’s Walk: A legacy of the old Newgate Prison, this exists under the Old Bailey – and was the route that a condemned prisoner followed from the cell to the gallows.
The main pump room of Crossness Pumping Station, showing off the engineering secret of Victorian sewer systems. It is open to visitors four times a year.
The hexagonal central hall of Wandsworth Prison in south-west London, which dates back more than 150 years and is one of the biggest prisons in Europe.
King Henry VIII’s wine cellar, built in 1516, which is now under the Ministry of Defence building in Whitehall.
Repton Boxing Club in Bethnal Green, which launched the career of Audley Harrison.
A safe deposit entrance at the Midland Bank in Poultry, with a 25-ton vault door, guarding 3,800 private boxes of varying sizes.
Control Room A: Battersea Power Station’s control desk, marble walls, elaborate ceiling and wooden floor. Some instrumentation is housed in wall-mounted displays.
Researching Dazeleys work and in particular the ‘London unseen’ series helped me to understand which elements are needed within a photograph to best describe its use and function.
One of the photographs that stands of to me is ‘Dead mans walk’. It is essentially a photograph of a series of arches forming a corridor. What I noticed is the clinical nature of the tiled walls, they’re everywhere and this coupled with the concrete floor gives a very unwelcome look to the place. The archways that appear within each other seem endless because they disappear into darkness. This is very indicative of what the corridor is used for. Criminals sentenced to death walking into the eternal darkness. Of course without a footnote we wouldn’t really know what the purpose of this building was but it’s sinister feel gives a good indication.
In the London Underground photograph, Dazeley places himself on the actual train tracks giving a low down view of the building. I think he’s done this to focus on the main event, that is, the trains viewpoint, whilst also allowing the viewer to see the platform and the tunnel going into the distance.
So, it’s not just what Dazeley choses to photograph, its where he decides is the best perspective to tell the story to it’s fullest. Whilst being successful in doing this he also produces a very pleasing photo. One thing Iove in photos is symmetry and Dazeley seems to have this style down to a tee.
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Yves Marchand and Romain Meffre
Each new subject I approach will lead me to find and research other photographers and normally relevant to the subject. Whilst carrying out the exercise exploring function I was opened up to quite a few photographers of which three really (and finally) opened my mind up to new concepts within photography that I hadn’t explored before. I realised the importance of narrative and concept when working on projects and it’s simply not enough to take good and pleasing photographs, we need a good story too.
To carry out the previous exercise, exploring function, I decided to head to my local Gallery where an exhibition was taking place ‘Landscape with Machines’ as part of the ‘shifting worlds contemporary arts programme’ a collaboration between Ironbridge Gorge Trust and Meadow Arts in Shropshire.
The first photograph to blow me away was by photographers Yves Marchand and Romain Meffre, entitled Locker Room, taken in Germany.
In the context of the subject I stood and looked at this photograph thinking wow, what a great use of space. Does this epitomise exploring function? Then I thought, what is this room used for? It looks like some kind of weird avery with bird cages everywhere. I then read the description, it’s a locker room! Not one that I’ve ever seen. Miners used the benches to change their clothes then use the cages to store their belongings and hoist them away. It’s a great photograph and a great story but doesn’t tell the viewer the purpose of the room. Maybe as it’s abandoned the translation has been lost. If this space was occupied it would tell more of a story it terms of function.
Martin Parr
To my absolute joy I found a photograph displayed by Martin Parr. I had read an article about Parr and the commissions he’s undertaken to document certain areas of the UK amongst other projects. The one I’m particularly interested in is his commission to photograph aspects of life in the Black Country and here in all it’s glory is a very strong poignant image of chain makers in Cradley Heath.
Its a striking image and correctly portrays workers in the black country. I even love how awkward the two men seem to be standing but even this is relevant as you wouldn’t find a chain maker in a factory posing with his hands on his hips, that would be completely out of context. It appears to be dirty work but the white background makes the workers stand out. You can feel the dark gloomy air of the space but what has been included in this photograph is the very strong bold colours bringing life to the image. I myself am black country born and bred (thats how we talk ‘am’) and this image fills me with pride to have been amongst the industry and known people who work their fingers to the bone to provide for their families. Maybe it’s the union jack conjuring up feelings of patriotism but for me, this photograph says it all.
I then read this article on the telegraph’s website:
To hear such a renowned photographer as Martin Parr say that during his rhubarb triangle project he took three or four thousand photos and ended up with 40 gives inspiration to photographers of all abilities. My own process is think of a project, research and photograph it but somehow I’ve always thought I can’t be much good if most of my photos are binned. This article has taught me that your process is your own and theres no right or wrong way. As long as you achieve what you set out to then the method is irrelevant to others. Parr also said “You are after iconic moments, but they are very difficult to produce. Most of the pictures I take are not very good”. I now know that it’s a myth to reach a level where every photo you take is great but the skill is in knowing which ones are great and which ones aren’t.
A final quote from Parr himself, “My job is to record things with integrity, and I can always do that,” he says. “Whether I take a ‘great’ photo is down to luck.”
Theres hope for us yet!
Sam Bennett 