S-t-r-e-e-t

[semilog]

of course, not everyone thinks a.a. was all that great...

That was not the question.

-1 for bashing Adams out-of-turn.

 

[semilog]

I think a lot has to do with him being a good editor of his own work. If you shoot a lot, which I presume he does, you need to have the guts to discard good images that are nice, but that are not 'particular' in certain way. He has a recognizable style, a rare thing, which he guards by good editing.

Yes, exactly.

I've been following his work for a couple of years now. He clearly has a terrific eye both pre- and post-exposure, and he has a clear intent.

I see at least a bit of envy on this thread....

 

[Keith]

I think a lot of the photos that we recognise him for are images that a lot of photographers would look at while editing and mutter "Oh sh!t!" and move on to next proof looking for artistic merit instead of a quirky accident of composition.

It's his specialty to make these his trademark and I respect him for it.

 

[semilog]

I think a lot of the photos that we recognise him for are images that a lot of photographers would look at while editing and mutter "Oh sh!t!" and move on to next proof looking for artistic merit instead of a quirky accident of composition.

It's his specialty to make these his trademark and I respect him for it.

I think his work is considerably funnier than that, and I think that it sometimes can be too easy to underestimate the artistic merit of things that make us laugh.

 

[Keith]

I think his work is considerably funnier than that, and I think that it sometimes can be too easy to underestimate the artistic merit of things that make us laugh.

Not to mention all the photographers who take themselves so seriously that the thought of someone gaining amusement and having a laugh courtesy of one of their images would make them grind their teeth! 😀

 

[semilog]

Saul is working in his store when he hears a booming voice from above: “Saul, sell your business.” He ignores it. It goes on for days. “Saul, sell your business for $3 million.” After weeks of this, he relents, sells his store. The voice says ‘Saul, go to Las Vegas.” He asks why. “Saul, take the $3 million to Las Vegas.” He obeys, goes to a casino. Voice says, “Saul , go to the blackjack table and put it down all on one hand.” He hesitates but knows he must. He’s dealt an 18. The dealer has a six showing. “Saul, take a card.” What? The dealer has — “Take a card!” He tells the dealer to hit him. Saul gets an ace. Nineteen. He breathes easy. “Saul, take another card.” What? “TAKE ANOTHER CARD!” He asks for another card. It’s another ace. He has twenty. “Saul, take another card,” the voice commands. I have twenty! Saul shouts. “TAKE ANOTHER CARD!!” booms the voice. Hit me, Saul says. He gets another ace. Twenty one. The booming voice goes: “un-effing-believable!”

Stolen from here (Warning: some of the jokes contain naughty words; don't say I didn't warn you).

 

[dcsang]

Saul is working in his store when he hears a booming voice from above: “Saul, sell your business.” He ignores it. It goes on for days. “Saul, sell your business for $3 million.” After weeks of this, he relents, sells his store. The voice says ‘Saul, go to Las Vegas.” He asks why. “Saul, take the $3 million to Las Vegas.” He obeys, goes to a casino. Voice says, “Saul , go to the blackjack table and put it down all on one hand.” He hesitates but knows he must. He’s dealt an 18. The dealer has a six showing. “Saul, take a card.” What? The dealer has — “Take a card!” He tells the dealer to hit him. Saul gets an ace. Nineteen. He breathes easy. “Saul, take another card.” What? “TAKE ANOTHER CARD!” He asks for another card. It’s another ace. He has twenty. “Saul, take another card,” the voice commands. I have twenty! Saul shouts. “TAKE ANOTHER CARD!!” booms the voice. Hit me, Saul says. He gets another ace. Twenty one. The booming voice goes: “un-effing-believable!”

Stolen from here (Warning: some of the jokes contain naughty words; don't say I didn't warn you).

Dude,
You don't know how much I needed that...

Thank you 🙂
Dave

 

[back alley]

That was not the question.

-1 for bashing Adams out-of-turn.

i take it you like a.a.?

 

[semilog]

i take it you like a.a.?

Irrelevant. The discussion was about photos that are set-ups* (or not).

And for the record, yes. I like some of his work quite a lot.** I think he was an important landscape photographer, though more important for his teaching and still more important his contribution to saving some of the world's natural treasures.

*Keeping things on-topic, A.A. certainly had his share of both pre- and post-production set-ups, probably a lot more, even adjusted for output, than Matt Stuart's street work.

**Not more than the work of Cunningham or Frank or Koudelka or Kertesz or Singh or Strand. But I don't like my work, or probably yours, that much either. And that's not an insult.

 

[bolohead]

I've always been a fan of Matt's work, ever since I discovered it on In Public. Lots of great work there.

 

[jsrockit]

Wow, it is crazy that people will hate on this photography. It may not be your thing, but it sure is done well... that cannot be debated. I guess some people are only content with calendar shots and cliches. For those who think it is a gimmick or one trick pony, you should be so lucky to have that trick up your sleeve... most of us will never have the chance to have a gimmick.

 

[ebino]

^I have had more fun with my fall calender shots than you can imagine. lol


Calender shots are like my C41 vocation shots.

 

[dyao]

I guess in the end, one of the most enjoyable things for me about photography is the ambiguity of the photograph, especially a good one. with these it feels like candy - you 'get it' and move on.

 

[ebino]

I guess in the end, one of the most enjoyable things for me about photography is the ambiguity of the photograph, especially a good one. with these it feels like candy - you 'get it' and move on.

I was just going through your blog photos. Very understated and subtle, no crazy post-processing for effect and very simple compositions, but they keep drawing me in. you got some sort of street poetry going on...

These days I'm torn between post-processing for effect or letting the picture stand on its own... So, let me ask you this, why did you chose not to go for the gritty Diado Moriyama look and instead opted for a more balanced approach?

 

[dyao]

thank you ebino! you've got some great photos of your own.

well, to answer your question, I line up very strongly with winogrand and all that he's said. however one quote I've been thinking about lately is one by sam abell - that he wanted to make 'quiet but strong' pictures, like emmett gowin's nancy.

I could write pages on this stuff, but I'll just say I'm not a fan of maximalist, bombastic photography, as I feel that oftentimes the form overwhelms the content - although there are some moriyama photos I really like.

someone who strikes a good balance between the two, I think, is koudelka, whose photos have such strong content that its amplified by the contrasty loud way in which he likes to print them.

 

[jsrockit]

^I have had more fun with my fall calender shots than you can imagine. lol


Calender shots are like my C41 vocation shots.

I understand...and we all make cliches and stock looking photos... it's hard to avoid. However, you should really celebrate someone, like this guy, who finds his own thing to do in the streets and edits it right.

 

[jsrockit]

Just read online that he shoots at least a couple of rolls of film every day and never leaves the house without his camera. There's lots of info about how he sees things and how he works towards particular ends.

http://moreintelligentlife.com/blog/melissa-goldstein/qa-matt-stuart-street-photographer

I like this quote:

"I don’t go places to get excited, I stay here to get excited. You speak to most photographers and they go to Afghanistan or to China or to the Himalayas to get excited. I don’t really like the idea of going to India for three weeks and taking tourist pictures and bringing them back and going 'oooh isn’t this deep and meaningful' because it’s not. It’s your holiday."

 

[Turtle]

I like this quote:

"I don’t go places to get excited, I stay here to get excited. You speak to most photographers and they go to Afghanistan or to China or to the Himalayas to get excited. I don’t really like the idea of going to India for three weeks and taking tourist pictures and bringing them back and going 'oooh isn’t this deep and meaningful' because it’s not. It’s your holiday."

I liked that one too! Personally I thought simply owning a camera and taking pics of shadows was deep.

Like the finest literature, the greatest beauty is in the ordinary.

 

[ebino]

thank you ebino! you've got some great photos of your own.

well, to answer your question, I line up very strongly with winogrand and all that he's said. however one quote I've been thinking about lately is one by sam abell - that he wanted to make 'quiet but strong' pictures, like emmett gowin's nancy.

I could write pages on this stuff, but I'll just say I'm not a fan of maximalist, bombastic photography, as I feel that oftentimes the form overwhelms the content - although there are some moriyama photos I really like.

someone who strikes a good balance between the two, I think, is koudelka, whose photos have such strong content that its amplified by the contrasty loud way in which he likes to print them.

you made quite a few good points here that made me think. your example of Koudelka was very interesting. and i agree with you, he wins when it comes to content as well as style.

winogrand used to say and he even says it in one of those youtube videos that he feels more responsible to robert frank and walker Evans than any other photographer. Diado Moriyama on the other hand is strongly influenced by William Klein.

sadly, its almost impossible to be original in street photography. but at the same time one cannot obsesses about being original and curtail one's creativity. its a struggle and i'm sure you know what i'm talking about.

 

[semilog]

sadly, its almost impossible to be original in street photography. but at the same time one cannot obsesses about being original and curtail one's creativity. its a struggle and i'm sure you know what i'm talking about.

Originality is perhaps overrated. Honesty, sincerity, and a great sense of humor are probably underrated.

Be true to your vision.

Just my $0.02.