Friday 31 December 2010

Happy New Year!

Thursday 30 December 2010

Matt Stuart Photography

Matt Stuart is one of those annoyingly gifted photographers who achieves remarkable results with nothing more than a Leica Rangefinder camera, patience and a keen eye for an excellent shot. His work, viewable at http://www.mattstuart.com/, is "street photography" at its finest.

According to his own preamble, Matt Stuart does not use contrived or posed shots, but uses a mixture of spontaneity and patience. Most of his shots are taken around my home city of London, especially focussed on its many varied people. I especially enjoyed the division of his work into colour and black & white.

Wednesday 29 December 2010

Flickr Gallery - First World War in the Air

Concluding my little theme of late, I have created a Flickr Gallery of some of the most interesting WW1 aviation photos I have found on the site.

Tuesday 28 December 2010

WW1 Colour Photos

French soldiers receiving a haircut, c.1916
Colour photography was first invented in around 1903, and by 1907 the Lumiere brothers had were able to produce reliable colour images that were almost every bit as good as their monochrome equivalents on the first ever colour film. Unbelievably, a small number of colour photos were subsequently shot on this new film. They are - to my knowledge - entirely French in origin.
There is a remarkable archive assembled at http://www.worldwaronecolorphotos.com/ where the author has painstakingly collected together colour images from the First World War. None of them are "action" photos (indeed, few WW1 photos are) but they are striking images of the conflict as I had never seen it before. One of the most poignant images I found in the archive is this:


Senegalese and other French African Colonial Soldiers

That these men should have been photographed at all is quite remarkable - I find it even more so to see such an image in colour.

Monday 27 December 2010

WW1 Aviation Photos


First World War aviation is a particular historical interest of mine. It's a niche interest, but I find the development of early fighting aircraft to be fascinating, and I find stories of the first pilots equally interesting and exciting. One of the primary reasons that aircraft were developed for military purposes was their capacity to take aerial photographs of the enemy; as long-range scouts, aircraft were unbeatable, even in 1914. Nobody really considered them as capable of actually fighting until mid-1915, and it wasn't until early 1916 that they became truly effective at fighting each other, mounting ever more guns and becoming ever more agile and manoueverable.

Perhaps even more strangely, it took around the same time for cameras to be mounted on aircraft, despite the fact that photography had existed for over 80 years in all of the warring countries - early scouting missions were often completed by observers drawing sketches of enemy positions while they were flying overhead.

Allied Aircraft over Airfield - c.1917 - Unknown Attribution

The cameras mounted on early aircraft were basic by today's standards, but they were among the most advanced of their day. In order to overcome the many problems posed by taking images from an inherently unstable platform, a camera with a fast shutter speed was required -as fast as could possibly be produced. One such model used was the Graflex "Speed Graphic", which had been acquired and manufactured by the Eastman Kodak company since 1905, though by no means would this have been the only camera used. The most remarkable aspect of the Graflex was the shutter speed for its day - as fast as 1/500. Designed primarily with sports photography in mind, the Speed Graphic used a very small slit, exposing different parts of the film at different times in order to achieve a sharp result - something that simply wasn't possible on lesser models. In order to get the shutter to fire at such a speed, a small key had to be cranked on the camera in order to build up tension - this was released when the shutter was fired - and it was enough to counter the vibration and unsteady platform of the aircraft. The end result was remarkably clear images of front-line trenches and fortifications like this:

If you look closely, you can see craters in the ground from shelling, and the distinctive square-tooth shape of the trenches below - so designed to minimise the effects from blasts and also to prevent aircraft strafing down a straight line. With photographs such as these, generals were able to plan attacks and see the damage that the enemy had suffered following a bombardment. WW1 aerial photography had such a remarkable impact on the army, it was deemed too important to leave it to a particular regiment of the army; in 1918, the Royal Air Force itself was formed. It would not be an understatement to claim that aerial photography changed the course of the war.

Very few photographs exist of WW1 aircraft actually in the air - their cameras were for reconnaissance, not for frivolities, but some observers used a frame or two for their own personal reasons. It is these images that I find the most remarkable of all, such as this one:

Rumpler C1a Dropping Bomb, Unknown Attribution

Even more strange - in this particular photograph, the picture appears to have been taken by the pilot, as the observer seems to be sitting perfectly still in the back. It seems more likely that the pilot had turned the mounted Graflex (or similar) camera back towards the tail and used the opportunity to photograph his colleague dropping the bomb.

There is an infinite amount I could write on the First World War in the air, but there are several websites out there with plenty of excellent information. I particularly recommend the following:




They are all well worth a visit, and contain many other remarkable photographs from this fascinating era.

Sunday 26 December 2010

Mr. Tilling's Hansom

I particularly enjoyed this image of a 19th century Hansom Cab, waiting outside Greenwich station in London. Notice the "First Class Ladies Waiting Rooms" in the background.

The photo itself isn't of any great merit, artistically, but even simple photographs from the 19th century can say so much about how our ancestors lived.

Saturday 25 December 2010

Christmas


last christmas...
Originally uploaded by ansik
Merry Christmas one and all!

I'm at work today, so we had most of our Christmas yesterday... we haven't quite finished with all the presents yet, though! We'll see if my fiancee will let me use her new netbook soon...

To illustrate this time of year, I found this lovely little snapshot on Flickr - the perfect snowy capture, showing just what is possible with a little compact P&S camera.

For those who can't be with their families this year, for work or whatever other reason, I hope you find some relaxation somewhere and get back to them soon. For those service men and women overseas, especially, there are plenty of people back home - here - thinking of you all.

See you soon!

Thursday 23 December 2010

David Pattinson

Posting under the Flickr username "travelight", I have recently discovered the photography of David Pattinson. I can't tell if Pattinson is a pro or not - he doesn't seem to have his own website, and all his images seem to be posted straight to Flickr. What is not in doubt is that Pattinson is a hugely talented photographer.

Pattinson uses a Leica M8 - a stunning camera that is far out of my price range, especially with a wedding to pay for - but camera does not maketh photo. It does, however, allow him to "travel light" and no doubt keep his camera on him in situations where I'd have to leave mine at home.

Have a look at his range of noir photography, portraits and amazing control of light.

Wednesday 22 December 2010

J F Rauzier - Hyper Photo

Jean-Francois Rauzier is a multi-award winning French photographer whose invention of "hyperphotography" is truly amazing.


Rauzier achieves his particularly unique style by shooting hundreds or thousands of photographs of a particular scene, then painstakingly cutting out and rearranging elements into pictures full of almost infinite detail and complexity in a fantasy surreal setting. His images have to be seen to be fully appreciated - be sure to check out the full screen option in order to get the best out of his images. It is amazing just how far it is possible to zoom in and explore in such amazingly sharp detail. I particularly recommend "Voyages Extraordinaires".

It is curious to consider if Rauzier is more of a "digital artist" than a pure "photographer", as Rauzier's technique does not extend to the printed page very well - unless it were onto a truly huge photographic canvas. That being said, every single element in his pictures is taken from a genuine photograph; is Rauzier a "missing link"? I think so. It is an amazing body of work, and Rauzier deserves a place at the forefront of modern French photography.