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Contents1 2016 5 1.1 November . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Languages of Light - Tutor Feedback (2016-11-14 20:56) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Languages of light - Reflec on on Tutor Feedback (2016-11-14 20:56) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Part 5. Proj 1. Ex 5.1 The distance between us (2016-11-14 20:57) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Part 5. Proj 2. Ex 5.2 - \"The Red Ceiling\" (2016-11-15 22:18) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Part 5. Proj 2. ’homage’ (2016-11-17 09:45) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Rinko Kawauchi - Illuminance (2016-11-24 12:40) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Paul Graham - The Whiteness of the Whale (2016-11-24 13:40) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Part 5. Proj 2. Ex 5.3 - Photography as informa on (2016-11-25 16:43) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 1.2 December . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Photography is simple - Mood board (2016-12-06 21:08) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Photography is simple - Ini al Visit (2016-12-06 21:13) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Photography is simple - Final Pairs (2016-12-06 21:16) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Photography is simple - Submission (2016-12-06 21:27) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 Photography is simple - Self Evalua on (2016-12-09 14:33) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 3
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1. 20161.1 NovemberLanguages of Light - Tutor Feedback (2016-11-14 20:56)Overall CommentsA good, though ul submission built upon research and con nuing your interest in the local and society. Youare moving quickly through the course, and your progress from Assignment 1 is heartening.Assessment poten alAssignment 2 and 4 Assessment poten alI understand your aim is to go for the Photography/Crea ve Arts* Degree and that you plan to submit yourwork for assessment at the end of this course. From the work you have shown in this assignment, providing youcommit yourself to the course, I believe you have the poten al to pass at assessment. In order to meet all theassessment criteria, there are certain areas you will need to focus on, which I will outline in my feedback.Feedback on assignmentDemonstra on of technical and Visual Skills, Quality of Outcome, Demonstra on of Crea vityNotes from, and in addi on to, our Skype tutorial -A decent submission, with some good composi ons, use of light and successfully conveying the feeling of theplace.Rut Blees Luxembourg is a great reference, it does highlight the difference between her and your methods.Digital is s ll going to struggle vs large format, with fixed wide angle lenses. This is apparent when comparing like forlike.We discussed at length the final image.You have used the light, the colour to suggest the unpleasant feeling of these spaces – although I’m quitedrawn to the garages. We discussed the aesthe sia on of these spaces. Its a difficult balance when you are trying toevoke unpleasantness, foreboding etc but the camera allows you to make somewhat beau ful images.For assessment, look at ge ng the best possible prints, especially of your la er assignments. You’ve had is-sues before so it may be worth inves ng in your own to experiment – especially trying to get the exact colours in thisassignment.I will send your prints back from the last assignment to help you with comparisons. Remind me! (Done) Yournew printer should help you resolve print issues.As discussed you will find research is key, so keep up the reading! 5
You’ve tried using the camera as a tool to convey your feelings on this subject. You are also trying to incorporateinforma on from other disciplines. Have a look at Jeremy Deller, Richard Long, Victor Burgin, Jo Spence, Will Jennings.You are at a point where you can begin to ques on the efficacy of photography. Can it show the complexity,can it help us feel that precinct?CourseworkDemonstra on of technical and Visual Skills, Demonstra on of Crea vityGood exercise responses.ResearchContext, reflec ve thinking, cri cal thinking, analysisSome useful reflec on here, every bit reflec on will help you build to a rounded view of photography, all ofwhich will inspire projects. Context v content is a good debate to engage with, great to see Bull and especiallyBatchen – I think the balanced view here is the most useful, but only when you’ve explored the extremes of both!(Linfield good on this too).Learning LogContext, reflec ve thinking, cri cal thinking, analysisWell laid out and easy to read.Suggested reading/viewingContextIf you are stuck for inspira on have a scan through the reading list I sent you.Pointers for the next assignment / assessmentYou’ve been prac sing for this, let it happen, let something in life or in your research annoy, aggravate or in-spire you. Localness is interes ng.Date04/11/166
Next assignment due04/02/17Languages of light - Reflec on on Tutor Feedback (2016-11-14 20:56)I was pleased with my tutor’s feedback specifically where he said I successfully conveyed the feel of the place.Although he liked the composi ons we discussed the subject of aesthe sa on of such places. I noted the po-ten al of using visual devices i.e. experiment with angles and viewpoints to convey uncomfortableness.We discussed the final image at some length as my tutor felt that it the focus was a bit so an may be worthtrying to get it sharper. The image was taken at F14 but the depth of field didn’t seem to produce the resultsexpected of such a se ng. We touched on the subject of ’gear’ and the difficulty of shoo ng with digital in thesetypes of condi ons.As a result of this discussion I checked the [1]DxOMark measurements for this lens and found that the lensdoes not perform well at f/10 and above when using wide angles. I also found some advice on You Tube thatsuggested switching Vibra on Reduc on off when using a tripod. I decided I would revisit this image although Ineeded a night when the weather condi ons were similar to the others in the assignment set if I was to use it in theresubmission.I set up the shot using a similar viewpoint to the original and took a number of shots at the following aper-ture se ng: f/5, f/8 and f/14. The images that gave me the best depth of field were the f/8 ones. I have a achedthe original and my ’revisit’ version below which shows an improvement in sharpness. I will replace the original withthe my ’re-visit’ version for my submission. dsc_7338Original f/14 dsc_7452Revisit f/81. https://www.dxomark.com/Lenses/Nikon/Nikon-AF-S-DX-NIKKOR-18-300mm-F35-56G-ED-VR-mounted-on-Nikon-D7100__865 7
Part 5. Proj 1. Ex 5.1 The distance between us (2016-11-14 20:57)My approach to this exercise was based on the following quotes and extracts from the course notes:'The camera for me is more a meter that measures the distance between myselfand the other. It's about the encounter between myself and the other; it's notabout the other.' - Alexia Clorinda in conversation with course author)'Human subjects, occupying different roles in the event of photography, do playone or another part in it, but the encounter between them is never entirely inthe sole control of any one of them: no one is the sole signatory to the eventof photography.' - (Azoulay, 2012, p.17)The exercise was to: Use your camera as a measuring device...find a subject that you have an empathy with and takea sequence of shots to ’explore the distance between you’. When reviewing the images, look cri cally at the workyou did including what you didn’t mean to do. Include the mistake, or your unconscious, or whatever you want tocall it, and analyse it not from the point of view of your inten on, but because it is there.The ’you’ (me) aspect of the statement ’explore the distance between you’ resonated and I felt that I wantedto be in the images. My idea was to take images of myself as reflec ons in glass buildings. The encounter was to beon the street without full control as to what was behind me or even what the camera may pick up inside the building.The distance would be between me and the reflec ve surface and any other object or people in frame.The financial ’City’ district and the Thames Path in London was my chosen loca on and I pencilled it in for thefollowing weekend. I do have an empathy with London as it is where I had many childhood trips and where I take myfamily on cultural days out. It is also the Head Office loca on of my employer. This loca on provided opportuni esfor a wide variety of people and situa ons.As the weekend drew nearer some changes impacted my plans. Firstly, it transpired that it was the Lord May-ors Show, and to add a further complica on my daughter was part of the parade so I had a parental duty to capturethat moment. The weather forecast was for heavy rain all day. At this point I nearly decided to scrap the ’reflec on’idea as the condi ons were going to be awful and not conducive to street photography and crea ve ideas.Having read the course notes I was inspired by the Paul Graham quote, as quoted by Quen n Bajac whichstated, ’...you can set out with the best possible idea, open your door, go outside, and the world changes that idea.And you have to accept that and shi your expecta on to accommodate what you observe and evolve with it.’ Thiswas going to be the case for me as the weather was wet and I had to change loca on to be in the vicinity Lord Mayorsparade route. I would also need to use higher ISO so the resul ng images would be noisier.The main aim of each shot was to find a reflec ve surface and then concentrate on my posi on within theframe and recording my distance from it. In most cases I was aware of what was happening behind me but theresul ng images included aspects that I had not no ced or planned. The following are a shortlist of the mostsuccessful shots. I will describe each of them. The final one is my ’select’.I chose to produce the set as 6x4 prints to assist making my select and they certainly helped highlight extra8
details and colour which went unno ced on the computer monitor. It confirmed that looking at a print is veryrewarding and my ’select’ changed once I had seen the printed photo.Jewel Shop - This was one of the first shots I took and represents my original simple idea. It is a straigh orward shopfront with my reflec on in the shop window. Although I like the composi on and the red/black of the bollard pickingup the red/black on the shop sign, this image didn’t really include anything that was unplanned. 9
Kitchen Worktop - I took a number of these types of shot where I couldn’t clearly see what was inside apart from thecontras ng white and brown and the sharp lines. I have included it as it is a ghostly 3D image where the worktopcuts straight through me.10
The Jungle - The colours and geometric shapes of this office window caught my eye. I framed myself between two ofthe plant pots. The effect of me poking my head through the shrubbery was unplanned which I only no ced whenlooking at the prints. Although I had no ced the repea ng white rectangles when taking the shot, when reviewingthe image they give the impression of a roll of film. 11
Bench & Stool - Another ghostly shop effect where my reflec on is clear to see. I liked the complementary colours ofthe greens and golden browns, but nothing unexpected found on second look.12
Atrium Glazing - This shot was taken through glass which had raindrops running down it. It was a bright scene and Ilike the geometric shapes offered but could not see inside the second layer of glass. I find new things each me I lookat it. I was surprised when I saw the half faced woman which I hadn’t no ced the first few mes I saw the image. 13
Waving Man - The ’mayoral’ figure was the main subject for this shot. I had seen a London bus in the parade comingtowards us and wanted to get that in shot too. I fired off six or seven shots as the bus came past. I was facing awayfrom the parade and obviously caught the a en on of a passer by who gave a wave. This was going to be my selectas it affirms the statement by Azoulay, that the photographic encounter between photographer and human subjectsis ’never en rely in the sole control of any one of them’. Unfortunately the quality of the image due to the poorwindow surface meant that it was not my final select. Also, in some ways I had expected this sort of thing to happenat some point but I didn’t know at the me that it had actually happened.14
London Skyline - The skyline was in the display window of a branch of ’Aus n Reed’. The reflec on included barriersand vintage car used by guests of the Lord Mayors Show. I really like the mul tude of layers that are represented inthe image. My main framing idea was to posi on myself centrally on the ’Nat West’ tower. One unplanned aspectwhich I liked was the central posi on of the ’Scales of Jus ce’ on one of the reflected pillars. Another was the floa nghead in the sky, top le . This one nearly made my final select. 15
Li le Me - I can’t actually remember taking this shot. I think the bright framing lights caught my eye. What I hadn’tno ced un l I reviewed the image was that there were two of me within the same inner frame, with ’li le me’standing on a pedestrian island in the middle of the road.16
Pikemen - I was walking along Moorgate and heard the drums of marching pikemen. I took some standard touristshots and then turned away from them to get a reflec on shot. On reviewing the image I found that once again I hada racted the a en on of someone walking by, within the red suitcase. 17
Wavy Sea ng - The large designer seat caught my eye and so I chose to take a shot. I was very pleased with the lines,colour and ligh ng captured in the shot. I hadn’t no ced the repea ng horizontal dashes of ligh ng which dominatethe foreground. This shot had more inside detail than reflec on but I liked the overall feel.18
Abstract surface - This image produced what I saw when I framed and shot it. In fact the orange and rain runningdown the surface are more striking in the printed image. 19
Land of Hope and Glory - This is my select.Walking up to this loca on I had no ced a weathered man, down on his luck with a carrier bag in hand. When seeingthe flag and city skyline inside the building I focussed my a en on on this and hadn’t realised the man was s llnearby. I framed myself centrally on the central ver cal red stripe. When reviewing this image I no ced the man wasstanding in shot giving the impression of looking across at ’The Gherkin’, a symbol of the affluent city. The barrierswere there for the Lord Mayors show and add a sugges on of keeping him away from the riches nearby.The image conveys a huge ’financial’ distance between him and the city he is currently in. There is also thediffering distance between myself and him in terms of where we both were at that moment. Maybe I misread thesigns but a steady income, safe and stable life were not currently within his reach.I admit to feeling uncomfortable selec ng this image as it also demonstrates that I never gave him a secondthought at the me of taking the shot and I am now taking advantage by making this my ’select’. I have made it my20
select as it conveys so much more than I originally thought when I took the colour burst of red, white and blue.Part 5. Proj 2. Ex 5.2 - \"The Red Ceiling\" (2016-11-15 22:18)The photograph I have chosen to respond to is William Eggleston’s \"The Red Ceiling\". the-red-ceiling-by-william-eggleston Greenwood, Mississippi, 1973 \"The RedCeiling\" - William EgglestonTerry Barre described three types of informa on that can be used to interpret an image - \"internal con-text\", \"external context\" and \"original context\". These were discussed in his paper ’Photographs and Contexts’(www.terrybarre osu.com/pdfs/B _PhotAndCont _97.pdf [accessed 11/11/2016]).The \"internal context\" relates to the picture, its tle, date and maker. The \"external context\" relates to its pre-senta onal environment. Finally, \"original context\" refers to the environment that was physically and psychologicallypresent to the maker.I have seen Eggleston’s \"The Red Ceiling\" image various mes in books of iconic images and on you tube re-views of influen al photographers. In addi on to the vivid red, the white cables leading to the light bulb werethe main aspect that I no ced on first viewing. Eggleston had suggested that the shape created was similar to the’Confederate’ flag. This is one aspect of the \"internal context\".On studying the image further the significance of the wall images added more informa on about the scene.The images depicted sexual imagery and the viewer can connect this newly acquired informa on to the red wallsand ceiling to wonder whether the photographer is in a brothel. I would include the wall art as part of the \"internalcontext\" and the type of room would form part of the \"original context\", as only the photographer knows the loca onfor sure.The vibrant red and the dye transfer prin ng techniques required to produce this colour were given by Eggle-ston as a reason for taking this shot. This is an addi onal \"original context\" aspect of the image. My understandingis that this image was included in a Museum of Modern Art exhibi on curated by John Szarkowski in 1976 whichwas one of the first to showcase colour photography as art. This provides the \"external context\" of the image as thevibrant colour was the common theme of the images in the exhibi on rather than the subject of the loca on.This is my image in response to William Eggleston’s \"The Red Ceiling\". dsc_7521 Cheapside, London, 2016 \"White Walls\" - Martyn RainbirdThe main stylis c device I have used in response to \"The Red Ceiling\" is the mundane nature of the scene and thesingle colour of the walls and ceiling. There is also a splash of contras ng colour which is a characteris c of a lot ofEggleston’s work. I have also used another technique used by Eggleston where the symmetry is off which he uses togive the viewer an uncomfortable feeling. All of these are features of the \"internal context\". 21
The similari es are the contrast of the black cables against the white walls. The cabling supplies electricityto ligh ng - modern fluorescent in comparison to the simple light bulb. Other dashes of colour of the smallred/amber/green lights in the top le correspond to the small touches of colour of Eggleston’s wall pictures. Thesea ributes form part of the \"internal context\".The \"original context\" of my image relates to the loca on and the buildings purpose. Similar to \"The Red Ceil-ing\", my image does not make it clear what ac vity takes place at the loca on. Cheapside is a street in the financialcentre of London and this image was taken at the rear of the building. Apart from the loca on given by the tle ofthe image (internal context), the architectural masonry gives the viewer an indica on that it is an affluent building.The \"external context\" of my image is this course blog and the fact I am presen ng it alongside a WilliamEggleston image. Due to the mundane nature of the image the viewer will be asking ques ons similar to Eggleston’simage. In my case I am sugges ng, with help of the asymmetry, the ’back door’ nature of financial dealings inthe business district. In Eggleston’s image the colour red is a sugges on of passion and indicates the loca ons use.My subject is not as steamy - white sugges ng the buildings ac vity is pure but yellow being the modern warning sign.Part 5. Proj 2. ’homage’ (2016-11-17 09:45)'A photograph inspired by another is called 'homage'. This is not the same asPicasso's famous statement that 'good artists borrow, great artists steal'; thepoint of the homage must be apparent within the photograph. It's also not thesame as 'appropriation' which re-contextualises its subject to create somethingnew, often in an ironic or humourous way. Instead, the homage should share somedeep empathy or kinship with the original work. An example is Victor Burgin'sseries The Office at Night (1986), based on Edward Hopper's famous painting ofthe same name:h p://www.tate.org.uk/research/publica ons/tate-papers/03/the-separateness- of-things-victor-burgin[ accessed16/11/16]’This ar cle was very interes ng and emphasised that an ’homage’ isn’t a copy of an image but is a consciousdecision to pick a source and then add something new to it. The key being that there is an empathy with the originalwork. Burgin described his ’Office at Night’ work, based on Hoppers of the same name, as ‘re-viewing art through aprism of contemporary concerns’. Burgin was re-introducing the contemporary subject of feminism and stereotypesof women in the workplace. His aim being to ’..transform the role of the woman from object of curiosity to that ofsubject of curiosity’. Rather than it be a copy of the pain ng he introduced a new element of a pictogram. He usedthese to ’...serve as a sort of analogue of the universe surrounding the office’.Having looked through my work during the course I have been using photographers to influence my work andreading quotes from them has helped me understand their inspira on of why they took what they shot. Some mesI have picked up on a phrase that they have used to describe their work.One example was the poli cally based series ’Panem et circenses’ by Gianluca Cosci’ who used shallow depthof field. He took the images around the newly built Millenium Dome and was highligh ng the forgo en landscape22
in contrast to the rich financial district of Canary Wharf. He described the set as conveying ’doubt and uncertainty’.I used the technique and the phrase as inspira on for the ’Collec ng’ assignment where my subject was the EUReferendum on 23rd June 2016. The tle of my image provides context as a non Witham resident would not knowthe building in the background or the fact that it is used as a polling sta on. Spring Lodge Community Centre, Witham. 23rd June 2016. Spring LodgeCommunity Centre, Witham. 23rd June 2016Whilst on a family holiday visi ng the stone circle at Avebury I was reminded of Fay Godwin’s work ’Our For-bidden Land’ which she produced to bring a en on to public access issues in Britain. I took this image thatshows a road sign alongside the stones with a fence on either side of the road, which is not actually in view. Theimage shows an empathy with Godwin’s work, obviously hers being influen al and mine only si ng in a family album. dsc_6490 Sign of Stones at Avebury, 2016. Martyn RainbirdMy final ’homage’ selec on was a shoot I did having seen Paul Graham’s ’The Present’ where he used the concept of me in a series of diptych’s set in New York. Once again mine was set in my local town of Witham. I was interestedin trying this idea as I was studying ’traces of me’ in part 3 of this course. 23
The Carnival, Witham, 2016, Martyn RainbirdRinko Kawauchi - Illuminance (2016-11-24 12:40)Rinko Kawauchi (b. 1972) is a Japanese photographer who has published many books of her photography. Herimages published in the book Illuminance (Aperture, 2011) resulted in her nomina on for the Deutshe Borse Awardin 2012.illuminance1 Illuminace (2011) - Rinko KawauchiThe course notes pointed us to view an image that was on the front cover of Japanese photographer’s book calledIlluminance. The image was of an over exposed flower and the learning point was around the subject of informa on- a well exposed image contains be er informa on than an under or over exposed image. I think the image was usedas the front cover as it gives an indica on of what you will see within the book - so , pastel colours of natural objectsand shapes and how they appear when subjected to light.Illuminance is a collec on of images that were taken over a period of 15 or so years and have been put to-gether to produce a study of the cycle of life - birth, life and death. It is a sequence of ’pairs’ that share a subject, acolour tone, or some mes a pa ern. They are a dreamlike set of images and the ’pairing’ is emphasised even more24
by the Japanese fold type pages of the book. This presenta on device also builds on the cycle of life theme as yousequence through the pages. illuminance2 An example of the pairing of images in the book (GoogleImages)Her work includes Japanese and western influences where she combines mundane, natural and everyday momentsin life. I am intrigued at how she delivers the ’mundane’ aspect of the natural world as up un l now I have beeninfluenced by documentary/street/landscape photographers such as Paul Graham.References:Kawauchi, R. Illuminance (2011), Aperture.[1]Interview with Rinko Kawauchi1. https://vimeo.com/25078353 Paul Graham – The Whiteness of the Whale – Martyn Rainbird (2016-11-24 14:45:04) […] is different the ‘mul ples’ and stories can be compared with Rinko Kawauchi’s ‘Illuminance’ series. The use of ‘mul ple’ images and the sequencing of them to convey a story or […] Photography is simple – Ini al Visit – Martyn Rainbird (2016-12-07 13:56:23) […] Rinko Kawauchi – Illuminance […] Photography is simple – Submission – Martyn Rainbird (2016-12-09 13:51:02) […] Rinko Kawauchi – Illuminance […]Paul Graham - The Whiteness of the Whale (2016-11-24 13:40) wotwgallery Gallery image of American Night - Image by Pier24.orgI have found myself again revisi ng the work of Paul Graham. The interview with Quen n Bajac (chief curator ofphotography at MoMA) in the course notes referenced Graham. Baja expressed a need for photographers to beflexible with their ideas and let them evolve. It is ok for the end product to differ from the original idea. We prac sedthis in [1]Exercise 5.1.Bajac went on to say that on the one hand you have photographers that have the idea and illustrate it. At theother end of the scale you have photographers shoo ng without preconceived ideas and pu ng the pieces of thejigsaw together to construct something.Pu ng ’puzzle pieces’ together, I think, applies to Paul Grahams 3 pieces of work that form ’The Whiteness ofthe Whale’, an exhibi on displayed at San Francisco’s Pier 24 Photography in 2015/2016. This brought together 3 ofhis series: American Night (1998–2002), A shimmer of possibility (2004–06), and The Present (2009–11).Paul Graham described each of the sets of work as u lising different aspects of photography: Light (American 25
Night); Time (A shimmer of possibility); Awareness (The Present). He then aligned these directly with func onsof the camera: Aperture (controlling the amount of light); Shu er (controlling the me of the exposure); Focus(controlling awareness/percep on). It seemed right that I found this piece as I come towards the end of EYV as theaim of this course is to introduce all of these pieces of the camera and how they can be used crea vely in image making.American Night (1998 - 2002) delivers on the one hand extremely over exposed images of the poor and poorneighbourhoods, then colourful images of middle class areas on the other. He uses the over exposed technique tomake the viewer work at seeing something that they may choose to ignore on a rou ne basis. He describes it asa ’psychological blindness’ where people have learnt to edit out a set of our popula on. Although he made theseimages in America it is also true of Britain today.I have to admit that I saw a selec on of the American Night series on his website early on in the course and Idid not understand them. I put it down to them being ’arty’. Seeing them now and hearing him explain the conceptmakes me really appreciate the strong message he was conveying. It highlighted my blindness to the ’concept’ andin turn brought me in to the group of people who had ’edited out a set of the popula on’. wotwgallery2Gallery image of A Shimmer of Possibility - Image by Pier24.orgA shimmer of possibility (2004 - 2006) was the second series in this compila on. This work had been brought to mya en on by my [2]tutor as a reference following my Square Mile assignment. This is a series of stories made up ofindividual moments in me. He uses sequences to mirror the human ability to instantly study a scene - the man,his hands, what is behind him. Graham describes a photograph as selec ng ’one piece out of the whole’ H calls it’spotlight consciousness’. Whereas ’...shimmer...’ isn’t spotlight. He calls it ’lantern’, where there are mul ple framesof the same scene. He expresses it as ’moment arriving, the moment, moment a er’. wotwgallery3 Gallery image of The Present - Image by Pier24.orgThe Present (2009-2011) is a series I have [3]reviewed on this blog before. I used the technique in a personal exercisethat I called [4]’The Carnival’. This work is ’Life as it is in New York’, Paul Graham’s home. With these images, diptych’sand triptych’s, he holds one posi on and describes it as ’life as it comes at you’. Depth of field is used to show peoplearriving and depar ng the scene. Graham sees the work as ’folding me’ and how in 10-20 years me how viewers’see what the present amounted to at that point in me’.This final point is one that has intrigued me since star ng the course. I have viewed and studied images andfound that I enjoy the ’nostalgic’ nature of them. The colours, the fashions, the brands. This is especially the casein Graham’s ’A1: The Great North Road’ and a lot of William Eggleston’s work. Time certainly adds a dimensionthat would not have been present when first viewed by audiences at the me. I will be interested in how nostalgiaimpacts some of the images I have taken in my [5]’EU Referendum’, [6]’housing development’ and [7]’Spa Roadshops’ assignments.Although the subject ma er is different the ’mul ples’ and stories can be compared with Rinko Kawauchi’s[8]’Illuminance’ series. I have also increased my understanding of the ’external context’ both of these works in termsof the presenta on and display styles. It was interes ng to see the display decision of placing ’The Present’ imagesclose to the floor to give the viewer the feeling of being in the street. Kawauchi has used a book with ’Japanese fold’style pages to present a ’cycle’ of images.The use of ’mul ple’ images and the sequencing of them to convey a story and/or feeling is something that Iwant to succeed at in my final assignment.26
References:[9]Paul Graham Interview[10]View from a Judgement Seat - Interview with Quen n Bajac1. http://www.aperture.org/blog/view-judgment-seat-quentin-bajac-conversation-philipgefter/2. https://ocamartynrainbird.wordpress.com/2016/05/05/square-mile-tutor-feedback/3. https://ocamartynrainbird.wordpress.com/2016/07/28/paul-graham-a1-the-great-north-road/4. https://ocamartynrainbird.wordpress.com/2016/07/10/the-carnival-inspired-by-the-present-by-paul-graham/5. https://ocamartynrainbird.wordpress.com/2016/06/28/collecting-submission/6. https://ocamartynrainbird.wordpress.com/2016/08/28/the-decisive-moment-submission/7. https://ocamartynrainbird.wordpress.com/2016/10/25/languages-of-light-submission/8. https://ocamartynrainbird.wordpress.com/2016/11/24/rinko-kawauchi-illuminance/9. https://vimeo.com/13576136510. http://aperture.org/blog/view-judgment-seat-quentin-bajac-conversation-philip-gefter/ Photography is simple – Final Pairs – Martyn Rainbird (2016-12-07 15:11:38) […] Paul Graham – The Whiteness of the Whale […] Photography is simple – Submission – Martyn Rainbird (2016-12-09 14:16:59) […] Paul Graham – The Whiteness of the Whale […]Part 5. Proj 2. Ex 5.3 - Photography as informa on (2016-11-25 16:43) HCB1Behind the Gare Saint-Lazare, Paris, France, 1932 - Henri Cartier-BressonLook again at Henri Car er-Bresson’s photograph Behind the Gare Saint-Lazare...Is there a single element in theimage that you could say is the pivotal ‘point’ to which the eye returns again and again? What informa on does this‘point’ contain?Having seen this image a few mes before, the standout aspect is the man in mid air, about to land his lead-ing foot in to the puddle that he had a empted to navigate moments before.Apart from the luck involved in capturing this moment I had not really studied the picture or tried to under-stand much more about it. In the film L’amor de court (‘Just plain love’, 2001) described how he poked the camerathrough a hole in a fence and took the shot. Although he may not have known what the result was going to be hemust have had a reason for poin ng the camera in the direc on he did.Was it the adver sement and its reflec on in the puddle? Was this a regular shortcut where high numbers ofpeople had to a empt the same manoeuvre and the photographer no ced the similarity of the leaping character inthe adver sement to those nego a ng the puddle? Who is the character in the background? Were they the original 27
subject prior to Car er-Bresson placing his camera through the hole? Had he decided to turn his a en on away fromthe architectural features of the sta on itself and was looking for a new angle?I have learnt that an interes ng image is one that provides unanswered ques ons. As Car er-Bresson was astreet photographer maybe he didn’t have all of the answers, he was being recep ve to what he came across. illuminance1Illuminance, 2011 by Rinko KawauchiRinko Kawauchi (b. 1972) also no ces and is recep ve of everyday things that she encounters but each individualimage is sparse in content. She concentrates on shapes and colour resul ng in less informa on in the frame than asingle Car er-Bresson picture. Her images are about conveying a feeling and a message using a series of images. Herilluminance series covers the subject of me as a lifecycle. Car er-Bresson captured me in the speed of the shu er. theatresTheatres, 1978 by Hiroshi SugimotoHiroshi Sugimoto (b. 1948) used me in his me culously planned ’Theatres’ (1978) series. This style and technicalplanning contrast to Car er-Bresson and Kawauchi but his subject is s ll me, and the effect of light on the camera’sfilm. dsc_5706On the Swindon & Cricklade Line, 2016 by Martyn RainbirdI have captured me in an era gone by in the above heritage railway image. In Car er-Bresson style I have poked mycamera out of the carriage window and found that I too captured a man mid stride.1.2 DecemberPhotography is simple - Mood board (2016-12-06 21:08)Whilst on the train to the Lord Mayor’s Show in London for Exercise 5.1 I started thinking about assignment 5. Itwould need to demonstrate my learning from the first 4 parts of the EYV course and would need to deliver my bestwork to date. This was going to be a challenge.My previous assignments had been based on local poli cal and social issues. I was happy to con nue in thisvein but wanted to produce something more ’ar s c’ and abstract.I also had been interested in the idea of photographs being a small fragment of a whole, like a jigsaw piece.This characteris c of photography had come up a lot from such people as Susan Sontag in her Plato’s Cave essay and28
in the Quen n Bajac interview on the [1]aperture.org blog. I thought about producing 10 images in varying aspectra os and pu ng them together to make one large image.Railways was my ini al subject pick. I use them to travel to work and am comfortable around a railway sta onalthough I was aware of poten al permission issues. The poli cal angle that I am passionate about is the re-na onalisa on of the railways in Britain...passengers before profits.I took the following images in and around my local sta on in the space of about 20 minutes on my home formLondon. 29
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1. http://aperture.org/blog/view-judgment-seat-quentin-bajac-conversation-philip-gefter/Photography is simple - Ini al Visit (2016-12-06 21:13)A er my ini al ’Mood Board’ shots I spent the next few weeks with the ini al idea in my mind whilst working throughpart 5 of the course. Railway na onalisa on was s ll at the centre of my idea but I had started to extend it to thequality of ’Poli cal Debate’ which had aggrieved me throughout 2016.The EU referendum, and on going a ermath, and the US presiden al elec on had highlighted people taking aposi on on one side or other of a binary choice. People, poli cians and media would argue a point based on being inone camp or the other. Lies seemed to outweigh facts and expert opinion. Any poli cal discussion in the populous38
would follow entrenched beliefs i.e. le /right, red/blue. What is best for the tax payer and passengers would be asecondary concern.The [1]Illuminance book by Rinko Kawauchi really caught my a en on. The front cover image was referred toin the course notes and I found some you tube clips of interviews and her work. I really liked the idea of pairingphotographs which worked really well in book from. The pairs were based on such things as colour pale e andshapes and I thought I could use this concept in my assignment. Illuminance was a collec on of photographs takenacross 15 years and therefore she had a large set to work with. I would get 4-5 weeks of images as I wanted to takenew images for this assignment and not use historic work.At this point I had lots of ideas including thoughts on presenta on and the idea of opposites and pairs:heritage/modernpassengers/workerstracks/signalsbridges/tunnelsplatforms/waiting roomslifts/stairstickets/timetablessteam/dieseldiesel/electrichonesty/dishonestycapitalism/socialismI decided to head out to one of the local quiet mainline sta ons. I wanted to work the scene trying out varyingdepths of field, odd angles and perspec ves. It was a star ng point to build up a body of work to make selec onsfrom. Quen n Bajac’s iden fied two types of photographer in the aperture.org blog interview where he observedsome photographers have an idea and deliver the idea. Others go out and shoot and pull the puzzle pieces togethera erwards. I had had the idea but was also working on the basis of finding the ’pairs’ from a large collec on ofimages. 39
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1. https://ocamartynrainbird.wordpress.com/2016/11/24/rinko-kawauchi-illuminance/Photography is simple - Final Pairs (2016-12-06 21:16)I con nued to research other photographers work for inspira on and possible ideas. The Paul Graham exhibi on[1]’Whiteness of the Whale’ combined three of his series of work and it was interes ng to see the crea vity aroundthe presenta on aspect of the images. One of the series was ’American Night’ which I had previously put aside asbeing too ’arty’ for its inclusion of overexposed images. However, I now appreciated Graham’s reasoning that theimages were highligh ng issues of the less affluent people in society and how the viewer needs to work hard at’seeing’ what normally would be ignored. 45
My tutor had also pointed me to Victor Burgin (b. 1941) who had u lised graphics and text in some of hiswork, most notably UK76 (1976) and The Office at Night (1986). Another photographer, Will Jennings used text forone of his series called ’Pedestrianisa on’ 2010. I thought I could try using some philosophical quotes and foundthe author and thinker [2]Mehmet Murat ildan (b. 1965), who had a large quan ty of quotes a ributed to him onthe goodreads.com website. I was par cularly taken by his quotes on debate and truth and lies. I picked out thefollowing as possible quotes to use with my images:``Slander is the biggest occupation of a man who produces nothing but lies!''``If you do not read and listen to the opposite ideas, you can always remain astupid person! Opposite ideas, however contrary they may sound, are yourgreater chances on the way to truth!''``If you want the people to understand you, invite them to your life and letthem see the world from your window!''``When you are on the bright side of life, do not forget the people who are onthe dark side and remember that man can easily slip from one side to theother!''``In the very darkness of a stupid society, even a little candle deserves agreat honour!''``The whispering of the truth is stronger than the thunderstorm of the untruth!''``Small minds just like small stones can never create giant waves.''``To believe whatever is said without investigating the truth behind them is theultimate stupidity of all the majority in all the eras!''``Governments stand because people sit; if people stand, governments will sit!''``There are no ‘perfect liars' in the world; there are only ‘perfect believers'who believe in even the most obvious lies!''I went out on a few more visits to local sta ons to capture more images and came back with the following to add tomy collec on for ’pairing’.The pairing process took place in Lightroom and I shortlisted 14 and printed them out to make my final selec- on of 10. I had reached a decision to keep the images simple and present them in a ’book’ style with the pairs on atwo page spread. My idea being that there would be a narra ve created between the two images.46
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1. https://ocamartynrainbird.wordpress.com/2016/11/24/paul-graham-the-whiteness-of-the-whale/2. http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/mehmet-murat-ildan-quotesPhotography is simple - Submission (2016-12-06 21:27)I have chosen the o en photographed subject of railways to convey my frustra on at the quality of poli cal debateand the impact on the vo ng public. The key debate regarding the railways is na onalisa on versus priva sa on. Ibelieve an honest debate is required using facts and exper se, unlike the current trend for sound bites and outrightlies.I have chosen to produce a series of diptychs to convey the two sides of a debate. The final selec ons havebeen paired based on similar a ributes - colour pale e and objects. The selected images are difficult to see andinterpret - more so the right than the le . I have appropriated this to a ’debate’ which requires extra effort to delivera well rounded decision. I am presen ng the images as a sequence of le and right pairings with both sides movingincreasingly towards clearer understandable images.The ini al idea was based on the concept of photographs being a small fragment of a whole, like jigsaw pieces. Thischaracteris c of photography had come up a lot in my research from such people as Susan Sontag in her Plato’s Caveessay [1] and in the Quen n Bajac interview on the [1]aperture.org blog [2].I have a empted to produce more abstract composi ons than in previous assignments and have been influ-enced by the [2]Illuminance [3] book by Rinko Kawauchi (b. 1972). The pairing of images also inspired my final50
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