Menu
What's new
The GetDPI Photography Forum

Great to see you here. Join our insightful photographic forum today and start tapping into a huge wealth of photographic knowledge. Completing our simple registration process will allow you to gain access to exclusive content, add your own topics and posts, share your work and connect with other members through your own private inbox! And don’t forget to say hi!

The GRD2 — An Appreciation

Brian Mosley

Brian Mosley

New member
Mitch, I think you have a distinct style of tonality in your shots which I like very much indeed. Particularly the first and fourth shots in your first set in this thread - while you've got great contrast, you've also got subtle tonality in the skin tones which make the image look 'fine art' to me. Awesome!

The portrait in your first series is also beautiful and subtle tonality. I'm a huge fan of this look.

I know it's good to have outside references, but be careful to make sure you are pleasing yourself first! It's for others to 'tune-in' to your style if it appeals to them.

Hope this makes sense - all just imho.

Kind Regards

Brian
 
Per Ofverbeck

Per Ofverbeck

Member
Re: The high contrast look — and reality

Mitch Alland said:
Coming back to the style of the pictures above, on another forum where I also posted them I was taken to task by several people for the high contrast look and advised that the pictures "could definitely benefit from some lightening of the shadows".
....
Basically, I feel that a B&W photograph is nowhere near "reality" in the values of tones and one can and should manipulate them for expressive purposes, and that this can lead to a stronger expression of reality.

Any thoughts these issues and on whether the pictures are excessively high in contrast and would benefit from lengthening the shadows?
Click to expand...
Last question first (and I know it is a rhetorical one...): No, of course not! They´re your language the way they look now; why should anyone change language just to please some other?

During my silver days, I used to print dark, and was regularly criticised by the "photo stalinists" of the day: ALL images should have detail from shadows to highlights, regardless of contents, mood or message, otherwise "one hadn´t mastered the craft".

Without any preposterous comparisons, I took comfort when I read that the famous Czech photographer Josef Sudek ( http://www.josefsudek.net/ ) was denied membership in a camera club because he printed too dark....
 
M

Mitch Alland

Guest
Bertie, Brian, Per:

Thanks for your comments, which are all in the same direction — and the same as the direction of my thought.

Yes, I tend to have a "dark vision", particularly for the book project. And these are the sort of B&W photographs that I like.

No, I don't intend to change because I have a certain expressive intent, and am not going for the "ideal print" of some very high tones, some very dark tones and a long mid-tone range. I merely wanted to see how other people look at this type of aesthetic, in the light of the strong negative comments I got on the Rangefinder Forum.

Encouraging to heat about Sudek!

—Mitch/Bangkok
http://www.flickr.com/photos/10268776@N00/
 
Lili

Lili

New member
Mitch I like the range of tones in your images.
There is no perfectly "correct" way to present any image.
Especially in the very interpretive medium of B&W the lightness, darkness and everything in between are chosen to convey a mood.
One thing that I despise about some forums is their tendency to ruthlessly criticize those that do no conform to the some ideal.
One i know cites the example of the a very experimental phohgrapher who was producing some very surreal and elegant images.
After a year with one group, he was producing nothing but 'airbrushed' glamour shots.
Just like all the rest of them...
Brrrrrr
How to kill ones soul :(
By commitee
 
Guy Mancuso

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Lili said:
Mitch I like the range of tones in your images.
There is no perfectly "correct" way to present any image.
Especially in the very interpretive medium of B&W the lightness, darkness and everything in between are chosen to convey a mood.
One thing that I despise about some forums is their tendency to ruthlessly criticize those that do no conform to the some ideal.
One i know cites the example of the a very experimental phohgrapher who was producing some very surreal and elegant images.
After a year with one group, he was producing nothing but 'airbrushed' glamour shots.
Just like all the rest of them...
Brrrrrr
How to kill ones soul :(
By commitee
Click to expand...
Well here is what I like about the folks here you all have a different style and it is very refreshing to see. I love what Mitch does just as a example but hate to see everyone do what he does. No offense Mitch just as a example. be free and experiment folks that is what makes art and life interesting. You will only learn by trying different techniques and you may latch on to one for awhile than try something else , playing is good.
 
M

Mitch Alland

Guest
Guy Mancuso said:
Well here is what I like about the folks here you all have a different style and it is very refreshing to see. I love what Mitch does just as a example but hate to see everyone do what he does. No offense Mitch just as a example...
Click to expand...
Guy, thanks and no offense at all — but I just don't understand what you mean.

Sirvine, thanks for the kind words. I'm placing a revised version of the last portrait here to see whether the previous version will disappear. I would have thought that pictures linked from flickr would update when replaced by a new version on flickr.



—Mitch/Bangkok
http://www.flickr.com/photos/10268776@N00/
 
nostatic

nostatic

New member
Mitch Alland said:
Guy, thanks and no offense at all — but I just don't understand what you mean.
Click to expand...
If I might be so bold, I think what's he's saying is that it would appear from the posts here that each of us has our own (evolving) style, and that the amount of "follow the leader" seems to be at a minimum.

Just speaking for myself, I certainly am intrigued and inspired by your (and other's) photos and try to learn from them, but I don't necessarily want to imitate your style. I do try different things based on what I see, but I'm still attempting to stay true to my inner voice.

So to paraphrase, this community seems to be about inspiration instead of imitation...and that is in marked contrast to some other places on the interwebs.
 
Guy Mancuso

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
What Mitch brings to the party like others here is inspire folks and that is what we want to be as a forum and photo community. I absolutely love the enthusiasm here about shooting. This is what we love when we teach a workshop is the enthusiasm that the folks bring. (sorry i brought up the workshop stuff again) Not intended.
 
Lili

Lili

New member
I adore Mitch's style.
But I appreciate the freedom to have my own.
nostatic said this well.

It was VERY foggy this morning :)
 
M

Mitch Alland

Guest
Actually, Lili, I'm beginning to be depressed about all my "walk-by shootings", which are startng to lead to a meaningless dead-end for my book project, and am thinking of taking more pictures of things:


GRD ISO 200


... but I have enough fish — and beginning to feel like the ones below, in trying to figure where to take my book project now:


DR Summicron | Neopan 1600 @ ISO 1000


—Mitch/Bangkok
http://www.flickr.com/photos/10268776@N00/
 
helenhill

helenhill

Senior Member
Mitch Alland said:
Actually, Lili, I'm beginning to be depressed about all my "walk-by shootings", which are starting to lead to a meaningless dead-end for my book project, and am thinking of taking more pictures of things.... but I have enough fish — and beginning to feel like the ones below, in trying to figure where to take my book project now
—Mitch/Bangkok
http://www.flickr.com/photos/10268776@N00/
Click to expand...
:clap: FANTASTIC Photos Mitch
and I agree with your Quote....Do more pictures of Things-Cool Cheers! helen
 
Lili

Lili

New member
Mitch,
I see freshness still in your street shots, all these people, in an exotic place that is on my "bucket list''. I know I do not see with your eyes nor do I live in your skin. so I cannot dismiss your feelings or doubts on this though.
This may sound unbelievably banal, but what are you trying to say with your book?
What is your message?
I suspect if you can codify that you might resolves these qualms.
HUGZ
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top