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Roman Bezjak Bogdan Dziworski
L E I C A F O T O G R A F I E I N T E R N AT I O N A L
César Rodríguez
Adrian Crispin
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1 0 4 | L f i . G a ll e r y
86 | Leica M10-P Extremely quiet and the embodiment of elegance in both form and function: the new Leica M10-P
Over 23 000 photographers present more than 300 000 pictures in the LFI Gallery. In this issue: circus children, a heron, and trampoline jumpers
9 0 | L e i ca L- M o u n t
P h oto
Leica, Panasonic and Sigma have joined forces to stir up a fresh breeze in the photo market: introducing the L-Mount Alliance 9 6 | L e i c a C L S I Lv E R A new addition to the CL family: the silver-finish version of the Leica CL offers all the advantages of compact APS-C photography in an elegant new design
112 | Books
Ruben Tomas: from the Mosh series
114 | Exhibitions
Adrian Crispin 6 | N e x t S t o p H o lly w o o d
9 8 | L e i c a App At last – one app to rule them all. The Leica Fotos app streamlines your experience of connecting cameras and smartphones
“One click and he was wet”. The reportage and fashion photographer speaks about pools and celebrities
Roman Bezjak 2 8 | P y o n g ya n g
102 | Leica store Production, culture and a touch of local flair: many core elements of the successful Leica Store Frankfurt will now also be applied in Wetzlar
Order and discipline: the stories that architecture can tell – journey through an open-air museum of sorts
César Rodríguez 4 4 | I f H e ll E x i s t e d
Caught in a vicious circle: farmers in the Mexican state of Guerrero make a living growing opium poppies
Bogdan Dziworski 5 8 | L e i c a Cl a ss i c The Leica M10-P is the ultimate expression of everything M photography represents
New publications by Alex Prager, Matthieu Gafsou, Patrick Galbats and Joachim Hildebrand
“If you are patient, the dance with reality begins” – homage to the exceptional Polish photographer
Dorothea Lange in Paris; Eugene Richards in New York; Liza Ambrossio in Madrid; Masahisa Fukase in Amsterdam; Sarah Moon in Milan 1 1 6 | L e i c a G a ll e r i e s The NRW Leica Gallery presents Maasai Land by Lars Beusker; and, Leica Galleries worldwide, with Alex Webb, Melanie Pullen, and Julio Bittencourt 1 1 8 | I n t e rv i e w The European Month of Photography is being held in Berlin for the eighth time. A talk with project leader Oliver Bätz 122 | My Picture More than luck: his dependable equipment ensured that Beat Presser was able to capture this image of a Buddhist monk 1 2 2 | i mpr i n t
Ruben Tomas 6 8 | M o sh
Glistening lights, flowers in her hair – a journey exploring both California and the fifties
S Magazine No. 10 76 | T o m M u n r o
The S Magazine is celebrating 10 years of the S System with work by the photographer Tom Munro
Cover: Adrian Crispin ,
Bulgari, Haute Joaillerie, Portofino 2013
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L FI I n s ta g r a m
T h e Da i ly D o s e W e a r e o n i n s ta g r a m
To get more content, please follow our instagram account
If you are one of our followers, you will have noticed that the various LFI social media channels make it easier to span the time between two issues, and keep you up to date with the latest. This is particularly so with our Instagram account, where you will find lots of real-time news, as well as information about the photographers we are currently working with. In addition to daily impressions from the LFI editorial office, there is also user-generated content. The emphasis here is all about interaction. This means that photos with the hashtags #lfimagazine or #leicafotografie international will catch our attention all the more quickly. On certain days we take our hand off the rudder and pass the LFI account over to a photographer: the next so-called take over will give César Rodríguez the chance to offer us a glimpse of his work, as well as insight into those who have influenced him. www.instagram. com/leica_fotografie_international/
C o n t r i b u t o rs
After eighteen years, photographer Adrian Crispin returned to his hometown of Mexico City, which is also where this photograph with his 98 year-old grandmother was taken. He describes the Mexican capital as a place of magic, of wonder, and of brutal reality – the quintessential crossroads between European and pre-Colombian civilisations. Adrian Crispin has travelled a lot in his lifetime. He has dedicated this current series to his life partner, the stylist Ann-Kathrin Obermeyer. 4 |
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César Rodríguez Rodríguez's projects, where he researches the living conditions of socially disadvantaged people in Mexico, brought him a new awareness for documentary photography. The former assistant of Matt Black tells us: “The world is full of images and information, and monumental changes, that most people can’t even register, take place within the blink of an eye. Or rather, to use the words of the Argentinian author, Julio Cortazár: photography is one of many ways to fight against nothingness.”
R o man B e z ja k
In the eighties, it was Leica legend Ulrich Mack who taught him about the craft of photography; now Roman Bezjak passes on his own knowledge as a Professor at Bielefeld College. Roman Bezjak has always been passionate about architecture and post-war Modernism with a socialist influence; and he managed to bring back numerous pictures from the North Korean capital Pyongyang – one of the most insular cities in the world – pictures that seem to hail from an era long ago.
Photos: © Adrian Crispin, © César Rodríguez, © David Bezjak
A d r i an C r i s p i n
LEICA. LEICA. DASDAS WESENTLICHE. WESENTLICHE.
LEICA CL Compact and discrete, it fits in every hand – and finds a place in every heart. cl.leica-camera.com lFI
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Next Stop Hollywood LeicA M
Adrian Crispin
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Pools, pearls and personalities: Adrian Crispin chose a mixture of older fashion photographs and newer portraits of celebrities for his portfolio – and this reflects the crossroad where the itinerant world citizen, whose next plan is to go to Hollywood, finds himself at the moment.
Above: Gypsy Girl, New York City 2005. Right: Bulgari, Haute Joaillerie, Portofino 2013
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Left: Charlotte Le Bon and her gang, Paris 2016. Above: Pharell Williams, Paris 2014
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Above: Bill Powers, New York City 2018. Right: Chanel Haute Joaillerie, Paris 2012
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Previous page left: Munchies, Paris 2013. Right: I Feel You, France 2015. Above: Ms Holly Wood, Paris 2013. Right: Valentino Haute Couture (backstage), Paris 2013
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Left: Yohji Yamamoto, Paris 2016. Above: Serge, Paris 2015
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Above: Lapo Elkann, Milan 2013. Right: Havana on the Hudson, Union City, New Jersey 2017
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Below: Philippe – strike first, strike hard, no mercy, Paris 2015. Right: Untitled, Paris 2016
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Above: City Layers, Paris 2016. Right: Boo, Kearny, New Jersey 2011
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Above: Desire, Paris 2013
A d r i an C r i s p i n Born in Mexico City in 1975, Crispin’s parents relocated to New York City when he was 11. In the nineties he discovered the work of CartierBresson and purchased his first Leica M6. In 2002 Crispin moved to Paris, constantly travelling between Europe and the US. In 2011 he got his first major commissions in fashion editorial and reportage. Today Crispin lives and works between Paris, New York and Berlin.
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LFI: You only shoot analogue. Why is that? Please tell us about your process. Adrian Crispin: My university studies focused on the history of photography during the 19th century in France. I was very much interested in the dialogue between painting and photography, and how photography became an independent art form where time is an important factor. The time that elapses between taking a photograph, processing the film, seeing the results and the editing, is an important process to me. I find that your fashion editorials have something coincidental in the choice of the frame and expression. Even more so your portraits. How do you achieve the random feel of your photos? There is nothing random or coincidental about my work. I’m in a constant state of observation. I spent decades (and still do) visiting museum collections studying form and composition. I’m particularly keen on early Italian Renaissance where geometry is fundamental. Additionally I have spent countless hours studying the work of the great master photographers of the 20th century. All of these elements inform the way I see the world in real time. When photographing you must be ready to react swiftly and decisively at that one moment when you choose to release the shutter. Ultimately photography is about seeing. How do you come to photograph all these famous people? Most of my portraits of well-known people come to me via commissions which provide access. Access is very important, getting past the door. Once you are inside, the key is to make your sitter comfortable and complicit to the act of making a telling portrait – I always say that having your picture taken can be a very intrusive and uncomfortable situation, a little bit like going to
the dentist. Sometimes you have to get deep in there and scratch a bit … I always tell my sitters that if it hurts, they can raise their hand and I will stop. This comparison almost always draws a reaction of laughter and trust. A good portrait is about trust. So this is how you made Frédéric Beigbeder fall into the pool? The Beigbeder portrait was commissioned by Zeit Magazin, where the entire issue revolved around the idea of the bathroom and so the magazine booked a room at Les Bains in Paris. The sitting began in the bathroom of the hotel suite and concluded in the pool. Frédéric is a very complex and intelligent individual. I remember speaking with him about Oscar Wilde among other things. I guess we hit it off and he trusted in the way I approached the sitting. The pool shot was a bit of an extreme idea given the fact that he was wearing a tuxedo; for that portion of the sitting we decided to do something outrageous. We only had one chance to get the perfect shot, so I carefully placed him at the right angle and we counted to three; then he let go and fell into the pool. Click, one frame. Then he was wet. Who is easier to photograph, a professional model or a celebrity? Professional models are always cast to play a role within my conceived notion of storytelling, so the relationship is similar to that of a director to an actor. Whereas celebrities do not fit into that category and are often highly concerned about how they look and how they are perceived. It is a very intuitive approach; you have to feel them out. With your photography, what are you aiming for? Recently I had the feeling that I’m very much a humanist-anthropologist with a camera. This idea came to me during a recent trip to Mexico City where I was born and hadn't been in eighteen years. I’m trying to create a record of my life experience with an obviously very specific point of view.
What on your trip to Mexico City made you realize that? I think traveling to all sorts of different places gives an incredible ability to contrast and compare. Modern day Mexico City is a place of magic, wonder, and brutal reality – an example of the crossings between Europe and the pre-Colombian civilizations. When I visited the Museo Nacional de Antropologia and immediately afterwards went to the downtown area near the Zocalo, I realized that the faces in stone in the museum and the faces in the flesh near the square are pretty much the same. Which camera do you use and why? I have photographed with a Leica M6 for many years and most recently with a Leica MP. There is one image which to this day remains a mystery and in many ways inspired me to become a photographer. Henri Cartier Bresson’s Madrid, 1933. After seeing this photograph I became obsessed with everything about it, and this obviously led me to the Leica rangefinder aesthetic. I began using the M6 and it just became a very natural way of making images for me. Where do you want to go with your career? I’m interested in pursuing portraiture in a more democratic way. By that I mean I would like to photograph people from all walks of life. In the immediate future I want to spend some time in Hollywood to explore ‘celebrity’ in the style of my photography, which I consider to be rather direct and real, but also very poetic. Interview: denise klink
ad riancris pin.com LFI-Online .DE/B log: One Photo — one story Equipment: Leica M6 and Leica MP with Summicron-M 50mm f/2 Asph, Summicron-M 35mm f/2 Asph and Elmarit-M 90mm f/2.8
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LeicA S
Roman Bezjak P yo n g yan g
The socialist architecture of post-war modernism is a leitmotif threading its way through the life of photography professor Roman Bezjak. He found it again in the urban landscape of the North Korean capital – a place that seems lost in time.
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“The look of Pyongyang sends the traveller back to a different era – an era that exists a number of decades behind other Asian cities. Pyongyang is no thriving city like Beijing or Bangkok; the stagnation makes it seem like an open-air museum of socialist culture and everyday life.” Roman Bezjak
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The relationship between individuals and a personality cult is a recurring theme in Bezjak’s work. An outstanding example of this is the Mansu Hill Grand Monument, one of the city’s most significant monuments
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“I am always fascinated by the tipping point between beauty and ugliness,” Bezjak explains. It is a fact that there are few places like Pyongyang, where such extreme contrasts stand side by side. Like this swimming pool, where the carefree atmosphere allows a bit of individuality to shine through – until it is suddenly transformed by the conformed severity of a groups of soldiers
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With painstaking precision, a worker frees the base of a monument from dirt. In the background is the 25 April House of Culture, used for political events and celebrations
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Above: the honorary tribune at the ice rink that was opened in 1982. Top left: The Arirang Festival is a massive event held at the Rungrado 1st of May Stadium. Over 100,000 participants retell the history of North Korea through dance and gymnastics. Bottom left: the MangyĹ?ngdae Children’s Palace serves to occupy children with extracurricular, afternoon activities
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Apartment buildings that seem to reach the sky. “Each type of architecture carries the aesthetic signature of its era,“ Bezjak says. “And this is particularly evident in the way Pyongyang looks.”
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Hockey players pass the time in the parking lot at the Pyongyang Trade Fair complex
RO M A N B EZJ A K Born in 1962 in the former Yugoslavia, Bezjak studied photography at college in Dortmund between 1985 and 1989. Since 2000 he has been Professor of Photography at Bielefeld College. His book, Socialist Modernism, published in 2011, became internationally renown and his work has been shown in numerous solo and group exhibitions.
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For decades now, the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea has been considered one of the most insular places in the world. The country and its inhabitants are an exemplary model of order, conformity and discipline like no other. The party faithful are actively involved in choreographed events, perfectly staged with masses of participants, like the Arirang Festival, to foster the belief of a rigorously organised and wellprogrammed country. The isolationist politics make it virtually impossible for a foreigner to settle there. Rare reports testify to staged scenarios and actors who play the part of passersby, to propagate the example of socialism beyond western consumption and globalisation. The will of the Korean people can only be shown in a positive light. For this reason, visitors, in particular those wanting to catch a glimpse behind the scenes, find the city a hard nut to crack. However, if there is one thing that does not lie it is architecture. The Pyongyang region had been almost completely destroyed by the end of the 1950s Korean War, which politicians and city planners saw as a chance for a new beginning. With active support from fellow socialist states, they began building new spacial concepts based on form and function designed to mark the beginning of a glorious future. From that point on, the function of a building reflected much more than just living and working; the concrete landscapes of the new Pyongyang were aimed at expressing the national identity and the omnipresence of the Patriarchal State. Professor Roman Bezjak has a weak spot for socialist, symbolismladen forms of expression. He published a highly-regarded book about the architecture of the modern east titled Socialistic Modernism. Born in Yugoslavia and having spent much of his childhood with relatives in Slovenia, at a young age he had already
developed an interest in urban, antiimperialist Eastern Europe: cityscapes defined by brutal constructions; homogenous, concrete slab housing estates and political monuments. Ugly, yet somehow fascinating. In reference to this, there is a quote by the philosopher Karl Rosenkranz that lingers at the back of Bezjak’s mind. It comes from Rosenkranz’s 1853 seminal work, Aesthetics of Ugliness: “Ugliness is not a simple lack of beauty, but rather its positive negation”. Bezjak finds this applies very precisely to the iconography found in Pyongyang. “The Utopian potential that accompanies the developments, possesses something both attractive as well as repellent, not only in its aesthetic appearance, but also in the intended societal model.” Despite this – or maybe as a result of it – the city has become a real paradise for those interested in architecture. Because, even though it was not so long ago that the country had to struggle with hunger, the numerous, monumental constructions reveal that there was always enough money available for sprawling urban architecture. Encouraged by his mentor Ulrich Mack, Bezjak came into contact with Leica early on and used it to produce his first documentation on the Soviet Union in the nineties. Twenty years later, the North Korean capital was still on his list as another destination to explore socialist architecture. At first, access was just as difficult for Bezjak as for every foreign visitor; because, just like the society within the country, every aspect of his visit was controlled down to the smallest detail. “Before travelling, I had to hand over a list of motifs that needed to be approved by the authorities,” Bezjak explains. “Once there, I always had my two German-speaking companions and the designated driver at my side.” If, during the trip, new motifs arose, these had to first be rubber-stamped by the higher powers. The photographer found massive examples of socialist forms of expression on nearly every street corner. Because he always showed the necessary
measure of historical awareness, his photographs avoid being displays of sad, cliché-laden concrete slab constructions. Always with the eyes of a passerby, Bezjak placed the enormous buildings – next to which the city inhabitant appears insignificantly small – at the centre of his pictures. To achieve his favourite 4 x 5 format, he always took two pictures of the same situation with his Leica S, which he later mounted together. As a result, he sometimes made the motifs appear so gigantic that they seem to burst outside the confines of the picture. The buildings he photographed appear obsolete, anachronistic, somehow lost in time – and yet they merge perfectly with the cityscape, which still aims to propagate a sense of revival and underline the cult of personality. There is one common denominator: concrete. Even though efforts towards modern touches have been made since Kim Jong-Um took power, the sober highrises, over-sized monuments and enormous squares still define the overall image of the capital. While Asian mega-cities such as Singapore, Beijing or Bangkok pulse with life and develop at high speed, Pyongyang comes across as a quiet constant, an open-air museum for socialist culture and everyday life. Despite his continued interest in the city, Bezjak was given no further access to the country in the years following his trip – all his visa requests were rejected. Even so, with his pictures he fulfills one of his own demands of photography: they bring the viewer closer to the world and allow them an experience of it. In the case of an isolated city like Pyongyang, it is an achievement that should not be underestimated. Danilo RöSSger
LFI-Online .DE/B log: SLIDE SHOW WITH FURTHER PICTURES FROM PYONGYANG Equipment: Leica S with Summarit-S 70mm f/2.5 Asph
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LeicA M
César Rodríguez If Hell Existed
Out into nature far away from civilisation, to till the earth and look after one’s own needs. It may seem like paradise to big city-dwelling romantics, but it is a bitter reality for farmers in the remote areas of the South Mexican state of Guerrero.
For many families, the opium harvest is the only livelihood they have. The drug cartels are among the villagers’ main clients
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B eh ind t h e a ppa r e n t ly idyllic rural se ttin g hides a pitiless, monotone daily existence. A way o u t is v i rt ua lly i mpossibl e .
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Working conditions in the poppy fields are harsh, involving the whole family: children, women, men and even the village elders. To harvest the poppy paste, the skin of the ripe seed capsules is slit with a sharp blade, till the milky white latex seeps out. The following morning, when it has dried into a sticky, brown sap, it can be collected. A field harvested in this manner can produce a number of kilos of raw opium
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A funeral in San Rafael. The inhabitants of the community pass on old traditions and customs to the following generation
A campesino herds turkeys. Only a few labourers will get to leave their home village in the course of a lifetime
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Passing away in Guerrero: a funeral procession moving in front of the village church in San Rafael
Descendants of the indigenous people live in virtually every village. Most of the households take care of themselves; only a very few of the communities have any kind of public facilities. If there is a school somewhere, it will have a number of different grades sitting in the same classroom. Otherwise, most of life unfolds on the streets and in the fields
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Fo r m a n y p e o pl e , t he Gue rre ro back coun try is little more than a blank spot on a map. For the dru g s ca rt e ls i t m ean s big busin e ss.
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The future is unclear for the villagers. So long as politics fail to bring about any decisive reforms, they have to look out for themselves
César Rodríguez Weary of his job working in a chocolate factory, Mexican-born César Rodríguez turned to photography in 2013 – a decision that changed his life. After studying photography for a year, he began working on projects that tell the stories of his fellow human beings. His aim is to give a voice to those who are too often overlooked by society.
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What would it be like if hell on earth quite literally existed? This was the question in César Rodríguez’s mind when he travelled through his homeland for his If Hell Existed project: capturing images that reflect the harsh realities of life far from the sandy beaches, jungle ruins and Mayan pyramids. The Mexican photographer’s purpose is to broach the issue of Mexico’s dark side – a tough challenge and not without its share of danger. One of the most significant themes is the ongoing violence resulting from the drug wars, where the stakes are always getting higher. In 2017, the number of victims of these wars reached an all-time high of 21,000. Travellers all over Mexico are encouraged to avoid the states where the cartels are active. The state of Guerrero is one of these high-risk hot spots. The silver city of Taxco in the north and the surfer beaches of Acapulco in the south mean the region has the two best known destinations for international travellers. However, only a few find their way into the wide landscape in between the two cities. At a first glance the area appears idyllic: softly rolling hills and green valleys, alternating with seemingly endless expanses, sprinkled every few kilometres with small villages dedicated to agriculture. This idyll is where a part of Rodríguez’s research project begins. The area is perfect for the cultivation of opium poppies, which in turn makes it the largest supplier of the opium paste that the farmers draw from the poppyseed capsules. This means that virtually everything about the villages and surrounding fields has to do with opium. At the end of each season, throngs of buyers, mostly members of drug cartels, flood the villages to buy kilos of opium paste from the farmers. Quantities of up to ten kilos per field are not rare, with particularly productive ones producing up to 20 kilos of the valuable poppyseed paste.
Even though the poppy fields belong to the villagers, their independence from the drug cartels is only theoretical: regular contact with these dangerous clients is unavoidable because the farmers are urgently dependent on the income from sales. “Of course, the campesinos could plant something else, like corn,” Rodríguez explains, “but their income would then be much lower, with barely enough to earn a yearly living.” Even so, the poppies are not making farmers rich because they have no influence over the price they can sell the paste for. It is the cartels who control the market, and due to the advances of synthetic drugs, it is growing consistently weaker. Just a few years ago, a kilo of opium paste was worth 2000 dollars, but today farmers can only count on around 300 dollars. It is barely enough money to get by. At first Rodríguez’s photos convey the feeling of an apparently idyllic rural life, but they integrate seamlessly into his If Hell Existed project. While some of the other pictures in his series capture the violence, underlining a dramatic imagery, the pictures from Guerrero reflect quiet moments in the daily life of the campesinos. At the same time however, they reveal a vicious cycle of dependency and field labour that goes on and on from one generation to the next. Inhabitants of isolated communities such as San Rafael, Lazaro Cardenas or Cochoapa el Grande are born, get married and give birth to children in the same place. There is nothing else – just the hard work in the fields, that changes according to the seasons. The extreme poverty obliges the mostly indigenous farmers to spend their existence in remote villages, many of which lack both water and electricity. There are barely any options for the farmers to find alternative work in the closest cities, so that there is nothing they can do but accept the dependency of having to work the fields. “The villages have been left behind and forgotten,” Rodríguez has come to understand after accompanying the campesinos in their daily lives over a
long period of time. So as not to expose the field workers, Rodríguez often photographed them from behind. However, it was not because they did not want to be photographed. “The villagers were very friendly. They invited me to take part in their daily rituals, and even into their homes,” the photographer says, delighted with their hospitality. In his dealings with them, both for photographic purposes as well as on the social level, Rodríguez found that everyone looked him straight in the eye. Even though he was at first a bit skeptical, worrying that working with an M Monochrom might be too complex, he managed to do so with bravado. “It was in fact the first time I had ever used a Leica. I thought it would be too complicated. But it proved to be all the contrary: the M Monochrom was very easy to use.” The camera’s discreetness meant that he was not branded as mere observer, but rather it allowed him to become a temporary part of the community. At the end of the day, there still remains the question of what a possible way out of this gridlocked situation might look like. Andrés Manuel López Obrador, elected as President of Mexico in 2018, made better conditions one of his campaign promises. By establishing fair incomes and new agricultural possibilities, he hopes to bring about improvements for the farmers. In the meantime, Rodríguez is going ahead with his project, continuing to document the living conditions of disadvantaged groups of people in Mexico – in the hope that circumstances will change for the better as soon as possible. Danilo RöSSger
c-rodrigu ez.com LFI-Online .DE/B log: One Photo — One Story Equipment: Leica M Monochrom with Summilux-M 35mm f/1.4 Asph
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L e i c A Cl a ss i c
Bogdan Dziworski PI C TURE STORIES
Direct, poetic and full of empathy: the photographic oeuvre of film-maker Dziworski is still a discovery – even though it ranks among the most idiosyncratic examples of Polish post-war photography.
Self portrait with Leica and muse (top); street scene of a rainy square in Łódź (opposite page), both taken in 1961
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Backyards, funfairs, urban streets: the photographer always observed his surroundings with a remarkably keen eye. Particularly in his home city of Łódź, he frequently distilled moments of everyday life into visual narratives. Łódź 1966 (top) and 1970 (centre), Sofia 1972 (bottom), Łódź 1964 (right)
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Emotion and a sense of closeness to his subjects characterise Dziworski’s work. Łódź 1963 (top), 1975 (left) lFI
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Whether he portrayed a nude in front of a wedding picture (top, Łódź 1962), a visitor at an exhibition beside a hyper-realistic female sculpture (centre, Paris 1985), or an interior scene (below, Łódź 1965): absurd moments and a fascination for erotic and intimate encounters are an essential part of Dziworski’s photographic oeuvre. Right: street scene, Warsaw 1964
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Photography: Š Bogdan Dziworski, courtesy Gallery Hilaneh von Kories, Berlin and Leica 6x7 Gallery, Warsaw; all quotes: Bogdan Dziworski, f/5.6, (Migavka, Warsaw 2017)
B o g dan Dz i wo r s k i was born in Krynica-Zdrój, Poland, on 8 December, 1941. After World War II, his family moved to Łódź. Although his parents wanted him to study medicine, Dziworski applied to the city’s film academy, graduating from its photography faculty in 1965. In the years that followed, Dziworski created numerous award-winning documentary films. He also lectured at the film academies in Katowice, Warsaw and Łódź, becoming one of Poland’s most influential teachers of photography and film. In 2017, the Leica Gallery in Warsaw showcased a comprehensive retrospective of his work, titled f /5.6, along with an accompanying catalogue. Dziworski lives in Warsaw and Szczecin.
le i ca-ga l l e ry.pl ex hi b i t i o n : Bogdan Dziworski; until
21 December, Galerie Hilaneh von Kories, Berlin; galeriehilanehvonkories.de bo o ks : Bogdan Dziworski, My View. Polish Impressions in Photography (Hannibal Publishing,
Vienna 1981); Bogdan Dziworski, f/5.6 (Migavka, Warsaw 2017)
What led a brass band into this expansive park? Why is one of the musicians lying on the ground, next to a tuba? And how on Earth did the photographer capture the scene from this perspective? The simple image of a brass band in a park, taken in Łódź in 1964, raises a myriad of intriguing questions – compelling the viewer to keep exploring further. This effect is a typical characteristic of Dziworski’s work: at a first glance, many of his scenes may appear unspectacular; on closer inspection, however, they reveal a sense of poetry whose power continues to captivate audiences even decades after the picture was taken. Time and again, the Leica photographer captured extraordinary scenes thanks to his remarkable perseverance, artistic experience and, perhaps even, the occasional stroke of luck. “The pictures I took during those years were never staged,” the photographer explains. “They are really the result of walking, day in day out, sometimes for eight hours at a time. Zbigniew Rybczyński, a Polish experimental film maker, used to say, ‘Wherever I go, something interesting happens’. It was the same for me. To start with, nothing seems to be happening. But if you are patient, the dance with reality begins. And then, just when it all seems to be over and most people would move on, you press the shutter: this is Cartier-Bresson’s decisive moment. You have to be lucky, which I tend to be. A film director stages a scene. I, on the other hand, wait.” The picture of the brass band is just one testament to the success of this approach. “It looks staged, but it was authentic,” Dziworski explains. “My hands trembled when I spotted this scene: the band had moved away, only to reveal the figure of a man in a blue uniform, stretched out on the grass. He clearly felt so relaxed that he didn’t feel like getting up. So he remained in this state of bliss, lying on his coat – a musician left behind by his orchestra.” Bogdan Dziworski is predominantly known for his work as a film director and cinematographer. Particularly within
his home country, he has achieved legendary status as one of the most significant representatives of avantgarde and experimental cinema. He has also been a lecturer at several of Poland’s leading film academies. His photographic oeuvre, on the other hand, has only recently been brought to the attention of a wider audience; last year, for example, an exhibition of his work was presented at the Leica Gallery in Warsaw. Dziworski has often been referred to as ‘Poland’s Cartier-Bresson’ – and indeed has cited the famous Magnum-founder as the primary inspiration for his photographic style. However, despite some similarities, Dziworski’s images unfold their very own, unique aesthetic: his direct perspective and the skilfully expressed vitality of his subjects draw the viewer deep into the image – as does his delightful ability to capture humorous and confounding moments within the bustle of everyday life. Without a doubt, Dziworski’s analogue black and white images offer illuminating insights into 20th-century life in Poland’s cities. Remarkably, however, his photographs seem neither nostalgic nor outdated: even today, some fifty years after they were taken, his scenes of urban life are as mesmerising as they are life-affirming. Much of his work is characterised by a light-hearted positivity – often with a strong focus on the faces and gestures of children at play, or the expressions of teenage girls and boys navigating their first tentative interactions. Whether they are poetic or amusing, what all of Dziworski’s photographs have in common is their ability to tell an entire anecdote in just one scene. In the same vein, many of his images resemble film stills, presenting us with momentary excerpts of a greater narrative. And, of course, his photographs serve as a wonderful reminder that nothing is as paradoxical, intriguing and absurd as what we like to call reality. Ulrich Rüter
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LeicA SL
Ruben Tomas M OSH
Burlesque artist and alternative model Mosh strikes some poses in the sunshine, beside a flowery Mulholland Drive swimming pool, as part of Ruben Tomas’s ongoing exploration of California dreaming.
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Mosh has been collecting vintage clothing since she was 12 and slowly building up an amazing, timeless wardrobe, so for this project Ruben Tomas asked her to style herself. He also asked her to direct herself: here she strikes a pose by the water’s edge, constructing a shimmering reflection of her unique personality
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R u b e n T o ma s Born in Valencia, Spain, Tomas has worked all around the world, and currently resides in West Hollywood, L.A. His fashion photography has appeared in publications such as the L’Officiel Hommes, Elle and Refinery29, and he is also working on more personal, artistic projects like his first book. His forthcoming solo show, California, opens in Brussels, Belgium, on September 27th.
ru b e n to mas.co m LFI -On l i n e .D E / B log : Mosh-Video by bil brown Equipment: Leica SL with Vario-ElmaritSL 24–90mm f/2.8–4 Asph and Leica VarioElmarit-SL 90–280mm f/2.8–4 Asph STYLING: Mosh, Hair: Virginie Carmen Lola, MAKE-UP: Mynxii White, MODEL: Mosh
“She has this Hollywood star vibe,” Ruben Tomas says, explaining why he wanted to cast burlesque artist and alternative model Mosh in this story. “Everything that she does when she moves makes sense to me. There’s nothing fake about it, so it’s interesting for me to photograph her. I used to direct all the models that I photographed – always. But with Mosh it’s different, because we speak the same language, so it’s like going with the flow. It’s very easy for me to work with her.” Striking a series of unusual poses, and also just generally radiating the kind of old Hollywood glamour that is hard to find in Los Angeles these days, Mosh worked with Tomas to transport us back to a golden age of Americana. Although these bright scenes of Mosh glowing palely beneath the South Californian sun with flowers in her hair, were shot earlier this year, beside a swimming pool off Mulholland Drive, they have a magical 1950s vibe and a rather nostalgic feel; particularly because, rather than working with a stylist, Tomas gave Mosh free rein to style herself with clothes from her personal collection of vintage pieces, and present herself on our pages exactly how she wants to be seen. While he usually shoots in monochrome – Tomas is best known for his pared-down, minimalist portraits, often featuring handsome men draped in shadows –, for this series he worked with the Leica SL and shot in glorious technicolour so that he could capture Mosh’s ebullient personality and all the vibrancy of Los Angeles’s blossoming hills. “It’s a dream camera for me really,” he says. “Actually, I would love to spend my whole career photographing with a Leica. It’s very easy to work with. I’m mostly a black-andwhite photographer, but when I shot the images with Mosh and saw those images on my computer, the colours were so real. They were so authentic. I didn’t have to do any colour correction, any contrast, nothing.” The pictures in this editorial are raw; this is what Tomas really saw up there on Mulholland Drive, brought back to life on the printed page. And that is not all:
as an online exclusive for our website, we also asked Bil Brown to make a short film about Mosh on the same day, using the Leica SL and S, as well as a Huawei P10 mobile phone. Next on Tomas’s itinerary is a solo exhibition of his work in Brussels, which will explore his experiences of California through a selection of landscapes, found on his travels up and down the Pacific Coast Highway, as well as wild animals, and portraits of people that he found interesting; including, of course, Mosh. “My pictures,” he explains, “are about the experiences that I have with the subjects I photograph; so it could be with a space, with a person, with a road trip that I do. For me, photography is an experience. It’s not about the picture, it’s about the experience that I have in my life in a particular moment and that I capture in a picture.” While he is originally from Valencia, on Spain’s Mediterranean coast, Tomas lived in eight cities in five different countries before settling a couple of years ago in his current place in West Hollywood, at the heart of the world’s entertainment industry. Now he is thinking of moving on once more, the photographer says, and just following the flow around the world. How has he found his time in the Golden State, however? “I’m a very honest person, okay,” Tomas begins by saying. “I’m going to tell you exactly what I think: I think Los Angeles can be a really dark place; but in all this mess of Los Angeles and California, I found something really authentic in Mosh. She’s really serious in what she does. She does it with all her passion. She’s very polite. She’s very nice. She doesn’t have a big ego. She’s a pin-up girl. She’s been collecting these clothes since she was 12 years old and has an amazing wardrobe, and I went to her house and it was amazing, all the things that she has in there. So, I found some interesting, authentic people in Los Angeles.” Dean Kissick
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LeicA S MagAzinE
no . 1 O Tom Munro has been working with the S system since its release ten years ago. The S Magazine celebrates this successful relationship with its tenth issue.
Tom Munro photographed the who’s who of the most famous, gorgeous and influential people today. Angelina Jolie and Madonna also trusted his skills
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Whether a celebrity portrait of Kate Winslet or a fashion shoot, the Briton has been exclusively using cameras and lenses from the S system for the last ten years
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The supermodel Naomi Campbell has also worked with Tom Munro. He regularly works for the Italian fashion houses Armani and Dolce & Gabbana
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Every issue of the S Magazine is dedicated to extraordinary photographers. Over its lifetime the S Magazine has also dedicated standalone issues to some of our favourite photographers, such as the German model turned fashion photographer extraordinaire, Ellen von Unwerth (issue 8), the raw American street photographer, Bruce Gilden (issue 7), the Mexican master of sunshine, Enrique Badulescu (issue 6) and the photographic force of nature, Rankin (issue 3). Its tenth issue is now filled with Tom Munro's striking fashion editorials, celebrity portraiture and advertising campaigns; all of which were shot on the S system. Munro has been shooting on the S system for as long as it has been available, so this portfolio of the last decade of work is a perfect way to remember ten amazing years and also look forward to the future. Munro’s career began fairly late, in 1997, when he was living in New York and in his early 30s, but took off at a phenomenal pace: in January he found an agent, by March he was shooting for American Vogue, and since then he just has not stopped. In the new issue of S Magazine he shares the extraordinary story of his life so far – from his schooldays in the British countryside, to backpacking around the Far East, taking pictures on his Leica R4, to taking a huge leap into the unknown and moving to New York to study at Parsons, to learning his craft as Steven Meisel’s assistant, to launching his own solo career in 1997 and quickly finding himself shooting the world’s leading supermodels and celebrities, to his daring 72-hours personal project Tokyo72 (as presented in LFI 4/2018) – in a very special extended interview. “There was just some kind of feeling inside me that I should give photography a try,” Munro recalls, describing how his story began in earnest. “But at the time, a guy from provincial Eng-
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land going to New York and becoming a fashion photographer seemed as ambitious as flying to the moon. I didn’t have any connections in the industry, so luck played a big part, but then I think to some extent you make your own luck; I was just very determined. I didn’t know what else I wanted to do so I really decided I was going to be a photographer. There’s quite an amusing story about myself and a really great friend of mine: we were sitting around the table at our flat, we’d probably had a few too many drinks, and he said he was going to be a film producer and I said, ‘I’m going to be a photographer then’. He is now a film producer and apparently I’m a photographer. I don’t know. I think in life, if you want something badly enough you can make things happen, even in a highly competitive industry.” The pop music icon Madonna, with whom Munro collaborated for many years, and also directed some music videos for, has described him as “the most easy-going, unaffected photographer I have ever worked with. If he’s nervous, he doesn’t show it. Cool as a cucumber. And here’s the other good news. Tom always makes you look foxy! And he does it in a disturbingly effortless way”. Over the last decade, Munro has worked with supermodels like Naomi Campbell, Rosie Huntington-Whitely and Doutzen Kroes, cultivated enduring relationships with the legendary Italian fashion houses Armani and Dolce & Gabbana, and shot iconic portraits of celebrities including Angelina Jolie, Eddie Redmayne, Justin Timberlake, Kristen Stewart, Kim Kardashian, Penelope Cruz and Rihanna. The list goes on. In S Magazine No. 10 you will discover a who’s who of the most famous and influential people of the day, and a collection of photographs that reflect the thrilling last decade of society and culture. The S system was designed with the exact needs of professional photographers in mind. Tom Munro has been using it throughout, and the Leica S Magazine is absolutely delighted to present this definitive portfolio of his work. Dean Kissick
Th e magazine for Le ica S Ph otograph y – N o. 1o
The current issue of the S Magazine presents the best S photographs of the British photographer Tom Munro on 196 pages in a sophisticated design. See more: s-magazine.photography S Lookbook – N o. 9
Lookbook 2017 with works by Elisaveta Porodina, James Meakin and Bil Brown S magazine – N o. 8
Ellen von Unwerth S magazine – N o. 7
Bruce Gilden – American Made S magazine – N o. 6
The Enrique Badulescu Issue S Lookbook – N o. 5
American Short Stories S magazine – N o. 4
The Youth Issue S magazine – N o. 3
The Rankin Issue S magazine – N o. 2
Second edition with works by Kirchknopf+Grambow, Beau Grealy and Jonathan Mannion S magazine – N o. 1
First edition with works by Manuel Pandalis, Joachim Baldauf and Straulino
f/ s top – L e i ca M 1 0 - P – L - M o u n t A l l i anc e – L e i ca C L S i lv e r –
PHOTOKI N A HIGHLIGHTS : THE N EW, Q UIET M 1 0 - P, T h e L e i ca C L S i lv e r A nd THE F u t u r e - O r i e n t e d L- M o u n t A LLI A N C E
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T h e S o u nd O f S i l e nc e Leica M10-P
The true Whispering Queen among all M cameras – and the embodiment of elegance in both form and function: the new P-variant of the Leica M10 is the ultimate expression of everything M photography represents.
That sound – how can words possibly describe it? It’s not a click, nor a clack, no crrt and certainly no cazonng. Perhaps the best way to imagine it is to refer to a gentle prrt. However, what we can put into words is this: never before has the shutter release of a Leica rangefinder camera – be it digital or even analogue – been quite so discreet. If there has ever been an M model to live up to the title ‘Whispering Queen’, it would have to be the Leica M10-P. TH E B EAUTY OF SIL ENCE.
Among the many traits the classic, analogue M series was famous for, was the uniquely subdued sound of its cloth shutter. As a result, when the first digital M, the Leica M8, was introduced in 2006, some 86 |
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felt that its shutter sound was almost akin to a cultural breach; in any case, it was generally deemed a less-than-ideal side effect of the M system’s dramatic leap to digitisation. Of course, Leica have always invested considerable effort in addressing this issue in each of the M8’s successors – always striving to come as close as possible to the discreet performance of the analogue M models. But even so, this particular achievement in the Leica M10-P deserves to be especially emphasised: after all, it serves as a clear illustration of Leica’s intense commitment to optimising even a concept as seemingly complete as that of the rangefinder camera – and to not only maintain the M’s core identity, but to continuously seek to perfect it
in the context of the camera’s digital evolution. A PPROAC H ING PE R FECTION: T H E M 1 0. When Leica introduced the M10 in 2017, it was announced as the best M model in the history of the M system – in other words, since 1954. Anyone who has experienced the camera, and had a chance to compare it with previous M generations, will probably be tempted to agree. Apart from the monumental feat of digitisation itself, the evolution of the M series was never marked by dramatic differences between each generation, but by relatively subtle modifications to a time-honoured concept – not all of which were entirely devoid of flaws. So you could say that the M10 consolidates all of the experience Leica
have gathered not only since the analogue M3, but also since the digital M8, into a well thought-out and successful synthesis. Its rangefinder mechanics have been optimised and made yet more precise; the measuring basis has once more increased in size, allowing for top-performances even within the digital realm, while the interface exemplifies the concept of a ‘reduction to the essentials’. T H E P Pro g ra m Me .
Aside from its status as the ‘quietest M of all time’, what is it that defines the M10-P? The answer calls for a brief look at the ‘P’ abbreviation in the camera’s name. Starting with the M9, Leica have invariably been complementing Leica M serial models with an additional version, in which →
The absence of the Leica logo – omitted in the interest of a more discreet appearance – is the only overt difference between the M10-P and the M10. Practical application has been enhanced by the introduction of the sensationally quiet shutter and several convenient touchscreen functions
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T H E PE R FECT COVER.
certain aspects of the camera have been enhanced. These ‘upgraded’ variants are marked with the affix ‘P’ which, by all accounts, is short for ‘professional’. However, this tradition was inspired by a much older practice: in 1956, Leitz – with the aim of increasing the appeal of rangefinder photography for professional photojournalists – introduced a variant of the M3, called the Leica MP. Today’s experts disagree on whether the ‘P’ was meant to be short for ‘professional’ or ‘press’. In any case, the MP offered several improvements compared to its serial counterpart. These included an attachment for the Leicavit rapid winder (the early M3’s double-stroke advance lever was deemed too inconvenient), as well as a 35mm brightline frame: this was much better suited to press photography than the frames of the M3, which started 88 |
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at 50mm due to the camera’s 0.91x magnification. With the introduction of the M2 in 1958, the MP became obsolete; however, because only around 450 units of the camera had been produced, it went on to become an extremely coveted collector’s item. This beautifully illustrates Leica’s penchant for revisiting aspects of their history as part of their production policies, along with a proclivity to promote even fairly minor deviations as product-defining distinctions. After all, the reality was that the M system was always more widespread among ambitious amateurs than among professional photographers; in addition, the small production volume of the original MP would certainly suggest that those professionals who did work with the Leica M system did not feel compelled to limit themselves to one designated model.
I ts combinat ion of at t r ibu t e s mak e s t he L eica M 1 0 - P t he u lt imat e st il l s cam era – for unob trusive, dy nam ic st r eet p hotog ra p h y and accurate composit ion s a l ik e.
The digital P models, however, really do cater for a specific element of reportage photography – albeit a rather subtle one: ever since the M5, the letters ‘Leica’ have been displayed on the front panel of the camera’s top plate, along with the name of the respective model; from the M4-P onwards, the characteristic red dot was added. And since then, many M owners have chosen to conceal these displays of their equipment’s origin by covering them with tape. After all, allowing photographers to blend into their surroundings has always been considered one of the great virtues of the M system – characterised especially by its discreet shutter and unobtrusive design. In addition, this is a camera that does not cover the photographer’s face, but allows for interaction with the subject. When considering all of these traits, an eye-catching red logo might not be in line with what they are designed to achieve. Interestingly, the tapedover logo has evolved into something of a hallmark feature of its own – like an insiders’ technique favoured by those ‘in the know’. Leica’s seemingly conflicting response to this trend is, in
The screw allowing access to the rangefinder adjustment is more concealed than it was on the M-P
fact, highly customer-orientated, in so far as the company accommodates both preferences within one product range: on the one hand, every new M model is endowed with the red brand logo; in parallel, Leica release an alternative variation, ideal for those who feel that omitting these overt signs of identification (and replacing them with a more subtle, M3-inspired Leica script on the top plate) corresponds more closely to the ideals associated with M photography. The M10-P continues this tradition of trading the red dot for a greater level of discretion – which, particularly in combination with the fantastically quiet shutter – leads to a cohesive and appealing entity. DIGITAL BENEFITS. The
M10-P is also distinguished by a number of useful digital functions. These include
The Leica script on the top plate: subtle brand identification that echoes the lettering on the M3
the reintroduction of the virtual spirit level last featured in the M (Typ 240), which allows for the precise horizontal positioning of the camera, as well as some discreet touchscreen functions. For example, when working in Live View mode, the position of the focus magnifier can now be selected with
a tap of your finger – allowing the photographer to control the selective focus outside of the image centre with precision and ease, especially when using a tripod. In addition, the spot metering circle can now be conveniently positioned on the desired section of the image via touchscreen. Again, this is particularly helpful when working with a tripod, but will also prove a useful aid for metering high-contrast scenes. In short, the M10-P could well be described as the core essence of everything M photography has ever stood for; as a camera that has distilled the digital possibilities of the M (Typ 240) into the specific functions that truly benefit M photography; as the ultimate stills camera, which is equally suited to unobtrusive yet dynamic street photography and accurately thought-out compositions. It is a cohesive entity, and a work of art whose subtle refinements take the rangefinder philosophy to the next evolutionary stage. Why then, some might ask, are the M10-P’s amazing traits not being applied as a brand-new production standard? Unfortunately, it is not quite so easy: to achieve the wonderful ‘prrt’sound of the M10-P’s shutter release, complex alterations are required – not only to the shutter itself, but also to the camera body. And such elaborate modifications inevitably come at a price. To be precise: 7,500 euros will afford you the privilege of experiencing state-of-the-art rangefinder photography with the Leica M10-P. olaf Stefanus
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S t r o n g e r to g e t h e r L - M o u n t All i a n c e
In a surprise move, Leica has forged an alliance of three manufacturers, strengthening the L mount’s position in the mirrorless market. With the prospect of a more diverse portfolio of L mount cameras and lenses, it is time to reappraise the advantages of the mount.
For a couple of years there were just two players in the full-frame mirrorless market – Leica and Sony. Only the Leica L mount and the Sony E mount supported both full-frame and APS-C sensors. But in 2018 the whole market appears to gain momentum. While Canon and Nikon have started to hint at projects of their own in this segment, Leica has announced it will join forces with Panasonic and Sigma to spur the development of products based on the L mount. The Leica SL, TL2, CL, and their respective lenses will soon become part of a much larger family of compatible and diverse components, and customers will be able to mix and match products from all members of the surprising alliance of these three major companies. 90 |
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A n ew a ll ia n ce. Leica and Panasonic go back a long way. It started in 2001 and has intensified in recent years when they entered a technology partnership to the benefit of both sides. Still both companies kept their mirrorless system camera businesses separate. Leica showed no interest in joining the Micro FourThirds standard and Panasonic stayed clear of larger sensor sizes like APS-C and 36 x 24 mm. With Panasonic entering into the L-Mount Alliance, this is now going to change. Among photographers, Sigma is mostly known as a vendor of third-party lenses for cameras from Canon, Nikon, Sony, Pentax, Olympus, and Panasonic. Especially their Art line of lenses has won critical acclaim. But Sigma’s portfo-
lio also comprises cameras, originally DSLRs and now also a line of mirrorless system cameras with APS-C or APS-H sensors based on their Foveon X3 technology. These sensors distinguish colours, not with red, green, and blue filters arranged in a Bayer pattern; rather, depending on the wavelength, the light gets absorbed at different depths into the silicon chip, and Foveon X3 sensors use three layers of photosites at different depths to capture all the colours with every pixel, resulting in a higher resolution than the number of pixels would suggest. As the inventor of the L mount, Leica does not intend to relinquish control over the mount and its specification; however, the three allies will cooperate in the further development
of the common system. The L-Mount Alliance also appears to be a closed, tight-knit group, unlike, for example, the original FourThirds standard that anyone could join. Th e L M o u nt r evi si t e d. So what has drawn Panasonic and Sigma to the Leica L mount? The im-portance of the lens mount is often overlooked, but it is the mount that defines a camera system. The lenses determine the quality of the images created within the camera and the →
In the future, cameras and lenses by the three partners Leica, Panasonic and Sigma, will fit together thanks to the L mount. Previous cameras from the Leica range with L bayonet: Leica SL, Leica TL2 and Leica CL
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tially weak spot as dust or water could creep in when it is exposed to the elements. Leica’s SL lenses feature a sealing lip that, when pressed against the camera’s mount, provides a tight fit so nothing can enter the unit of camera and lens. sho rt f la ng e di sta nc e . The defining char-
sensor determines the quality of the eventual digital pictures, but the lens mount as the interface between lens and camera is crucial in that it defines what the system is capable of. Originally the L mount (then called the T mount) was introduced as the mount for the Leica T, and APS-C camera. Still Leica had designed the mount with both APS-C and full-frame sensors in mind. Its mechanical specifications should support all kinds of combinations of cameras and lenses, including lenses optimised for full-frame on a small APS-C camera. The L mount features four rather than the usual three tabs, and the springs that 92 |
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provide a tight coupling between lens and camera body exert the force re-quired to hold even long and heavy lenses reliably in place. A slight tilt by just a few microns, caused by the leverage of the lens, could compromise the uniformly high sharpness in all parts of the image. The surface of the L mount is also highly scratch resistant, and, while scratches from changing lenses might not tarnish the image quality, they could affect the resale value of a camera or lens. Leica has made it a point that no one could tell from inspecting the mount how many times a lens was changed. The connection between the components is a poten-
The L mount is wide enough to comfortably fit the 36 × 24mm sensor of the Leica SL, but small enough for compact APS-C cameras like the Leica TL2 and CL
The short flange distance of 20 mm allows for adapting virtually any SLR lens; for those of the R system, Leica provides their own adaptor
acteristics of a lens mount are its diameter and its flange focal distance, i.e. the distance between mount and sensor. Mirrorless systems are generally distinguished by a short flange distance – DSLRs require a longer flange distance so a mirror can be placed between lens and sensor but without a mirror the lens may get much closer. The flange distance of the L mount is 20 mm, which is even shorter than that of the equally mirrorless M system (27.8 mm). The back focal distance, i.e. the distance between the rear lens and the sensor, can be even shorter. That is, the rear lens may protrude beyond the mount into the camera, as long as it does not hit the focal-plane shutter. When lens and sensor can get real close because there is no mirror to be fit in between, lens designers are relieved from limitations imposed by SLR systems. Infinity focus with a wideangle lens principally requires the lens to be brought close to the sensor, but with an SLR this is impossible as the mirror is in the way. The solution are retro-focus lenses that increase the back focal distance, but the price to be paid is the increased size and weight of these lens designs. The L mount
with its short flange distance obviates the need for retro-focus lenses except for very short focal lengths. The short flange distance also provides the space for adapters for SLR lenses, be it from the R system or third-party systems, or even M lenses where the space between M and L mount is just 7.8 mm. The right diam eter .
The diameter of a mount is, by necessity, a compromise. A large mount allows for near telecentric lens designs with a large rear lens. With this type of lens all the light rays hit the sensor at a small angle which serves to maximise corner sharpness and prevents optical crosstalk
between sensor pixels, i.e. light intended for one pixel to stray to another. On the other hand, the camera must, at least, be as large as the mount and a large diameter of the mount would prevent the design of small APS-C cameras. Also the lenses need to be as large as the mount, even when their optical design would allow for a more compact size. For the L mount, Leica has decided on a diameter of 51.6 mm which provides enough room for a fullframe sensor, but is small enough for compact APS-C cameras. El eC tron ic s a nd F i rm wa r e. Modern lenses do
not just comprise the optical
The Leica SL system comprises 5 fast primes and 3 zoom lenses. These and the 10 lenses for the Leica TL and Leica CL will soon be joined by lenses designed by Panasonic and Sigma
elements that determine its image quality, mechanical parts, and a focusing motor, but also electronics – a processor with its own firmware that communicates the processor in the camera. Just like the camera’s firmware, the firmware of the lens may require occasional updates and, with the L mount, this works across any products by any member of the L-Mount Alliance. A Panasonic camera could update the firmware of a Leica lens or a Leica camera could install the new firmware for a Sigma lens. The camera body also provides electric power for the lens, i.e. for driving the focusing motor and for powering the controlling → lFI
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The L mount provides room for near telecentric lenses with large rear elements and small angles of incidence even in the corners of the sensor
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electronics. Some lenses have fairly large and heavy focusing groups, and moving these elements as fast as possible requires more power, as does an optical image stabiliser that compensates camera shake by shifting a lens group. The L mount is specified to provide ample power for all possible requirements. Leica lenses can boast a high level of optical corrections, however modern lens designs today sometimes tend to put less emphasis on correcting optical failures, that could easily be corrected digitally, and focus on more challenging components to boost the overall lens performance instead. The recipe for the digital corrections necessary
to be applied by the camera is provided by the lens. The correction data are also stored in the meta data of a raw file so they can be applied by a raw converter. As they are provided by the lens, this mechanism works equally well when the camera and the lens are from different members of the L-Mount Alliance. The cameras does not need to know anything about the lens as the lens informs the camera – using a standardised format – about how the digital images should be processed. The L mount is a common interface for connecting cameras and lenses from different vendors. All the components communicate in a uniform manner, and the L mount is flexible
enough to facilitate future enhancements – its specifications are not set in stone and can be extended if new features should require it. A W in -W in -W in S ituation . So what is
in it for the partners in the L-Mount Alliance? And, even more importantly, what are the benefits for the photographer contemplating investing in this system? For Panasonic and Sigma the advantages are obvious: they gain access to an established mount and they may hope that some of Leica’s prestige will rub off on their own contributions. At the time of writing neither Panasonic nor Sigma have announced any products based on the L mount,
so it is too early to make any specific claims, but it appears likely that with three vendors rather than just one, the system is poised to grow by leaps and bounds. There will probably be a lens portfolio that is not only larger but also more diverse, including more specialised lenses that were previously missing. Much the same should apply to cameras. Panasonic might draw on their experience with video to develop a video-centric L mount camera, whereas Sigma could leverage their Foveon X3 sensor technology. The increase in diversity will extend to prices – there will be more affordable lenses by Panasonic and Sigma, lowering the
threshold for entering the L mount system. Budgetconscious customers could start out with a relatively affordable APS-C camera and eventually upgrade to a full-frame model with Leica lenses. The L-Mount Alliance allows the photographer to freely mix and match components from different vendors so it becomes much easier to put together one’s very own dream system. The partners all have specific strengths and unique technologies to contribute, and consequently the system around the L mount will be stronger, more versatile and, frankly, more attractive, thanks to the three allies pooling their resources. Michael J. Hussman
Featuring more than 300 lots of rare Leica including the Leica MP, the Leica IIId, the Leica Reporter and many pre-war, post-war and war-time Leica rarities.
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S i lv e r S ta r Th e L e i c a C L S i lv e r
The CL was Leica’s successful response to the market boom of mirrorless APS-C systems. Initially released in an elegant black finish, the camera is now also available in a stylish silver version.
When we initially wrote about the Leica CL in LFI 8/2017, we predicted that the camera would be likely to attract a great number of fans within a short space of time. And indeed, less than one year after it was first launched on the market, it has firmly established its position in Leica’s product portfolio – so that the announcement of a new edition of this popular camera was, perhaps, almost to be expected. Trad i t ional value s.
In line with Leica’s design traditions, the CL Silver is distinguished by an understated body and clearly defined lines. However, the new model’s silver-finish top and base plates add an appealing visual element by creating a striking contrast to the camera’s black body. 96 |
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With its electronic viewfinder, interchangeable lens, three-inch touchscreen display and high-resolution APS-C sensor, the Leica CL is a sophisticated combination of state-of-the-art technology and the mechanical precision that has always been associated with Leica products. Her e to stay. The intro-
duction of an additional CL variant is a clear indication of Leica’s continuing commitment to the category of APS-C sensor cameras. Based on the aspiration to offer the best possible image quality in the smallest possible body, the CL is an excellent all-rounder whose minimalist exterior and intuitive operating concept prove especially useful when travelling or photographing on the go. The CL’s com-
patibility with the lens portfolio of the TL2 and the SL, as well as (via adapter) with the lenses of the M and R systems, already opens up a vast range of creative options – while Leica’s L mount collaboration with Panasonic and Sigma (see page 90) opens up an entirely new spectrum of future possibilities. Syst e m s o lu t i o ns.
The Leica CL was borne out of the ambition to create a compact, mirrorless system camera to occupy the price range just below the M series. Positioned in the ‘conventionally classic’ category of Leica’s product catalogue, the silver version of the CL is sure to appeal to any photographer who appreciates the uncompromising image quality and ergonomic benefits that
distinguish Leica’s compact cameras. In parallel to the launch of the silver model, the CL’s accessory range will be expanded by a silver-coloured thumb rest for added user comfort. Furthermore, the latest CL 2.1 firmware update as well as the new Leica Fotos app (see page 98) are now available as free downloads – thus providing CL photographers with an even greater array of connection, transfer and setting options. In essence, the Leica CL Silver represents a continuation of everything we have come to appreciate in its black-finish counterpart, and illustrates that Leica’s tradition of technical excellence and accomplished craftsmanship is equally reflected in their range of compact system cameras. Danilo Rössger
The same but different: In terms of technical specifications, the Leica CL Silver is identical to its black-finish counterpart, including its compatibility with the Leica Fotos app. An optional silver thumb rest complements the camera’s striking new exterior
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On e f o r A l l Th e L e i c a F o t o s App
The new Leica Fotos app is intended to replace the vast array of applications connecting cameras with smartphones. With a wider range of options and improved capabilities, this unifying app is on a mission to bring smartphones and cameras closer together.
It is commonly acknowledged that in today’s rapidly changing world, the vast majority of photos are taken on a smartphone rather than a ‘proper’ camera. Not even Leica can avoid this trend, and have established their position in the smartphone market through their successfull collaboration with Huawei. This illustrates that high-end cameras and smartphones need not be mutually exclusive, but can complement each other. After all, both have their own advantages: smartphones are usually at hand wherever you happen to be, provide convenient viewing options, and are always connected to the internet. Dedicated cameras, on the other hand, offer greater compositional possibilities than the tiny camera module of a smartphone. The main prerequisite for an 98 |
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interaction between camera and smartphone is a Wi-Fi interface, which has been a standard feature in most Leica cameras for quite some time – leading to a variety of apps being released for a wide range of Leica cameras. And here lies the root of the problem that has sparked the development of the unifying Leica Fotos app: for every new camera that was released, an individual new app was created – sometimes with very few commonalities between them, given that they were often made by different developers. In addition, many of these apps were only available for either Apple iOS or Google Android, rather than for both. The apps for the Leica M and Leica S, for example, are only available for iOS devices – leaving Android
M ORE THA N j UST A HIGH - E N D REM OTE SHUTTER : THE LEI C A FOTOS A PP IS A LL A B OUT H AVIN G YOUR BEST LEICA PICTURES ON YOUR M O B ILE PHO N E .
users unable to find an app for Leica’s most highlevel cameras. And then, of course, there is the fact that managing, maintaining and adjusting multiple apps to ever-changing phones and systems can actually be quite a laborious task. Pro ble m s o lv e d. The new Leica Fotos app sets out to eliminate all of these issues in one fell swoop. For one, Leica intend to offer a streamlined solution in the form of a single app for their entire range of Wi-Fi-capable cameras. Introduced at this year’s Photokina as a public beta version, the app will ultimately be available for both iOS and Android devices. Also, rather than limiting improvements to specific reasons such as problemsolving upgrades, etc., →
The primary focus is on viewing and downloading images on your smartphone (1). At last, the app also facilitates RAW-file transfer and easy access to metadata (2)
3
The initial link between camera and smartphone is set up via QR-code scanning – after that, the connection is made automatically
1
4 During remote-controlled shooting, the phone’s display shows a live image of what the camera ‘sees’ and allows you to set the main exposure parameters (3). The menu lets you access virtually all of the camera’s settings (4)
2
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the app will be continuously developed and updated on an ongoing basis – including frequent additions of new features designed to benefit all camera owners alike. While previous apps for Leica cameras have placed a strong emphasis on their remote-control functions, this new app is centred around exporting images from camera to smartphone. The app’s start-up display therefore no longer shows the remote control function, but the images saved on the camera. According to Leica, this corresponds with the requirements of the vast majority of users, who mostly seek to download, view and process their pictures on their smartphones. This is where previous
Using the system menus, images can be transferred to other apps, such as Lightroom
Leica apps exhibited some weak spots – for example, images could usually only be transferred in JPEG format. Though this was partly to facilitate higher transfer speeds, it was also based on the assumption that the phone would merely serve as a tool for showing and sharing images. But the evolution of smartphones took off so rapidly that it was not long before mobiles were able to support RAW file processing, while mobile apps like Lightroom now offer almost the same scope of possibilities as the software’s desktop version. The Leica Fotos app also finally facilitates the transfer of DNG files – though these will naturally take a longer time to download.
MEISTER CAMERA Le ica Stor e S Hamburg-be r Lin-mÜncHe n
The ColleCTor ITem of The day
Apple’s iOS currently does not display images as RAW files, but merely shows them in the form of an embedded, lower-resolution JPEG preview. The Leica Fotos app, by contrast, offers a full-resolution view. In addition, a simple upwards swipe brings up all of a picture’s metadata, which is normally difficult to access on a smartphone. R e m ot e Co nt ro l. The remote control feature is still an inherent part of the new Leica Fotos app, and will now be universal for all Leica cameras. The image is transferred to the smartphone at a decent speed, with only a minimal time lag when you remotely release the shutter. The
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meister_lfi_boerse2017 english Kopie.indd 1
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main parameters, such as exposure time or sensitivity, can be adjusted with ease – whereby the exact range of settings available for remote-controlled shooting are, of course, dependent on the features and type of the respective cameras. The same goes for the settings in the camera’s menu, which can also be selected via the app. Despite sounding like an additional convenience, this is actually one of the app’s less relevant functions, seeing as configuring the camera within its own menu is hardly much more of an effort. The Leica Fotos app also makes coupling app and camera much easier than before. When setting up the connection for the first time,
a QR code shown on the display of your Leica must be scanned via the smartphone camera, in order to join the camera-generated Wi-Fi network. Any time after this, activating the camera’s Wi-Fi and the Leica Fotos app is all that is required. iOS users will be asked to confirm the connection to the camera’s wireless network, while Android mobiles will join immediately. The app is able to remember different cameras, which is great news for anyone who owns more than one Leica. We were able to try out a preliminary version of the app in iOS – giving us the chance to explore its functions and connect to a variety of different cameras, even before the public beta
In con t rast to m ost nat iv e s mart p hon e p hoto a p ps, t he Leica Fotos App d is p lays imag e s at f u l l r e s olution with all m etadata .
version becomes available in September. We particularly appreciated the imageviewing options, as well as the ability to transfer DNG files and process them directly on the phone. These features made us take the app more seriously than many of its predecessors. The verdict is that it is definitely great – but not quite perfect: for example, there is still no option to view and transfer videos, or establish a Bluetooth link to the Leica C-Lux, which is currently on the long list of cameras not yet supported by an app. Having said that: Leica are intent on developing the app and expanding its range of features – so there is certainly plenty to look forward to. Holger Sparr
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OPE N SES A M E l e i c a sto r e w e tz l a r
At the end of 2018, a new Leica Store is set to open its doors in Wetzlar. Its operators – the Leica Camera Frankfurt GmbH – are a company with over 100 years of experience in the photography market.
Leica retailers. This appreciation for the Leica brand was continually passed down from one generation to the next – resulting in a continually expanding customer base both within Germany and beyond. In 2004, Rahn AG, Foto & Fine Art took on the management of the Leica Gallery Frankfurt. Before it turned into Leica Camera Frankfurt GmbH in 2015, the company had always been a family business. At the time of the transition, it was under the leadership of Georg Rahn’s great-grandson, Nicolas Uhl, and his partner, Qaiser R. Malik – both of whom subsequently stayed on as Managing Directors of the newly founded Leica Camera Frankfurt GmbH. Th e l e i ca sto r e . In No-
vember 2015, Leica Store Frankfurt opened its doors as the world’s first Leica flagship store. Covering around 1000 square metres, the premises consist of the dedicated Leica Store retail space on the ground floor (offerA look at the Leica store Frankfurt offers an idea of what we can expect at the new Leica flagship store in Wetzlar
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The new Leica Store at Leitz-Park is currently still an empty space – but it is easy to imagine how it will look by the time it opens its doors later this year: as of November, visitors will be able to enjoy its local flair whilst browsing through a wide range of Leica products and photography-related literature. Wetzlar’s latest Leica Store will be operated by Leica Camera Frankfurt GmbH, a company whose history dates back to the beginning of the twentieth century. In 1910, Georg Rahn established Photo Rahn – a company that would go on to become one of the first
can browse through a vast selection of photo books and literature to their hearts’ content. This relatively unusual concept of offering a specialist retail store and comprehensive cultural programme under one roof has been honoured with two design prizes: the Iconic Award 2016 in the category ‘Interiors’, and the German Design Award 2017 in the category ‘Retail Architecture’. Many of the elements that define this successful venture in Frankfurt will now be applied to the new Leica Store in Wetzlar – as well as the Leitz Park’s Museum Shop, which will also be operated by Leica Camera Frankfurt GmbH. Malik emphasises that the new Leica Store will “not only sell new products, but also offer customers a chance to acquire ex-display models, as well as to part-exchange used Leica products”. In addition, ever since 2005 Photo Rahn (and subsequently the Leica Store Frankfurt) have regularly held auctions of photography equipment by a wide range of manufacturers, along with selected fine-art prints; these auctions are now going to take place in Wetzlar on a twiceyearly basis. Th e m us e u m sh o p.
Where it all began: Company founder Georg Rahn and his wife in the original Photo Rahn shop in Frankfurt’s Kaiserstraße
ing new and used Leica cameras, lenses, accessories and Leica Sports Optics products), a mezzanine that houses the Leica Gallery Frankfurt, and a first floor where visitors
Along with various items of Leica merchandise, the Museum Shop will offer products such as photo books, specialist literature and exhibition catalogues. Customers will also be able to buy prints of photographs displayed both at the Leica Gallery Wetzlar, and all throughout the new Arcona Living Ernst Leitz Hotel. bernd luxa
STORE Frankfurt
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Leica Camera frankfurt GmbH GroÃ&#x;er Hirschgraben 15 60311 Frankfurt am Main Tel: +49 (0)69 920 70 70 Fax: +49 (0)69 131 04 54 info@leicastore-frankfurt.com www.leicastore-frankfurt.com facebook.com/leicagalleryfrankfurt
b e s t o f LFI . Ga l l e r y
Being Joel M ey e row i tz “At the end of October I visited the small town of Chatham on Cape Cod. The place was already familiar to me because of Joel Meyerowitz’s pictures, and it felt like I was treading in his footsteps. As I photographed this deserted but beautiful place, I was overcome by feelings of nostalgia.” Caroline Gasch Leica Q, Summilux 28mm f/1.7 Asph
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l ig h t box
SHad o w P l ay i n Pa r i s “The mural painting at this basketball court in Paris is a particular draw for photographers. The players were very understanding of the fact that they had to play around us. I made a point of only capturing their silhouettes, so as not to disturb their private sphere.” Lu Wenpeng Leica Q, Summilux 28mm f/1.7 Asph
Colour Block “It was the orangecoloured wall that first caught my attention. I soon found the lantern and garbage bin that would give the picture structure, then waited for a girl with an umbrella. In the end it was a boy who came by, but the picture was in the bag.” James Chan Leica Q, Summilux 28mm f/1.7 Asph
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B a l anc e Keepers “I took this picture of the Mafi family in 1979. At first the circus people mistrusted me, but quite soon I was allowed to photograph the children during their daily practice sessions under their father’s critical eye. A lot of suffering and pain precedes the spotlight.” Marc Schwartz Leica M4 with Summicron-M 35mm f/2 Asph
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O ly m p i c t r am p o l i n e
Hermon and H e r o da
“This summer the Olympic Day in Paris was celebrated with a trampoline performance. This gave me the unique opportunity to photograph the athletes up side down in front of the stunning silhouette of Paris. It reminded of a picture by Garry Winogrand.”
“I photographed the two bloggers from Eritrea for my Alike But Not Alike project. It is about identical twins and will soon appear as a book. The particularity about these two sisters is that they both lost their hearing at the same age when they were seven years old.”
Michael Erimo Leica M9 with Summilux-M 35mm f/1.4 Asph
Peter Zelewski Leica M-E with Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4
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AT l e g height “For the past year I’ve been taking photographs at leg height, which has resulted in discovering all kinds of things that spark the imagination. In this picture, a peacock is interested in a woman’s skirt. The way the bird plucked at it made me think of a bridesmaid picking up the train of a wedding dress.” Shinichiro Yamada Leica Q, Summilux 28mm f/1.7 Asph
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p h oto – b o o k s – E x h i b i t i o n s – f e s t i va l s – Awa r d s –
Perfect, disturbing staging – Alex Prager, Annie, from the series The Big Valley, 2008
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M at t i e u Ga f s o u H + Tr a n sh u m a n i sm ( s )
Endless life? Implants, neural prosthetics, cryonic suspension have all become part of our quest to enhance the human body. In his exploration of the Transhumanism movement (known as H+), the Swiss photographer (born 1981) skilfully combines a documentary approach with allegorical visions. Chillingly fascinating.
A l e x P rag e r
152 pages, 79 colour images, 21.4 × 26.5 cm, Kehrer Publishing
Photos: © Alex Prager, © Mattieu Gafsou, © Patrick Galbats, © Joachim Hildebrand
S i lv e r L a k e Dr i v e
Artificial wigs, loud colours, contrived gestures: the American photographer (born 1979) has a penchant for visual overstatement. At the same time, there is an odd familiarity to her cinematographic scenes: drawing on classic Hollywood aesthetics, her images appear like film stills plucked out of an intricate narrative. Rather unsurprisingly, Prager – who frequently weaves references to the work of film directors such as Alfred Hitchcock into her photographs – has long since established herself as a film-maker in her own right. Her elaborate photo projects also doubtlessly benefit from the creative resources that are abundantly available in her home city of Los Angeles, where finding the right protagonists, costumes, props and lighting should not pose too much of a problem. With a meticulous eye for detail, Prager orchestrates hyper-realistic settings with a mesmerising atmosphere that blurs the boundaries between reality and fiction. To some extent, the disconcerting nature of her images brings to mind the self-portraits of Cindy Sherman – though Prager’s compositions are more complex and employ a more consistent use of colour. Silver Lake Drive is the artist’s first career retrospective: looking back over the past ten years of her oeuvre, the volume spans from series such as Polyester (2007) and Big Valley (2008) all the way to her large-scale project Face in the Crowd (2013), which involved up to 150 protagonists at a time. 224 pages, 291 images, 24.5 × 30.5 cm, Thames & Hudson Ltd
Pat r i c k Ga l bat s Hit Me One More Time
Searching for his family’s roots led Galbats (born 1978 in Luxembourg) on repeated trips to Hungary. With powerful images and insightful writing, this book explores a country whose issues range from a complex history to a resurgence of nationalism – raising legitimate concerns about the future of Europe. 156 p., 70 colour and monochrome images, 19 × 23 cm, Peperoni Books
J oac h i m HIL D E B RA N D Wild West
The only cowboy to be seen is on a mural, the landscape seems like a cliché – the archetype has turned into a stereotype. From 2015 to 2017, the German Leica photographer (born 1964) embarked on a road trip through the seven US-states we still inevitably think of as the ‘Wild West’. During these travels, Hildebrand captured his impressions in his characteristic style, marked by intense colours, clear-cut compositions and a fascination for geometric patterns. His main focus is on contradictions and correlations, boundaries and crossovers – from architec-
ture to nature, from landscape to urbanity. The perfect depiction of ordinary scenes, along with plenty of absurd details amidst the civilised surroundings of modern-day America, make this book a compelling visual adventure. 128 p., 81 colour images, 24 × 32 cm, German, English, Kehrer Publishing
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Eugene Richards IC P, N e w Y o r k
27 Sep. 2018 — 6 Jan. 2019; Photo: Eugene Richards, Crack Annie, Brooklyn, New York, 1988
D o r ot h e a Lan g e J e u d e Pa u m e , Pa r i s
Displacement, poverty, despair: Dorothea Lange’s iconic photographs echo many of the issues of our present time. Her Migrant Mother or Damaged Child have seen their hopes and dreams destroyed, and find themselves in an ongoing state of crisis. In 1936, Lange decided to leave her successful portrait studio in San Francisco in order to travel through a country devastated by the Great Depression. For five years, she documented the impact of the dramatic economic downturn on her fellow Americans. As well as creating poignant images of the dispossessed, she was also intent on exposing the rich, by portraying wealthy landowners clearly untouched by the crash. “The good photograph is not the object; the consequences of the photograph are the objects,” was Lange’s credo, which is reflected in the title of her retrospective at the Jeu de Paume: Politics of Seeing is a homage to the power of perception, as well as an appeal for active change. The presentation marks the first time Lange’s work has been showcased in France for twenty years. Comprising over 100 vintage prints spanning from 1933 to 1957, the exhibition highlights the humanist approach and emotional intensity that made the artist one of the leading founders of social documentary photography. 16 October 2018 — 21 January 2019; Photo: Dorothea Lange, Damaged Child, Shacktown, Elm Grove, Oklahoma, 1936
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L i za A mb r o s s i o C a m a r a Os c u r a , M a d r i d
The Mexican photographer, who has recently won several prestigious newcomer awards (including the Voies Off Award in Arles), presents her solo exhibition The Rage of Devotion in Madrid. Charged with dark emotion, the series tells the story of a woman in a bleak, destructive world, who eventually manages to find her way into the light. 13 Sep. — 17 Nov. 2018; Photo: Liza Ambrossio. La araña, from the series La Ira de la Devoción, 2017
M asa h i sa F u ka s e F oa m , Ams t e r da m
His wife Yoko, his dying father, his beloved cat Sasuke, and himself: these were the favourite subjects of Masahisa Fukase. The FOAM now presents a major retrospective of the Japanese photographer’s work, aptly titled Private Scenes. Featuring original prints from the Masahisa Fukase Archives in Tokyo, the show includes a wealth of largely unknown works spanning from the 1960s to 1992. Fukase counts among the
most radical and experimental photographers of Japan’s post-war generation. In his iconic series Ravens, the artist used haunting images of crows to express his own, dark state of mind. 7 Sep. — 12 Dec. 2018; Photos: Masahisa Fukase, Ants, 1962, from the series Color Approach; Untitled, 1972, from the series Family
Photos: © The Dorothea Lange Collection, the Oakland Museum of California; © Eugene Richards; © Masahisa Fukase Archives; © Sarah Moon / Courtesy Fondazione Sozzani
“The photographer’s responsibility is to respect people while – most importantly – using your skills to reveal something true about their lives and their humanity,” was Richards’ credo. Despite touching on difficult themes, The Run-On of Time is imbued with a profound sense of poetry, honesty and passion.
Sa ra h M o o n G a ll e r i a C a rl a S o z z a n i , Milan
They seem like formations made of shadows, structures made of black and grey. Far from the colourful world of adverts and lifestyle photographs, the figures in Sarah Moon’s images inhabit a realm between painting and photography, fantasy and reality. Since the 1970s, the French artist has maintained her reputation as a revolutionary of fashion photography, whose dreamlike images have brought a sense of poetry to an otherwise perfectiondriven genre. “Every picture is a self-portrait,” Moon once confessed – leaving the viewer free to interpret her visions, which seem suspended beyond time and space. With Time at Work, the Galleria Carla Sozzani presents 90 photographs, spanning from 1995 to 2018. “This is the story of time passing; how time erases,” is how Moon describes the show. “Here and now, this story I tell is not totally mine, but the story of these photographs before they disappear. It is time at work. By chance, I found these Polaroid positives that I hadn’t fixed. Some looked astonishing, others had simply been spoiled.” The result is a stunning showcase inspired by the artist’s memories, experiences and emotions. 19 September 2018 — 6 January 2019 Photos: Sarah Moon, Gauthier, 1998; Cotinga du Pérou et Trichoglossus du Timor, 2000; L’avant-dernière, 2008; Audrey, 1998
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La r s B e u s k e r : M aa s a i Land L e i c a G a ll e r y Nr w
Lars Beusker – photographer and owner of the Leica Gallery NRW, Germany – has discovered a love for the world’s largest land mammals; specifically, the elephants at the foot of Kilimanjaro. In January and February, 2018, he spent four weeks photographing in the Amboseli region of Kenya and Tanzania, resulting in a series of impressive portraits of elephants, which he captured with a Leica M Monochrom. “The extreme proximity to the animals – all the pictures were taken without a zoom and at a distance of two to five metres – granted me the desired attention of the giants when taking their portraits.” To capture these images, Beusker set out with his guide every morning before sunrise, 116 |
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“Maasai Land aims to create awareness of the beauty of these animals in their unique natural setting at the foot of Kilimanjaro.”
heading into the savanna beyond the borders of the National Park in search of his subjects. With his Maasai Land series, Beusker wants to draw attention to the devastating situation of the
elephants: despite the ban and drastic fines, thousands of elephants are still hunted and killed every year for commercial purposes. Maasai Land is now being presented in large-format baryte prints at the Leica Gallery NRW; the vernissage will take place on 6 October at the venue, which was designed along the architectural lines of Mies van der Rohes’s Barcelona Pavilion. In addition to the elephants, the display includes portraits Beusker took in a Maasai village. Further locations are being planned for the exhibition. 6 October — 21 December 2018, Leica Gallery NRW, Mies-van-der-Rohe-Weg 1, D-Oelde-Stromberg; www.leica-galerie.nrw
S MAGAZINE ISSUE 9 20
L e i ca Ga l l e r i e s A r e nb e r g C a s t l e
Porto
Wilfried Hedenborg
Rui Pires: Rhapsodiae Portucalensis
AUT | 5020 Salzburg, Arenbergstr. 10 10 June — November 2018
POR | 4000-427 Porto, Rua d. Sá da Bandeira, 48/52 28 July — 10 October 2018
B an g k o k
Tul Hirunyalawan: Reminiscence THA | 10330 Bangkok, 2nd Floor Gaysorn Village, 999 Ploenchit Road 24 September — 7 November 2018
Prague
I Hereby Proclaim my Loyalty to the Republic
Boston USA | Boston, MA 02116, 74 Arlington St. 13 September — 11 November 2018
Sa l z b u r g
GER | 60311 Frankfurt am Main, Großer Hirschgraben 15 7 September — 27 October 2018
€
L O O
Edward Quinn: Riviera Cocktail AUT | 5020 Salzburg, Gaisbergstr. 12 10 August — 13 October 2018
F r an k f u r t
Alex Webb: Selections 1979–2013
PAGES · 9,90
TCH | 110 00 Prague 1, Školská 28 31 August — 28 October 2018
D. Randall Blythe: A Longer View
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S ã o Pa u l o
Julio Bittencourt: Plethora BRA | 01240–000 São Paulo, Rua Maranhão, 600 Higienópolis 27 September — December 2018
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CUTTING-EDGE PHOTOGRAPHY BY
i s t anb u l
Horst P. Horst: Fashion & Portraits TUR | 34381 Şişli/İstanbul, Bomontiada – Merkez, A Birahane Sk. No:1 13 September — 24 November 2018
Singapore
Geoff Ang & Yik Keat Lee: Two SIN | Singapore, The Fullerton Hotel, 1 Fullerton Square, #01–07 31 May — 24 October 2018
Kyoto
To kYo
Ihei Kimura: Master of Candid Photography
NIGO® in Unknown Metropoliz
JPN | Kyoto, 570–120 Gionmachi Minamigawa, Higashiyama-ku 30 June — 4 October 2018 Los Angeles
Melanie Pullen USA | West Hollywood, CA 90048, 8783 Beverly Boulevard 20 September — 31 October 2018 M i l an
Current exhibition unknown at time of publication
JPN | Tokyo, 6-4-1 Ginza, Chuo-ku 7 July — 30 September 2018 wa r s AW
Jacob Aue Sobol: With And Without You
Wetzlar GER | 35578 Wetzlar, Am Leitz-Park 5 19 September — beginning of Nov. 2018
N RW
Kurt Hutton: Von Strassburg nach London – von Hübschmann zu Hutton
N u r e mb e r g
Wolfgang Peter: Tibet – vollkommen analog
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Julio Bittencourt: Plethora
V i e nna
GER | 59302 Oelde-Stromberg, Mies-van-der-Rohe-Weg 1 6 October — 21 December 2018
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POL | 00–496 Warsaw, Mysia 3 29 September — 11 November 2018
ITA | 20121 Milan, Via Mengoni 4
Lars Beusker: Maasai Land
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AUT | 1010 Vienna, Walfischgasse 1 12 September — 27 November 2018
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Zingst
Norbert Rosing: Blick in die Wildnis GER | 18374 Zingst, Am Bahnhof 1 4 October 2018 — 28 February 2019
Enrique Badulescu Joachim Baldauf Brix & Maas Bil Brown Arved Colvin-Smith Anna Daki Rui Faria Christian Geisselmann Esther Haase Marie Hochhaus Benjamin Kaufmann James Meakin Monica Menez Hector Perez Elizaveta Porodina René & Radka Christian Rinke Tristan Rösler Takahito Sasaki GUEST
Ellen von Unwerth
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GER | 90403 Nuremberg, O. Wörthstr. 8 13 October — 17 November 2018
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LFI-ONLINE.COM/SHOP
The motif for the British band Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here album cover (1975), photographed by Storm Thorgerson
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Photos: © Pink Floyd, image of ltd. Edition prints, designed by Aubrey Powell, Storm Thorgerson (Hipgnosis); courtesy: Browse Gallery
“ B e r l i n – f u l ly f o c u s e d o n p h o to g ra p h y. “ i n t e rv i e w
Berlin has been the location for the European Month of Photography (EMOP) since 2004. This year brings us the eighth edition. Project leader Oliver Bätz speaks about the event’s highlights and history.
LFI: Mr. Bätz, what are the highlights of this year’s European Month of Photography? Oliver Bätz: With 120 exhibitions, it would be unfair to mention just a few here. The appeal of the EMOP Berlin has always been in the diversity of its projects: there really is something for everyone. For fans of black and white photography, much of it taken in Berlin, we have quite a lot on display this year. Also historical images, political and artistic photography, country-specific themes, and analogue photography.
The individual events are being held all over the city in more than 100 venues. What else is particularly worth mentioning? Bätz: Yes, the EMOP Berlin is truly the largest photography festival in Germany. This is due, first of all, to the large number of institutions in Berlin that deal professionally LFI:
with photography, which is also one of our selection criteria. The exciting thing is that the small project space stands next to the big museum, the Embassy next to the established gallery, the cultural institution next to the photography school. EMOP Berlin’s unique feature is that our festival brings together public, publicly-sponsored and private institutions in one big photo extravaganza. How was it possible to get such diversity to collaborate? Bätz: A collaboration involving more than 100 institutions is always a challenge – even if it’s something ones does quite frequently. There are three main factors that are always problematic: the summer vacation, when Berlin suddenly empties out at the beginning of the holidays and everyone you need to connect with seems unreachable for weeks; the fact that, even though we’ve been organising EMOP Berlin for many years now, there are always institutions that ask to become a part of it just a few LFI:
weeks before the opening – after the jury has sat together and after the festival catalogue has already been designed; and finally, the individual wishes that we can’t always meet. There is also going to be a collaboration with the Leica Oscar Barnack Award (LOBA). The LOBA 2018 finalists will be exhibited at the Neuen Schule für Fotografie, and the German Leica photographer Anatol Kotte will host a series of talks at his Capitis venue titled On the Red Sofa. Bätz: Following 2016, this is the second time that all the LOBA winners and finalists of one year are being presented at EMOP Berlin. It’s obvious that the jury Leica assembled has, once again, made an outstanding selection and we will be seeing some exceptional pictures in the exhibition. The collaboration is of benefit for both parties: Leica has given EMOP Berlin two cameras and the excep- → LFI:
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How did the EMOP start? The EMOP Berlin started out as a little plant, and has now become a strong tree that would be able to withstand a storm. From 93 exhibitions and 83 institutions in 2004, with around 135,000 visitors, the numbers have risen to between 120 and 150 exhibitions and about 120 partners. Since the fourth edition in 2010, each festival has seen around half a million visitors. To the EMOP Opening Days, that we are organising for the second time this year, we have added an important element that allows us to have an explosive beginning, capturing even more attention for the event – especially from the media. In addition, we are particularly happy to have received financial support this year from the Festival Fund, newly established by the Senate for Culture and Europe. LFI:
” THE A PPE A L H AS A LWAYS B EE N I N THE EVE N T ’S D IVERSITY. “
You have been involved in the organisation of EMOP since the beginning. How did it all come about? Bätz: After establishing the network in 2003, and celebrating the premiere in the autumn of 2004 – back then with exhibitions alternating between locations – we decided to expand the circle of cities and festivals. First of all we added Bratislava, Moscow, Rome and Luxembourg (2006), Budapest and Ljubljana (2012) and then Athens in 2014. The initiative came from Paris, where a Mois de la Photo has been held for a long time. What was important back then was the support of the partner cities of Paris, Vienna and Berlin, with their respective administrations and Mayors; because at the time there were no photo festivals in Vienna or Berlin and without this support the European collaboration would not have been possible. This made it viable for Vienna and Berlin to produce their respective EMOPs because, as is always the case, it’s also a question of where to source the financial support. LFI:
Very top: Ute Mahler, Jutta Deutschland, prima ballerina at the Komischen Oper Berlin, fashion photography for Sibylle, Berlin 1980; below clockwise from the left: Alexandra Spiegel, Hotel Tropicana, Morón 2017; Max Pinckers, 2018 LOBA finalist, from the Red Ink series; Jürgen Klauke, Siebziger, 1974
tional book Eyes Wide Open! 100 Years of Leica Photography for a competition – prizes like that are, of course, great! In addition, all the LOBA finalists will be represented in the festival catalogue and programme, as well as on the website, which will draw the attention to this highlight. The interesting artists’ talks are valuable for both sides. 120 |
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Photos: © Ute Mahler/courtesy Galerie Springer, © Alexandra Spiegel/courtesy A Trans, © Max Pinckers, © Jürgen Klauke, VG-Bildkunst/courtesy Galerie Guido W. Baudach
Bätz:
Where else does it come from, in addition to public funding? How is your code of honour defined? Bätz: Unfortunately, it’s not so easy to gain sponsors for a festival such as the EMOP Berlin. There are simply too many heterogeneous events for that. Even so, I am always amazed that the sponsors are so hesitant. With regard to the code of honour: I would have a lot of difficulty dealing with an aggressive hedge fund. LFI:
What is your vision for EMOP’s future evolution? Bätz: In the early days the focus was on increasing the number of visitors, but in the meantime the demands of the festival have grown significantly. LFI:
What demands exactly? Focusing on photography for a whole month, opening up an opportunity for newcomer photographers to present their work to a broader general public, offering the photo community a platform for exchange, presenting great exhibitions and exciting events for the visitors coming from Berlin, Germany and the whole world, and, last but not least, highlighting Berlin as a city of photography. LFI:
Bätz:
What do you hope for from the photo scene, nationally and around the world? Bätz: That the medium continue to be so popular and successful. That committed photographers continue to produce authentic and impressive images, and that there continue to be institutions that will exhibit them. LFI:
Interview: Carla Susanne Erdmann
O l i v e r Bätz was born in Dortmund in 1955. He studied French, History and German in Munster and Lyon. From 1986, he worked for the Museumspädagogischen Dienst Berlin (MD Berlin), which fused with the Berliner Kulturveranstaltungs-GmbH (BKV) in 2006, to become the Kulturprojekte Berlin GmbH. Since then, Bätz is the project manager for Kulturprojekte Berlin GmbH and project leader for the EMOP Berlin. E MOP B e r l i n : 28 September to 31 October,
in over 120 venues; emop-berlin.eu
Leica Fotografie I n t e r n at i o n a l
B e at P r e s s e r my picture
While searching for a monk who might have attained nirvana, the photographer was delighted at his own luck: a Leica M8 that worked at an altitude of 4200 metres.
70th year | Issue 7. 2018
LFI PHOTOGR A PHIE GMBH Springeltwiete 4, 20095 Hamburg, Germany Phone: +49 / 40 / 2 26 21 12 80 Fax: +49 / 40 / 2 26 21 12 70 ISSN: 0937-3977 www.lfi-online.com, mail@lfi-online.com Editor-in-Chief Inas Fayed, Frank P. Lohstöter (V.i.S.d.P.) A rt Direction Brigitte Schaller EDITORIA L OFFICE Michael J. Hußmann, Denise Klink, Bernd Luxa, Edyta Pokrywka, Danilo Rößger, David Rojkowski picture desk Carol Körting layout Thorsten Kirchhoff Translation, Sub-Editing Robin Appleton, Hope Caton, Anna Sauper, Osanna Vaughn CONTRIBUTORS to this issue Carla Susanne Erdmann, Katja Hübner, Dean Kissick, Ulrich Rüter, Holger Sparr, Katrin Ullmann M anagement Board Steffen Keil, Frank P. Lohstöter
Buddhist monk in the Ladakh highlands, 2007
Media SA LES A nd M arketing Kirstin Ahrndt-Buchholz, Samira Holtorf Phone: +49 / 40 / 2 26 21 12 72 Fax: +49 / 40 / 2 26 21 12 70 E-Mail: buchholz@lfi-online.de holtorf@lfi-online.de Valid ad-rate card No. 46, 1 January 2018 REPRODUcTION: Alphabeta, Hamburg Printer: Optimal Media GmbH, Röbel/Müritz PA PER: Igepa Profimatt
The high valley of Ladakh in the Himalayas. Travelling on foot with my friend and Sherpa Dev Kumar, wondering whether there might be nuns or monks anywhere who have attained the mythical state of nirvana in their own lifetime: that state of deep inner peace and happiness, where every need disappears – the highest goal of Buddhist teachings. At an altitude of 4200 metres, it is windy, bitter cold and the air is thin. I have a tripod, a Rolleiflex and 120 rolls of black and white film. Already by the second day, the Rolleiflex fails. Something about the film loader seems to be defective. For documentation purposes, I also have a newly acquired Leica M8, with 21, 35 and 50mm lenses in my rucksack. What a happy coincidence! With each and every photograph, I become more aware of this. I do not, however, find the “happy monk” I am looking for. Instead I capture this picture. Beat Presser, born in Basel in 1952. Since the beginning, the freelance photographer and cameraman has pursued his own projects. His diverse, comprehensive body of work is found in galleries and museums worldwide, and published in numerous photo books.
L FI 8 / 2 0 1 8 w i ll a pp e a r o n 9 n o v e mb e r 2 0 1 8
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Trained as a marine biologist and a photographer, Mexico City-born Cristina Mittermeier combines her work behind the lens with her passion for environmentalism, taking pictures around the world to explore our relationship to the earth and ocean and to draw attention to the beauty and the plight of our planet.
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29 x 37 cm, 256 pp., Hardcover 62 color and 85 b/w photographs Text in English, German, French € 80 $ 95 £ 65 ISBN 978-3-96171-124-6
© 2018 Cristina Mittermeier. www.sealegacy.org
Trained as a marine biologist and a photographer, Mexico City-born Cristina Mittermeier combines her work behind the lens with her passion for environmentalism, taking pictures around the world to explore our relationship to the earth and ocean and to draw attention to the beauty and the plight of our planet.
This rich photo book of the Himalayas is at once a remarkable retrospective and an homage to the Tibetan culture and spirituality. The life’s work of Olivier Föllmi reveals photographs of extraordinary emotion, color, tradition, and beauty, alongside inspiring anecdotes and stories from the photographer.
MY HIMALAYA OLIVIER FÖLLMI 27.5 x 34 cm, 304 pp., incl. 5 gatefolds, Hardcover 175 color and 24 b/w photographs Text in English, German, French € 80 $ 95 £ 65 ISBN 978-3-96171-140-6
www.teneues.com