white
COVER IMAGE BY Peter Neske “THE CROW”
4 POINT OF SIMPLICITY| EDITORIAL
WHITE POINT OF SIMPLICITY #2
I am pleased to present the second issue of “Point of simplicity”, a free pdfbased monthly digest devoted solely to photography.
soft snow and hard metal. White is may be the only color that has so many faces. It may be cold and warm, cozy and hostile. Northern people
I am very grateful to the warm wel-
have a variety of names to distinguish be-
coming you gave to the first issue of the
tween different shades of white. Many
magazine a month ago. Although young
more words can be used to describe its
and unknown this project has already
nature, and still they will be not enough.
found devoted friends in different parts of the world. People are willing to help and contribute asking nothing in return.
White is the most welcoming and liberate color in all the palette: it accepts any hue of the surroundings. Although
We are honored to present some of
recognized as a symbol of truce white is
the renowned photographers alongside
very stubborn and independent: colorful
fresh faces on the pages of the magazine,
reflections leave it anything but colorful.
but we still have to conquer the hearts
Some don’t even count white as a color.
and earn trust of those who still see “POINT OF SIMPLICITY” as a yet another risky venture.
In photography white is the synonym of light. Traditional artistic rules invented by ancient painters postulate that white is
The theme of this issue is white. The
as strong as black, and these are two col-
color of pure and divine, mourning in the
ors one should not use excessively, if at
East and wedding in the West, color of
all. But can we get enough of white?
5 POINT OF SIMPLICITY| EDITORIAL
In this issue you will see how different photographers
from
different
back-
grounds, styles and genres employ white to create stunning images.
tion of the world, yet alone the 100 pages of our magazine. Dear readers, I hope you that the second issue of “Point of simplicity” will in-
Silent, yet vibrating photographic tales by Hengki Koentjoro (Indonesia); smooth
spire you to take off on a journey of discovering new creative horizons!
winter landscapes and water by Maria Strӧmvik (Sweden); artistic nude and senTejido
Teya Saveleva
(Russia); clean apparitions of everyday ob-
June 2011
sual fragility of morning by
jects on the still life shots by Anil Akkus (Turkey), and many more. In this issue we have only attempted to take a glance at the universe of white as an artistic media. Although you will see a variety of different shades and uses the true abundance of color white can not be contained even by the greatest art collec-
6 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
http://www.koentjoro.com/
7 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
Born in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia, on March 24, 1963, Hengki Koentjoro is an accomplished black and white photographer. He is a graduate of the Brooks Institute of Photography, Santa Barbara, California, where he majored in video production and minored in the fine art of photography. He returned to Indonesia to become a freelance videographer/editor, specializing in nature documentaries and corporate profiles, and now lives in Jakarta with his wife Lana and their three children. Hengki is a part time practitioner of the art of black and white photography, which he believes to be his true purpose in life’s journey of expression.
8 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
9 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
10 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
11 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
12 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
13 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
14 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
15 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
16 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
17 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
18 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
19 MAITRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY | HENGKI KOENTJORO
20 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
www.mariastromvik.eu
21 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRĂ–MVIK
Maria Stromvik is an amateur photographer who grew up by the seaside in southern Sweden. She started photographing in the summer of 2009, and has already received several international awards for her minimalistic black and white photos. Maria is trying to create images that leave ample room for the imagination, and a considerable amount of space for the viewer to fill with his or her own interpretations. The sea - as well as water in other forms - is a recurrent theme in many of her photographs.
22 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
23 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
24 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
25 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
26 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
27 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
28 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
29 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
30 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
31 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
32 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
33 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
- Maria, thank you very much for joining us for the interview. MS: Thank you for your interest in my photographs! - Maria, you have a very beautiful gallery and your own solid style, but you started photography in summer 2009. How come you reached such heights in such a short period of time? Have you ever been involved in any creative work or visual arts before? MS: In visual arts, no, not at all. I work as an assistant professor in political science at Lund University. I have sometimes helped my colleagues at work to do the cover design of their publications, but otherwise no. It’s all new to me. But I have spent a lot of time in the last two years trying to learn, both how the camera works and how to best do personal black and white interpretations in Photoshop. And I have loved this learning process in itself. - Maria, are there any modern photographers or artists you look up to, that inspire you? And what is it about them that you like in particular? MS: Yes, my interest in photography as an artform came about as a result of seeing Canadian photographer Michael Levin’s photos, about two years ago in a magazine. I was mesmerized with the possibility to create almost abstract, almost unreal, photos by the use of for instance very long exposures and very deliberate and conscious black and white treatment.
Since then, I have of course also discovered the work of for instance Michael Kenna, and others, also with a very minimalist and close to abstract take on landscape photography. - It looks like the sea is your inspiration. What do you love about the sea? And what are you trying to capture every time you point your camera at the waves? MS: I grew up by the sea, in southern Sweden, so I guess seas and oceans always evoke something familiar and comforting, but also dramatic and exciting, for me. I’m not sure however if this is what I try to capture with my photos. I often suspect I am more interested in the possibility of “distorting” reality, often with a somewhat graphic ambition, and make people wonder if the photo is for real. The seaside is a very good place to do that, since water can create so many interesting effects. As an added bonus, it’s always wonderful to spend some time by the sea, no matter what the weather is like! Last summer I also experimented with shooting IN the sea, by using a plastic bag camera housing and doing underwater portraits of willing friends. I hope to continue this series in August this year. - Maria, you chose black and white as the main medium of portraying the world around. In your opinion, what advantages and what challenges does monochrome photography have?
34 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
MS: I guess that black and white photography makes it possible to reduce the complexities of reality, and also allows for a more personal interpretation of reality. With black and white images, the photographer has many more possibilities to slightly alter the perceptions, by obscuring and highlighting various components in the image. Also, by simplifying reality to black and white, more is left to the imagination, which allows the viewer to make his or her own interpretation. Any disadvantages? None that I ever think of! I’m in love with the simplicity of black and white, but maybe I will try to also do colour photography in the future. - Maria, minimalistic black and white square waterscapes have been very popular these days. How would you describe your own style and what makes your different from the other photographers working in this genre? MS: I am still trying to learn, and trying to find my own style. It takes time, and I’m not sure I have anything that makes my photos different from those of others, yet. Since I’m not a professional photographer, and since I don’t do this for money, I just try to enjoy the somewhat introspective process of finding my own voice, even if I may never find it. - Maria, despite being categorized as black and white your artwork is mostly white. Is there something special about the colour white that you love?
MS: This is a very difficult question (laughs). I’m not sure if my photos are mostly white, I also enjoy playing with dramatic contrasts in general. But white somehow seems so much more challenging (and therefore stimulating to work with) than going very dark. For me, it is somehow easier to produce photos with mostly dark tones, and heavy dark vignetting, so I think I try to avoid it primarily to challenge myself. - Maria, please tell us about “Where South Sweden Meets the Sea” series. What were you thought behind this project? MS: It didn’t start out as a deliberate project. It came about as a result of the last 18 months of trying to photograph seasides both in Sweden and abroad, wherever I could and whenever I found the time. I realized to my surprise that I found the Swedish seaside much more exciting than many other places. The grass was not necessarily greener on the other side, so to speak. For a good part of the year, the light is often amazing in these northern parts of Europe. Being a fairly narrow country in the south, Sweden also has the advantage of offering photo opportunities along three coasts (east, south, west) within the same day, which feels very luxurious when searching for the perfect light. So I decided to try to put together a collection of photos that reflected my local scenes. It is still, however, a work in progress, and I still have a bit to
35 GUEST FEATURE | MARIA STRÖMVIK
go before I know it’s boundaries and final form. - What is your favourite shot in the “Where South Sweden Meets the Sea” series? Why? MS: Not sure, but maybe I have a special love for “Guardian” (see page 32), mostly because I’m self-taught and I remember so well the day I took it. It was in October 2009, it was cold, misty, rain hanging in the air, and I had walked quite a bit with the camera and tripod. But when I set up the gear and took the first shots I felt, for the first time, that I understood how the camera worked, understood the relationship between aperture, shutter speed and, exposure, and how I could and wanted to use the ND-filters in a proper way. It was such a sense of freedom to finally, after a couple of months of trying, understand the basic technical aspects and be able to start focus entirely on what I wanted to achieve. - Maria, do you travel a lot for the photoshoots? What is your favourite location in Sweden? MS: I sometimes travel a bit for work, and lately I have tried to take a few days off before or after to also be out with my camera in new locations. But I don’t think I can say I travel a lot. In Sweden, and again to my surprise, my favourite photo location is only about 10 kilometers from where I live. Is a village called Bjärred. In the fall and winter, it has amazing light in the evenings (I’m not a morning person!),
and an endless array of little small curious objects along the seaside that lend themselves very well to minimalistic seascapes. - Maria, what would be your piece of advice for the amateurs who have just started nature photography? MS: I’m not sure I am yet in any position to give advice, but I’m sometimes surprised about how many people think someone else can tell them how to do art photography. My advice would be to go out and experiment, to learn about what you love. Don’t listen to “experts”. Go out. Go home. Look at the photos. Go out again. And start over again. No doubt this is the best way to learn, and most importantly: it’s the most fun way to learn! - Maria, thank you very much for the sharing your insights with us. Do you have any final words of encouragement or shoutouts for our readers? MS: Thank you. Not sure, but for those who, like me in the beginning, are a bit obsessed with coming home with good photos, I would like to say: relax! Try to enjoy the process as much as the final result. A friend of mine once said that photography is a bit like being out with a fishing rod, but without coming home with any fish. It can be just as enjoyable even without “the catch”. I now know this, and I love photography even more for it. It takes me to places I would not otherwise have seen, photos or no photos.
36 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
http://tejido.livejournal.com/
37 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
Alexey Tejido is a semi-professional photographer from Moscow, Russia. He discovered photography as his creative path about 4 years ago. Starting with sensual and vibrant macro shots he steadily developed into an artist with his very own distinctive style. Now Alexey devotes most of his time to portraiture and artistic nude. The evoking pictures of the alternative reality he captures with his camera shed light on the magnetic world of feminine beauty.
38 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
A few years ago when I was just
ing the photo look more like another cas-
starting out as a photographer I had an
ual glance or as if it has been shot by
idea of making a series about one day in
pushing the shutter button unintentional-
a life of a person. Naturally, the series
ly.
were not meant to capture a life of just any person working late and then spending their evening watching late shows on TV. I wanted the series to be special, consisting out of three distinctive parts – morning, day, night. The idea seemed simple. I jumped into working on it with unflagging zeal of a beginner. But I was bitterly disappointed, for the first time as a photographer. My skills and experience were not enough to enable me realize the idea. The series were laid to rest for the time being.
I will not go into detail describing the sleepless nights I spent elaborating on the design of each shot, thinking about the significant details like the general style of the shoot, especially a style for each time of the day, compositional cohesion, etc. The only thing I will say is that it was really hard. Although it was not the first project in this genre, some steps of preparation and post-processing turned out to be challenging. The volume of shot material was huge, so I had to suppress the urge to splash everything
I was obsessed with the idea for two
out online for people to see. The main
years. Finally, after going a long way in
criteria for the finished project were the
quest for my style and my very own tricks
limited quantity and the defined limits.
that would help me realize the cherished dream, I made up my mind to elaborate on it. It occurred to me that the series may represent the first-person view of someone who may have spent a day with the main heroine. Some shots may look as if someone was sneaking on her, some may use my favorite technique – framing of the image sloppy to the extent of mak-
I decided that the photoshoot will be in color. That is not typical of me, because I generally prefer black and white, high contrast photography. Color makes me feel uneasy. But I had to favor color because monochrome doesn’t allow much freedom, especially when you aim to distinguish between morning and evening.
39 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
The most difficult part was the begin-
the inner insecurities, showed a new path
ning. I do not normally say or show a
and pushed me towards new ideas, yet
model how to pose in order to meet my
very distant from anything I ever shot to
photographic needs. I encourage a mono-
this day. I have not expected that.
logue of a kind, artistic play of body and feelings. My photoshoot is somewhat similar to photojournalism. There’s nearly
Alexey Tejido
nothing staged. I do my best to create
June 2011
such an atmosphere that will help a model to forget about me and live her inner self to the fullest, opening and rediscovering herself. The only thing left to me is to guide the emotions in a subtle way and capture the right moment. Here you can see the first pictures from the series – the morning part. I aimed to portray the gentleness of the woman’s body, it’s defenselessness and fragility. I also wanted to capture the moment of waking up in the soft light of a sunrise. That is why I chose such palette – prevailing whites with soft pastel hues of other colors. In the end I would like to say that working on this series coincided with a very hard period of my life. The time when I started to feel disappointed in my creative abilities. In my opinion, the series were a success. It helped me to shrug off
Model Svetlana Zagudaeva
40 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
41 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
42 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
43 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
44 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
45 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
46 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
47 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
48 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
49 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
50 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
51 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
52 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
53 PROJECT FEATURE I | TEJIDO
54 PROJECT FEATURE II | ANIL AKKUS
http://a-anil.deviantart.com/
55 PROJECT FEATURE II | ANIL AKKUS
Anil Akkus is a still life and product photographer. Anil was born in Istanbul, Turkey in 1987. He is a young aspiring visual artists currently studying at Yildiz Technical University, Art and Design Faculty, Photography and Video. Anil specializes in still life and conceptual photography. Most of his creative work revolves around playing with light and objects in studio.
56 PROJECT FEATURE II | ANIL AKKUS
There were a lot of things and rea-
The most difficult part of the pro-
sons that inspired me to make this white
jects was actually painting objects white. I
project.
imagined the shots for the series, but
The simple reason is that
these
then struggled to find usual white things
high key photography series were my
in my household. Then I would come up
graduation project.
to my mind and say say: “Mum, may I use
The creative part is that I like trying
your spoon or fork? I promise I won’t do
new things, shooting different styles and
any harm…” And then I painted them
ideas. The idea of white series looked sim-
white.
pler and minimalistic, even more creative
One can say that the photoshoot
to me. I aimed for simplicity. It had to be
preparations were really long and trouble-
something simple and creative. So I chose
some. I gave a lot of thought to finding
white as the best color to fit my general
objects, analyzing their forms, types and
idea, high key technique was my tool.
their usage area.
When I did the white series, I used
I use Canon EOS 40D, most of my
ordinary objects one may use in daily life.
works from the white series were shot in
I think, working with the ordinary objects
the studio. I said “most of them”, because
is more challenging than landscape or
I made the “Peeler” shot was made in
even food photography, because you have
front of a window at home using long ex-
to show the unusual, new side of a usual
posure. I generally use one or two soft-
thing.
boxes and a reflector, because I want the As I said, I used high key technique,
which is the kind of photography that uses a large amount of light tones and fewer
images to be softer, with no contrast. That’s it. Thank you very much to featuring my project in the magazine!
mid-tones or shadows. The best way to obtain high key is by using in-camera fea-
Anil Akkus
tures rather than trying to achieve your
June 2011
objectives through post processing methods. So I didn’t use digital darkroom, and challenged myself to shoot on the spot.
57 PROJECT FEATURE II | ANIL AKKUS
58 PROJECT FEATURE II | ANIL AKKUS
59 PROJECT FEATURE II | ANIL AKKUS
60 PROJECT FEATURE II | ANIL AKKUS
61 PROJECT FEATURE II | ANIL AKKUS
62 PROJECT FEATURE II | ANIL AKKUS
63 PROJECT FEATURE II | ANIL AKKUS
64 WANT TO BE FEATURED? | SUBMIT YOUR WORK!
ISSUE#3.LINES SUBMIT YOUR WORK UNTIL JULY 20 2011 & GET PUBLISHED!
65 WANT TO BE FEATURED? | SUBMIT YOUR WORK!
HOW TO SUBMIT? 1.
Follow us on Facebook or Twitter and share links to your galleries or shots by replying to our posts.
2.
Follow Ode-to-simplicity on DeviantArt and suggest your photos as Favourites to the specially designated folder.
We are glad to discover and publish photographers with a fresh, untarnished view of the world. We are looking for beauty, novelty, depth, transience, special touch, and, well, simplicity. You may not be very famous, but you should have something special to show ♼ By submitting your work you give us the right to publish it on the pages of this magazine and you agree to your work being distributed digitally via issuu.com media plugin, which can be pasted virtually anywhere on the Internet (see Terms and Conditions). We do not publish every work submitted. We select the shots which we think are a better fit to current theme and general aesthetics of the issue. The choice is subjective and cannot be discussed. Once your work is selected for publishing we will contact you to verify your basic contact information such as your name or nickname, title of the featured work and link to your gallery. This information will be published alongside your work. If you have any questions, please send us an e-mail to simplicity.pdf@gmail.com.
66 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
67 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
68 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Qin Yongjun “STRANGER”
69 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Maria Gloredel “PERFECT”
70 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Geoffrey Gilson “A NAIL?”
71 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Nina Papiorek “INLE FISHER”
72 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Arthika Kanokpaipipat “THE SKY”
73 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Evgeniya Vradiy “ERUP”
74 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Sigurd Quast “HERE IN MY ROOM”
75 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Nicolas Evariste “EMPTY”
76 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Niel Huxtable “DEEP THOUGHT”
77 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Stuart Williams “THE STUDENT”
78 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Jayde Amber “DETACHED”
79 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Aasta Skjervoey “CAN I GET SOME MILK PLEASE! ”
80 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Milan Massa “COLUMS”
81 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Buckner Sutter “WHITE WAYS”
82 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Proxojiy “LONELINESS”
83 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Sorrowfox “MUTE”
84 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Gianluca Di Vito “TRUMAN SHOW”
85 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Buckner Sutter “WHITE WALK”
86 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Dorina Ringwald “AT THE TENDER AGE OF RUST”
87 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
kEvin Climx “FAIRY DANCE”
88 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Suzana Ristic “TURN”
89 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Alper Çukur “FRAGILE”
90 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Vladimir Zivkovic “BARE FIELD IN SNOW ”
91 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Stephen Mortimer “SNOW II”
92 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Sukree Suetrong “HELLO”
93 ASSORTED FEATURE | INSPIRING SHOTS
Piotr Jęczeo “WINTER
94 A SHOT TO REMEMBER | TRUE SOLITUDE
95 A SHOT TO REMEMBER | TRUE SOLITUDE
http://jillybean77.deviantart.com/
96 A SHOT TO REMEMBER | TRUE SOLITUDE
This photograph was shot on my
for the lighting. The sun was (what I con-
high school campus approximately 3
sidered) to be in the perfect position in
years ago. I was in my senior high year,
the sky and the clouds made the world
just starting out in photography and go-
appear like they were covered in white
ing through a bit of a depression, truth-
sheets. It was a perfect atmosphere, ex-
fully.
citing to me like stepping into another It wasn't anything serious or long
term, I was just frustrated with myself in
world of surreal escape; an atmosphere I wanted to capture.
the sense that I felt worthless and unin-
The photography assignment for
teresting and that I wasn't doing anything
this shoot was “Snow Theme� and the
in particular with my life. I was always in
class was given that particular period to
the presence of people and yet I was de-
walk around campus and look for theme
tached from everyone and felt very iso-
related ideas. When I went out to ex-
lated. I didn't feel I possessed any quality
plore, a bleacher stood out in particular
that made me proud of who I was. Quite
to me because it was detached from the
honestly, I felt like a parasite to society.
rest and positioned in such an awkward,
For the most part the only time I was at
isolated area. I decided to choose it as a
ease was when I was alone, completely
form of expressionism.
alone. Then no one could judge me.
The silhouette in the picture?
There wasn't a soul to compare myself
That's actually me. Up until the time peri-
with and thus I felt bliss like no other. This
od around this photograph I had only tak-
photograph, I guess you would say, was
en pictures of still life and nature. I was
inspired by those thoughts and emotions.
always unsure of myself when taking pic-
It was a way for me to vent and give my-
tures beyond the comfort zone of my
self the impression that I was doing
house and backyard. I had an anxious self
something in life.
awareness doing anything in public. As it
The picture was a spontaneous
turned out, stepping outside my comfort
shot and I probably would have missed
zone lifted my spirit and inspired my crea-
the opportunity for the shoot if it wasn't
tivity. This portrait shot was a step be-
97 A SHOT TO REMEMBER | TRUE SOLITUDE
yond familiarity. Since it’s much easier to capture people than capturing yourself, I contemplated using a model. However, I decided in the end to take the shoot as a self portrait since it was representational of what I was experiencing. After the shoot, my hands and feet were in pain being on the cold barrenness of the isolated bleacher but my spirits were warmed. And I told myself then and there that true solitude feels good.
Jillian Davey June 2011
98 CONTEST WINNER | FEATURED ON THE COVER OF THIS ISSUE
99 CONTEST WINNER | FEATURED ON THE COVER OF THIS ISSUE
PETER NESKE http://augenweide.deviantart.com/
“THE CROW”
WINNER OF WHITE CONTEST AT #ODE-TO-SIMPLICITY JUNE 2011
100 FEATURED LINKS | DON’T FORGET TO CHECK THESE OUT!
"WHITE STORY" BY EBRU SIDAR
WHITE MACRO BY ALAIN BAUMGARTEN
Touching and dramatic story of color white
Alain is a distinguished nature photogra-
by a photographer from Turkey, Ebru Sidar.
pher whose gallery has gone through a va-
Ebru Sidar is very well-known for her
riety of transformations from vibrant pal-
beautiful minimalistic style of photog-
ette to the color white. The recent series
raphy, but the white story welcomes view-
feature beautifully shaped flowers and
ers into a parallel world where smooth vir-
plants standing against light backgrounds
gin plains of white surround lonely black
in natural environment. This is a fresh
silhouettes of naked trees.
glance at macro photography where sen-
http://ebrusidar.deviantart.com/gallery/11985219
suality of human mind meets phantasmal forms of nature. http://agbr.tumblr.com/
“DELICACY OF WHITE” BY NILGUN KARA
MONO SERIES BY KRZYSZTOF WLADYKA
Amazing series by another Turkish photog-
These series are whiter than white if this
rapher Nilgu Kara. The white Nilgun Kara
ever can be achieved by camera and then
captures in her photos has that special hue
read by a human eye. Usual, yet amazing
that anyone will recognize from the dis-
clean forms painted with white on white.
tance. Silent minimalistic composition, del-
Minimalistic, simple, square – just how we
icate lines, fleeting moments – that is what
love it.
you find in her gallery. http://nilgunkara.deviantart.com/gallery/
http://www.krzysztof-wladyka.com/
101 TECHNICAL TIPS | WHAT IS HIGH KEY PHOTOGRAPHY?
WHAT IS HIGH KEY PHOTOGRAPHY? by Ana Barbulescu INTRO In this article we will be talking about what High-key Photography is, as well as dispelling the myths that surround this beautiful form of expression. The easiest way to understand Highkey photography is to look at a perfect example of it and think about its name.
nothing can be whiter than white. So the first consequence of dragging the midtones high is that the former high-tones which are now super-white are clipped down to keep them just white. This is the point where you begin to loose texture. That might sound like a bad thing, but it isn’t. Loosing texture will bring out the shape of that which you are
What It Is:
photographing, like pushing back the hair
What it basically boils down to is that
off some ones face.
the image’s key tone is high rather than
Side-effect number two is that the ar-
medium as one would find in almost eve-
eas that normally were dark-toned are al-
ry regular photo.
so dragged up the brightness scale so they
Key tones are usually the mid-tones, so to achieve a HK image we must drag
become much lighter, virtually making our image devoid of shadows.
these tones high on the exposure scale,
This is the point where you begin to
hence making them brighter. This has two
loose contrast, still a good side-effect, but
crucial side-effects.
only up to a point.
Once the mid-tones go bright, then
So the key to HK photography is actu-
the high-tones – those which are usually
ally in the control of these dark tones, and
nearly white – will be even whiter. Now a
when I say control I mean removal.
fact about digital photography is that
102 TECHNICAL TIPS | WHAT IS HIGH KEY PHOTOGRAPHY?
An example of an overexposed photograph.
What It Isn’t: Now that you know the basics of a HK image let’s talk about those photos that often get mistaken for HK but aren’t: the over exposed and the high contrast. The over exposed. Imagine taking a regular image and adding a layer of filmy white on top of it. You lost some contrast but you still have a full range of high, mid and low tones. They’re all just a little bit
An example of a high contrast photograph.
DIY high-key anyone? Enough with the theory, let’s get down to the business of making our own. Now there are two ways to go about this: I. First, and best in my opinion, is to adjust your camera settings and lights around your subject as to get the image HK (or as close as you can to it) right out of the camera.
lighter now. It’s not HK if you still have those mid-tones.
Camera settings
The high contrast. This is usually the
a. Set your camera’s sensitivity to light
result of post production. In an attempt to
on high (I’m talking ISO here folks). De-
make the white whiter and eliminate the
pending on your camera you’ll know
mid-tones altogether people often mess
when you start to loose quality if you go
around with the contrast. I’m guilty of us-
too high. Experiment! With my camera I
ing this one in the beginning but this tech-
find that an ISO of 600 or 800 is high
nique, while it produces startling images
enough for what I need without the nasty
does not make them HK but hight-
random pixelation that we all dread at
contrast.
higher ISO values.
103 TECHNICAL TIPS | WHAT IS HIGH KEY PHOTOGRAPHY?
b. Aperture and shutter speeds. Just
Using the eye analogy again, when
reading this in a tutorial would make me
you set a shutter speed you’re telling your
skip forward in my early days of photog-
camera how much time to keep its eye
raphy when all this went over my head.
open before it blinks. Slower shutter
So I’ll try to keep this as beginner friendly
speeds of 1 second or 2 will let in more
as I can.
light than the faster one of 0.3 of a se-
* If you like to shoot in aperture priority mode (AV on my camera) here is what you need to know:
cond. A good starting out value is 2 seconds or 2’’ on my camera. You will need a tripod for this (you’ll be surprised how long it takes two seconds go by if you’re
Aperture controls how much light you let inside your camera and by this time
holding the camera in your hand). The camera should select its own aperture.
I’m sure you’ve figured out that you want lost of it. So you want a large aperture (think of your eyes with dilated pupils, light flooding in).
c. And last but not least, exposure. We talked about how over-exposed does not HK make. But you have to over expose a little, or a lot in some cases, depending on
I achieve it by setting my camera to
your subject. Fix your camera’s exposure
5.6 aperture and go as low as 3.2. Don’t
compensation to +1 (at the least) and up
go higher than 8 or you’ll have to mess
to +3 stops. Again, experiment.
about even more with the exposure compensation (see paragraph d.) to get back the light that you lost. The reason why I stick faithfully to 5.6 is that it provides me with enough light and also doesn’t make
If your camera supports bracketing and you’re comfortable using it (I wasn’t for years) then adjust that to -2, 0, +2 and go from there.
for a too shallow depth of field. The camera should select its own shutter speed. * If you like shutter speed priority mode (TV on my camera) this is what you have to do:
Lighting you subject Right at the beginning make your life easier and steer clear of dark clothing or dark trimmings on your subject. Keep it
104 TECHNICAL TIPS | WHAT IS HIGH KEY PHOTOGRAPHY?
light or you might end up with highcontrast rather than high-key. And use a white background. It’s for your own good, trust me. So you have your subject, your camera settings are done and all that’s left is the lighting.
conditions? So take a look at this lighting scheme and I’ll do my best to make it work for both those of many props and for those of the tinfoil reflector. The main light. Sun light or your main flash/strobe set at a 45 degree angle to
Now this is where it gets tricky for me
your subject. If using artificial light don’t
since I’m assuming not everyone is the
set it too close to your subject or you’ll
proud owner of 3 to 4 flashes or soft-
end up burning out half of it and plunging
boxes or spot-lights. This is the reason
the other half into darkens.
why for so many years HK was almost exclusively the feather in the cap of fashion photographers. Who else could afford to work in such carefully controlled studio
Fill light. HK is all about filling out the shadows. Use a second light set at a slightly lower Fstop than your main, to balance out the shadows that your main
105 TECHNICAL TIPS | WHAT IS HIGH KEY PHOTOGRAPHY?
light will cast(softboxes are always wel-
Sadly, not all pictures translate well
come). For those of little gear, use a re-
to HK and that’s why we end up with
flector(or as many as you can spare) to
“the over-exposed” and the “high-
bounce back the light from the sun.
contrast” look-alikes for HK.
Now with those two strong lights in
Still, there are many tutorials out
front how can we keep the background
there for the program of your choice and
from ending up a shadowy mess? First of
experimenting can lead to wonderful re-
all don’t place your subject too close to
sults.
it, it will just cast shadows. Then you should set up a light to a 45 degree angle to the background. If you’re working with artificial light then use a slightly higher Fstop than the one on your main light. This is where it gets tricky for those with little gear. Snap your picture with just the two first lights. Find out where the shadows get cast then place a reflector, mirror or even a SAD lamp to even out that spot. You’re nothing if not resourceful and inventive. II. The second way to achieve HK is in post production (PP). Now I know I may have sounded like a purist going on and on about how it’s better to get the image right at the onset before it even reaches your computer. Well I’m not a purist. I can’t afford to be one considering the number of images I had to rescue in PP.
I truly hope this has brought you a little closer to the world of High-key photography. May you delight in creating it and viewing it.
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Peter Neske Hengki Koentjoro Maria Strรถmvik Tejido Anil Akkus Qin Yongjun Maria Gloredel Geoffrey Gilson Nina Papiorek Arthika Kanokpaipipat Evgeniya Vradiy Sigurd Quast Nicolas Evariste Neil Huxtable Stuart Williams Jayde Amber Aasta Skjervoey Milan Massa Buckner Sutter Proxojiy Sorrowfox Gianluca Di Vito Buckner Sutter Dorina Ringwald
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kEvin Climx Suzana Ristic Alper Çukur Vladimir Zivkovic Stephen Mortimer Sukree Suetrong Piotr Jęczeo Jillian Davey Peter Neske Ana Barbulescu
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COMING SOON! POINT OF SIMPLICITY, #3 LINES JULY 2011
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