Project 1

Diptych- Chrystal

Chrystal’s starting image in her diptych shows her with her child sitting on a window seal.  The two are locked in a joyful gaze, smiling at each other as the child brushes her hand across her mothers face.  This tender moment is highlighted with the soft bright light coming from the sunshine out side giving the photo a nice glow.  This moment reminds me of many moments I shared with my mother as a child.  Going through photos of my younger years I noticed they were typically taken when I was wrapped up in my mother’s arms.

The second photo adds an interesting twist when shown with the first photo.  We see Chrystal on the same window with her child but both are nude.  We cannot see the expression on the child’s face but we can on Chrystal’s, which is that of “no expression” or possibly a look of someone who is in deep thought.  The lighting is not as bright and soft as the original and is more focused in one area.  On the floor we see that there is spilt liquid next to the child and a used spoon.  On the wall there is a mattress leaning up against it that is dirty and is possibly on its way out to be disposed of. 

What I can take away from these two photos when presented together is that the fist photo represents the joys of having a child by how it shows the two being so happy together.  With the second photo I feel that it shows the more real side of things, which is why the two subjects are nude.  It shows that it is not always easy, fun, or enjoyable, that sometimes things get messy and difficult to deal with.

Who Cares About Books

What I found very interesting about this reading was how the author Darius Himes explains the difference between digital and physical works.  He uses the example of photo books, explaining the difference between reading a book digitally like on a computer, and reading an actual book that you can hold in your hands.  We live in such a digital work these days and every thing is starting to become more “digital” and feels like having physical works has become somewhat rare.  I agree with Himes in regards to viewing a photo book digitally vs. physically in the sense that the connection with the work is on a completely other level.  Being able to touch and observe all of the detail and work that is brought together to make up the photograph that one is viewing is much more satisfying then looking at a digital copy on a screen.  A physical copy of work gives it so much more life than it would if it were viewed in a different medium.  Viewers want to be able to interact with the work they are viewing and looking through photo books allows for that connection to happen.

Reeder_ICE#1: Past Work/Future Aspirations

I first gained interest in photography in the summer of my 8^th grade year.  My father showed me how to use his old Nikon film camera and I instantly fell in love with it and have been making photos ever since.  Photography has always intrigued me simply because of its uniqueness as a medium of art.  The concept of making a photograph fascinates me by how many elements of light it combines just to make one image.  What intrigues me most about photography is the aspect of a capturing a moment in time, when making a photo, that can be preserved forever in that specific time. I have traveled to many places so being able to preserve those memories by taking photos has been very important to me.  When I make photos I usually end up taking up close photos with a shallow depth of field.  I like seeing the textures in things and capturing their beauty.  One artist who I just recently discovered is Sam Abell, a photographer for National Geographic magazine.  His style is more documentary but his photos hold so much more depth than that.  I like how each of his photos have layers of detail and can take such a simple scene and making it intriguing which is what I aspire to do with my work.

http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photographers/photographer-sam-abell/?source=A-to-Z