I have discovered the city of Paris through my own lens. However, the city of lights has been revealed to me from a host of photographers over decades. As much as I love to capture this legendary city through my own lens, it is the work of the great photographers that have helped me to experience and love the city, even years before I stepped onto its streets.
But it is the recent book by one of my favorite photographers, William Albert Allard that helps me to yet again see this classic city with new eyes. In William Albert Allard Paris: Eye of the Flaneur, he showcases work that he has been produced of the city over the past three decades. Some of these image were produced while on assignment for National Geographic, while others were created during personal visits. But you will not see much difference here between the assigned and personal work because Allard's approaches it all with the sensibility of the street photographer that he is.
Flaneur means idler or saunterer and it is this sensibility that Allard uses to describe how he wanders through the street of Paris, without intention or agenda. Instead, he allows light and color and gesture to draw the attention of his camera. The resulting images go well beyond merely being aesthetically rich and vibrant, but also reveal the city in a very personal and intimate way. There are no picture postcards to be found here.
Though Allard is often associated with his work with the American West, his eye is no less poignant and insightful when capturing the nuances of Paris. His willingness to simply explore and embrace the unexpected, allows him to not only capture photographs that are beautiful, but which also cut through the surface of the city's well-honed facade and reveals its real and sometimes contradictory reality.
The photographs are often beautifully rendered across two pages. And though I often prefer to not have a gutter run through a printed image, it does not take away from my appreciation of the work that Allard has gathered in his latest title.
Whether or not you have traveled to Paris, this book provides a glimpse into how a master photographer uses his skills, talent and experience to bring a personal voice to an oft-photographed subject. For fans of Allard's work, this book offers yet another opportunity to appreciate his wonderful talent. And for those who are unfamiliar him, this book provides the perfect opportunity to discover both a legendary photographer and a legendary city.
Kevin Raber is CEO and publisher of the Luminous-Landscape website. He brings over 40 years of experience in the photo industry including stints as a photographer, studio owner, photo software developer and Vice President of PODAS events for Phase One.
In this week's video, Ibarionex discusses the role of text in a composition and when and why you may want to include or exclude it from the frame. He also discusses what other elements you want to consider to leverage the presence of text in the photograph.
I am in many ways a creature of habit. There are certain foods that I regularly order from my favorite restaurant. There is a particular route that I travel to get to and from home. And when it comes to photography, I have long favored the use of the 35mm lens.
Whether it was with my Nikon, Canon and now my Fujifilm X-series camera, a 35mm focal length has been at the heart of most of my picture making. I have trained my eye to see the world from that particular perspective and it has greatly influenced the way that I compose photographs. Seeing from a consistent field of view has allowed me to see what a picture might look like even before raising the camera to my eye.
The son of a Swedish immigrant, William Albert Allard was born in 1937 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He studied at the Minneapolis School of Fine Arts and the University of Minnesota.
Allard is a photographer of people. From the beginning of his illustrious career in 1964 as a National Geographic photographic intern, Allard has contributed to 44 Geographic articles as a staff, freelance, and contract photographer and writer. His stories for the magazine have included "Rodeos: Behind the Chutes," "India's Untouchables," "Bohemian Rhapsody," and "Hutterite Sojourn."
In this week's video, Ibarionex discusses how to capture intimate photographs of human affection. He explains why it is important to not only capture the moment of human interaction but also to carefully consider the other elements within the frame.
I have discovered the city of Paris through my own lens. However, the city of lights has been revealed to me from a host of photographers over decades. As much as I love to capture this legendary city through my own lens, it is the work of the great photographers that have helped me to experience and love the city, even years before I stepped onto its streets.
But it is the recent book by one of my favorite photographers, William Albert Allard that helps me to yet again see this classic city with new eyes. In William Albert Allard Paris: Eye of the Flaneur, he showcases work that he has been produced of the city over the past three decades.
Joana Toro is Colombian independent documentary photographer exploring issues of immigration, human rights and identity.
Joana is a self-taught photojournalist based in New York City and Bogota. She worked as a staff photographer with the major magazines and newspapers in Colombia. In 2011, Joana migrated to the United States to pursue her career as a documentarian and artist.
In this week's video, Ibarionex discusses how great street photography does not always have to rely on the presence of people. He explains how evaluating a scene for light & shadow, line & shape, color and gesture helps you to produce wonderful photographs of the most mundane scenes.
I recently began subscribing to the YouTube Channel of the photographer, Olaf Sztaba. Olaf who describes himself as a visual poet is a photographer who not only has a wonderful visual aesthetic but possesses a philosophy of photography that is not shared often enough. In the YouTube world where there is no shortage of videos of street photographers working out in the street, Olaf brings along a sensibility that brings context to the process.
In this week's video, Ibarionex discusses the role of color in making an effective photograph. He explains how color can be too easily ignored and how instead photographers should focus their attention on the various colors in their composition and use them to increase the impact of their photographs.
I am often asked for tips from photographers new to street photography. And to be honest, I am frequently at a loss as to what to share as there are so many things to consider when trying to create a good photograph, regardless of genre.
Nevertheless, here are 5 things that I feel make it possible for me to succeed whenever I photograph.
Nancy Lehrer, is an independent photographer based in Thousand Oaks, California and has been using photography to capture her unique world-view for most of her life. Nancy has studied photography from several American photography masters including Jay Maisel, Sam Abell, Gerd Ludwig, and Arthur Meyerson. She has received several local awards, and she lectures on photography in Los Angeles and Ventura County California.
In this week's video, Ibarionex discusses how photographers can reveal what it is to be human. By looking for moments of interaction between people, whether they know each other or not, he explains how images can transcend the common tropes of street photography and become something more.
When I am on the hunt for photography books, I am not only looking for good information. I am really hoping for insight, revelatory moments that are not so much about learning something brand new but finding an alternate perspective to how I see the world through a camera.
Larry Fink on Composition and Improvisation does that for me.
Joel Meyerowitz was born in the Bronx in 1938 into a neighborhood that offered daily lessons in the divine comedy and tragedies of human behavior. He believes it was that basic “street” education that nurtured his delight in human observation, a perception that is at the heart of his photography.
In this week's video, Ibarionex discusses ways that he tries to challenge himself with his street photography. He talks about how to use multiple figures and have them play off of each other.
I was recently invited to a screening of the documentary film, Don't Blink about the legendary photographer, Robert Frank.
Frank along with Henri Cartier Bresson helped to redefine what photography could be in the latter part of the twentieth century. With his book, The Americans, the Swiss-American photographer turned his lens onto his adopted country creating a body of work that while controversial in its time has come to be embraced as one of the most significant works of photography.
John Keatley often self-characterizes his work as a reflection of himself, rather than the individual he is photographing. In recent years, his journey of self-discovery has brought clarity to emotions that have always been present yet were previously unknown. Anxiety. Fear. Isolation. Not Being In Control. Keatley capitalizes on the correlation between these emotions and humor.
It used to be that if you wanted to have an in-depth learning experience from a master photographer, you had to attend a workshop or if you were lucky, serve as their assistant. The first could be prohibitively expensive, especially if travel was involved. While the latter was only available to those talented and persistent enough to secure such a position when they became available.
When Kodak ceased production of the process to develop its classic Kodachrome film, there was a sense of loss that was experienced by generations of photographers. It wasn't just the end of a film emulsion but an end to a particular way of seeing and capturing the world. It was a way made famous by countless magazine photographers, especially those photographing for National Geographic magazine.
Though many films have come and gone, few were seen as a cultural lynchpin. And no other film had or has been immortalized in the social consciousness as Kodachrome was in the popular song written and performed by Simon and Garfunkel. The death of Kodachrome was as much an end of a part of Americana as it was the end of a product's life.