Abstractions in Black and White
By Paul Eric
15 March 2008
My Domke is light today. No tripod. No cable release. No external motor. No flash. Just my old SLR, a 50mm, one yellow filter, one orange filter, and a few rolls of Fomapan Classic 100. The canvas bag hugs my waist, light with its stripped down load.
Today I plan to hit the alleys, underpasses, tunnels, the backsides of the tourist traps. Today I plan to shoot the city from its bad side.
As a medium, photography is bound by light and an undeniable reality as seen through the lens. However, great photography should never try to mirror this reality, but rather convey a mood or approximation thereof. And if all photography is a form of found art (the stumbling upon and artistically composing of daily life), then abstract photography is surely its illogical extension.
Technically, abstract photography is not at all demanding. Typically, little thought is given to depth-of-field or shutter speed or film speed. No telephotos, no ultra wide angles. There is no call for expert knowledge of reciprocity or post-processing. The only requirement is a vital imagination and a healthy photographic eye.
Shooting abstracts in black and white is more demanding than working in color. The piece's success is wholly dependent on the raw elements shared by all visual art: composition, form, texture. The photographer cannot bail himself out with intriguing and unexpected touches of red or blue. When shooting abstracts, it is important not to rely wholly on traditional rules of composition (i.e. thirds, geometric patterns, etc.). These rules limit one's sight. The photographer should, instead, seek to capture images that convey deep emotions--dread, jubilation, love. These images are better seen through the heart than the eye, and are rarely realized through adherence to "rules of thumb."
The triumphant photographic abstract fuses subject, composition, and light to create a bare slate, a naked form onto which the viewer may project her greatest hopes and most dreadful fears. Such abstractions provide no familiar landmarks, no room for logical anchors. This is not traditional street photography. It is a street seen through segments, pieces, ideas.
And so I set out again, my Domke lightly tapping my hip as I walk. No destination necessary. No softboxes or models. All I need are Mingus and Monk blasting through my headphones, knowing that the best walks yield the best shots. But I am careful to walk slowly, deliberately. These abstracts are underfoot, on the backs of telephone poles, on the loading dock at the corner bar. My eyes wide open to see them. My heart at the ready to feel them.
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