Archives for Photo News category
The Denver Post, in it’s photo blog “Captured,” has a tribute to color photography before it was commonplace in America. The photographs were taken between 1939 and 1943 by photographers of the Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information. They capture rural and small town America towards the end of the Great Depression. But unlike the best known Great Depression era image, Migrant Mother by Dorothea Lange captured in 1936, these images were all in color, not so common at that time. Captured: America in Color from 1939-1943 represents a photographic milestone, color images, that is not that old, in the grand scheme of things. But in the age of digital is often taken for granted when just a flip of a button can switch an image between black and white or color.
Time Magazine has published their Top Ten of 2010 lists with one list being the Top 10 Photographs of 2010. The photos span the globe and present a good representation of the year in photographs. Check out Time’s choices for top ten as well as their larger list of the Best Photos from the Pages of Time 2010.
As you can imagine the photography collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City is quite extensive. The collection spans the history of photography from early silver prints of the 1800’s to Polaroids (the first time around) to digital. But you don’t have to go to New York City to see it. Given the chance however, that really is the preferred way to see it for so many reasons. When getting to NYC just isn’t possible though and you need a great photography fix and that is where the online photography collection of MoMA comes in very handy. With thousands of images available to search through and view you can easily get an online lesson in the history of photography.
In addition to being full of great images, the collection is really well organized. You can search or just browse. When you find an image you like all of its vital stats are right there and you can easily find other works by the same photographer.
So next time you’re surfing the internet a stop at the online photography collection of MoMA is well worth it.
Although Ansel Adams is known almost exclusively for his landscape photography of the American West there is much more to the body of work he has left behind than just those famous images. NPR did a story recently on the Street Photography of Ansel Adams that is worth reading and viewing the slide show of Adams’ non-landscape work that is now housed in the Los Angeles Public Library’s art collection. Like many photographer’s today it was difficult for Adams to make a living in the 1930s and 40s on his art photography alone. So he worked on commissioned photography as well. Those works were thought to be of little value at one time but now the Adams name alone significantly boosts their value. It helps that the work is very good as well.
Speaking
of Ansel Adams’ work I recently bought the book Ansel Adams: 400 Photographs
. Although it focuses almost entirely on the body of work he was best know for, the landscape photography of the American wilderness, it does find room among the 400 images for a sampling of his other work. Both portraits and architectural photography done by Adams over his 60 year career are represented in the book. It is a great collection and well worth adding to your photography library. Everyone has one of those don’t they?
I am not a user of Leica cameras and lenses, but I still think it is worth mentioning Leica’s recent launch of a new image hosting website, www.LeicaImages.com.
LeicaImages.com is a free online gallery for hosting photos captured with Leica gear. That does limit it a bit to a very specific niche photographer for posting images. But there is no reason the rest of us can’t oooh and ahhh at the work produced by these very high end and high quality pieces of photography equipment. The site is rather advanced as well. It features search functions that allow you to search for an image taken by a specific lens or camera, by focal length, photo age, aperture as well as predefined categories. This is great for both the Leica enthusiast looking for examples of work done with the equipment they own as well as someone researching the potential purchase of a Leica camera or lens.
Here are a few more features of LeicaImages.com courtesy of Leica.
- Remember Photos – Keep track of photo you like. No more forgetting where you once saw that photo.
- EXIF Editing – If your photo was scanned or no EXIF data is in the file, you can set and customize the EXIF data for the uploaded file.
- EXIF Search – You can search for photos by clicking on EXIF data. Doing so will show you photos with the same EXIF data.
- Personal Lens List – Build a personalized list of lenses you own or have used. This makes assigning them to photos a breeze.
- MTF Data – View MTF data for a lens. When you view a photograph, the EXIF data will show the specific lens used. To the right of that lens description is an icon representing a pdf file. If the data is available, Clicking on this icon will display the MTF data sheet for the lens.
- Follow the photographer – If you want to be kept up to date when a specific photographer uploads new photos simply add that photographer to the “My Following List”. You will then receive email notifications when the photographer uploads new photos.
- Slideshow – View a slide show. Whenever you see the Silde Show icon, clicking on it will present you with a slide show. This may be for a specific photographer, today’s photos, category or collection.
The story of the California man who bought some negatives at a Fresno garage sale that he and others report to be the long lost work of Ansel Adams and worth $200 million has taken another turn. According to the LA Times, The Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in Tucson, a long standing authority on the work of Ansel Adams and home to all 44,000 of his original negatives, has stated that they have no reason to believe the garage sale negatives are the work of Adams. This certainly does not help the case that a $45 garage sale find is not worth $200 million. But it probably will not dash the hopes of bargain hunters hoping to find the next long lost work of art that has been hidden away in someone’s attic for 50 years.
The mystery of the Ansel Adams long lost negatives that I recently wrote about deepens. As reported by KTVU in Oakland, CA someone has stepped up to cast more doubt on the authenticity of the negatives. The family of Ansel Adams claims the negatives bought at a garage sale for $45 are not the work of Adams. Experts disagree and say they are his work and are worth upwards of $200 million. But now a California woman has presented images taken by her uncle that are remarkably similar to those that are said to be from Adams. So similar in fact that one Adams expert is questioning if the garage sale finds are in fact the work of Adams.
So the authenticity is still up in the air and the owner of the negatives can’t quite collect his $200 million yet.
Most avid garage sale shoppers dream of finding something with a $1 price tag that turns out to be worth much, much more. The original Picasso thought to be another replica print; the vase that really was “Made in China,” but during the Ming Dynasty; the long lost hand written memoirs of insert famous name here. It has happened from time to time and like picking the 6 winning lottery numbers, many have dreamed of such find. One such find by a California man has caused quite a stir with experts claiming he has authentic long lost negatives created by none other than Ansel Adams while the famous photographer’s descendants are saying “no way.”
Experts on Adams along with hand writing analysts concluded that the $45 garage sale buy of 65 negatives are in fact early work of Ansel Adams and are valued at $200 million dollars. Matthew Adams, Ansel’s grandson, says they are not his grandfather’s work. He claims the handwriting on the negatives that the experts attribute to his grandmother, Virginia Adams, is not a match and she would never have made the spelling errors found on the negatives. He also claims his grandfather’s meticulous record keeping and organization would never have allowed for losing such a valuable piece of his collection. The experts are standing by their conclusion however.
In the end, they are worth what somebody is willing to pay for them. If the dispute raises questions of authenticity in the minds of potential buyers, then they may just be worth the $45 that was originally paid. However, if the Ansel Adams family’s doubts are silenced with enough scientific evidence there may be a lot more garage sale shoppers out there hoping they stumble upon such a win fall.
You can read the full story Ansel Adams’ Grandson: ‘Lost’ Negatives Aren’t Real from AOL News.
The Sedona Photo Fest 2010 is a week long event celebrating photography in the natural beauty of Sedona, AZ. Put on by the Sedona Arts Center the Photo Fest runs from July 18th to the 25th and is packed with something for just about everyone. Here is a sampling of some of the events that I think look particularly interesting. You can download the full Sedona Photo Fest program of events here.
- Sedona landscape photography competition
- Sedona International Film Festival Photo Fest Cinema Night – Features two films: Resurrection: Glen Canyon and A New Vision for the American West and Ansel Adams: A Documentary Film
- A three day symposium filled with speakers and panels is the center point of the Photo Fest. A few of the presentations that stand out to me are:
- Fine Art Exhibit and Sale – Sedona is known for its galleries and many of them will be featuring photography during the event.
Check the Sedona Photo Fest 2010 site for information on pricing and how to buy your tickets and have fun if you are able to attend.
On Friday, May 7th, at the After Hours Gallery in downtown Phoenix, a unique art project entitled 26 Blocks will be unveiled. The project has paired 26 of the best photographers in the Phoenix metro area with 26 of the best writers and assigned the duos one of 26 downtown Phoenix city blocks. Their assignment was to capture their assigned block’s past, present or future in one photograph (with up to four images in it) and 500 words. Sculptor, Rafael Navarro joined the writers and photographers as well to combine the essence of the entire 26 Blocks into one work of sculpture.
I have spent some time perusing the 26 Blocks web site (which in itself is pretty well done) and this looks like a very exciting project. It combines three things I love, photography, writing and downtown, urban environments. I am definitely looking forward to seeing this exhibit. If you miss opening night on Friday the project will be on display at the After Hours Gallery from May 7th through the 31st before it goes on a tour of Phoenix (tour details are still to be announced).
