Expand your visual vocabulary

Dog Park, Rockport, Texas, John Borys, 2023- In 1976 The Museum of Modern Art had a show featuring photographer William Eggleston. The critics at that time panned the show calling it “perfectly boring.” – they missed the point. Eggleston’s exhibition turned out to be a watershed moment for color photography. Joel Sternfeld, Stephen Shore, Richard Misrach, and others expanded the boundaries of photography using color. In the commercial arena, Creative directors are called to create “a look” to communicate a narrative. In movies, think of all the films we have seen that have a “look” Eyes Wide Shut, Man on Fire, Schindler’s List, Bladerunner in the movies these are created with LUT’s.

Enter the digital age of photography. It’s 2023 some 47 years later, and iPhone, photoshop, film simulations (fuji recipe’s) offer a variety of “looks” or ways to tell a story. The broader your visual vocabulary, the better your narrative will be.

Don’t settle for mediocrity. There is too much with us already in our culture today. When culture insists on trying to be inclusive we all lose. Excellence and merit are the true indicators of what we can be and strive to be. Don’t settle for mediocrity. Study the language of color, the history of art, and how we communicate. And ask yourself the next time you are take a picture, what are you trying to communicate? And what is the best way to say it visually?

From:

https://www.artsy.net/gene/new-american-color-photography

https://www.artsy.net/artist/joel-sternfeld

https://www.artsy.net/artist/stephen-shore

https://www.artsy.net/artist/richard-misrach

https://johnborys.com/learn-how-2/photography-classes/

Production notes. Fujifilm recipe – Ektar film base with modifications, GFX 100s, 1/125 @f 16 ISO 100, 23mm, Lee filter smooth graduated. Want to improve your photography see last link above.

CLICK TO ENLARGE: