Week 6

Michael Kenna

Background:

Michael Kenna is an English photographer known for his black & white, unusual, landscape with ethereal light achieved by photographing at dawn or at night with exposures of up to 10 hours.  He was born on 1953, Widnes, United Kingdom. His education were on London College of Communication, St. Joseph's College, Upholland. His works already shown in  galleries and museum exhibitions in Asia, Australia and Europe.

His Photos: 

Thalys View, Brussels, Belgium, 2010

Bamboo and Tree, Oingkou Village, Yunnan, China. 2013

Lijiang River, Study 4, Guilin, China. 2006

Flying Bird over San Marco, Venice, Italy, 1990

Corridor of Leaves, Guastalla, Emilia Romagna, Italy, 2006

Pine Trees, Study 2, Wolcheon, Gangwondo, South Korea, 2010

Watchower, Study 5, Myeongpa, Gongwondo, South Korea, 2006

Ha Long Bay, Study 1, Vietnam, 2008

Sheikh Zayed Road, Study 3, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 2009

Runcorn-Wildnes Bridge, Study 1, Widnes, Cheshire, England, 1973

Reflection:

From what I already researched, I think this photographer has many good photos that using Black and White effect. He can make the Black and white photos become more interesting and attract public. I like how he used movement, forms, shape and also playing with shadow and gradient. He also make us feel the feeling on that place when see his photos. Like in Asia, he shows the landscape, river and mountains with different color tone. And also the wide space to feel the relax part. Then, when in Europe, he usually shows the modern building with unique shape and more classical.

Week 5 (Sports Photographer)

Michael Clark

Background:

He is an internationally published outdoor photographer specializing in adventure spots, travel and landscape photography. He produce intense, raw images of athletes pushing their sports to the limit and has risked life and limb on a variety of assignments to bring back stunning images of rock climbers, mountaineers, kayakers, big wave surfers and mountain bikers in remote location around the world, He uses unique angles, bold colors, stronf graphics and dramatic lighting to capture fleeting moments of passion, gusto, flair and bravado in the outdoors. Balancing extreme action with subtle details, striking portraits and wild landscape, he creates images for the editorial, advertising and stock markets worldwide

His Photos: 

This one is a cool photo because it has emotion of the photo and the right time to capture it. To take a climb the cliff picture is risk our life too because we also need to go up and look down to take the shoot. When I see this photo what I feel is the difficult emotion from the people to reach another climb step

What I like from this photo is nice angle to shoot it and also nice gesture to shoot it. I like the oval things around the bikers. It makes it looks so interesting and also I think the lens or the editing also make it interest because it makes the photo looks like a little bit oval like fish eye photo.

I always like surfers photo when they just surfing. I like how the wave can surround them and the surfing gesture is so cool. Maybe Michael uses long lens and fast shutter speed to shoot this photo. I like the details of the water itself.

This kind of photo is difficult to get it. I think this photo need helicopter to shoot it. I like how he shows the details of the snow cliff and also make the people become interesting or focus object because the red jacket of that person is a contrast color with the cliff.

I like all the details in this photo and the right time he shoot it. I like the splash of that water and also the face of that person. What I feel when I see this photo is more like fresh and relax photo.

I like the lighting of this photo and how he makes all the people who was playing the skateboard looks like shadow under the sun. I like how he makes the focusing point is the sunset and a man in the center that playing skateboard. And also what I like is how he can make the dark place not too dark but also having details and reflection of the sun through the skateboard arena.

The first thing that come out in my mind is this picture maybe fake one or editing picture. But fake or not I like this picture. I don't know what kind of sport it is but I like the color of this picture like giving hope for new day. We also can see the shadow of the mountain behind that person. And also the right time to shoot this kind of picture. If it's a real photo, I think Michael is really working hard on his photo and the way to get the photo like that.

Reflection:

I like all the series photo that have done by this photographer, Michael Clark because he has a lot of effort to get nice photos even though it also risk his life. I like how he capture the right moment for doing some fast sport. And how he uses lighting, consider the angle of the photos and also the detail like some emotion that has been put on his photos. I think all his photos are so nice and interesting and it's all about adventure, sport, travel and landscape. 

week 4

Randy Scott Slavin

Born on Queens 

Background : 

Randy Scott Slavin is an award winning direction, photographer and aerial cinematographer and is the founder of New York City Drone Film Festival. He is drone expert who is regularly featured in publications and on television. He work takes on a farm that strays from traditional photography of city skylines. Instead of going for the typical view of the landscape format following the horizon line, Slavin opts to descender the viewer all together by joining hundreds go photographs together to create distorted views of familiar American cityscapes. The series is appropriately named Alternative Perspectives and provides and unprecedented point of view of places like New York City, his photographs evoke a sensation somewhere between myopia, kaleidoscopic psychedelics and being sucked into a wormhole. Savin comes as and alternative from the straightforwardness of most other architectural photographers and reminds us that photography doesn't always depict things as the actually are.  

His Photos (Alternative Perspective) :

What I like from this picture is I like how he makes this photo looks different. Maybe many people like to take architecture photos from below but what the interesting point is how Randy Scott Slavin makes this photo like using fish eye lens. It looks very cool.. And also the different shapes from all building makes the shape very unique.

The second photo was took on forest. Maybe this photo tells about a journey. I like the contrast color between the bridge and the tree color. This perspective looks like hole that has magnet to suck everything and it also makes us really feel his journey (really feel the forest). 

This photo is also cool because he makes this building up and down. It looks like the bulb that inside it has building shape. I also like the color from this photo. 

This is my favourite photo from all of the photo. I think this photo is very interesting. This photo looks like the moon and the ocean. I like the color from the ocean and all the details itself. I like the water color that looks like blue-green color. And this photo makes me feel fresh and relax but maybe it will be more interesting if there is object at the center of this photo. Like a human who is sitting and see the ocean

What I like from this photo is the lighting from transportation that make it beautiful. The light makes color and line that describe how fast they are. I also like the contrast between the background and the light itself. He used slow shutter speed for catching the light. 

What I see from this photo is this photo is a little bit twirl but not really. This photo is having up and down perspective and for me I see it like a water droplet that has reflection from its coconut tree. I like how that coconut tree arranged. I also like the lighting in that photo that only focus on above part.

I also attract into this photo because it looks like a ribbon shape. This photo focusing on the center part and used many lines around it. It looks like reflection form from the left to the right. All the lines makes this photo become interesting and maybe it is rail line on the beach.

Reflection:

What I've learnt from this photographer is about new idea and new perspective. We can create our own ideas to have what are we want people to see. Randy combine some photos that he takes and make a new meaning from that. He also makes unexpected photography. I think he wants to show us a new perspective from the world. How we can see things in different angle, different perspective that also beautiful. I like how he have his idea which is very unique and different form another photographers.

Week 3

Steve McCurry

American Photographer

Born on 24th February, 1950

Background :

Steve McCurry has worked in photojournalism and editorial. He is best know for this 1984 photograph "Afghan Girl" which originally appeared in National Geographic magazine. 

McCurry is the recipient of numerous awards, including Magazine Photographer of the Year, awarded by the National Press Photographers  Society's Centenary Medal and two first place prizes in the World Press Photo (1985 and 1922)

He originally planned to study cinematography and filmmaking, but instead gained a degree in theater arts and graduating in 1974. He became interested in photography when he started taking pictures for the Penn State newspaper "The Daily Collegian"

McCurry focused on the human consequences of war, intending to not only show what war impresses on the landscape, but rather on the human face. "Most of my images are grounded in people. I look for the under guarded moment, the essential soul peeking out, experience etched on a person's face. I try to convey what it is like to be that person, a person caught in a broader landscape, that you could  call the human condition. 

His Photos :

Kabul, Afghanistan 

This photo tells about Afghanistan's woman when selling bread. This photo title is our daily bread.  

Bamiyan, Afghanistan 

This photo's title is just write. I like the expression of this boy, the brightness side and and the focusing point. 

Hajjah, Yemen

I like the expression of this boy like worry about something. 

Al Hudaydah, Yemen

I like the background and the story of this photo. I think this old man trying to teach his daughter using book or they are reading a story book. The background from this photo makes this photo more interesting. Because it has many colors and unique color.

Kabul, Afghanistan

What I like from this photo are the color and the staring face from the children. The yellow and denim colors are contrast color that can be good to have it together. It can makes the things more clear.

Alto Churumazu, Yanesha, Peru

When I see this picture, I fell so pity of this little boy. I like how Steve McCurry shot this photo using emotion and feeling to bring out the message of this photo, I also like the details of this photo.  

Iloilo, Philiphines

What Steve McCurry tried to bring out is the culture of Iloilo, Philiphines. I think this photo was taken when there was traditional ceremony in that country. 

Reflection : 

Overall, what I like from Steve McCurry is how he can shot the right moment, it's more like right moment that have right expression. Because some photographers usually just think about the aesthetic but not the story of the photo. Expression can describe the story behind the photo.