Holga Experience

Recently, we were all given Holga 120s in my photography class. They are these "fantastic plastic" cameras--literally. The cameras are entirely plastic, including the lens and almost all of their guts. I was happy for this assignment because I think it was helpful in forcing me to "let loose" a little bit from the strict rules of photography. So much is out of my control when I use the Holga--even the viewfinder is essentially pointless! You cannot focus them. You cannot adjust for aperture settings. It is just point-and-click-and-hope. I have learned a lot about the Holga and am now enjoying it very much. I recently went out to photograph horses and barns and older houses along Victory Road. I believe I was successful and can't wait to get in the darkroom to see how they turned out. My Holga doesn't seem to have much vignetting, but there is an apparent blur on the edges of the film.

Pictorialism & Holga

Pictorialism was a movement in photography around 1885 which attempted to emulate the look or appearance of paintings and etchings through the photograph. Pictures are often black and white or sepia in color with very heavy manipulation. Soft focus, coating the lenses, special filters, and unique printing processes were all part of creating a photograph which was "pictorial." The goal of pictorialistic photographs was to fit into the art community by still having personal artistic expression which was the broadly accepted aesthetic of the time--due to paintings and etchings.




The images above are all taken with Holga cameras, and after our experience with Holga's firsthand, I can explain the qualities of a Holga image. Typically, the images will have a very soft radial blur, stronger on the edges, because of the camera's plastic lens. Also, because of the cheap nature of the Holga, images will often have a vignetting around the edges which is created from light leakage. This vignetting and softness is typical of a Holga image. It is very hard to get a crisp image with a Holga camera--though I don't know why you would want one.

When looking at Holga images and the photographs from the era of Pictorialism, many similarities can be discovered. The most apparent is the soft, blurry look the images have. It makes them seem much more surreal, and less like a photograph in nature. The vignetting seems to be more typical with the Holga images, however, there were not hard edges in Pictorialism. I also think the desired effect of both styles is very similar. They both desire to give off an essence that is not like photography. Although Pictorialism was attempting to mimic painting, and the Holga is not; the final images are very similar in their appearance. In a way, with Holgas, we can easily achieve a look similar to something the artists of the Pictorialism movement tried so hard to achieve.

Henri Cartier-Bresson

What photography blog isn't complete with the man who coined the term "Decisive Moment" and has been considered a father of "Street photography" ? Well. This post is dedicated to Bresson and his works, which still stand the test of time--they are, in fact, timeless in their quality.

Paul Strand

Paul Strand's photography is very well known. I thought it was important to include him in my blog as his style of portraiture has had a great influence on many modern photographers, and photographers after him. He did not simple do portraiture, however, he also too photographs of architecture and landscapes. The top picture, titled "Cristo" I simply had to put in here. The image itself has a quality which I'm not even sure of the words do describe it. It just.. has to be here. Something about that face, and the poised arms. Just something. Either way.. Enjoy. Also, below, I have a film that was photographed by Paul Strand titled "Manhatta". You should take the time to watch it if you appreciate photography.

Loretta Lux

When looking at Loretta Lux's work, I find it has a much different feeling that say the work of Meatyard or Gaskell. While their work feels to be much more on the creepy, eerie side, Lux's photographs--for me--feel surreal and painterly. They feel more like odd paintings than eerie, surreal photographs. I think this may be a result of the setting which the children are placed into. However, I do enjoy the photo manipulation which she utilizes in her works. It's very interesting, you have to do a double-take to make sure they aren't actually paintings.

Anna Gaskell

While looking for photographs of Anna Gaskell, I stumbled across this youtube video full of her photographs. The information to the side of the video informed me that Gaskell began her photographic journey with self-portraits, but eventually moved on to photograph children in scenes that were reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland. Her photography is very eerie, and definitely gets this quality from her choice of subject matter and the way in which she photographs--including lighting and such. It's all very dreary and dull. Take the time to watch the video. It's just crammed with photographs.

Arthur Tress

Arthur Tress's work is very, very aesthetically interesting to me. I find the photographs to have a weird, dark feel to them, requiring imagination and evoking emotions. Arthur Tress uses magic, theater, and fantasy combine to produce a mythic vision of the world. Tress frees photography from its naturalistic roots and invests it with symbolism and imagination. The photographs introduce an emotional "chiaroscuro" that disturbs and intrigues the viewer. His earlier, darker, vision has been replaced by the introduction of a mischievous humor. His images have a unique quality to them and I can't stop looking. He uses the square format, as I am seeing many photographers do, and I have to say it fits his work very well.

Ralph Eugene Meatyard

My first reaction to Ralph Eugene Meatyard's work was a creepy feeling. The masks which he has the children wear in some photographs seem to meld into their skin, almost making them appear non-human. It is said that "Meatyard's work challenged most of the cultural and aesthetic conventions of his time and did not fit in with the dominant notions of the kind of art photography could and should be. His work sprang from the beauty of ideas rather than ideas of the beautiful."

Keith Carter

Keith Carter was born in Madison, Wisconsin. He learned of photography from his mother, and when he was pursuing a Business Degree in college, actually found himself more drawn to photography. He ended up pursuing photography without any previous education--he was entirely self-taught. I admire Keith Carter's ambition. We watched a film about Keith Carter in my photography class. It was interesting to see how he just wouldn't give up, photography is like breathing for him. He loved it and lived for it. It was his true love, perhaps. His works resemble photographs taken with Holga cameras in that they have blurring and vignetting on the edges. I think this makes them more interesting and captivating than if they were completely crisp and clean.

Stephen Shore

Stephen Shore was interested in photography at a very early age. He got his first darkroom kit at the age of six!! He began using a 35mm camera and making color photographs by the age of ten. This is the same time that he received a copy of Walker Evan's book, American Photographs. He began his career at fourteen. He was the first living photographer to have a solo exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and he was only twenty-four. Shore's photography from that point on included images from cross-country trips. I enjoy his photography because it reminds me of places I see when I drive around, though they may be in different cities.

Peter Hugo

Peter Hugo's photographic work focuses on global social issues, emphasizing Africa and other countries in development. His photography is a type of visual essay and is able to tell what's happening without needing words or documentation. I like his work because it is so interesting and foreign--at least to me. First the man walking with the hyena, as if it is his pet. It's such an odd situation, one that I know I'll never see in my lifetime. And then the other two portraits he took just captured the essence of these people. The final one of the man you can just read that his life has been a long one, probably a life that you could write a novel about.

Walker Evans

I enjoyed looking at the work of Walker Evans because his photography occurred during the time of the Depression. Most of his shots are frontal views and not very candid, however, I don't mind because of the context. Somehow, there is something important and powerful about his pictures. You can read into the emotions of the landscape and/or people.

Lewis Hine

Lewis Hine's photography caught my attention almost instantly. The personal feeling of the portraits, the stories behind them and laid out in the eyes of the person photographed are so immense I cannot help but look at them. Lewis Hine was actually an investigative photographer who was very strong against child abuse in labor. I think his passion for the subject is evident in his work and may be one of the reasons it is so, so strong.