I had the honor of presenting at the Safe Motherhood Conference in Amsterdam, The Netherlands last week on the topic of how imagery can have an impact on projects.
There were presentations on many amazing projects occurring throughout the globe. What an interesting conference!
I had the honor of being a guest lecturer at the Safe Motherhood Conference in Amsterdam, The Netherlands on April 20. I was the only person who spoke who was not a medical professional, but the audience seemed to appreciate the topic of documentary imagery. I focused on maternal care and the prevention of fistula in Ethiopia, but also spoke about the work I have done in Madagascar.
I included a section about composition and lighting and discussed how they can take better photos of their important work in developing nations. I also showed them how these images can have an impact on the work they perform and the support they require.
I am still basking in the afterglow of teaching a street photography workshop in Amsterdam with one of the most amazing group of people. We kept the class size small so that we could give hands on instruction regarding how to approach people on the streets and take compelling images of them, plus making a few new friends along the way!
I co-taught this workshop with Michael Schoenholtz, and he was a well oiled machine with his skills and very much fun to work with. We all ended up staying well past the time that the workshop ended, because we loved each other so much!
Just taught my first workshop at New York University and it was a complete riot! All of the students initially were nervous to approach people on the busy streets of New York City, but wham! They got the hang of it quickly. We also added in a bit of storytelling as each person they met gave them information about their work, what they liked to do, etc.
The students’ professor then met with us at the end of the day to look at all of the images and hear the stories about the people they met. We also discussed how this workshop fit into the theme of her syllabus.
The class was a positive experience for all, and it looks like I will be asked to come back and do it again next year!
Thank you for your wonderful workshop Friday. What a generous gift you gave to all of us. – Professor Jessamyn Hatcher
Someone wrote on a board some tips I had for a recent class I taught. I need to remind myself of these things!
There are several events related to photography taking place during Portland Photo Month in April. Check the Portland Photo Month website for the latest listings.
A few highlights:
THEN. NOW. HERE. BAM! Images of Portland, curated by Raymond Meeks, will be projected onto buildings around Portland during the month of April. Check the link for times and locations.
Photo Picnic! Bring your nibbles, your favorite sip and a special blankie. We will be showing Mary Ellen Mark’s newly released book, Prom, and screening the Prom documentary film, co-produced with her husband and filmmaker, Martin Bell.
Thursday, April 26 8-10pm Location is at my studio.
Door: $5-10 sliding scale payable to Photolucida. Floor space is highly limited, so send us an email to reserve your spot.
GET IN THE VAN! I will be teaching street photography workshops in various locations and with different co-instructors I admire. First up: the uber-talented Leah Nash! Check the classes link on my website to view current workshop listings.
(Photo by Mary Ellen Mark, from her new series “Prom”)
Does a photo ever tell the truth?
For many years, I have brought this question up during the classes I teach, delighting in the hearing the discussion that would follow. A still photograph is, after all, a replication of a slice of time, right? But yet, a still image also takes on meaning from the perspective by which it is viewed. Connotations derived from our own experiences “color” the image, and attaches attributes to the photo. And in this digital age, where post processing can greatly alter an image from its original state without notification to the viewer, how can we ever trust that a photograph truly reflects reality?
The moment I enter a scene and select a subject, the decision making begins. How I angle the camera, which background I choose, how I like to see the light fall on the person’s face are all elements that can greatly affect the mood of the image. I know when a photograph might evoke emotion and when it might have less appeal to a viewer, and I deliberately discern how I want to construct that image.
People frequently tell me that my photographic style celebrates the integrity of the subject and preserves authenticity. While I certainly strive for more of a connection between me and the subject rather than the camera and the subject, I still believe that a photograph never tells the full story and by the time an image is made into a print, so many decisions were made that the viewer is only seeing one fraction of reality, and this is from the photographer’s and viewer’s standpoints, not from the subject’s.
I have a trick I use that works like a charm every time I want to shift the power from camera operator to the subject. I wait patiently for this to occur before I press the shutter release, resulting in what many refer to as “capturing the soul of the person”. This look in their eyes has nothing to do with photography, and everything to do with humanity and our interplay as human beings relating to each other, regardless and usually despite of the overlay of language. However, even with this practiced altruism, I still walk away feeling like there is so much more I could portray about the person I am photographing. I never feel satisfied that I have “captured” someone. Never.
I leave every single encounter with a longing. A heart wrenching longing that is insatiable and tormenting. I leave something behind, many things, when I photograph someone. Like a lover left on the shores of a far away country, these people I have photographed play out their stories in my head, one by one, over and over, begging to not be misunderstood.
It was an honor to be asked to come in to the Mercy Corps’ headquarters to conduct a workshop on photography with their communications team this week. We discussed composition, lighting, approaching subjects in the field and at home, and sensitivity to environments. Here are some of the participants having fun with some skateboarders we met outside on Portland streets.
Two new workshops have been added to the list of classes I will be teaching in 2012: a street photography workshop in Amsterdam April 13-16, and a street portraiture workshop in Los Angeles with the Julia Dean Workshops on June 1-3.
I was able to facilitate the arrival of Shelby Lee Adams and Jock Sturges into Portland to teach workshops at Newspace Center For Photography. Both of them are masterful teachers. They have an ability to not only teach photography skills and subject engagement, but each brought lessons in life itself.
My path has been altered greatly by each of them.
