Category: <span>Photography</span>

Published February 23, 2017 by

Scale can be deceiving in photographs

scale, photography, Peggys Cove, Nova Scotia,
Peggys Cove, Nova Scotia, 2010   © Avard Woolaver

Scale can be deceiving in photographs, and sometimes it intended to be that way. A photograph can be both fact and fiction, both a document and a lie. It may contain numerous narratives that spring from our imagination. It can be staged or manipulated in Photoshop, yet still be a document. These days the line between fact and fiction has become blurred.

According to photographer Martin Parr, “Most of the photographs in your paper, unless they are hard news, are lies. Fashion pictures show people looking glamorous. Travel pictures show a place looking at its best, nothing to do with the reality. In the cookery pages, the food always looks amazing, right? Most of the pictures we consume are propaganda.”

My photography has always been rooted in the documentary tradition–I’m not one for manipulation, or post-production. Most everything is achieved by where I stand and when I take the photo–(light is a crucial component as well). But sometimes I aim to take photos that are ambiguous. They look like manipulated photos, yet they are not. Using scale is one way to achieve this sense of ambiguity.

This photo was taken in Peggys Cove, Nova Scotia,–a place that is both beautiful and surreal. The rocks in the frame are actually much smaller than the house, but you may disagree!

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Photo tip:  Scale provides a frame of reference. A person or object is often put in the frame as a reference point. Try creating tension by including an object of unknown size in the frame.

Black and White Documentary New Topographics Observation Photography Social Landscape

Avard Woolaver black and white documentary house Nova Scotia Peggys Cove rocks scale

Published February 22, 2017 by

Sunset and streetlights are a good combination

night, Dundas West, Toronto, 1984,
Dundas West and Medland, Toronto; 1984   © Avard Woolaver

When it comes to capturing the mood of city, sunset and streetlights are a good combination. This photo was taken over thirty years ago near where I lived in Toronto’s west end, in an area is known as The Junction. It was a bit run down at the time but had a lot of character and I enjoyed living there. With this photo I wanted to create a mood with colour and light and try to convey my warm feelings for The Junction.

from the photo series: Toronto Days

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Photo tip: For night shooting a tripod is useful but not essential. I find the best time to shoot is just after sundown as there is a good balance between natural light and city light.

 

Colour Documentary Film Photography New Topographics Photography Social Landscape

Avard Woolaver Dundas Street West The Junction Toronto Toronto Days

Published February 20, 2017 by

Astronaut Chris Hadfield performs with Symphony Nova Scotia

Chris Hadfield, Symphony Nova Scotia,
Chris Hadfield with Symphony Nova Scotia, Halifax, NS, 2017        photo © Avard Woolaver

 

“Through his 21 years as an astronaut, three space flights, 2600 orbits of Earth, Colonel Chris Hadfield has become a worldwide sensation, harnessing the power of social media to make outer space accessible to millions and infusing a sense of wonder into our collective consciousness not felt since humanity first walked on the moon. He has been called the most famous astronaut since Neil Armstrong.”

-from the Symphony Nova Scotia program notes about Chris Hadfield’s “Symphony in Space” event with the symphony at Rebecca Cohn Auditorium, Halifax.

You can’t help but be amazed by Chris Hadfield. He has been a test pilot, engineer, astronaut; first Canadian to walk in space; commander of the International Space Station. And he is an accomplished singer-songwriter.  It seems as if there is nothing he doesn’t excel at.

As he performed his songs and told numerous stories, you heard a warm, articulate man sharing his experiences with the audience–so modest and down to earth. The symphonic backdrop was a wonderful complement to his songs, some of which were co-written by his son, Evan, and his brother, Dave. There was also “Is Somebody Singing,” written with Ed Robertson of the Barenaked Ladies, as well as version of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity,” with lyrics modified “so the astronaut doesn’t die.” Hadfield was happy that his music hero gave his blessing to the song before his death.

Perhaps the most entertaining song of the concert came during the encore, when Hadfield sang “In Canada”—a sing-along number filled with in-jokes about what it is to be Canadian. “We pronounce the letter ‘R’ like we’re pirates on a ship. We’ll drive two thousand miles, on a summer camping trip,”

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Photo tip: According to Hadfield, when taking photos in space you get the best results shooting straight down at Earth, even though your eye may be constantly drawn to the horizon.

 

Colour Documentary Photography Social Landscape

2017 Avard Woolaver Canada Chris Hadfield concert February Halifax Nova Scotia photography Symphony Nova Scotia

Published February 17, 2017 by

Those unforgettable Hipgnosis album covers

surreal, lights, window, Hipgnosis
Wish You Were Here, Cornwallis, NS;  2013   © Avard Woolaver

Do you remember those unforgettable Hipgnosis album covers? If you are around my age, you probably spent a lot of time in your teenage years listening to LPs and studying the album covers. You would play side one, then flip over to side two, all the while contemplating the meaning of the prism on the cover. The album art was often straightforward–an attractive portrait of the singer or band. But sometimes it was surreal and enigmatic–very artsy.

When I got a camera some years later I remembered those cool Hipgnosis creations (by Storm Thorgerson) and looked for photos with similar moods and juxtapositions. A discarded door on a sidewalk, an odd reflection in a mirror, a blank sign–this lead me to produce a series titled: Wish You Were Here. Thorgerson was good at isolating odd elements in the image, much like the painter René Magritte. It was clear what you were supposed to notice, but an intended meaning was not so clear. This ambiguity can draw you in and keep you looking for a long time.

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Photo tip: Use intentional point of view (POV)–stand in a place so as to get rid of clutter in the background.

Colour Light Observation Photography Social Landscape

Avard Woolaver Hipgnosis social landscape surrealism Wish You Were Here

Published February 13, 2017 by

When the blizzard rages outside, it’s a good time to read some poetry

blizzard, snow, winter, February, 2017, forest,
Blizzard Day, Newport, Nova Scotia; 2017   © Avard Woolaver

When the blizzard rages outside, it’s a good time to read some poetry. Snowstorms and snowy days can be harsh and sometimes threatening, but also contain such rare opportunities to see natural beauty. Here is a poem by Emily Dickinson, titled “It sifts from leaden sieves” that manages to describe this sense of beauty.

It sifts from leaden sieves

It sifts from leaden sieves,
It powders all the wood,
It fills with alabaster wool
The wrinkles of the road.

It makes an even face
Of mountain and of plain,
Unbroken forehead from the east
Unto the east again.

It reaches to the fence,
It wraps it, rail by rail,
Till it is lost in fleeces;
It flings a crystal veil

On stump and stack and stem,
The summer’s empty room,
Acres of seams where harvests were,
Recordless, but for them.

It ruffles wrists of posts,
As ankles of a queen,
Then stills its artisans like ghosts,
Denying they have been.

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Photo tip: Unusual weather conditions often create interesting photos. This photo was taken near my house in the middle of a blizzard. I kept my camera in its case and only took it out briefly to take the photo. The lens was instantly covered in snow–a good reason also to have a UV filter on your lens for protection.

 

 

Colour Landscape Light Photography

2017 Avard Woolaver blizzard February landscape poetry snow snow storm winter