Tag: <span>black and white</span>

Published March 2, 2017 by

Have your camera ready as the photo moment passes quickly

street photography, candid, photo moment
Keele Street, Toronto; 1984                                                 © Avard Woolaver

You may have had the unfortunate experience of coming upon an interesting scene only to discover that your camera is not in your bag. Or you realize that your cell phone is back at home. Or there is no film in your camera. There are any number of scenarios, but the conclusion is that you missed the moment: you missed the shot. This has happened to me numerous times and I always vow to never let it happen again.

Capturing the moment has been one of the key aspects of photography from the very beginning. Photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson coined the term “the decisive moment” in 1952. He said, “To me, photography is the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event as well as of a precise organization of forms which give that event its proper expression.” There has been much debate as to whether one moment is more decisive than another, nonetheless, if there is a moment we are after it is important to be prepared for it.

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Photo tip: Be as ready as you can–batteries charged, space on the memory card, film in the camera, etc. When you are anticipating a good moment try to position yourself so that what is in background will be unobtrusive. And be patient–it can happen when you least expect it.

Keele Street, Toronto; 1984 is from the series Toronto Days and appears in Photo Vogue.

Black and White Documentary Film Photography Photography Social Landscape

1984 Avard Woolaver black and white street photography Toronto Toronto Days

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