Signs are everywhere. They can give us important information or directions, but can also be used to make visual jokes–like wordplay, except with images.
These photos were taken this year, some of them over the past month. They are meant to show the ambiguity and humour of signs.
It is said that the mirror is the symbol of imagery or of awareness. The mirror has the ability to copy the visible reflections of the world in its own figural reality. I love the use of the mirror in photography, and no one does it better than Lee Friedlander who has incorporated it in his photos for the past sixty years.
Using car mirrors in photos is something I do regularly. I like having the ability to look ahead and behind at the same time, and also the chance to make interesting juxtapositions. I have included a few examples here.
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I took this photo in 1981, in an alleyway in the east end of Toronto. A lot has changed since then including the slogan on Ontario license plates. This one says “Keep It Beautiful,” which was the slogan from 1973-1982. Since 1982 it has been “Yours to Discover.” With Ontario’s current high debt, and a climate change crisis underway, I think a more appropriate slogan should be: “Ontario – Make It Sustainable.”
The car is a 1965 Chevrolet Impala station wagon, purchased from Robertson Motors (Chev/Olds) – Coxwell and Danforth. The dealership, car, and plate are probably long gone now. Yes, a lot has changed, but with government policy and forward thinking, I hope we can enjoy a sustainable future.
High angle photography has always interested me. You get a different perspective with a bird’s eye view of the world. High angle shots have been used as a technique in cinema to create drama and make the subject seem weak or vulnerable. Or, as a wide shot to establish the scene.
In my younger days living in Toronto, I used to climb fire escapes to get a different view of the streets and architecture. These days, I take fewer risks, but I still look for high angle locations. The photo above was taken from the reading room at the Halifax Central Library. It’s a fifth floor cantilever that juts out over the entrance and provides and great view of the nearby intersection.
It brings to mind the song Gift Shop by the Tragically Hip where Gord Downie sings “we get to feel small from high up above.”
Photographers are drawn to light like moths to a flame. It’s the key ingredient in many good photos. This photo shows my favourite type–bright winter light overhead, illuminating wet pavement. I love the silver glow and the high contrast–it looks great in black and white.
The photo is taken in the style of American photographer Lee Friedlander who welcomes foreground obstructions such as poles and trees as a way of creating visual interest. He explains, “Somebody else could walk two feet away to get those poles and tress and other stuff out of the way, I almost walk two feet to get into it, because it is a part of the game that I play. It isn’t even conscious; I probably just drift into it… its like a found pleasure. You’ve found something that you like and you play with it for the rest of your life.”
Friedlander also loves sunlight so much that he often doesn’t shoot outside on overcast days; he doesn’t want to take lifeless photos. As for me, I welcome all kinds of lighting conditions but am always on the lookout for my favourite light.