Tag: <span>photography</span>

Published February 16, 2019 by

Mirror views – ahead and behind

Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019, mirror
Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

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.

Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia, 2012, mirror,
Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia, 2012 – © Avard Woolaver

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Newport, Nova Scotia, 2015, mirror
Newport, Nova Scotia, 2015 – © Avard Woolaver

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Newport, Nova Scotia, 2014, mirror
Newport, Nova Scotia, 2014 – © Avard Woolaver

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Windsor, Nova Scotia, 2012, mirror
Newport, Nova Scotia, 2012 – © Avard Woolaver

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mirror mirrors new topographics photography

Published February 12, 2019 by

Photos with car headlights

Windsor, Nova Scotia, 2012, car headlights, photos with car headlights,
Windsor, Nova Scotia, 2012 – © Avard Woolaver

You can get interesting photos using car headlights. High beams which are intense and directed, can be especially effective. You can use them to create mysterious, fairy tale-like effects, because they can brightly light one patch while darkness seems to press in from all around it.

It’s a fun activity to fool around with when you’ve got some extra time. (The long evenings of autumn and winter are a great time to try this; and frost and fog, combined with the strong light, can give you even more interesting possibilities to explore.) Check out the differences between how your high beams and low beams look.

Using car headlights works well at twilight, with sunsets, and can be effective in illuminating reflective signs. You can see the results in these photos.

Just don’t, whatever you do, lose track of time and let your battery run down. (Been there.)

Brooklyn, Nova Scotia, 2011, car headlights,
Newport, Nova Scotia, 2011 – © Avard Woolaver

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Newport, Nova Scotia, 2012, car headlights,
Newport, Nova Scotia, 2012 – © Avard Woolaver

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Windsor, Nova Scotia, 2019, car headlights,
Windsor, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

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Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019, car headlights,
Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Blogging Photography

car headlights photography

Published February 11, 2019 by

Seeing the winter blues

St. Croix, Nova Scotia, 2018, winter blues,
St. Croix, Nova Scotia, 2018 – © Avard Woolaver

It’s winter in the northern hemisphere, a time of decreased daylight. Some people get the winter blues and use a SAD lamp to alleviate Seasonal Affective Disorder. I am one of them. Others pick up their cameras to capture the beautiful blue light of winter. I am also one of them. You see, there is an upside to the winter blues.

In the winter months, the sun’s angle is lower and this affects the spectrum of light. The light has to travel through more of the atmosphere, directing more blue light to our eyes.

So, if the impulse strikes you, pick up your camera and turn those blues around.

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colour, winter blues, landscape, snow, Avard Woolaver
Newport, Nova Scotia, 2013 – © Avard Woolaver

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Avard Woolaver, flash, snow, winter blues,
Newport, Nova Scotia, 2016 – © Avard Woolaver

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complementary colours, cool, winter blues, warm colours, rear view, winter, Avard Woolaver
Gypsum Mines, Nova Scotia, 2012 – © Avard Woolaver

Blogging Colour Photography

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Published February 10, 2019 by

Windows are Mirrors

Rangeley, Maine, 2017, windows, reflections,
Wish You Were Here, 2017 – © Avard Woolaver

Windows allow us a view into an inner world or an outer world, depending on where we are situated. And we can see through windows, yet they are also reflective. In this sense windows are mirrors.

When I take photos I often look for visual tricks that may give the viewer a double take. I like creating a sense of ambiguity for it ties in with how I see the world. There are many constants, yet so many flaws and inconsistencies. The best we can do is try and enjoy the ride (and in my case, document it.)

This photo appears in the book: Wish You Were Here.

Blogging Photography

mirrors photography reflection windows Wish You Were Here

Published February 6, 2019 by

Seeking the unusual

Windsor, Nova Scotia, Wish you Were Here, unusual, surrealism,
Windsor, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

When I take a walk with my camera, I’m always on the lookout for the unusual–odd scenes, quirky juxtapositions. To me unusual things are more visually interesting. They demand our attention in different ways than traditional beauty does.

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, and unusual.

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.

Wish You Were Here is available through Blurb Books .

Blogging Photography

ambiguity Blurb Book Hipgnosis photography unusual Wish You Were Here