Åmells in Stockholm runs a retrospective show of Hans Gedda’s pictures (24 May - 27 June). One of my favourite Swedish photographers of the 1980’s and 1990’s.
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Wong Kar Wai is a favourite filmmaker, not the least because of the look of “In the mood for love” and “2046″ with their great photography by Christopher Doyle - wonderful bokeh - and knock-out aesthetics - the shirts! the ties! the dresses! the haircuts! the shoes! the rainy streets! the cigarettes!
That is one reason why it is interesting to check out Wing Shya, a photographer based in Hong Kong who beside fashion and similar stuff has been shooting on several Wong Kar Wai filmsets. His homepage is here.
[via Asian Photography Blog.]
Yet another class-conscious project from Martin Parr: “Luxury”
for his new series ‘luxury’, which is being premiered at the haus der kunst, the award-winning artist photographed fashion shows, horse races as well as art and luxury fairs in international locations such as dubai, durban or moscow – but also munich’s oktoberfest. in ‘luxury’ the international jet-set can be observed how they proudly present the regalia of new money and opulence. using the means of the grotesque, parr is consistent in addressing the phenomenon of a new international upper class following his earlier projects on the working and middle class.
Sounds really interesting. It is shown at Haus der Kunst, München 7 maj - 17 augusti.
Read more here.
Scarlett Johansson has a new album with Tom Waitscovers out and stars in Vicky Cristina Barcelona, the coming Woody Allen-film that was shown in Cannes recently. She also has good taste in cameras.
The emergence of net-based photographic communities has been a great boost to my interest in photography. Photoblogs is a great way of finding photographic talent; equipment-oriented blogs and fora are helpful for understanding cameras, lenses, films, chemistry. Pre-net times meant the local photoclub and the local photo store and not much more
Something is missing, though: materiality. Looking at pictures at a computer screen is not the same as looking at a real print with its details and tonality. That becomes apparent when I buy well-printed photobooks and visit photo galleries.
Blake Andrews has started a print swap chain. I think this is a great idea.
Yet another reason to make something out of my plans for starting doing prints again.
Those who think about the future of Leica might have some guidance from an interview with Andreas Kaufmann, CEO (Popphoto). For example:
Personally I don’t think that cramming, say, 12 megapixels into the sensor and then tweaking the image with software is the way to go. We want to deliver a pure image to the sensor and let the photographer decide. That’s why you may see some exciting point-and-shoot developments by the end of next year that reflect the Leica tradition. I’m sorry I can’t say more about it now.
Does this indicate something along the lines of the Sigma DP1?
Personally, I do not lay awake at night thinking about how the engineers and marketing people in Solms will survive in a digital world, and whether Kaufmann’s words will turn into material objects we can buy and use to take pictures or if the stuff he hints at is vaporware. Instead, I regularly take my M 3 for a walk around town. It feels good.
Fraction magazine is a new bi-monthly photo publication. In the first issue, a fine series of portraits of New Mexico artists, taken by Karen Kuehn, stands out.
There are more good portraits at Kuehn’s homepage.
The other day, Leica announced an upgrade program: for a substantial amount of money - but still less than the price of a new camera - M8 owners will get a quieter shutter and improved display window. The programme, which will start this coming autumn, is interesting in itself; it is good customer policy. There are surprisingly few, or rather none at all, upgrade programmes in the DSLR field: people should instead buy wholly new cameras every other year or so, to stay up to date with the rapidly developing digital technology.
Now, the latest rumour to come out of the PMA is about a possible full-frame sensor for the Leica M8.
Anton Corbijn takes official portraits of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands and gets criticized by Koss Breukel, the pictures are seen as … well, not what could be expected. Perhaps that is what this post at Rood Petje’s blog is about. I wouldn’t know, I don’t understand Dutch.
Pictures in the usual Corbijn style wouldn’t fit in the genre “famous photographers takes official colour portraits of royalty” - Cecil Beaton and all that -, so criticizing Corbijn for not delivering the great heavy b&w we all love him for is, I think, a bit strange. But let’s make a thought experiment; who knows, Corbijn might have slipped an A12 loaded with Tri-X in after the colour stuff was done?
Don’t think so.
Fuji shows a prototype camera behind glass at PMA, a camera that we don’t know that much about - it is supposed to be a 6×7 folder with rangefinder focusing, manual and aperture priority exposure, and an 80/3.5 lens - and the web response is huge; hundreds of posts on blogs and forums. Look here or here; David Bram links to a short video clip about the camera.
Amateur Photographer has talked to a project manager at Fuji, who claims that they have not yet decided whether to market the camera.
MF rangefinders are an interesting niche, and with Fuji’s history in that segment, it might very well turn out good. Prices for used Mamiya 6’s and Fuji rangefinders seem to hold up well, so there are probably some people out there who would buy the Fuji. If it ever reaches the market.