Share (and discuss?) your abstracts

marcofimages · Aug 5, 2018

I have been making a bunch of thematic threads lately, and I really like them because they set a mood and you can really dig into the different approaches. This one is about abstract shots. Sometimes they are tough to discuss, because revealing what the subject can be detrimental to the intended effect.

I start with a shot that I call "A moon shaped pool"--which pretty much reveal what it is.
Cropped 4x5 Ilford FP4+ and a red filter.

If you are interested, there is a little behind the scene about this shot. Maybe it can inspire someone. This shot is in the second part of the video.

awty · Aug 6, 2018

Nice picture. The red filter was a great choice.Enjoyed the video......aren't LF cameras a pain in the bum.

How would you define "Abstract"?

marcofimages · Aug 7, 2018

awty said:
Nice picture. The red filter was a great choice.Enjoyed the video......aren't LF cameras a pain in the bum.

How would you define "Abstract"?

Yes, a pain, but it's the only way I can introduce some discipline to my photography!!

Abstract.s... everything where the subject of the image is not the function/nature of the subject, but its shape? Terrible definition.
I just looked at some work from Edward Weston and it was better than many explanation I could come up with!!!

Sirius Glass · Aug 8, 2018

This is a duplication of an earlier thread I recently started. There is no problem with posting photographs on that thread and one can even make comments on it too.

jtk · Aug 23, 2018

awty said:
Nice picture. The red filter was a great choice.Enjoyed the video......aren't LF cameras a pain in the bum.

How would you define "Abstract"?

For me, and evidently for painters, "abstract" signifies lack of identifiable subject. Therefor a photo consisting of eroded rocks is a photo of eroded rocks, and not abstract.

marcofimages · Sep 2, 2018

Sirius Glass said:
This is a duplication of an earlier thread I recently started. There is no problem with posting photographs on that thread and one can even make comments on it too.

Can you post a link to the thread? I would like to contribute but I could not find it, thanks

marcofimages · Sep 2, 2018

jtk said:
For me, and evidently for painters, "abstract" signifies lack of identifiable subject. Therefor a photo consisting of eroded rocks is a photo of eroded rocks, and not abstract.

Fair enough. I actually agree. Another definition could be a picture where forms and lines are more important than the subject. But your is more stringent and stronger.

removed account4 · Sep 2, 2018

marcofimages said:
Fair enough. I actually agree. Another definition could be a picture where forms and lines are more important than the subject. But your is more stringent and stronger.

hi marcofimages
my take on "abstrct photography"
is it is whatever you want it to be, like a poem ..
the problem with abstract photography is it is whatever you want it to be, like a poem
here's the thread from before ( it was from the 1st week of july ) maybe the moderators can merge them ? IDK ..
https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/post-your-abstract-photographs-here.160928/
here's another of mine ..
https://www.photrio.com/forum/media/triptych.58193/
great photo you posted !
have fun -

marcofimages · Sep 2, 2018

jnanian said:
hi marcofimages
my take on "abstrct photography"
is it is whatever you want it to be, like a poem ..
the problem with abstract photography is it is whatever you want it to be, like a poem
here's the thread from before, maybe the moderators can merge them ? IDK ..
https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/post-your-abstract-photographs-here.160928/
here's another of mine ..
https://www.photrio.com/forum/media/triptych.58193/
have fun!

No problem, I will contribute to the original thread. I don't know how I missed it, I was looking for duplicate before posting. Thanks for your reply.

jim10219 · Sep 2, 2018

Abstract art goes beyond what can be identified. To be true abstract, it can’t be of anything in the real world, identifiable or not. A drawing of a single straight line isn’t abstract if it is said to represent man. That same drawing would be abstract, however, if it’s said to represents man’s sublime nature. That makes true abstract photography very difficult to achieve.

However, I think we could classify this photo as non-objective or even abstracted art. We all get the point of what it is, even if the acedemic definitions are misapplied. In any case, I think this is a great photo of abstracted art! The tones are well balanced and the juxtaposition of the cold and rough texture against the warm and smooth flowing lines are quite nice! Well done!

jtk · Sep 2, 2018

Nothing is abstract online.

removed account4 · Sep 2, 2018

@jim10219 i know what you mean,
but is that "abstract art" in general or does tha include photography?
i've heard some suggest that the mere recording the color world
on black and white film is an abstraction in itself.

jtk said:
Nothing is abstract online.

why is it you say that ?

David Brown · Sep 2, 2018

marcofimages said:
Can you post a link to the thread? I would like to contribute but I could not find it, thanks

https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/post-your-abstract-photographs-here.160928/

It's in the "abstract" sub forum. This thread is in "landscape".

And, there's this: https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/abstract-merg-ross.148739/

And: https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/what-defines-an-abstract-and-why-do-i-like-them.3785/

(And probably more ...)

eddie · Sep 2, 2018

To me, the photo is abstract in that it doesn't reveal a sense of scale. It could just as easily be identified as a drone photo of a canyon, or some sort of harbor surrounded by water worn cliffs as it is identifiable as a "moon shaped pool". Regardless of what you choose to call it, I think it works well as a photograph. Thanks for sharing it.

marcofimages · Sep 4, 2018

jtk said:
For me, and evidently for painters, "abstract" signifies lack of identifiable subject. Therefor a photo consisting of eroded rocks is a photo of eroded rocks, and not abstract.

Thanks guys for all the replies.
I have been doing a little research on the topic of abstraction, especially in the field of landscape photography.

In the dictionary there are three definitions for abstract:
1. the act or process of separating the inherent qualities of or properties of something from the actual physical object.
2. A genre of art whose content depend solely on its form.
3. Something not easily understood or recognizable.

Thus, the definition it's pretty broad and could potentially include both recognizable and not recognizable subjects.

However I feel that a distinction should be made and in this regard I really like the term coined by Ansel Adams: "Extractions".
It is a term he used in place of abstractions for images of small bits or pieces taken from the whole.

I think it would be overall very interesting as an image collection in the landscape section.

Share (and discuss?) your abstracts

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