Where can I find your favorite aesthetic of photography?

nikhilkgomes · Sep 21, 2018

Hi all!
I've never seen this question asked in this subreddit and I'm a frequent lurker on this sub. Anyways my question is, What is your favorite aesthetic for photography? And where online can I find it?

As a photographer who is looking to branch out to new genres of photography... (I'm used to doing fashion/portrait work in natural light), where online can I find galleries of what you're interested in?

I'm tired of looking through tumblr and vsco's feed, tired of flickr, and I'm looking for resources other than reddit for inspiration. I want to extend this way beyond instagram and the likes. IF you're into urban landscape photo aesthetic, where is your favorite place to look online? What about studio work? Or surf photography? Professional hockey photos?

What's your niche, and what websites are your inspiration for that niche?

Thank you!

RalphLambrecht · Sep 21, 2018

nikhilkgomes said:
Hi all!
I've never seen this question asked in this subreddit and I'm a frequent lurker on this sub. Anyways my question is, What is your favorite aesthetic for photography? And where online can I find it?

As a photographer who is looking to branch out to new genres of photography... (I'm used to doing fashion/portrait work in natural light), where online can I find galleries of what you're interested in?

I'm tired of looking through tumblr and vsco's feed, tired of flickr, and I'm looking for resources other than reddit for inspiration. I want to extend this way beyond instagram and the likes. IF you're into urban landscape photo aesthetic, where is your favorite place to look online? What about studio work? Or surf photography? Professional hockey photos?

What's your niche, and what websites are your inspiration for that niche?

Thank you!

minimalism

slackercrurster · Sep 21, 2018

OP...I do social documentary and street work. I see it all over, no particular site.

Sometimes there is little inspiration, like IR flash street work. I just do it and evolve on my own. I also like watching movies about other photogs.

Billy Axeman · Sep 21, 2018

Hi nikhilkgomes, welcome to the forum.

My keywords: Architecture, industrial, documentary, minimalism, black & white (some hand-colored), film (90%), digital (10%), square format. I tend to document building projects which are regularly updated in series of separate installments. See the link below.

One source of inspiration for me is the web site of Josef Hoflehner (http://www.josefhoflehner.com/), I think it is nowhere mentioned on this forum.
It has a lot of minimal work in black & white in a square format (there is other work in color too).

removed account4 · Sep 21, 2018

hi nikhilkgomes

great to see you here !

when i was in college a class book i had was
gardners art through the ages used for a survey art history course i took
and it had art and architecture from like cave paintings + fertility sculptures to post modern ..
i find my inspiration more in other "arts" than i do photography
i am fond of portraits of nadar and the photography of man ray and maholy nagy...
i also enjoy the russian constructavists and american expressionists from the 50s...
not sure if there is an easy access public library near you but when you are bored
head over and go to the N and NA and TR sections and wander around ... there might be a hidden gem
there to inspire you

john

slackercrurster · Sep 21, 2018

I get lots of library books and DVD's. I can order interlibrary loan and get tons of them. Going back to a beat up copy of Cartier Bresson's The Decisive Moment.

jim10219 · Sep 21, 2018

jnanian said:
hi nikhilkgomes

great to see you here !

when i was in college a class book i had was
gardners art through the ages used for a survey art history course i took
and it had art and architecture from like cave paintings + fertility sculptures to post modern ..
i find my inspiration more in other "arts" than i do photography
i am fond of portraits of nadar and the photography of man ray and maholy nagy...
i also enjoy the russian constructavists and american expressionists from the 50s...
not sure if there is an easy access public library near you but when you are bored
head over and go to the N and NA and TR sections and wander around ... there might be a hidden gem
there to inspire you

john

Yes! I also have a copy of Gardner's Art Through the Ages! What a great introduction to art! In fact, I kept all of my textbooks from art school and revisit them often. Plus, I've added to my collection over the years. I also use Google's image search function quite a bit. Though I get the greatest inspiration from going to museums. There's something about seeing this stuff in person that just can't be translated in a book or on a computer screen.

I also don't get a whole lot of inspiration from other photographers. In my opinion, there is no photographic equivalent to Picasso, Van Gogh, Caravaggio, Rothko, or so many of the hundreds of towering geniuses that have appeared in the other arts. Don't get me wrong. I'm a big fan of Andreas Gursky, Gerhardt Richter, Man Ray, Robert Mapplethorpe, Edward Weston, Alec Soth, and many more. I think they do great work. I'm just not convinced they're on the same level as some of the masters of other genres like painting, music, or sculpture. And that, to me, isn't a crazy thought. I mean photography is still in it's infancy. That's why I tend to be most inspired by non photographic artists. That's my opinion.

jtk · Sep 21, 2018

I'm a big fan of Andreas Gursky, Gerhardt Richter, Man Ray, Robert Mapplethorpe, Edward Weston, Alec Soth, and many more. I think they do great work. I'm just not convinced they're on the same level as some of the masters of other genres like painting, music, or sculpture. And that, to me, isn't a crazy thought. I mean photography is still in it's infancy. That's why I tend to be most inspired by non photographic artists. That's my opinion.[/QUOTE]

You've listed a bunch of famous photographers.

It's fine for us to be fanboys, of course. Me, I still love the Stones and Edward Weston but never did care much for the Beatles.

I just watched a Netscape video on Jim Morrison (Doors). Shot decades ago, assembled recently...lots more there than in still photo faves. Still photo hasn't got much future. Yet I do plug away at it.

My little city has a lot of young film makers. I figure the future is theirs. Today is mine.

removed account4 · Sep 21, 2018

jim10219 said:
Yes! I also have a copy of Gardner's Art Through the Ages! What a great introduction to art! In fact, I kept all of my textbooks from art school and revisit them often. Plus, I've added to my collection over the years. I also use Google's image search function quite a bit. Though I get the greatest inspiration from going to museums. There's something about seeing this stuff in person that just can't be translated in a book or on a computer screen.

I also don't get a whole lot of inspiration from other photographers. In my opinion, there is no photographic equivalent to Picasso, Van Gogh, Caravaggio, Rothko, or so many of the hundreds of towering geniuses that have appeared in the other arts. Don't get me wrong. I'm a big fan of Andreas Gursky, Gerhardt Richter, Man Ray, Robert Mapplethorpe, Edward Weston, Alec Soth, and many more. I think they do great work. I'm just not convinced they're on the same level as some of the masters of other genres like painting, music, or sculpture. And that, to me, isn't a crazy thought. I mean photography is still in it's infancy. That's why I tend to be most inspired by non photographic artists. That's my opinion.

yup every once in a while i go back to the pages with oppenheim with her arm inked .. and the furry cup and saucer .. gives me hope !

faberryman · Sep 21, 2018

jtk said:
Still photo hasn't got much future.

Why do you say that?

Billy Axeman · Sep 21, 2018

faberryman said:
Why do you say that?

What do you think. If you follow him across threads you will know.

jtk · Sep 21, 2018

faberryman said:
Why do you say that?

I say that because I think most still photographers (like me) tend to be stuck in the past (Gursky et al). Nonetheless plenty of still photographers do live for today without rear-view-mirror preoccupation.

But I think "the future" calls for looking forward...therefore video, online, writing, music, and other non-wallhanger pursuits.

faberryman · Sep 21, 2018

jtk said:
I say that because I think most still photographers (like me) tend to be stuck in the past (Gursky et al). Nonetheless plenty of still photographers do live for today without rear-view-mirror preoccupation.

But I think "the future" calls for looking forward...therefore video, online, writing, music, and other non-wallhanger pursuits.

The future always calls for looking forward. I think that can be done with stills as well as video, writing, etc. The future of stills may not be on walls anyway.

jtk · Sep 21, 2018

faberryman said:
The future always calls for looking forward. I think that can be done with stills as well as video, writing, etc. The future of stills may not be on walls anyway.

No argument .

Where will the stills you mentioned be in the future, btw? I've seen fabulous projected stills (digitally projected of course)...but once that medium is employed there's no more barrier to video or sound, even in walking-around lighting conditions...and the cameras that best make all that: mirrorless Canikons.

removed account4 · Sep 21, 2018

its best to have an open mind who knows what the future will be like
there is no problem having a toe in the past and not being so
"into" people that one can move-on

Ko.Fe. · Sep 21, 2018

All I need is impressionists hall in any museum. And HCB, GW, Jane Bown and many others books on my shelf.
New has nothing new in it, to me.

jim10219 · Sep 21, 2018

jtk said:
I say that because I think most still photographers (like me) tend to be stuck in the past (Gursky et al). Nonetheless plenty of still photographers do live for today without rear-view-mirror preoccupation.

But I think "the future" calls for looking forward...therefore video, online, writing, music, and other non-wallhanger pursuits.

That’s my take on most photographers. I’ll admit it’s hard to push the boundaries of such a limited medium. I mean, how do you photograph something that doesn’t exist? But limitations are often a good thing. They can inspire. It’s also what draws me to photography. There’s so much left to do that hasn’t been done. I feel like painting and music have reached a point where it’s hard to be truly innovative. Not impossible. But it’s hard to go in a completely new direction. Whereas photography is still young enough that there are many areas that are largely unexplored.

I think there’s a tremendous future in photography. But I agree that it’s going to require more looking forward. Photographers in general have a habit of concentrating too much on the technical and historical elements. I believe this is the main reason why photography is seen as “art form for people who can’t draw well”. We tend to try to capture the world as we see it, rather than create the world as we imagine it. Realism is too easy with photography.

slackercrurster · Sep 22, 2018

Feedspot has tons of photo blogs to subscribe to. Check them out. Also Tumblr and WordPress.

jjphoto · Sep 22, 2018

I find the photographic interpretation of Brutalist architecture interesting and it's something I do quite a bit (as well as simply getting straight record shots of architecture likely to be lost in the future). Simply searching #Brutalist or #brutalism on Instagram is a start.

faberryman · Sep 22, 2018

nikhilkgomes said:
IF you're into urban landscape photo aesthetic, where is your favorite place to look online? What about studio work? Or surf photography? Professional hockey photos?

Urban landscape and sports aren't aesthetics; they are genres.

jtk · Sep 26, 2018

jim10219 said:
That’s my take on most photographers. I’ll admit it’s hard to push the boundaries of such a limited medium. I mean, how do you photograph something that doesn’t exist? But limitations are often a good thing. They can inspire. It’s also what draws me to photography. There’s so much left to do that hasn’t been done. I feel like painting and music have reached a point where it’s hard to be truly innovative. Not impossible. But it’s hard to go in a completely new direction. Whereas photography is still young enough that there are many areas that are largely unexplored.

I think there’s a tremendous future in photography. But I agree that it’s going to require more looking forward. Photographers in general have a habit of concentrating too much on the technical and historical elements. I believe this is the main reason why photography is seen as “art form for people who can’t draw well”. We tend to try to capture the world as we see it, rather than create the world as we imagine it. Realism is too easy with photography.

Yes. However...few photo-makers see themselves as photographers. Most are just sharing iPhone snaps of lunch or cats or kids or sunsets without even considering them photographs. fwiw iPhone shooters do better work, on balance, than the few who consider themselves photographers. I think their best work will be online video if they learn to edit.

Sebastiaan Hoornaert · Oct 6, 2018

Don't look outside for inspiration, it's all on the inside. Meditate, walk around with your camera with an empty mind. Give up thinking and just walk and look. Walk slowly. Feel. Let the image come to you. Look at the same damn thing through the viewfinder from every possible angle for 20 minutes if you need to. Forget time.

My favorite aesthetic is my own, that should be the case for everyone. Forget about what others are doing. Do your own thing.

Andrew O'Neill · Oct 6, 2018

My favourite places are here and large format forum

jtk · Oct 8, 2018

Spent much of the past week around archaeology ...which as a science it is shifting away from static European academic questions-answer habits ( what was?) toward effort to understand what seems to have been going on and where is/was it going.

More behavioral, less nailed-down. Arguably more artistic. More emotional. Best use of far more data of infinitely more types.

Todays expanding interest in photo projects and video is inevitable ...it's replacing wall hangers... The natural result of what's always driven human enlightenment.

Where can I find your favorite aesthetic of photography?

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