Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Influences- Sally Mann

"Night-blooming Cereus", 1988, Gelatin silver print, 19-3/4 x 23-5/8 in.

"The Last Time Emmett Modeled Nude", 1987, Gelatin silver print, 19-3/4 x 23-5/8 in.
"Emmett, Jessie, and Virginia", 1989, Gelatin silver print, 19-3/4 x 23-5/8 in.
"Jessie at Five", 1987, Gelatin silver print, 19-3/4 x 23-5/8 in.
"Holding Virginia", Gelatin silver print, 19-3/4 x 23-5/8 in.

Sally Mann is one of my favorite photographers because of the overall look of her images, the subtle developing techniques and because of her ability to take pictures that both shock and intrigue. A majority of her images are of the members of her family, in fact most of these come from a book she compiled called "Immediate Family". I am amazed at how she can take such loving caring pictures of her family members in such vulnerable and interesting positions and situations.
The reason that I picked Sally Mann as an inspiration of mine is because she takes pictures how i wish to one day! She is not afraid to take pictures of people when they may not appriciate it or when they are having a personal moment to themselves. It is hard for me as an artist to get in someones face with a camera even if they are quite willing to be photographed. I hope to be able to take from her photographs some courage and curiosity to help me in my own life.
Another reason for picking Sally Mann is because of her bold and sometimes obvious choices during the printing process of her images. She uses techniques such as dodging and burning to make the subject of the picture stand out and grab your attention immediately. Her choices when printing can be very obvious but there is a grace to them that makes you look past the exaggerated situation and simply see the beauty in what is right in front of you.

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Questionnaire Answers

Questionnaire
1. Stephanie “Stevi” Sayler
Senior
Art & Communications minor

2. Ultimately I would love to use digital photography every day in a future career! I would love to one day have a career working as a photographer for a magazine or newspaper. I already use my digital camera and Photoshop as much as possible and I like to fill my free time taking pictures and with help from classes I would like to take this hobby further and extend it into a job.

3. This is my first digital photography related class but I have had many friends and mentors that have extensive knowledge and experience with Photoshop who have helped me to build the basic skills to edit the photographs that I take.

4. Yes I do have a Mac laptop computer but unfortunately I only have Photoshop CS2 so I don’t think that will work for all the work we will be doing.

5. 7ish, I have a good knowledge of most of the tools needed to edit pictures and I already knew most of the things we learn in the first day demo. I am not very experienced when it comes to layers and some of the filters available in the CS3.

6. Photography! I love to get new and exciting pictures of objects from different angles.

7. I am not always confident with my artwork so I second-guess decisions and I am not as adventurous with new techniques and different ideas. Drawing and painting are places where I have the most difficulty.

8. I would like to learn how to use layers and more advanced techniques when editing pictures. I would also like to improve on my picture taking and learn more about my camera itself.

9. Make a living off my art and are truly happy with a career that I have made for myself.

10. If I could make any group of images in the world, without any restrictions, they would…. Be a collection of images of small villas and towns all over Italy along with pictures of the locals and their daily activities! I would travel around and live with families and make friends all around the country and document as much of my activities as possible.

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