Response to Reading
Two stories that caught my attention the most is Larry Sultan’s and Berenice Abbot’s stories. In Sultan’s story Pictures From Home, a few lines that I could relate myself to are, “What do you do with all those pictures that you make? You must have thousands of them by now,” and “You shoot thirty rolls of film to get one or two pictures that you like. Doesn’t that worry you?” Sometimes I find myself wondering the same things when it comes to my friends who are interested in photography. There are always so many different shots of the same subjects. This narrative goes into the perspective of the photographer, which really helps the reader understand what is going through the minds of these artists.
Something that struck me while reading Berenice Abbott’s Photography at the Crossroads was a line about the equipment and materials of a photographer. She states “a good photographer cannot fulfill the potential… if he is handicapped with equipment and materials… for amateurs…” which is something I disagree with. A good and bad photographer cannot be distinguished based on his work. Of course, a photographer with more advanced and professional equipment can be deemed greater, but a photographer with amateur technology should not be degraded simply based on what he uses to capture his art.
5 Terms
Bokeh – The way a lens blurs an image; how evenly and pleasingly the out of focus are looks
Exposure – The amount of light allowed to reach the film or sensor, which is determined by the intensity of the light
Focal Length – The distance between the film and the optical center of the lens when the lens is focused on infinity, usually measured in millimeters
Sensitivity – The degree to which a photographic emulsion or a digital camera reacts to light
Filter – Transparent material that modifies the light passing through
