Nick Waplington is an artists and family photographer based in New York City and was born in 1965 in Sussex, United Kingdom. He went to study art at the West Sussex College of Art and Design in Worthing as well as studying at the Royal Acadamy of Art in London. His photographic work is usually amateur looking images of family, this interests me and I think that I can learn a lot from his work and the way that he photographs people.

About Waplington: http://www.claxtonprojects.com/books/nick-waplington/

Waplington’s website: http://nickwaplington.co.uk

Waplington’s Diary: http://nickwaplington.co.uk/diary

“I’ve never defined myself as a photographer. I make art” – Nick Waplington

“Photogragher Nick Waplington hit a creative high when he realised drugs were a waste of time” – Michael Fordham

Waplington mainly makes amateur style images to help portray his stories. His documentary style is almost like using a Polaroid camera or a disposable camera which is really interesting to me as they are quite artsy yet still seem to be of good quality. I like this style as it is different and stands out. Although I find his style interesting and unique for the images that I make I think that I want to keep to a higher quality style of images telling my story in a different way and relating more to Alain Laboile. I find that Waplington has a very unique and artsy style with weird unusual angles and amateur looking images. I find his work very interesting to look at as it is so different.

This is my favourite image of Waplinton’s as it is quite comical to look at. I find it really interesting to see the way the woman on the right side of the image is sat with her legs spread out as she slumps on the floor of the living room eating an ice cream with a blank facial expression on her face. I also like the way the woman on the left is sat as she looks very comfortable and they both look as though they are watching the television. This image doesn’t look staged at all to me and looks like a proper documentary image. I really like the entire composition of the image with the women not being totally in centre of the image and both being on either side of the image which allows the spectator to have a look at the whole of their surroundings. I like that this image is in colour as the spectator is able to see where the two women are and what kind of colours surround them. The colours are very yellow in this image which often connotes poverty or dirt as if they don’t have much money which is kind of evident with the entirety of the image showing how dirty the floor is and that one of the women is sat on the floor. Something that I really like about this image is the clothing that the women are wearing as it really interests me to see what fashion was like in the 80s and 90s. I like the colour of pink that the woman on the left is wearing as well as the, what looks like, undergarments or pyjamas that the woman on the right is wearing. I find that this image is very personal and was taken by Waplington as an insider to the family showing more of what an outsider photographer wouldn’t be able to do. This image really shows the behind the scenes of a working class family life and how they relax. I do however think that this family isn’t very clean and the house looks really dirty and as if they are less than working class and possibly living off of benefits or they are just jobless.

I find this image hilarious as the little boy reminds me of the images that I have made of my niece smiling into the camera and interacting with the person behind the camera. I like that the children are all just stood around waiting for their mum to wake up. I find it hilarious how the woman is sat asleep really showing the struggles of parenthood and constantly being on the move to keep up with the children. Something that took me a bit longer to notice was that what I thought was a male with a beard was actually a female being held up by a man wearing a black hat sat on the arm of the chair. I think that this is down to the exposure of this image which just adds to the amateur of the entire shoot. I do think that the composition of this image is interesting as Waplington was able to capture everyone at a really great angle, with one of the young girls looking at her hands very bored while the girl right in the background of this image looks as if she is trying to capture the attention of the person holding up the woman. I just love the cute little smile on the boys face as he looks happy and as if he is looking off the camera and at Waplington himself.

I find this image very interesting to look at. It just looks like a typical family photograph of a regular family dealing with everyday quarrels and laughs. I don’t actually like this image that much as it doesn’t really do much for me as everyone is kind of everywhere and the composition doesn’t particularly appeal to me, I don’t find it very visually pleasing. I do however like the left part of the image where the woman is mid punch/push to the man that is half out of the frame. I find this the most interesting part of the image as it has a story to it but the rest of it is just random to me. I think that this image is definitely capturing a more amateur style photograph as it does just look like an image that a family member made at random on their disposable camera. I do think that Waplington has much better work that this particular image. I think that this image would have looked a lot better in Waplinton was looking up at the family from a low angle as it would have made everyone look a lot bigger and made for a much more interesting photograph.

Alain Laboile is a French family photographer born in Bordeaux, France 1968. He is a father of six and uses his family as his subjects when photographing. In 2004 Laboile put together a portfolio of his work as a sculptor, this is where he picked up a camera and developed a taste for photography. A while after this Laboile pointed his camera onto his large family becoming his major subject. This is now what Laboile is known for, creating strong images of his family as well as being able to be at the heart of the family and documenting his children growing up. I like the concept of this because as a father he would be expected to go out and work but instead he is able to make stronger bonds with his children and be there for them whenever they need him as well as Laboile being able to do his photographic work which he is now known for.

“I am totally self-taught. When I began, I had a very limited photographic culture, no technique.” – Alain Laboile

Laboile’s website: http://www.laboile.com/index.html

Lensculture ‘La Famille’ Archive: 
https://www.lensculture.com/alain-laboile?modal=true&modal_type=project&modal_project_id=8491

Lensculture Interview: https://www.lensculture.com/articles/alain-laboile-video-interview-alain-laboile

“Through my photographic work I celebrate and document my family life:A life on the edge of the world” – Alain Laboile

Interview with Alain Laboile: http://www.all-about-photo.com/photographer.php?name=alain-laboile&id=528

I do like the work of Laboile as he simply makes images of his family when and wherever some good photo opportunities arrive. I think that his images look very professional and really capture some great family moments that can be quite similar to our own experiences and bring a sense of nostalgia to the spectators mind making them think more about the ups and downs of their own childhood as well as looking at Laboile’s photographs. I find these images very visually pleasing as each image is very crisp and clear allowing the spectator to see everything from a professional standard. These photos are really amazing with the composition and the entire mise-en-scene of the images especially from knowing that Laboile is a self-taught photographer and has only been photographing since 2004. He makes very strong and personal images showing not only the good side of being in a large family with lots of children but also the down side of having such a huge family where kids can fight etc. I do really like his work as it is so raw and real and is better than a usual family portrait kind of photo that spectators are used to seeing as he is an insider to the family and is part of the family so is able to use that to his advantage making images at times of the day and places that an outsider photographer wouldn’t be able to make.

I find this image really funny as the girls are all dressing up and messing around with what could be their mothers clothes. I think that this is a strong portrait as everything from the girl jumping in the air to the others standing and posing is so crisp and clear. I think the entire mise-en-scene of this image is perfect as the spectator is able to see their surrounding area and what kind of house they live in [seems like an old-fashioned house] as well as the facial expressions of the girls being really strong with the girl on the far left looking directly into the camera with a very serious facial expression while the girl in the back far right is posing similarly to her sister and looking off into the distance. I like the way that none of them are actually smiling or laughing as if they are very serious about dressing up in random outfits. It does look as though the girls were having a lot of fun dressing up and running round in their mums clothing. I do think that this image looks great and it being in black and white, for me, makes it a much stronger image as the spectator isn’t distracted by the colours of the light coming through or the colours of the clothes that those girls are wearing. Overall I think that this is a really strong image and is interesting to look at.

This is one of my favourite images because it is so simple. I like that Laboile caught one of his daughters walking along the patio of their house. I like that this photograph is taken from a more of a low angle as Laboile would most likely have been on his knees or leaning down low to make this image. This makes the patio balcony look a lot larger making the girl look smaller. The composition of this photograph is great as the spectator is directly drawn to the slight right of the image looking at the young girl. I also like what the little girl is wearing as her wellie boots suggest that she has been out in the muddy garden [shown in some of Laboile’s other images] as well as the back of her shirt looking wet as if she had been in a water/mud fight. I like that Laboile makes all of his images in black and white bringing across a theme as well as consistency of editing in the same style. This image is interesting and brings happy memories as it reminds the spectator of their youth and being younger with no cares or worries at all, we never even worried about getting our clothes muddy or dirty.

I love that in a lot of Laboile’s images his children look like they are having the time of their lives and seem like such free spirits. I chose this image as I think that it really does show how free and comfortable these children are. It brings some nostalgia to the spectator bringing back memories of when they were younger and never had any cares and would just run around naked. I like the moment that Laboile has captured in this image, he has caught them laughing and having fun while throwing water from their wellies at one another. It seems extremely muddy where they are as the spectator is able to see the bottom left corner where the child’s foot is slipping. I find it hilarious that we only see one of the children laughing and having a good time while the other is too busy  trying to defend herself with the water right in her face as he wellie is lowered and the water is just tipping onto the muddy ground. It also looks as though there are more than just two of them having a water fight as in the right hand middle corner there is water about to catch the young girl on the back suggesting that there are more people involved. I think that this is a very strong image as it is very clear and easy to look at. It is more of a fun environmental image showing what ordinary children tend to get up to in their free time.