In 1973 Stephen Shore left New York to photograph USA to create a book called Uncommon Places. After his book he was in his mid-20s and was already famous. A dozen years earlier, he had sold some of his photographs to the Museum of Modern Art. Then he started spending time in Andy Warhol’s Factory, where he lighted shows for the Velvet Underground and started looking at Warhol’s general deadpan aesthetic, with its everyday things.
Photo Analysis
Technical
- Lighting – the lighting is natural daylight and due to the clear sky the photo is highly exposed. The light sky contrasts with the darker signs and the saturation looks like it’s been increased due to the colour of the signs being so intense.
- Aperture – the photo looks like it’s been sharpened.
- ISO – the light sensitivity looks low due to the image looking sharp.
- Shutter Speed – The photo seems to have some motion blue due to some moving objects, such as the car4 as it is moving too fast.
- White Balance – The colour seems accurate on this photo but the colour stands out more and is more vibrant due to the dull looking roads and pavements.
Visual
- Some of the colours look saturated and vibrant and there are mostly lighter looking tones, rather than dark, to make the image more visually awakening. There are mostly smoother looking textures when you first look at the photo but if you look closer you can see all of the details on the pavement.
Contextual/Conceptual
The red, white and blue colours are consistent in this photo because the colours are meant to represent America