Albert Renger-Patzsch was a German born photographer living in the twentieth century. He is widely associated with the New Objectivity movement taking place in Germany. This movement was against the idea of expressionism. In Renger-Patzsch’s work order and tradition can be seen clearly throughout, this is what expressionism challenged. Expressionism sort out to express emotion rather than nature and tradition, this is what the New Objectivity and Renger-Patzsch’s work doesn’t capture.
Albert Renger-Patzsch
Analysis
In his work it is clear that Renger-Patzsch uses tone and light to create depth. He contrasts very dark tones with very light tones. He also uses lots of repetition in his work, this repetition can be seen in the shapes he finds.
In the first image the repetition is obvious. The lines in the photo cross the image diagonally creating a triangular shape in the top right half of the image. The crevices in the wall create dark triangular shadows, these contrast with the tone on the outer walls which is a lighter grey. The round shapes on top of the crevices create a rhythm that flows to the background of the photo.
In the second image repetition can be seen in the lines. these lines are shown on the sides of the building and the way the building is shaped. A depth is given with the way Renger-Patzsch angled his camera. Dark, black tones sit beneath the lighter grey and white tones in the sky and on the front of the building. A rough texture is captured on the side of the building which is in direct contrast with the flat sky.
A contact sheet is a a group of images all put together in an order. On one contact sheet will be all the images from one photo shoot. They help to archive the negatives to be quickly scanned.
This is a contact sheet from one of my photo shoots. It is of the back of a bench and has been edited into black and white to capture the shadows and the highlights. I also changed the contrast so the highlights were more visible.
The formal elements are used by famous photographers all around the world. They are the parts that create some of the most praised images in the world. They help create interesting and professional images.
In class I took photos of paper shaped and folded in different ways using different backdrops and lighting.
Analysis
Light – In my second and third image the lighting is quite harsh and creates dark, contrasting shadows. This was done by using downward facing, close lighting. In my fifth image the lighting is softer creating less contrast in tones and fainter lines.
Line – In my fourth photo the lines are quite abstract and unnatural due to the way I crumpled the paper. This contrasts with the sharp, straight lines on the edges of the paper. In my first image the lines are very harsh and impactful. This is also due to the lighting coming from the side.
Repetition – There are repetition of triangular shapes in my second and third image and in my first image the lines repeat and are parallel.
Space – In my third photo there is a sense of depth due to the way it folds behind each other. I think all the photos have a depth to them because of the way they are set out and folded.
Texture – The lines in the photo would feel sharp and flat whereas some of the crumpled paper would feel more rough.
Tone – In all my photos a range of tones can be seen. In my first and second image the tone fades and is not as sharp as the other images. They also don’t contain as dark shapes and lines.
Colour – In my first and last image the dominant colour is black with hints of grey and white. This is different to the other photos where the dominant colour is white and grey.
Composition – In my second and last image the paper has been arranged into a sort of pyramid formation.
In class this week we experimented with abstract photography by using our phones to photograph paper in different ways. I was inspired by photographers such as Martin Creed, who took a photo of some A4 paper crumpled into a ball to connote the disappointment of things not going to plan.
Martin Creed | Work No.88
I was inspired by Creed’s impreciseness of subject and I wanted to create images without an exact form so they could be ambiguous to the observer. Nevertheless, I also wanted to photograph the different shapes and structures paper could make. I did this by ripping, folding, crumpling and bending the paper to create a range of images that symbolized different things.
Contact Sheets
Paper Experimentation
I really enjoyed the ambiguity of this image I took, I believe it shows the paper in an abstract way so it is hard to tell whether it’s paper at all. I took this close up shot of some crumpled up paper in hopes to create an image to represent ice, glaciers and icebergs. I believe I achieved this through my use of harsh lighting to create dramatic highlights with some mid-tone shadows. I edited this image on photoshop by increasing the exposure to give a brighter impression, and by sharpening the edges to reflect the crisp white colour palette of the photo. Similarly, I increased the contrast of the image to intensify the rough texture and acute lines of the paper.
In this image, I bended and squished the paper to create a photo with more curved lines instead of bold harsh ones. I believe this produces a smoother, more flowing texture. However, the sudden bursts of irregular shadows create dramatic moments throughout the image. Secondly, I have edited this image to be monochrome to experiment with tone and colour. I believe the low saturation of the photo creates a gloomy, dull atmosphere in the image. I have also zoomed in on the paper in this photo to further the theme of ambiguity, I purposefully took this shot with no black empty space to draw focus to the centre swirl of the image. Personally, I think this photo of plain paper looks almost flower-like, with large curved petals surrounding a swirl, similar to a rose.
Final Photo Analysis
Light: My image has been lit by a strong artificial light coming from the bottom left which creates harsh shadows on the right. My dark, unlit background enhances the folds of paper and I have amplified this by increasing the contrast of the image. Line & Shape: There are very strong straight lines in this photo that create a sharp shape throughout the image. The folds of paper look almost like book pages and the juxtaposition between the dark and light lines catch the observer’s eye. Repetition: This image holds lots of lineal repetition with parallel lines and reflection of light. The shafts of artificial light hitting the left of the image create a dramatic rhythm. Additionally, the sharp creases of paper that repeat throughout the image draw the observer’s eyes up along the photo from one corner to the other. Space: The space of the image is quite shallow and narrow, this is because I was close to the subject. I made sure the observer couldn’t see any other objects in the background of the image by limiting the space shown above and using a black sheet of paper to cover any unwanted distractions. Texture: My image has a rigid texture, produced by the sharp edges of the folded paper. The points of the paper also create a jagged, rough texture. Value/Tone: The image contains a wide range of tones going from very dark to very light. In the background, the dark black emptiness contrasts with the bright white highlights. In addition, there is a subtle blue hue in the bottom right shadow, possibly created by the blue undertones in the other phone torch I used to light the subject. The image has low saturation and vibrancy because I believe it intensifies the paper’s already muted colours. Composition: The diagonal lines of the image and the close-up shot create a sense of drama. Also, the long folds draw the observer’s attention to just above the middle of the image, where the paper is most in focus. I created this affect by having a large depth of field so the top and bottom of the image was out of focus, and the one crease in the middle was a clear focal point.
