Keld Peterson was a Danish Photographer who had an interest in abstract photography in the 1940’s – 1950’s. His photography involves strong contrast levels between white and black. His work manly evolves around building structures and defined shapes. He was greatly influenced by the industrial machines/architecture during his time.
A mood board of Keld Helmer Peterson’s work:
Keld Peterson
As you can see his work has great depth in his tonal range of light to dark. he almost captures just shapes that you can barely make out what they are. His work is almost the definition of abstract black on white composition images.
Here is my work before editing on photoshop. I chose to take images of sides of buildings and rails in town as for Keld’s work I thought it would link well with shape and abstract photography.
Adobe Photoshop / Best 4 Photos
Using the threshold icon (image – adjustments – threshold) in photoshop I can create an image inspired by Keld Peterson. This first image can be found in my next four images I took below;
Blacklight photography is a series of black and white images that have quite harsh contrasts and tones.
Keld Helmer-Petersen
Born in Danish on the 23rd August 1920 and dying on 6th March 2013. He was most known for his abstract colour photographs in the 1940s and 50s. Interestingly, he became part of the US Camera Annual in the 1940s and gained interest with German Inter-war photography (New Objectivity movement).
Process
Firstly, we start by opening up the image we want to use by going to File > Open and then look for the image you want to use. For purpose of this project i will use this image:
SONY DSC
We then go to Image > Adjustments > Threshold:
As a result, this threshold window should pop up:
As you can see, there is a little arrow at the bottom; drag it along and you will be experimenting with the threshold tool. Adjust it appropriately. For example:
Once you are happy with your result, go to File > Save As and save your image.
Abstract photography – Abstract photography is the method of depicting a visual image that does not have an immediate association with the object world and that has been created, it often takes a second glance to recognise the object being photographed.
Ralph Eugene Meatyard:
Part of “Zen” series – Ralph Eugene Meatyard (1960)
Born in Illinois, in 1925, Ralph Eugene Meatyard used a multitude of methods to achieve his experimental, expressionist photographs. These include multiple exposures, motion-blur, and other methods of photographic abstraction. Meatyard derived inspiration from poets he adored and his fellow members of the Lexington Camera Club, combined with his own creative flare and the influence of others Meatyard successfully formed his career in photography with his own form of expression. He took these unique photos where he lived in Lexington, Kentucky, before he later passed away in 1972.
Analysis of Ralph Eugene Meatyard’s work:
“Zen number 7” – Ralph Eugene Meatyard (1959)
Light- The natural lighting of this image softly illuminates the focal point of the image, that being the twig in the foreground of the image. There are no harsh shadows in this image as the lighting is soft.
Line- The thin, jagged lines of the branches lead your eyes towards the middle of the image, and then to the right-side edge.
Repetition- The repetition of line is present in this photo, as the pattern of irregular lines in the foreground direct your eyes along the screen, from left to right.
Shape- The organic shape of the branches are unorganised and random, therefore they have little relation to each other in terms of shape and regularity.
Space: There is a very narrow depth of field in this photograph. The branches in the foreground of the image are in focus, whereas the background is blurred out. I believe the photo was taken with an aperture of f4 or below.
Texture- The spiked branches in the image give the photograph a rough texture, as the lines in the image are ridged and sharp.
Value/Tone- There is a varied tone to the image, as the background to foreground fades from dark to light. The branches in focus are highlighted amongst the background, which makes them the focal point for the viewer. The branches are lightest part of the image and they are contrasted against the dull background.
Colour- The muted, monochromatic tone of the image accentuates the contrast between light and dark. There is a cold hue to the image, which highlights the juxtaposition of light and dark further.
Composition- The image has a very unorganised composition, the shapes are organic which makes it harder to understand the composition. There is also regularity to the image, which makes the composition more complicated and uneven.
My response to Ralph Eugene Meatyard’s work:
I believe the images highlighted in green are my most successful photographs for this shoot. I think this because they either relate to the artist’s theme of contrasting light and dark the best, or they use the artist’s method of blurring the image with change in shutter speed.
I think the images highlighted in red are my least successful images purely because they have the least relevance to the artist I have studied, or because the light in the photographs is too over-exposed.
To take the ‘Out of Focus’ images, I used an ISO of 400, and changed the shutter speed settings on my camera to achieve a ghost-like effect.
Photoshop Development:
Original PhotographAfter – Using cropping and black and white filter.Original PhotographAfter – Using black and white filter.Original PhotographAfter – Using cropping and black and white filter.
Overall, I think the biggest similarity between Ralph Eugene Meatyard’s and my own work is the use of juxtaposing black and white tones that create a contrast against each other. However, I think to improve my photos in the style of Ralph Eugene Meatyard, I need to change aperture settings, etc on my camera so that the lens focuses on the twigs and branches rather than the area around them.
Ann Hamilton
From “Face to Face” series – Ann Hamilton (2001)
Born in 1956, Ann Hamilton is an American artist best known for her large-scale multimedia instillations. Hamilton received a BFA in textile design from the University of Kansas in 1979, and then lived in many states in Canada, before deciding to achieve an MFA in sculpture at Yale in 1983. Ann Hamilton then produced several series of works between 1984-2018, but her work in the 1980’s is what brought the artist to light. While teaching at UC Santa Barbara, Hamilton began experimenting with photography, which she would often combine with other elements involving her current work with textiles. This began her work in photography and helped to evolve her successful career.
Analysis of Ann Hamilton’s work:
From “Face to Face” series – Ann Hamilton (2001)
Light: The soft, natural lighting gently illuminates the actual photograph, however harsh lighting could have been used around the image to create the
Line: The curved lines around the edges of the image act as a border to the photograph, these can be seen as leading lines that lead to the figure in the middle third of the photograph. The lines start of thicker at the corners of the image but begin to thin out as they reach the middle.
Repetition: There is little repetition in the photograph as the image focuses on the aspect of portrait rather than patterns and repetition. On the other hand, there is a slight echo with the use of shutter speed, which gives the figure a ghost-like affect.
Shape: The shapes in the image are organic and natural, because of this they have little relation to each other, the image is not artificially set up therefore it is hard to find comparable shapes.
Space: I believe there is a narrow depth of field in this image as the background is slightly more blurry than the foreground. However even the foreground is slightly blurry due to the use of slow shutter speed.
Texture: The image has a rough texture because of the jagged edges around the border and the wrinkly features of the face on the figure.
Value/Tone: There is a range of tones in the image, due to use of soft lighting which creates the contrasting shadows and highlights. The darkest part of the photograph is the shadows cast under the trees. The lightest part of the image are the illuminated features of the lady.
Colour: The photograph has a monochromatic filter to exaggerate the echo affect from the slow shutter speed.
Composition: The composition of the image is natural and not artificially set up, therefore it is difficult to superimpose geometrical shapes onto the image in order to understand the composition better.
Comparison of Ann Hamilton and Ralph Eugene Meatyard’s work:
Ann Hamilton and Ralph Eugene Meatyard both focus on the use of depth of field in different ways. Meatyard uses a narrow depth of field in order to draw the viewers eyes onto the focal point. Hamilton uses a slightly wider depth of field in order to keep more of the image in focus, but keeps the foreground as the main focal point. However Hamilton uses a slower shutter speed in order to achieve an echoed affect.
Both photographers use a monochromatic theme in these photos in order to accentuate the beauty of light and dark rather than colour. Hamilton and Meatyard use softer, natural lighting in these photos so the shadows and highlights are less harsh.
Although both Hamilton and Meatyard use the theme of focusing in their style of photography, they almost use them in an opposite way, which exemplifies the contrast in shutter speed photography.
Ralph Eugene Meatyard was born in Normal, Illinois on May 15, 1925. He is an American photograph and optician. Ralph Eugene Meatyard purchased his first camera from the optometry shop where he worked in Lexington Kentucky in 1950; he soon became a very serious amateur photographer .He spent three months looking through an unfocused camera in order to learn to see No-Focus. Meatyard’s early photographs contain : blurred images, fabricated scenarios, masks and dolls, and a pervading dark humor.
Saul Leiter
Saul Leiter was born the December 3, 1923 in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania United States. He was an American artist .He moved to New York to become an artist. He took black and white pictures with a 35 mm Leica, In 1948, he started taking color photographs. He worked as a fashion photographer through the 1970s.
MY IMAGES
Their Ideas but in my own Style
I chose to inspire me from the two artists . Ralph Eugene Meatyard’s has kinda dark style wish I like (he puts scary maks…) . I enjoy Saul Leiter photographies because they are everyday photos and I really like the colors.
What I did
I wanted to represent a teenager in her daily life in a blury way ( watch a magazine or listen to music …) For the teenager I wanted her to look weird without it being very dramatic so I decided to hide her face with her hair kinda like in a mysterious way
My favourite images
Final images
I chose this two images because they represente what I wanted , what I was looking for , the ideas of the two artists and especially my style.
For this photo, i started by folding the paper and standing it up at a ‘zig-zag’ pattern. I used artificial lighting from a phone torch to take control over how the shadows fall over the ridges. This photo stands out to me as the clean folds in the paper enhances the shadows that i was attempting to emphasize.
for this photo, I crumpled up a piece of paper, I used artificial lighting from the overhead lights in the class room, this made it harder to use the lighting to compliment the creases so once I put it into photo shop, I adjusted the light and dark tones to bring out the creases that were harder to determine in the original photo.
In this photo, I layered a paper plane over the same crumbled paper, I did this to make the photo more complex and interesting, I used a phone touch as a light source to help differentiate the two papers through directing it into the space between.
Keld Helmer-Petersen was born on August 23, 1920 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Keld Helmer-Peterseis studied at the Institute of Design in Chicago . He received a Leica camera as a present thanks to this he started taking photographs. He prefers to take pictures of industrial areas, cityscapes and nature. He is known for his abstract colour photographs but he also likes working with black and white images.
My images :
I decided to choose old images of Paris and things we can see in our daily life that i had on my gallery . I think that they will be interesting with black lights .
with BLACK LIGHTS
We can notice that the pictures of paris looks they are drawn which indeed creates a cool effect. The black lights are embedded in the details we can see it very well in the lemons.
Keld Helmer-Petersen, a Danish photographer born in 1920, was recognised for his abstract photography in the 1940’s and the 1950’s. Helmer-Petersen’s passion for modern architecture, industrial areas and structures inspired his experimental photography, as he challenged the possibilities of the photographic image. He was a self-taught photographer who learnt from other photographers, such as Albert Renger-Patzsch. through technical manuals and photobooks. In the early days of his career, he joined amateur photographer clubs, where he would develop his photography skills further. Helmer-Petersen produced his first photobook, ‘Fragments of a city’, in 1960, which contained images of the city of Chicago. Keld Helmer-Petersen began teaching photography at the Academy of Architecture in Copenhagen until retiring in 1990.
Analysis of Keld Helmer-Petersen’s work:
Part of “Fragments of a city” series – Keld Helmer-Petersen (1960)
Light- The lighting in the image is hard to decipher as there is no highlights or shadows in the image. However I believe the image was taken in daylight, perhaps early afternoon in order to achieve the iconic shapes and lines.
Lines- There is a distinct pattern of lines in the image, as they cross over one another and create intricate designs. There is a contrast of both thick and thin lines in this image, which can be seen as a form of juxtaposition.
Repetition- There is a clear repetition of lines in this image, they direct your eyes along the screen, to the focal point of the large, black sillouette.
Shape- The shape of the image revolves around geometric shapes and lines, that are both thick and thin.
Space- It is hard to depict whether the image has a wide or narrow depth of field, as the image is simply a pattern of line and shapes in a silhouette, therefore this aspect of formal elements is irrelevant to the photo.
Texture- It is also hard to work out the texture of the image, but the repeated lines have a smooth surface, therefore I would say the overall texture of the image is rather smooth.
Tone/Value- There is no gradient of tone to the image, as it is simply pure black and white. However these contrast each other with the juxtaposition of light and dark.
Colour- There is no colour to the image, this is to signify the gloomy silhouettes of the geometric lines in the photograph.
Composition- The composition of the image is very organised, however there is no rule of thirds used in the image as the object was not set up by the photographer, the image rather focuses on the entire structure of lines instead of a singular focal point.
My Response to Keld Helmer-Petersen’s work-
Original Images Used-
Photoshop Development:
To achieve the same affect that Keld Helmer-Petersen used on his images, I used the threshold tool on photoshop to imitate the same silhouette-like appearance on the photographs.
I believe my work resembles the work of Helmer-Petersen well as it gives off the same silhouette aesthetic that he achieves with his work. It allows the shape and pattern of the object to be highlighted amongst the background behind it. However my work focuses more on natural aspects of shape, with the use of plants, whereas Helmer-Petersen often uses artificial structures for his work.
Renger – Patzsch was a German photographer associated with the New Objectivity. The New Objectivity arose during the 1920’s to challenge expressionism. This photography’s main focus point was to change the perspective on the objective world. Making it more ‘abstract and romantic’. His work connects to the New Objectivity through his aim of making everyday objects look beautiful.
Image Analysis
Albert Ranger-Patzch ; The World Is Beautiful Albert Ranger-Patzch ; The World Is Beautiful
Both of these pieces are from Ranger-Patzch’s collection, The World Is Beautiful, however they express very different things. In the first photo, we see a simple object found in a house which is normally overlooked. The lighting in photo one is quite low, enhancing the detail of the buttons found in the minimal shadows over the objects. The random placement of the buttons adds the the concept as it is more alike how these objects are found.
In photo 2, we can see another man made object, but more of a structure. The 2 main differences between the two photos that stand out to me the most is the symmetrical layout shown though the use of the camera angle compared to the random placing of the buttons, these show a wide variety in the movement that anything you see can be beautiful. Another is the natural light vs. artificial light and how Ranger – Patzch manipulated and used the lighting given to create shadows and depth.
Contact Sheet
A contact sheet is very useful to a photographer as this tool allows them to view the shoot on one sheet, making easier to differentiate the positives and negatives as they are put altogether.
for this project, i went around my house, finding objects that are dull to the eye in attempt to create a different and more creative perspective on the objects. similar to how Renger – Patzsch photographed glasses, forks and buttons.
favorite photos (Edited)
final photo
This is my favorite photo as it shows that an object as simple as a peg can be portrayed as a beautiful and interesting. Once I put the photo into photo shop, i played around with the color tones within the black and white adjustment to give more texture to the pegs, emphasizing the faint grains to give them more life. The lighting used in this photo was natural, the weather at the time made the light less intense, allowing me to used the positioning of the pegs to create depth and shadows without being over exposed to the sun.
The image allows the viewer to sense either a calm or eerie mood. The bare twigs on the trees gives the viewer a sense of loneliness or depression as there is arguably no life on the trees. One could link bare trees to winter,which is cold, and can be a miserable time of year for some people.
On the other hand, one could also interpret this image as calming as there isn’t much going on with it and nothing is too busy.
In addition, only the front of the twigs are in focus which allows the viewer to see all the little details on the twigs and even see the little buds that are beginning to form on them.
The image is black and white which also gives the impression that the image is made to create a sense of loneliness and depression.
The twigs have a reasonably smooth texture which could be interpreted to show that life is normally simple however there will always be little bumps in the road. No one’s life is perfect.
