For this photoshoot, I went to Sorrel point as I thought this would show an interesting comparison, how humans have made subtle impacts on earth. I was really inspired by Marazakis how he ‘subtly’ portrays this effect. As the real meaning behind this is engaging with the audience and figuring out what his message is about.
George Marazakis response:
Why I’m inspired by:
George Marazakis photos have a lot of meaning behind them which forces you too look deeper into the photo. For this photoshoot I want to use the softer light and it to be cloudy as I think this creates a really interesting scene, setting a unique mood.
I want to take photos of the headlands in this way showing the cliff paths and formations of the headland. This links closely to Anthropocene because they have always been around.
Places to Photoshoot:
George Marazakis is a Greek photographer, he looks at a link between civilization and nature.
He takes pictures of his native Crete during winter where he can achieve the soft light. This effects the viewer in ways which makes it memorable to us, as it allows us to look from different perspectives where we are able to notice different things that are communicated to us. The first glance we notice and admire the aesthetics of the photo, whereas the second glance is more thoughtful, allowing us to reflect and contemplate what humans leave on the surface of earth and landscapes.
George Marazakis captures is photographs, that show the impact the world has on climate change, in subtle ways. The reason for this was because most people would visualise Anthropocene as visual impacts on the environments showing clear destruction happening for example, manufacturing or incinerator buildings with smoke.
His style of photography was capturing landscapes effected by human interactions in the middle of natural spaces.
“If humans are a product of nature, then we can say that we are a disease attacking our own organism, just like an immune system can attack its own body – like autoimmune diseases.”
https://www.lensculture.com/articles/george-marazakis-a-cure-for-anthropocene
I find George Marazakis photographs really interesting and engaging because I like how he subtly describes climate change through the use of his minimal subjects in his photos allowing you to depict what he is trying to communicate and tell you about climate change or environmental changes. For example the photo above depicts a green house with sunlight shining through leaving you to engage with it. I think this is an interesting way for you to engage with the photo, because for some photo’s at first are not obvious that the message is trying to perceive about climate change.
George Marazakis photos are taken in Greece, using the original colours and scenes in his final outcomes. His photographs are never taken in harsh light, as he loves photographing the scenes with heavy clouds and fog, so to achieve this he generally photographs during early morning or late afternoon. I think how he chooses to take photos is interesting because it sets the tone for the photo, making it more obvious of the message he is trying to portray, otherwise without the cloudy, fogy, morning or evening effects you wouldn’t understand the true message.
For this photoshoot I went to Val de La mare reservoir, I captured the reservoir from different angles, which included the wall and the small turret. The wall caught my eye as I found the water marks gave this really exaggerated and in-depth look which reminded me of the theme, Anthropocene. It shows the indicate but exaggerated contrasting details, creating the ageing look from over time.
I chose to capture this area from specific angles, as this overall created really interesting photos. For example I thought capturing the reservoir water with the wall appearing from the side, gave this really unique look to the photo. This creates engaging leading lines to the small turret coming off the wall at an angle.
I experimented with capturing the wall coming in from angles which leads to the centre of the photo. To make this more engaging I cropped my favourite images down to make the turret the centre focus. This way I thought gave interesting depth.
Edward Burtynsky response:
What I’m inspired by:
Edward Burtynsky depicts locations where there is an increasing level of industrialisation and its impacts on humans and nature. The use of his wide angle camera and abstract view helps to show this.
For the photo shoot I would like to go to sites where you can see industrial parts as well as rural. I want to capture the contrast between the landscapes because I think this gives an interesting photo to look at. This shows in ways the beginning of industrialisation which I think is an interesting concept to explore in Anthropocene. I would like to capture the abstract and intricate look by experimenting with different views, so by having up close and slightly more far away images. I don’t want there to be much negative space because without, it gives the photo more depth, engaging you more. At first it might look to much and overcrowded but this makes it more memorable.
Places to photoshoot:
Edward Burtynsky mostly uses drones to capture his photography, capturing very unique photos. In response of my own work I want to still capture the unique forms, but instead capturing from far away angles but editing it to creating an abstract look.
Edward Burtynsky is a Canadian photographer and artist, known well for his large format photographs of industrial landscapes. He has photographed from many locations around the world capturing industrial landscapes showing how this impacts nature and human existence. Beginning in the late 1970s, he started to capture natural landscapes from a formalist perspective showing unique compositions that were inspired by abstract expressionist paintings.
https://www.ideelart.com/magazine/edward-burtynsky
Burtynsky’s most famous photographs are landscape views, with some altered by the industry, for example mine tailings, quarries, or scrap piles. The ways he captures his photographs creates depth and unique structures, showing us from different unique points that give different perspectives.
Burtnysky’s work engages and brings you closer into the photo, as you are looking from unique perspectives from a far which gives you a more in depth and abstract view. The photo is quite unusual to the viewer at first, meaning we don’t see destruction and industrialisation from perspectives like this. This engages the viewer more because from wider and detailed angles, it allows them to see things differently so they can look at things differently during climate change. The photos communicate a strong message, linking to Anthropocene.
Instead of capturing modernist and interesting compositions, he began looking for subject matter which allowed him to make social, political, economical, and cultural statements with his work. He creates a series called Tilted Railcuts captured the physical trauma and destruction of land caused by contractions of rail roads. He then created a series called Homesteads, documenting precarious ways in which humans transform their natural surroundings when constructing neighbourhoods, towns
In response to Burtynsky’s work I want to capture from absract views showing the unique angles and formations that link to Anthropocene. I really like this style of photographs because they are a different styles to what we
Anthropocene describes the time when humans have had a substantial impact on our planet, explaining in periods of time when human activity have had influences on the climate and environment.
Some people think the impact made by humans is in close relation to climate change. However a key factor of Anthropocene, is showing awareness of the current state of the planet and how our reactions are influenced by this.
We think of Anthropocene linking to us globally, meaning the planet is one big system that surrounds us in different ways, such as in ecosystems, urban/ industrial or geological/ naturally. Photographers have captured this in abstract ways showing unique compositions and forms, that are found naturally or in the industry, but also showing a close relation to science. This could mean how the industry is slowly impacting the environment through pollution, and we see this everyday. Also, we can see this by looking at what the environment used to look like before compared to how it looks now.
How and why are photographers exploring this concept?
Photographers explore this concept through the use of visual imagery capturing from aerial views. This way photographers can capture a view in the air by giving a unique perspective on the landscape, showing both beautiful and toxic sites. Photographers find this an interesting concept to explore as they too are investigating the human influence on earth. What they capture is a message to us as the viewer because we can see destruction happening to the planet.
For this photoshoot I visited Harve Des Pas, where I could capture both urban and rural landscapes. I thought this would be an interesting place to photograph as for some I could feature both landscapes in one photo.
Beginning in the 1970s, a group of photographers including Robert Adams, Lewis Baltz and Nickolas Nixon were associated with the 1975 exhibition New Topographic; this was Photographs of man- altered landscapes. The exhibition displayed their work, it showed how they focused on different kind of landscapes rather than those found naturally or at national parks. They showed landscape photography in a new way, focusing on urban landscape areas around America post-war, such as suburban areas like freeways, gas stations, or industrial parks. This was a new reflection to the suburban world around them, as they began to explore different and new ways of capturing landscapes.
The New Topographic show how photographers have responded to man’s impact on the land, they began to photograph urban landscapes with human activity, rather than just natural landscapes.
This new style suggested a ‘cool detachment’ from the more perfect and pristine landscapes of the natural/ man-made world. The New Topographic showed new scenes of everyday American Landscape.