B&W Me

Famous Black and White Photography

Diane Arbus was born to David and Gertrude Russek Nemerov. The Nemerovs were Jewish and fairly wealthy, so Diane never experienced the full extent of the Great Depression. Her family was very artistic in general, which is probably what pushed her, and later her daughters, to jump into the arts world as well. Her father became a painter, her younger sister was a sculptor and designer, and her older brother became a poet. As a kid, Diane attended a prep school and at 18, she married her childhood sweetheart, Allan Arbus. She later had two daughters.

Diane and her husband were very interested in photography. They started out taking photographs for the department store her father once owned. Allan also worked for the army during WWII. After the war, the two of them started a commercial photography business called Diane & Allan Arbus where Diane was the director and Allan the photographer. They contributed to many glamour magazines, though they both claimed to hate fashion.

In 1956, she quit the commercial business and started assignments for other magazines. She switched cameras a couple times, and ended up with a twin-lens reflex Rollieiflex which produced clearer square photographs. She slowly started to switch from assignments to a more artistic style of photography. Allan and her separated in 1958 and divorced by 1969. She also suffered from depressive episodes.  Diane committed suicide in 1971, and a year later Arbus became the first American photographer to have photographs displayed at the Venice Biennale.





I picked these photos because they just speak to me. They just seem to have an undertone of hidden sadness, and an extensive story behind them. My favorite would have to be of the girl on a bed.

Amazing Photography

Honestly, I chose all these photos because of the fact that they all seem to express personality. There's a story to each picture, it's part of something bigger. A good photo to me not only looks good, but means something as well. My favorite would probably have to be the shot of the broken light bulb mainly for the clarity.

Macro

All of these photos are Macro. I learned that in Macro, it's incredibly important to adjust your focus and place your subject. My favorite shot might be the one of the tulip.

Still Life!!(:

This type of photo is called still life. It's where you take a picture of things to make it look like something's happening when the picture is taken. I learned that using different angles can really make a difference. I would have to say that my best shot was probably the one that was level with the dog covered in feathers.

These are my black & white pictures.  I figured out that I usually like more contrast, but it depends on the picture. I love the shot with the striped tulip petals.

Self Portraits

These are my self portraits. While taking these pictures I learned that certain people look better from specific angles. I really like the one where I have purple eyes because it's all windswept and simple.

Open (Shadows)

I took all this photos with special attention to shadows in the picture. I learned how great contrast can make a picture stand out so much more. My favorites would probably be the lights, the dog, and the windmill.

shot types!
The extreme long shot shows the subject and all it's surroundings.
The long shot shows the subject being a little more important than it's surroundings.
The medium shot makes the subject the main point.
The close up shows the subject in detail.
The extreme close up emphasizes the subject.

There are certain things you can do to make your photography more pleasing. There's the rule of thirds which puts the subject in the corners of your photo, where your eye naturally goes. Symmetry is when you completely break that rule and place your subject dead center. You also have texture and pattern where the subject takes up the whole shot. You can alter your depth of field from short and long to change up the picture. Lastly, there are lines to lead you to your subject.

Rule of Thirds: Celena in the grass and dandelion
Symmetry: crack in the road
Texture: tree bark
Pattern: pinecone
Depth of field: plant
Lines: tree
 

Macro: keyboard
Wide Shot: class
Portrait of a friend: Celena
Black and White: fingers
Sepia: curtains