Reddit reviews Magnum Contact Sheets
We found 12 Reddit comments about Magnum Contact Sheets. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Reddit reviews Magnum Contact SheetsWe found 12 Reddit comments about Magnum Contact Sheets. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
The Magnum Contact Sheets book covers this particular photo series and the roll it comes from. All in all it's definitely a great book for anyone interested in photo journalism, the role of a photo editor, and how the context of a photo in the larger set of a roll of film can be an important part of the story as well and one we don't often know.
I tried to locate some detail from the book on the Leipzig shots, but ended up stumbling across this, which has some interesting points to say about Magnum and Capa, and what might be an embellished or outright false story they've been hawking for decades...
A pretty solid book to look at to gain perspective is Magnum Contact Sheets. Flipping through it helped my view of how my own photos looked quite a bit.
Arbus' contact sheet for that photo is pretty enlightening due to the context it was taken in.
I took my XE-1 for a long-deserved outing after a long month of exams in school. Made a daring (for me, at least) cropping decision, and I really like it. Here's the photo in question.
Also bought the Magnum Contact Sheets book from Amazon with their 30% discount offer, and I can't wait to get it.
Oh, and bought some RAM as well as an SSD that would hopefully make my PC less laggy when I run Lightroom.
General 'snapshot' street photography is a matter of chance, with a small amount of composition. Very little work and thought goes into the output. What's notable about HCB is that he frequently framed a shot based on artistic composition; and waited for something to happen. Other times he had time to compose a shot he took the time to find the geometry. Even when just out snapping, he looked for scenes where geometry was striking. If you're curious about the way he does this, he talks about it in an old movie.
Asking someone else how to make your work stand out is inherently uncreative, for the record.
One of the most important things I ever learned about photography was that buying gear isn't really useful. Having a working camera and some working lenses is necessary; but if you have something 'semi-professional' or above, there's little to no advantage in upgrading. You have an M8 (or possibly an M6 by now?) and a lens. As long as both are in functional condition; that's all you need in terms of equipment.
Instead, buy books. Here's some suggestions that you might want to consider:
You can also look at libraries for these, and keep an eye on thrift stores and used bookshops. I think you're in London, right? There's a huge gallery on Oxford street, and in Mayfair there's a Leica store where exhibitions are held a few times a year.
The key point is to look at photos; individual photos, contact sheets and whole curated books and exhibitions. Think about how the artists made something like documentary and snapshot photography into an art. Look for ideas you can use, and look for things that haven't been done that you could use to be unique. Look at studio photography. Look at erotic photography. Look at cinema and still life and landscapes and architecture and paintings and drawings and every other image created with artistic intent, that represents a moment of reality. And go from there.
Let me recommend this book to you. It's a very cool collection that shows entire rolls of film that famous photos came from (e.g. the iconic photo of Che). It's mostly targeted at film nerds like me but it is also a great piece of storytelling and I think you might enjoy it based on your comment.
Magnum Contact Sheets
Usually when Amazon does something like this it's for a day or two and then it's over. This is the lowest it's ever been. https://ca.camelcamelcamel.com/Magnum-Contact-Sheets-Kristen-Lubben/product/050054431X
If he's more of a reader get About Looking by John Berger
Its a great book that talks about why we take pictures of the things we do and much more.
If he's more interested in looking at actual photographs, I would recommend a number of books
Genesis by Sebastiao Salgado
Magnum Contact Sheets
The Americans by Robert Frank
The Last Resort by Martin Parr
Thanks for the detailed reply. I know The Americans but not the rest; very helpful. Since we're living out of the car, I'm limited on book space. So, for the next 18 months, I probably shouldn't purchase a book. I downsized my library to a Kindle pre-trip.
Do you know of any great PDFs/digital books that would be worth considering? That's one of the benefits of the course; to be able to do work and study from anywhere.
Regarding Magnum Contact Sheets, can you help me understand the difference between these two?
$55 hardcover vs stupid expensive.
Any courses you might recommend now that I've made the lack-of-space a bit more clear? :) I'm attempting to get work as a non-paid second shooter in the cities we travel to.
Thanks for the advice. I can't find your Flickr. Your flair links me to your website. I'll start checking out John Free's videos today.
On Books:
I'm currently in the process of deciding which book(s) to get. I was thinking The Americans by Robert Frank or Magnum's Contact Sheets. At some point, probably both. I was originally looking for written books by author describing how they think when out shooting, but all I usually find on Amazon and the web are bland books on the essentials of your camera, such as how to get good exposure. Or only the basic compositions like the rule of thirds.
On Gear:
I actually really do agree with you on the gear part. Books(education) over gear. This is partly why the only camera I own, which I purchased a year ago, is my Fuji X100S. One camera, one lens. My thought process is that I want to earn my next camera. Meaning not switch over to another camera or lenses until I have finally decided I can benefit from it when my photos begin getting better.
On Resources:
That John Free guy is a great resource. I also find that Adam Marelli and Eric Kim do well to put out good info. Though the former is more reserved (I think he would rather get paid via a workshop for it). But if you have any more people you can think of on photography techniques and/or philosophy, please let me know.
The new addition is a bit more than half the price. I've been meaning to pick it up for a while now now so ordered it immediately when I saw the cheaper price. More than worth the $50.
Photography Changes Everything by Marvin Heiferman
EDIT: More:
Magnum Contact Sheets by Kristen Lubben
Photography: The Definitive Visual History by Tom Ang
Michael Kenna: Images of the Seventh Day
Raised by Wolves by Jim Goldberg
The Photography Book: 2nd Edition by Ian Jeffrey
The Photographer's Eye by John Szarkowski
The Photographer's Eye by Michael Freeman
The Photographer's Vision by Michael Freeman
Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson