Breathtaking Photography: Prepare Yourself for Impact

A picture is said to be worth 1000 words partly because of the vast range of emotions, memories, and other powerful energies that they inspire within us.  As a visual artist, it is important to play close attention to all of the elements in a photograph - but it is also important to ask yourself:

"How does this picture make me feel?" 

One obviously important aspect of many visually based projects is the editing and selection of photographs. There are almost as many styles as there are photographers, and a good photographer brings many different elements into focus within the actual image that he is capturing.

Some photographers are interested in pictures of people and try to capture a unique moment in their portraits. Others are more concerned with the setting of the photo, or the effect of the light on the lense. In short every photographer has their eye on something else inside the frame.

"Photography is a system of visual editing. At bottom, it is a matter of surrounding with a frame a portion of one's cone of vision, while standing in the right place at the right time. Like chess, or writing, it is a matter of choosing from among given possibilities, but in the case of photography the number of possibilities is not finite but infinite."

-John Szarkowski

Here is a collection of some of my favorite sites as well as some of my favorite photos. Some of them are modern and some are vintage, some are sharp and some are blurred, and some of the photos are even distorted or damaged. All of these elements go into making each photograph what it is:

The who, what, where, when, why, and how come of photographic images!

Homo - Sapiens

Everybody has a thing... Just be careful if you ask to see it. You never know where it might lead.

Nothing in the WORLD like a Cuban cigar! This photo certainly convinced me.  I definitely dig those shades as well...

A traditional Indian dance. Capturing a moment of grace.

It's all in the eyes. Here's looking at you kid!

I got those blues again... At least I still have my guitar close by!

SquareAmerica - On the Limits of Memory

Summertime, summertime. Facing the glorious days of summer vacation - exactly 60 years ago.

This simple photograph of a boy playing baseball in the back yard is somehow classic and timeless. Doesn't everyone remember a moment like this? I certainly do. He even looks like I did. No shirt and a baseball glove from the 1930's. 

Ever feel like you were on top of the world? That smile gives him away. Give a man a ladder, and he will climb it - then he will look down and say: "Look at me!"

Sitting on the porch on those lazy, hazy days of summer. Those are shoes meant to impress. And those legs... The photographer seems to have been startled.

This photo looks like it was taken about 5 seconds before this boy not only watered the yard, but the photographer as well.

Family-man's Life and Death from AIDS because of Heroin Abuse

No funny little comments here. This is one of the saddest chronological photo collections that I have ever seen. It takes us on a journey that begins with tender and heart warming images and turns quickly into photos of frustration and finally heart breaking pain. Life is fragile - don't waste it! 

Vintage Color Photos of US cities

I love this modern looking car design in this vintage photo. Looks like a great day for a quick spin around the lake.

A look back at the old neighborhood.

An Oklahoma city street, once upon a time...

People and Animals - Sharinging This World

Home is where the heart is... Keep your transportation close by as well!

I wouldn't bother them just yet. This is the best protection ever against a bad hair day.  

Notice how this farmer's hand rests gently on his cow's hoof. Maybe not your average dairy farmer...

The joys of exercise with your dog. 

A moment of keeping it real. Now that's what I call true love.

The Rolling Stones' 1969 U.S Tour Photos by Ethan Russell

Mick Jagger crossing the river on a horse

Keith Richards and Mick Jagger with baby

Brian Jones 1969 - A Portrait to Remember

SquareAmerica

The Way of All Flesh

This is an interesting chronological post that documents a woman's life over 50+ years. It is an amateur collection, but totally fascinating. 

August 28, 1938

August 11, 1945

May 19571961

August 12, 1978

Beautiful Air Scenes of Africa

The animals below from above. Some wonderful colors here.

Crossing the desert alone.

Quite a crowd of hippos in this muddy pool.

In Pictures: The Strangest Sights in Google Earth

The face of the Indian Man as seen from the sky...

World at Night

Sleep tight. 

Visual Arts: The Medium is (Definitely!) the Message

Visual images are an integral part of everyday life here on our planet. We live, work, and play surrounded by images. Obviously, certain pictures that we love can make us feel a certain way, and we often try to have these images close by so that we can charge our batteries from time to time. The charging experience that we feel isn't necessarily only visual. Pictures and photos can cause us to become enveloped with emotions and feelings, or maybe just give us a thoughtful moment or pensive thought.

Our impression of visual art is connected to images we recognize and also to images that we aren't familiar with. Pictures that have the power to draw us in can be drawn from the hand of a child or shot from the lense of an experienced photographer. Not every picture can make us stop and notice, but inevitably many do. 



What causes these images to be so potent? What is the technique that is used to entice a human eye?
 
The images that we "see" or "notice" are often concepts or designs that were created to make an impression on the casual observer. Everyone from photographers and video cameramen to graphic artists and design specialists are employed to create images that will cause an impact. How do they do it? Well, accidents do happen, but in general you need to understand the medium that you are working with in order to create successful images. Each medium has obvious elements as well as plenty of unnoticed aspects that also combine to give the final image its look and appeal. Everyone has certain styles that they are most drawn to, but often, success is determined by a combination of many different factors and aspects of the particular medium.
 
To get us started off, let's take a look at a great Photoshop tutorial collection from You The Designer called Adobe Photoshop Tutorial Round-Up 3. Here you can discover how to design an amazing mystic man, a Loox Pocket PC, a funky iPod Shuffle or try your hand at building some fantastic space scene lighting effects! They are all excellent, but this one from Nik Ainley demonstrates how to take simple stock photos and mash them up into a fantastic photo manipulation masterpiece! Look at this awesomeness!

The Making of Mystic



Another great Photoshop reference is this cool set of tutorials for breathtaking visual effects. This series is called 100 Photoshop Tutorials for Creating Beautiful Art and there are full technical explanations included here as well as short bios of the different designers that created each tutorial. This is a great reference for all graphic design freaks, so save it somewhere where you can find it quickly. There are realistic images, cosmic images,  comic images, and sexy images. Pick the one that you like and give it a whirl. These designers definitely know how to get the most out of their tools...



There are some incredible photo techniques out there, but one style that has definitely caught my eye lately is called HDR - or High Dynamic Range (Image Photography). According to Wikipedia, it is:

"A set of techniques that allows a greater dynamic range of exposures (the range of values between light and dark areas) than normal digital imaging techniques. The intention of HDRI is to accurately represent the wide range of intensity levels found in real scenes ranging from direct sunlight to shadows."

If you want a little background on the style and some helpful suggestions on how to get the best results, take a look at this valuable article called How to Create HDR Photos. If you would like to see what types of compelling images are obtainable in this intriguing medium, take a look at this superb layout called Outstanding HDR Night Pictures and find out what all the buzz is about.

Shibuya Night (HDR)


photo by Guwashi999                             

By a Cloudy Night - HDR


photo by Arnold Pouteau

For all of the typography folks out there, take a look at the new i love typography article called Sunday Type: paragraph type. There are lots of great examples of creay=tive uses of typography styles that will let you start to understand what an important visual medium this is. A picture may be worth 1000 words, be sometimes a well designed font can really help get you where you need to go. Don't miss it, there are some great examples here...

Out comes the inner-child





Here at the Visual Art Stop, we are working to bring you some of the newest and freshest web content available on visual art styles. We have lots of design favorites, and each week we will try to bring you the best of the best. If anyone out there would like to recommend any interesting sites or articles, feel free to post them in the comments. 

High Resolution Desktop Wallpaper Like You've Never Seen it Before!

There is wallpaper and then there is awesome high resolution wallpaper from Desktopography. I saw a beautiful post from Abduzeedo recently featuring some really cool digital images that are among the highlights of the Desktopography 2008 exhibition.


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Take a look at a few words from their site to understand what they think computer wallpaper is.

"What we see everyday can affect our mood and state of mind, enhance your desktop with a wallpaper creation from desktopography and feel the essence of nature and the outdoor existence on your computer. Bring tranquility to your desktop, feel the wilderness and give your background a breath of fresh air..."
 


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There are some really brilliant designs from this year's new collection, and there are also loads of great images that they have done over the last few years as well. This stuff is all free and it is all really fantastic, so get yourself over there and get a new design on your desktop to" give your background a breath of fresh air..."


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They definitely convinced me!

Visual Art Stop: Design Blog from The Visual Artist

Hi and welcome to Visual Art Stop. Before I even get started here, I wanted to give full credit for the great photo that I incorporated into my logo. A fantastic photo of a stop sign at night.


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In Visual Art Stop, I will be posting visually oriented blog articles, with collections of interesting photos, tutorials, and graphic design tips. I also enjoy video editing and will be embedding some intriguing videos with some helpful video editing tips and tricks as well.

I will leave you with a fun video that I found recently on YouTube. This is a one shot clip with no special effects besides a funny guy cutting loose in a train terminal.



"I'm leaving on that midnight train
I'm leaving on that midnight train
I said I'm leaving on that midnight train
And I'm never coming back again

On the midnight train - On the midnight train.

I'm leaving this town far behind
I'm leaving this town far behind
I said I'm leaving this town far behind
Gotta get myself some piece of mind...

On the midnight train - On the midnight train.

There ain't gonna be no turning back
There ain't gonna be no turning back
I said there ain't gonna be no turning back
Once I'm riding on that railroad track...

On the midnight tain - On the midnight train.

Simple and to the point.
These lyrics seem to be part of my mission on this blog - we will see how it all looks in the perspective of a few months time. Great to have you around, grab an rss and we will see you again soon.

The Visual Artist