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How many times in your life have you enjoyed a colourful sunset? If you’ve lived on this earth for any amount of time and haven’t been completely hidden from nature’s beauty, chances are you’ve experienced hundreds, if not thousands, of breathtaking sunsets. As a photographer, there’s a good chance you’ve captured many of these incredible moments, with the sky exploding into any variation of red, magenta, orange, yellow, and pink magic. These images are impressive because we, as humans, love colour. In photography, colour can be intoxicating. It can seduce, wow, and grip a viewer. Colour in photography is certainly not a bad thing, but it’s not the only thing. Stop for a minute and imagine some of the images you’ve taken of colourful sunsets or sunrises, and mentally (or physically, using a program such as Adobe Lightroom) convert them to monochrome, or black and white. Strip the image of colour and look again. Does it still hold the same appeal? Without colour, does your composition still make sense? Does it draw you in? Is your image balanced and interesting? Does it have a story, or was the story dependent on the colour? As a younger photographer discovering and growing into photography pretty much at the start of the digital transition, I found I initially held a quiet disdain for people who had an aversion to change in photography. Take digital photography, for example. Many film photographers then (and still today, to a lesser extent) would point out all the reasons why the digital image would never match the quality of film images, which was something I didn’t accept. Equally contemptible, to me, were photographers who would go on and on about the virtues of black and white photography, expressing its strengths over colour photography, using terms such as “depth,” “power,” “emotional impact,” and “real photography.” I rolled my eyes for many years, thinking, “Give me digital and colour and just be quiet.” For almost eight years I photographed exclusively colour and essentially rebelled against the notion of black and white photography. It’s not that I didn’t appreciate a strong black and white image, it’s just that I felt, in the earlier half of my career, that it was a medium of yesteryear and for those reluctant to change. Quite simply, I was wrong. Somewhere along the line, my thinking shifted, and I came to appreciate the power of the monochromatic image that far wiser people than me had appreciated since the beginning of photography. It isn’t necessarily better or worse than colour photography; I now believe that it just pushes viewers to concentrate on particular aspects of the image in a manner that differs from the way we take in a colour image. Colour, as mentioned before, can be intoxicating. But do we sometimes use it as a crutch. It’s worth asking yourself in many situations when you are shooting colour if you have considered composition, or if the colour is the only reason you’re shooting the image. Take the sunset, for example. We all love pretty skies, but how many images would fall flat from a compositional standpoint if you stripped out the sensational colours? Lots of my sunrise and sunset efforts would be boring if I converted them to black and white. An interesting thing I’ve found through my more recent embracing of black and white photography is that now, if I photograph a sunset in black and white, I pay way more attention to composition and find myself internally asking questions such as “Do I have a foreground?” “Do I have depth?” and “Do I have a story beyond the colour?” This, in turn, has made my colour photography stronger as well, because I now ask these questions across all of my photography. Black and white has found its way into all of the genres of photography I do: not only my landscape and nature work, but my portrait work as well. For a medium I resisted for so long, I now have a deep appreciation for the emotional impact (yes, I am now one of those photographers) that you can achieve in black and white portraiture. You can achieve emotional impact in colour portraiture, of course, but in black and white portraits, I find you’re often more likely to immediately connect to a subject’s eye and recognize the expression and mood of a subject than you are in colour photography. Clothing, background, and other details are all still there, and you eventually see them in black and white images, but they’re often secondary to the emotion present. On the flip side, in many colour portraits, your eye may be attracted by a bright garment or a rich green forest in the background before it goes to your subject. Neither medium is right or wrong, but each can be used in dramatically different ways for different purposes. Some images I shoot I immediately know are meant to be colour images. I understand that sometimes colour itself is the subject. With other images, I know from the second they’re captured that they’re destined to be seen in black and white. Over the years, I’ve made a dedicated effort to try to understand and recognize which images will work best in colour and which will work better in black and white before I shoot them. Now, when I think an image will work best in black and white, I’m most often shooting in monochrome mode on my camera. Being able to instantly see black and white tones (either via your camera’s Live View functionality or by reviewing an image right after shooting it) is hugely helpful to making stronger monochromatic images. My challenge to all colour photographers is to simply try embracing black and white photography if you haven’t already. Maybe you won’t find the same passion for it as you have for your colour images, but what if you do? At the very least, I think you’ll find that your colour work becomes stronger as a result of understanding the essentials of black and white photography, and it may have the power to open a new world of discovery that ends up sparking your photographic passion further. After all, one of the greatest challenges we face in our photographic journey is not technical, or even emotional. It’s simply finding the inspiration to stay passionate about photography and to continue shooting. My own slow-building interest in black and white photography has been a huge catalyst for my continued interest in photography as a whole. Despite my initial reluctance, I am very thankful for all that it has brought into my life and career. See more work by Dave Brosha at: www.davebrosha.com #DaveBrosha #blackandwhite #naturephotography #travelphotography #phototips #monochrome #canadianphotographer #canadianphotography

Born and raised in Kiev, Ukraine, Yuliya Art cannot remember a time when she wasn’t drawing. She used drawings of dragons, witches, zombies, and other elements of fantasy to illustrate her self-authored narratives as a child. Yuliya never questioned that she would pursue a career as an artist. For Yuliya, the combination of her own photographs, stock imagery, and digital illustrations is a form of drawing. In her series, The Chemistry of Attraction, Yuliya uses a combination of nonrepresentational elements and photo-based embellishments, such as body armour, animal fur, and rockets, to explore bold aspects of human desire and attraction. “For me, it’s a feminine exploration of desire,” Yulia explains. “I’m trying to explore how this world works. Everything is based on [various forms of] attraction — relationships, for example, with others, with yourself. It’s magic, and so much fun to play with.” Playing with visual elements may be the key to the fantastic quality of Yuliya’s images, but a good deal of her art is grounded in meticulous execution and hard work. After graduating with honours from the National Art College and the National Institute of Applied Arts and Design, both in Kiev, Yuliya was employed as a picture artist in the computer gaming industry. “The 3D artists use software to sculpt everything such as roads, buildings, and characters. Everything is grey and without texture. It was my job to create the glass, doors, cracks in the walls, and to make it look as real as possible,” explains Yuliya. Yuliya was drawing for a living and was using the latest technology to do it well. One look at her work informs viewers that Yuliya values beauty and perfection. Her time in the gaming industry helped her further develop her talents and provided opportunities for travel. “I’m really inspired by new places; I started taking pictures of everything: grass, roots, boxes, cracks in the wall. I’ve been collecting a huge library of images for many years. Whenever I want to start a new composition, I often think of an image in my library and start there,” she says. Yuliya sometimes adds to her library by purchasing stock images of nudes, which she uses in an unconventional way. “I never start off with a whole person in my work; each figure consists of pieces. I feel like I want the legs longer or shorter, so I add or remove them, using arms and heads from other figures. I take pieces and paint with them using Photoshop and finally, the Wacom Tablet for drawing and shading.” The Chemistry of Attraction was the first image in her series of the same name. It’s Yuliya’s favourite piece, and one that inspired several months of continuous work. The central figure is calm and stoic, despite the excitement that surrounds her. There is a tension between chaos and control, one of many themes in Yuliya’s visual explorations of attraction. The details in Yuliya’s images pull viewers further into her narrative. In the piece titled “Invitation”, for example, buttons along the spine of the mixed gender figure turn the skin into a sort of costume. Yuliya explains that the figure “is a hunter trying to hypnotize a young woman, and she wears a mask to protect herself. The world that smiles at us is often not as nice as it seems.” In this image, hooks and lines hang from the buttons and a tiny birdcage holds a motif of a human heart. Each symbol is rich with meaning, and Yuliya invites viewers to linger on every detail. Many elements of Yuliya’s creations actually look plausible. Although the works are fictional, Yuliya shows a strong commitment to the tenants of traditional drawing and photography via light, shade, and perspective. She says, “It doesn’t have to be in real life, but the image should look logical. You need to notice what side the light is coming from and ask yourself ‘Where does the shadow fall?’” In the midst of so much richness and complexity, how does Yuliya approach her work? She takes a methodical approach. She says, “Take one small thing at a time, and focus on one detail after another. It’s live meditation. You just move slowly, and eventually it ends, and then you start a new one. I don’t think about it too seriously. I play with what I’m doing. I’m constantly thinking ‘What if I try to do this?’ … then I see what happens.” When asked how others could duplicate her success, Yuliya’s advice is clear and simple: “The main thing is to do it yourself. Ask a lot of questions and try, try, try. In this moment, ask yourself ‘What if …’ and go from there.” We featured Yuliya and this article in our WINTER 2010 – PHOTO ART issue. If you’re looking for art photography inspiration, you can find it HERE. Check out what Yuliya has been up to lately at: yuliyart.blogspot.com #yuliya #photoart #collage #womeninphotography #fineartphotography #imagemanipulation #experimentation

Although Janet Dwyer has extensive experience using cameras, since 2001 she has been creating images using a flatbed scanner. For the artist whose subject is nature and its many intricacies, the process of creation offers infinite possibilities. “Nature itself is my biggest inspiration,” says Janet Dwyer. “I am grateful to kind people who visit my studio and bring me flowers, bones, spiders, bird skulls, claws, and other wonderful finds.” Being the model for her mother’s photography, along with her four other siblings, was the first step in Dwyer’s enchantment with photography. “I recall being fascinated by that little square glass viewer on top of the camera. The whole thing really was a magic box. And eventually lovely square photos with deckled edges would arrive.” The magical feeling was enhanced by visiting a neighbouring friend’s black and white darkroom, watching images appear from darkness under the glow of a red light. “When I left home at 18 to attend university in New Brunswick, my dad lent me his 35mm camera. I took a lot of photos, documenting the new landscape and people I met and lived with.” In 1973, Dwyer had not even considered a career in photography, let alone in art. Those around her, however, could clearly see where her passion lay. Near the end of the semester, when Dwyer was unsure about continuing at university, a friend suggested she enroll in a photography program. The courses brought back that magical feeling. Although Dwyer has extensive experience using cameras owing to her degrees in photography from Conestoga and Ryerson, since 2001 she has been creating images using a flatbed scanner. Using a flatbed scanner for producing works of art is known as scanography. In this process, the scanner replaces the camera. The lid is removed and objects are placed on the scanner glass. Backgrounds usually have to be suspended over top, at a slight distance. Depending on the orientation of the scanner, scans may work upside down or sideways or can be modified for the purpose. Dwyer finds unique ways of utilizing the technology. For example, for scanning ice, she uses the scanner upside down to avoid condensation on the insides of the machine. As an artist, she enjoys the quality and resolution of working with a scanner. “It’s like having an ultra high-res camera without spending $40,000,” she says. “The scanner renders objects next to its glass flatbed with absolute clarity,” she explains. “Limited depth of focus, zero distortion and a wrap-around quality of lighting are unique to a scanner. Objects are captured by a moving myopic light source, which adds to the 3-D effect and hyper-real image detail.” What makes this process special? Why abandon the ability of a focal lens to zoom in and out in favour of a myopic vision? Dwyer claims, “The resulting massive digital files extend far beyond what large format films yield and can produce exquisitely magnified large dimension prints. It has a different look than camera-imaged files.” Sometimes, movement during scanning creates interesting effects. It also helps to produce an intimacy with the final product that a camera may not be able to furnish as effectively. To achieve such alluring images, Dwyer plans meticulously and thinks on her feet to overcome the challenges presented by the instrument. A scanner’s depth of field is very shallow so compositions are often arranged with this in mind. Composing images upside down also poses its own set of problems. Dealing with dust and the fragility of subjects such as flowers and insects and capturing ice before it melts requires a lot of patience. She advises artists trying their hands at scanography to “Ask yourself what you are trying to communicate with your imagery. Think of a scanner as a large sensor and take it from there. Look at what other people are doing with scanners and cultivate patience. Usually, I see an image in my mind’s eye and work on placement of objects based on that. I do several previews during the course of scanning and rearrange until the preview image is something close to what I imagined. Then a high-resolution scan is done.” Occasionally, in addition to the built-in scanner light, she adds supplementary lighting for more texture or depth. For post-processing, Dwyer uses Photoshop to balance tones and to get the colour effect she wants. She does a fair amount of dodging, burning, and spotting of dust, as the files typically are enlarged greater than 30×40 inches. “I do my own printing on Hahnemühle papers, usually photo rag and bamboo, and then varnish the prints to allow for display without glass.” Janet Dwyer has taken a technology beyond its intended purpose to closely and meticulously explore the qualities of organic subjects, such as plants, feathers, bones, ice, and live insects. The results of this artistic investigation are unpredictable and the process is thoroughly invigorating in its poetic narrative. See more of Janet Dwyer's work at: www.janetdwyer.com #photoscanography #scannerart #canadianphotography #fineartphotography #womeninphotography #JanetDwyer #experimentation #stilllifephotography #alternativeprocess

Necessity is the mother of invention. You have probably noticed that phone cameras do not have a tripod mount. Not a problem when shooting hand held in most situations, but some situations require a steady camera. Here are some quick & clever DIY approaches that can be assembled with little cost and all the parts listed can be easily found at your local hardware store. STUFF YOU'LL NEED: THE BINDER CLIP What you will need: • A small binder clip • 1/4-20 (1/4-inch-20) wing nut • Pliers • Thin rubber padding for inside the metal clip (to protect phone) Procedure: 1. Use a pair of pliers to bend the top of one of the clip handles 90 degrees. 2. Use the 1/4-20 wing nut to attach the tripod and the phone via the binder clip. 3. If the bent clip handle is wobbly, use tape to fasten it securely to the tripod. NAIL PLATE OR RAFTER TIE What you will need: • A nail plate or rafter tie • Pliers • Wing nut (1/4-20) • 1/4-inch drill bit for metal • Drill • Hard shell phone case • Plastic velcro picture hanging strips Procedure: 1. Use the pliers to bend the nail plate or rafter tie to 90 degrees. 2. Using the 1/4-inch drill bit, drill a hole in the centre of the plate about an inch (2.5 cm) away from the bend. 3. Apply one of the picture hanging strips to the vertical side of the plate and the other to the outside of the hard shell case. Use the wing nut to attach the nail plate to the tripod. 4. Place the phone in the case and connect the case to the plate. THE L-BRACKET What you will need: • L-bracket (3 × 3/4–inch metal corner brace). If you use a smaller L-bracket, you will need to drill a hole and use a wing nut. • Hard shell phone case • Plastic picture hanging strips Procedure: 1. The 3 × 3/4–inch L-bracket should be just the right size to thread onto a tripod mount. 2. Use plastic picture hanging strips with the hard shell case as in previous procedure. Using this size L-bracket is a big improvement over using a nail plate or rafter tie since with this size L-bracket no bending or drilling is required and there is no need for a wing nut. Set the L-bracket camera assembly on a tripod and you are ready to start shooting. THE ADVANCED L-BRACKET FOR SOUND Recording sound? If you’re finding that your in-camera microphone is less than ideal, attach an external microphone to the phone camera to improve the situation. But, you then discover that the camera phone does not come with an accessory shoe. A hand bracket with an accessory shoe easily solves this problem. The hand bracket also helps to keep the camera steady when you use it without a tripod and makes for easier handling of the phone camera. BELT CLIP WITH HARD SHELL CASE What you will need: • A belt clip hard shell phone case (available at most cellphone case vendors) • A plastic velcro picture hanging strip Procedure: 1. Reverse the phone case so the camera lens sticks out above the belt clip. 2. Attach a plastic hanging strip to the inside of the clip. 3. Connect the belt clip to the L-bracket on a tripod. The belt clip is versatile and can be used with the L-bracket on a tripod. The clip allows for the rotation of the case from vertical to horizontal. Its big advantage is that it is always with you and can be used without a tripod (which may not always be with you). All you need is something steady to clip the case to. #HowTo #DIY #cameraphones

“Light painting is an expression of our true selves. It’s about the trace we create and leave behind. It enhances your imagination, wakes up your intuition, and reflects who you are and where you are at. It is a mirror of the soul.” –Patrick Rochon “Light painting,” explains artist Patrick Rochon, “is a photography-based art form where the creator moves handheld lights in the dark during a long exposure.” First developed in 1889, the art of light painting illumination through long exposure was popularized by the iconic Man Ray, who used the technique for his 1935 Space Writing series. “I always loved Man Ray’s path as a photographer,” Rochon says. Rochon studied photography in college, and at first was more a practitioner of ubiquitous photography than of a specific or dominant genre. Curiosity ignited his exploration of the intricacies and creativity inherent within the photographic art form. It was that thirst for a singular creative expression that influenced his study of light painting. “When I first saw a black and white picture of a plant another student had made, each leaf lit with a stroke of light, I saw the creative potential; that was the spark, the trigger. In something simple, I saw a world of possibilities,” he says. This decision was fortified for Rochon when, on a trip to Tokyo, he realized that his mindset was totally captured with the art of light painting. It was a life-changing and art-changing epiphany that allowed him to free himself from what he felt were the restrictions of traditional photography and instead let him pursue a path of open-ended creative freedom through light painting. “It’s the magic that comes out of it,” Rochon says, “the unexpected results, the surprises and the synchronicities that occur while creating that get me excited. These moments are teaching me, guiding me towards new directions, opening doors I could not see before.” Rochon’s techniques include 360-degree bullet time and light painting kata. Light painting kata is free-form light painting in which Rochon uses motion to create free flow movement of a light. He uses light swords called Liteblades and works with music in synergy with movements. “The goal is to become one with the tool and the light and to go beyond my own control by doing natural, spontaneous motions.” The Liteblades are tools that leave 3D traces that can be seen at every angle, no matter how you move in front of the camera. This opens up many possibilities to practise freestyle light painting katas. They are also used to create light textures, “decoration,” or backgrounds for posing models. Rochon says, “I personally use one, two, or even sometimes three Liteblades at a time. I also love pushing colour combinations by mixing them up on the same source. I pre-cut single colours and combos in circles [so they are] ready to add to the light. I leave openings, one on each the side of the Liteblades, to create highlights and bright splashes of light when pointing towards the lens. They can be adjusted, like an iris, with black tape: the bigger the opening, the bigger the splash of light. Also, by leaving those open, it throws random light on your backgrounds and surroundings. I personally find this interesting since it visually connects the light painting with what’s around it. I love modifying the Liteblades with various materials like tapes, fabrics, plastics, and colour gels to create different textures and effects.” One of the captivating and surreal ways that Rochon uses light painting is in his portraiture series, a rare specialty in light painting. It is an art that can “reveal the thousand faces of the subject, transforming it completely. Each portrait is original, colourful, intimate, and magical. It is a true manifestation of the imagination.” To prepare for a light painting portrait shoot, Rochon relies on the connection he develops with his models and the ambiance and experience he creates for the location shoot, including a high level of comfort, music, and an integral level of respect, all intricate factors in making the experience better and the final results brilliant. The Liteblades are mounted on Klarus lights, the RS11 and XT12, both with an output of 930 lumens. This is as strong as a car’s headlight. Klarus are super strong, shockproof, and waterresistant up to two metres. They come with a battery-operated, rechargeable USB magnetic cable. So, you don’t need a charger. The main difference is the button position and the memory function on the RS11. The RS11 restarts at the last setting you used. The XT12 always restarts at full power. So both styles have advantages. Rochon prefers the RS11 and for freestyle the XT12. Rochon’s passion is for the creative process, much more so than the technical aspects of the art. “This art is intuitive. By happening in the dark, it boycotts the intellect and gets you back to your senses and connects you to your imagination. This sets you outside your comfort zone, directing you back towards your essence and spirit,” Rochon says. To get into his creative zone, a state of unconscious where he hears his inner self whisper the hints that guide his ideas and insights, he goes through a process of pauses and letting go, releasing any blockages that stand in the way of his intuition and the subtleties of the self, the insights and the guidance. The 360-degree bullet time technique is quite challenging, requiring complete darkness. The result is a video animation clip. “In light painting, a tiny bit of light in the room usually doesn’t show up on the results, but in this case, since you have a ring of cameras pointing in every direction, while doing long exposures, all leaks will appear. As such, it has to be 100-percent darkness all around. We work with 24 to 48 cameras all connected to a series of computers, which run special software designed to trigger and adjust all the cameras. The software also allows me to view the results in sequence, as a clip, immediately after I am done exposing. It is a very challenging type of light painting, but the results are great.” Other explorations by Rochon include experiments painting with light at night in nature, working with dancers, creating light shows as live events, and working with advertisers on commercial projects. Rochon has had some excellent commercial success working with advertisers to integrate light painting into their ad campaigns, many of which have gone viral. The Toyota Altezza campaign (1999) was his first big commercial project; the Red Bull + Snap! Orlando project (2013), an experimental undertaking that paired sports and technology together, was a major success that went viral, quickly garnering 6.6 million views. Another commercial art project with TBWA and INFINITI Middle East was shot in Dubai. Rochon states, “We transformed three cars into moving light painting brushes to create a new kind of dynamic image.” Innovation, self-growth, discovery, exploration, becoming more intuitive, tapping into greater creative powers, utilizing imagination, and an enhanced connection to one’s mind-body soul are all benefits that Rochon feels photographers can garner from the practice of light painting. His advice for new photographers who are interested in light painting is to become process-oriented instead of result-oriented. “If you are just result-oriented, you have a greater chance of getting very frustrated ordiscouraged,” he says. “The journey of discovery is an adventure that contains challenges you won’t expect. The process shows you the way. It directs you in the present moment as to what you have to focus on and take part in. One step at a time, you find solutions and creative ideas, which cumulate in the end result. If you do every step with care, to the best of your abilities, all the pieces will come together.” For advanced photographers, Rochon’s advice, while simple, can be challenging to those who like to have control. “Give yourself the chance to step out of your own boundaries. Break your own rules and re-invent yourself. Times are changing; it’s up to us to adapt or not.” Check out more of Rochon’s inspired light painting projects: www.patrickthelightpainter.com #PatrickRochon #lightingtechniques #paintingwithlight #experimentation #portraiture #studiophotography

What is a photograph? This is a question we don’t often consider, but perhaps we should. After all, in an age where everyone carries a smartphone and every smartphone has a camera, couldn’t we say that basically everything’s been photographed? Do we really need more? These are the questions that Laura Letinsky, a photographer and academic, considers in both her work and her personal life. Do we need more? Do we need that next new thing on the market? Why? Laura Letinsky was born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Manitoba. She originally entered the program wanting to be a painter. “I always considered myself an artist, and I loved to paint. I really enjoyed the actual paint, the texture of it as material. You could say I was enamoured by it.” Photography wasn’t on Letinsky’s radar until she was faced with the undergraduate condition that painting class required prerequisites but the photography course did not. “I took photography, but I was really bad at it,” Letinsky admitted, laughing. “I actually went to speak with the professor. She was the one who first challenged me to think about what a photograph really was: a means for investigating perception. From there I saw its ability to speak, to have eloquence.” After completing her undergraduate degree, Letinsky moved to the United States to pursue a Master of Fine Arts from Yale University. When she graduated two years later, she found more opportunities south of the border and decided to stay. Shortly thereafter she took a position as a professor at the University of Chicago in the Department of Visual Arts. Letinsky started out photographing people. “I was intrigued by the way people appear, or how they make themselves appear.… However, at a certain point I realized that my photographs were rote in that people presented themselves as they expected to appear, that particular art-photograph expressionless lost look. I moved to still life photography so as to shift away from what felt like such a limitation.” Letinsky’s seductively coloured tabletop still life pieces depict a variety of objects. Printed on a one-to-one scale, they are meant to put the viewer slightly off balance, simultaneously providing both a sense of wonder and an evocative and convincing proposition. “It’s about engaging the viewer in the photograph not as image but as a material. To make people aware that the photograph is not natural, but rather a set of constructions and conventions.” Her photographs speak to the culture of today in ways that are both very similar and very different from the still life paintings made in the 17th and 18th century. In the early age of mercantile globalism, still life paintings were used as a kind of advertisement to illustrate value. In many ways, Letinsky’s photography too is the realization of a set of ideas about seeing. Her use of photography seeks to engage the methodology of description as a form of valuation. “At first, I was obsessed with the idea of authenticity, so I photographed actual meals after they’d been consumed,” Letinsky recalls. However, over time she realized that this moment was no more true than if she were to completely stage such a moment. “There are many decisions that go into setting a scene, such as the selection of specific food stuffs, lighting, etc. The idea of the natural or original is held as different from the contrived or set up, but really there is not a firm line of differentiation. For example, in the restoration of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, to when and what does one restore the building? When and what is the original? Is it in its Christian roots, the Greek or even pre-Greek ruins, or when Islam dominated this space? Ideas, like buildings, are complicated and overlapping structures.” Letinsky’s method is a balance between deliberation and experimentation. She studies how objects look, that is, how they appear, and why the viewer may be drawn to them. In her additive and subtractive process, she evaluates how the objects appear not simply as objects but, rather, as they look when in photographs. Questions of authenticity, labour, and ethics influence not just Letinsky’s photography but also how she lives her life. In an effort to slow down the impact capitalism has on the world, when possible she makes her own clothes. She made a set of dishes that, in partnership with the Guadalajaran porcelain producer Ceramica Suro, is now produced commercially as “Molosco,” a collection of white hand-painted porcelain tableware. “This process of making is an effort to make objects, a world really, that I care about, versus just wanting the next new, shiny thing. It’s a way by which I think about the world and my place in it.” Regarding her question, “What is a photograph?” there is no single right answer. Like Letinsky says, “Perhaps for each of us it’s a process of deliberation inevitably mired in desire.” Check out more work by Laura Letinsky at: lauraletinsky.com #LauraLetinsky #womeninphotography #stilllifephotography #studiophotography #fineartphotography

With more than 20 years of photography experience, Vancouver based photographer Dina Goldstein devotes herself to creating meaningful images with a distinctive, individual, and artistic point of view. From her twenties to her early thirties, Goldstein photographed non-stop in differing capacities. She travelled to war-torn areas. She worked as a staff photographer on a Vancouver weekly newspaper and began concentrating on editorial portraiture. She shot images for many Canadian, American, and European newspapers and magazines. She photographed commercial projects with advertising agencies in Vancouver and collaborated with art directors internationally. Storytelling has always been central to Goldstein’s work. As a documentary photographer, Goldstein created and shared a variety of stories such as Palestinians in Gaza, gamblers at the racetrack in Vancouver, East Indian blueberry farmers in British Columbia, show dogs, bodybuilders at state championships, and teenagers dirty dancing at a bar mitzvah. Influenced by the 1998 exhibit Pop Surrealism at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, Connecticut, Goldstein expanded her visual language to include narratives, symbolism, dark humour, and subversive messaging. With this new vocabulary, her work deepened. She analyzed the human condition and interpreted new and cliched notions of beauty, gender, sex, and religion through the lens of pop culture, which concerns itself with the ordinary and superficial, and surrealism, which mines dreams and the unconscious. Goldstein’s success in the commercial realm afforded her the time to experiment with her own ideas. With the birth of her first child at 35, Goldstein began to explore subjects and concepts that were more personal to her. The shift from commercial to fine art photography came about in 2007. Goldstein’s daughter, three years old at the time, had discovered Disney princesses at the same time that Goldstein’s mother was dealing with breast cancer. Influenced by these two events, she began to compose the concepts for a project called Fallen Princesses: failed dreams, obesity, addiction, cancer, the extinction of indigenous cultures, pollution, war, and the fallacy of chasing eternal youth. Each image was created with particular attention to makeup, costume, and location. The project took two years to complete, culminating in her first solo exhibition in 2009. Her second project was more ambitious and was shot on a constructed set. In the Dollhouse is a 10-piece, sequential narrative that takes place in a life-sized dollhouse. A video that documents the making of the project accompanies the images. In The Dollhouse, Goldstein tackles one of the most powerful symbols of Western culture: Barbie, the idealized woman. According to Goldstein, more than any other object, Barbie represents the concept that beauty is power and necessary to attain happiness. In Goldstein’s images, Ken, Barbie’s handsome but emasculated partner, expresses his individuality and the photographer shows that beauty can be as cheap and plastic as the dolls themselves. Both projects, Fallen Princesses and In the Dollhouse found an international audience, inspiring debate concerning standards of beauty, the complexity of marriage and the importance of authenticity. Goldstein began to receive awards, including a residency in India. In 2013, the year she celebrated 20 years as a photographer, Goldstein opened her studio XX in Vancouver. She decided to focus completely on producing her independent large-scale projects and specifically her next series, Gods of Suburbia. She received her first Canada Council grant to help support this massive initiative. This series, more complex and contemplative than her previous work, is a critical exploration of established and fringe religions. “Gods of Suburbia offers an iconoclastic interpretation of how ancient belief systems fit with technology, science, and secularism, the three main pillars of modernity,” says Goldstein. Because her process is multi-faceted and represents a deeply personal and professional commitment, Goldstein takes steps to ensure that her ideas, initially instinctual and inspired from a subconscious place, can be developed into a narrative that relays as much information as a book or movie. She shares her ideas with her husband, a filmmaker, or a trusted friend, and receives constructive criticism with openness. She does extensive research. Then she develops rough concepts for each piece and the overall framework of the project. Since she usually works with a small budget, she does a lot of street casting or works with local actors and performers. Sometimes she loosely draws out her concepts with a storyboard artist, as she did for In the Dollhouse. She assembles her team: makeup and hair artists, costumers, and prop builders. Many of the costumes and props are fabricated by local craftspeople. She methodically scouts locations, and has studio interns to handle the red tape that usually ensues. She works with photography and art students, as well as volunteers from all walks of life. To prepare for the shoots, she focuses on details such as the furniture and knick-knacks that play an important role in the telling of the story. Prior to the shoot, Goldstein meets with the actors to discuss characters and to give them some clear direction. She usually shoots two images over a weekend. She reviews the shoot and the image files and makes decisions for later adjustments. She may have to re-shoot or add an element that will help to shape and complete the final image. She has a dynamic and talented team that, despite her limited budgets and huge ambitions, enables her to fulfill her goals. To be successful, Goldstein advises others to learn to work with limited resources, to have a clear vision of what they want, to educate themselves about their subjects, and to make sure that everything is in place before embarking on a project. Pleased with the recognition that she receives, Goldstein comments, “I attempt to bring attention and to inspire insight to the human condition. I am thrilled that my visual storytelling has been recognized for its ‘metaphorical and ironical messages’ and in turn has sparked much conversation and written commentary from academics, editors, and bloggers around the world. The work welcomes interpretation and discussion.” Goldstein creates images that challenge people to look closely and consider what they know, to question and perhaps reconsider what seems familiar in many aspects of their culture and daily lives. To see more work by Dina Goldstein, check out her website that includes behind the scenes video & more projects: dinagoldstein.com #visualstorytelling #womeninphotography #BritishColumbia #portrait #peoplephotography #fiction #DinaGoldstein

Montreal-born, Nicolas Ruel was driven to photography by a deep-seated passion. “I was undeniably inhabited by it, and it compelled me to move forward, to discover.” Over seven + years he has worked on a major project called 8 secondes. The work began in 2007 and saw its completion in 2015. In 2009 Ruel exhibited Project 8 secondes at the Galerie Zone Orange in Montreal, the Thompson Landry Gallery in Toronto, and the Galerie Seine 51 in Paris. Ruel is fascinated with the fact that photography is both artistic and very technical. The project 8 secondes presented challenges in both areas. He wanted to “revisit the image of the world’s greatest cities.” His first city was Paris, followed by London. At first he planned on documenting 16 cities, but then as the project became bigger and bigger, it grew to 50 cities. Now, nearing the end of the project, he has decided to add 12 more. Ruel had been experimenting with long exposures prior to 8 secondes. He asserts in his artist statement, “This long exposure makes it possible to assemble key moments in a single take, analogous to the process of condensation in dreams. Thus, in this dolly shot, I translate the actions and spectacle of the city and its residents as I follow their unceasing movement.” As for the locations he seeks out, he says, “I am fascinated by transitory and transitional sites — places that in their nature and function incarnate motion and metamorphosis, such as ports, terminals, docks, highways, construction sites, churches, and stadiums.” Although everything in the eight-second exposure is in the scene, the resulting image is not a visual document but rather an artistic interpretation. It is a unique point of view and Ruel tries to imbue it with meaning and vision. The images have a sensuous quality and seem like dreams, moving pictures crystallized and condensed into one scene. Ruel calls these micro-métrages or micro movies. The ebb and flow of time is felt in each image. Ruel states, “Motion is at the heart of most of the images I create. The subject is constantly in motion. I’m in motion. The camera and the subject are in motion. The locations are iconic and revive images and feelings from the past. We have experience with what the world would look like if we could freeze 1/125 of a second. Ruel presents his vision of what the world would look like if we could freeze eight seconds. Although frozen in one frame, the motion and passing of time is clearly felt. On the technical side Ruel has a strong interest in modern industrial material. He has experimented with the metal printing process and took the bold move to print the 8 secondes project on large-format stainless steel plates. He refers to this as a flashback to the daguerreotype process where the image was printed on a polished copper plate. The stainless steel gives the image a reflective quality and brings to mind the initial name given to daguerreotypes: “the mirror with a memory.” Ruel considers himself very fortunate to be able to travel around the world and use the medium of photography to be creative. He states, “Every day I am amazed behind the magic that is photography. We live in a special time — one of the best times I could be born is right now.“ His advice is to find a way to express your dreams in a very unique way and go for it. He says, “Shoot and shoot. You never know how far you can go. Be open to different things — even things that are not connected to your kind of photography. Look for collaborations with artists in other fields, such as painters, sculptors, architects.” Ruel has been applying his own advice in the past few years, the most notable example being his collaboration with the French fashion house Maison Jean-Paul Gaultier. For Ruel, the most important part of this collaboration was “sharing a dream or a vision.” This is something we can apply to any kind of photography and, by doing so, we will elevate our art to another level. We featured Nicolas Ruel in our Winter 2013: Travel Photography - Issue #39 - Get it in PRINT HERE. See more of Nicolas' work : www.nicolasruel.com #NicolasRuel #travelphotography #Montreal #photoart #longexposure #fineartphotography #experimentation #canadianphotography #motionphotography

Travel photography and photography in general has opened the world to me. It has become a reason to wake up at dawn and set off to see a misty sunrise behind a Buddhist temple, or to stay out late in the Scottish Highlands to capture a rescue mission in the mountains with a long exposure. The potential to take my favourite photograph tomorrow has, for the last four years, been my driving motivation to experience and document the world around me. All the gear involved with the act of photographing makes being a backpacker at the same time almost an oxymoron. Known notoriously by throngs of other tourists as the ones with the most luggage, photographers are undoubtedly weighed down by gear when out taking photos. In 2011 when I began a five-month journey across China and Southeast Asia, I packed more than most. In an 80-litre backpack I had four lenses, three cameras, and a flash, a laptop, a mini tripod, backup equipment, batteries, chargers, and more memory cards than I could count. My gear took up more space than my clothing and, though I knew the weight was cumbersome, it wasn’t until I received an invitation to explore Northern Thailand’s Mae Hong Son Province on a motorbike that I made the conscious effort to lighten my load. I also had the opportunity to hike the Great Glen Way, a five-day, 114-kilometre footpath from Inverness to Fort William, Scotland. Carrying everything I needed for a single week in October, I traveled using nothing more than a 35-litre backpack with a tripod and tent strapped to its top. The Great Glen Way took me to places that were accessible only by foot or bike, officially off the beaten path. Packing more than I needed wasn’t an option. The benefits of packing light are four-fold: the first advantage being carry-on luggage. If at all possible, I carry my most valuable belongings on my person on long-haul bus rides, air flights, and even car trips. Keeping an eye on your gear during transit is safer than using luggage locks. Placing your camera in a small protective bag before you place it in a day bag or a backpack hides it. Petty theft happens abroad and at home and keeping a low profile by not carrying a great deal of gear around is another way of keeping your equipment safe. Especially when arriving at a new destination, it is great to be carrying only a backpack. You can then explore without first having to stop at a hotel to unload your luggage. Carrying only one or two lens options and a single camera, I can act quickly when I see a scene or moment I’d like to photograph. If I had all of my equipment with me, I would ask myself which camera I should use, which lens would be best, and whether I should use a flash. All of these questions could slow down my response to a potential photograph and might mean that I don’t capture the scene at all. Traveling light is going to mean different things to different photographers. Your lens choices, camera choice, and any other gear you use are going to change the aesthetic of your images. No lens is going to be great for everything and travel photography is as diverse as the world itself. Think ahead: Where are you going? What do you plan on shooting? Landscapes? Portraits? Architecture? Answering questions like these honestly will help narrow down your kit significantly and give you the flexibility and benefits of traveling light. Here is a Packing Sample list, as an example of all I took with me on my two-week hiking trip to Scotland: 1 T-shirt 1 Long-sleeved tight shirt 2 Pairs of hiking socks 1 Pair of sleeping socks 1 Light sweater 1 Heavy sweater 1 Raincoat 1 Pair of rain pants 1 Pair of hiking pants/tights 1 Hat Underwear Running shoes/Hiking shoes Wallet/Passport/Etc. Toiletries 1 Sleeping bag 1 Sleeping pad 1 Flashlight 1 Tent 35L Backpack Cotton sling day bag Soft camera-shaped case that fits into a day bag or backpack 1 DSLR 24mm Lens 85mm Lens 1 Tripod 2 Batteries 1 Charger 1 Power adaptor 5 8GB CF cards 1 Small waterproof case for CF cards This article originally appeared in our Winter Issue in 2013. Get it in print - HERE #TaylorRoades #travelphotography #travel #HowTo #backpacking #womeninphotography #Traveltips #phototips #canadianphotographer

Scott Conarroe believes that the environment “offers insights into the true values and psychology of a culture.” He acknowledges that each one of us has an impact and inherent responsibility for both our own personal surroundings as well as the environment at large. However, his photographic mission in his By Sea project is not about judgment or making a political statement regarding our infringement on the environment. “I didn’t want By Sea to be an inventory of climate change vignettes or [a] map of the coastline,” Conarroe states in an email interview from Limburg, Belgium, where he worked on a project about how comparable regions deal with their industrial heritages. Instead, his approach to the project is analogous to an observational essay. “The coastline was a really useful device for discussing the way we inhabit North America,” he states. “Along a single elevation, it spans the breadth of this civilization from circumpolar to subtropical regions. Through cities and sprawl and unadulterated landscape, sea level marks a visible edge where the land we can live on abuts a vast plane where we can’t. In a sense, the coastline illustrates that our dominion has limits.” With his By Sea project, Conarroe wanted to achieve a parallel imagery of timelessness and in-the-moment engagement. To evoke this ambiance, he shot his images by using long exposures, just before dawn and just after dusk. “In long exposures, when the light changes colour by the second, the light blends and softens and a degree of uncertainty is introduced into the process. I close the shutter when things move around in my frame, and when they become still or absent I open it again. In the end, my pictures are shadowless, slightly off-colour views that I think of as midway between an impressionist painting and a schematic diagram,”. By Sea is a rejoinder to By Rail (2008), Conarroe’s series about railways in Canada and the United States. He says, “On one hand, the rail system describes the vastness of this (Anglo- America) geo-cultural bloc simply; on the other, it illustrates both our ambitious course of development and the fear that our best days might be past. By Sea looks at the coastline perimeter of the same civilization.” Conarroe moves from recording the history of the postindustrial environment in By Rail, to a prescient geographical documentation of periphery waterscapes randomly selected throughout North America. “I like the idea that the North America we know today grew from the moment of first contact when Europeans first stepped onto the shore, and that this new era By Sea alludes to is also slipping up past the tide line. I like thinking this culture’s past and future are bookended by episodes at the water’s edge, just like the physical territory is bound by distinct coastlines,” Conarroe says. Conarroe keeps his choice of equipment simple, using a Wista RF 4 x 5 field camera, a 135mm Nikkor lens, a 127mm Schneider lens, and Kodak 160 NC film. (NC film features finer grain properties for image enlargement.) While Conarroe’s creative path did not begin with a camera, having tried his hand at creative writing and printmaking, his formal photographic studies, which include a BFA from the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design (ECIAD) and an MFA from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD), have stood him in good stead. In 2010, Conarroe’s work was featured in Canada’s pavilion at Shanghai’s World Expo; as well, he was named one of the year’s top emerging 30 photographers by Photo District News. His mentors include Jim Bruekelman, teacher at ECIAD; Alvin Committer and Bob Bean, teachers at NSCAD; Geoffrey James, who, according to Conarroe, “treated me like a colleague when I was just some guy with a camera”; John Mannion at Light Work/Community Darkrooms (Syracuse); and Stephen Bulger, who “seems to have limitless reserves of encouragement, integrity, and sound advice.” Conarroe’s advice to aspiring photographers is simple, succinct, and practical: “Do something to propel your practice every day.” See more of Scott Conarroe's work at: www.scottconarroe.com #travelphotography #ScottConarroe #longexposure #photographycanada #climatechangephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #canadianphotographer #analogfilm