Today's post is dedicated to one of my mentors from when I was in graduate school at Maine College of Art: Jorge Colombo. He has worked in many fields within the art world although he is best known for his works as an illustrator, photographer and video work. When I was studying under Colombo, he repeatedly offered me the same advice - in so many words: "Work with what you have", "Why spend a lot of money on expensive gear when you have this point and shoot?", "Why spend a lot of money on Final Cut when you have iMovie?"
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| Colombo, Jorge, Self Portrait, ND. |
At the time, I was not sure if he was serious about the "point and shoot" comment and I found myself thinking, "is this guy serious?" Surely my Nikon D-Whatever can shoot a better image than my small point and shoot. Although, as the months went on... I quickly learned what Colombo was referring to. Let's take a peak at a few black and white portraits which Colombo shot with his point and shoot:
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| Photos By: Jorge Colombo |
These are just a few of the images that Colombo took within this series. He took pictures of his friends, family, and other artists. If you were in front of Colombo when he had his camera, he would take your picture. Here's a closer look at some of his subjects:
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| Colombo, Jorge, Amy Yoes, 2006. |
Above is a photograph of Amy Yoes, Colombo's wife. She's also an artist... a really good one if I might add. I'd like to point out a few things in this image: Lighting: Clearly, the light is being reflected onto Yoes' face via some type of LCD screen. Background: Notice the simple background and repetition of books. The simple background allows Yoes to stand out in the photograph. Gaze: Notice Yoes' eye
gaze. I would consider this to be a natural expression on her face;
lost deep in thought perhaps? Regardless of what your interpretation is
of her facial expression, it's important to be aware of these things
when shooting your own portraits.
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| Colombo, Jorge, Iain Kerr, 2006. |
The photograph below was taken of Iain Kerr, who is a professor and artist. He's a member of the artist collective known as Spurse. I had the pleasure of having Kerr as one of my professors while I attended Maine College of Art's MFA program. I would not say that this image is about lighting so much as it is about expression. What are some visual clues within this photograph that would make this image more about expression - or thought?
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| Colombo, Jorge, Mark Dion, 2006. |
The gentleman with the glasses is contemporary artist Mark Dion. Although he was not one of my professors, he did come speak to my class in 2006. The image above displays a wonderful use of the Rule of Thirds, don't you think?
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| Colombo, Jorge, Melanie Fiander, 2006. |
"Jorge Colombo." Jorge Colombo. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 June 2015.
"Amy Yoes." Amy Yoes. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 June 2015.
Kerr, Iain. "Welcome." Welcome. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 June 2015.
"SPURSE." SPURSE. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 June 2015.
"Mark Dion." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 12 June 2015.
"Home." Fiander Foto. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 June 2015.