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Author Topic: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga  (Read 9272 times)

JNB_Rare

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #20 on: December 05, 2017, 09:16:53 am »

An artist's obsession can sometimes lead to extraordinary things. All too often, however, (and particularly with photography), obsession is misplaced and counterproductive. Too many (mediocre) photographers seem obsessed with sharpness, resolution, megapixels, bokeh, high-ISO/low noise, and/or high frame rates. Or, perhaps, ultra-thin DOF, arcane post-processing, eschewing post-processing, providing a back story, eschewing context, etc., etc.

45 years ago, I ran into a group of photographers who had all decided that 'cropping' was verboten. Cropping was a "lie". They even went so far as filing out their negative carriers so that the edges of the film frame would show in a print. While there were some excellent photos in the small show I attended, the mediocre ones were not elevated by the fact that they were "truthful" (i.e. uncropped).

There are good reasons for high-end photographic technology to exist, and for techniques to be used. But sometimes it seems that obsession with the medium supersedes the message.
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KLaban

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #21 on: December 05, 2017, 12:08:58 pm »

One of the reliefs in being an am these days is that I have found a different mindset - at last - and all thanks to digital.

As long as the focal length suits the desires, then ideas of 'reality', can be thrown out with the water and the friggin', screamin' baby, all in one gigantic swooosh!

Use the cameras you have, get the basic image into PS and then look at it for a while and think: where can this mother go? That's when you can get to elaborate the score and let your imagination play. Were it not so, then all the versions of White Christmas would sound exactly the same.

;-)

Rob

My own favourite version of White Christmas by Richard Hamilton.

Rob C

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #22 on: December 05, 2017, 02:15:23 pm »

My own favourite version of White Christmas by Richard Hamilton.

Ah, the mystic realm!

Is it Bing?

Rob

Rob C

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #23 on: December 05, 2017, 02:33:28 pm »

On rereading, he isn't threatening anything revolutionary in his MO; rather is he just pushing a particular book. I giggled on reading that his square pics from the Holga are " square, very Instagram..." when all along I Imagined they were square because of 6x6 habits! Live and learn.

Rob

Telecaster

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #24 on: December 05, 2017, 03:34:32 pm »

There are good reasons for high-end photographic technology to exist, and for techniques to be used. But sometimes it seems that obsession with the medium supersedes the message.

This is an issue whenever refined tools and techniques are involved, I think. Mastery and creativity aren’t the same thing. In the world of guitardom, where I spend some of my time, there are plenty of impressive technicians who aren’t much good at making appealing, involving, moving or even provoking music. Often that’s not even their aim: technical prowess itself is the thing. Which is fine…music, photography, etc. are all roomy endeavors.

When looking at photos or listening to music I tend to filter out the technicians. When doing those things, photography in particular, my techie nature can come out more than I’d like. Taking up a Holga or Diana, or maybe a little Fuji Instax, seems like a good way to de-emphasize refined skills in favor of more elemental ones.

-Dave-
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Rob C

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #25 on: December 05, 2017, 04:30:33 pm »

Dave, don't you sometimes think that using "lesser" equipment actually makes you concentrate more on technicals, just as a sort of compensation for the natural inferiority in quality that such instruments can give?

I think I like the idea of shooting as best one can, and then doing the dumbing down within Photoshop; there's always the possibility that that shot could have a secondary use if the original has enough integrity. It was one thing with film, where further messing about was relatively limited when compared with digital, but if the required effect can be achieved on the computer, why not?


Rob

Telecaster

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #26 on: December 05, 2017, 05:11:31 pm »

Rob, my experience (which is just mine, of course) is that the more possibilities a tool offers the more time I’ll spend digging into every nook & cranny I can find. With something like an SX-70, or HP5+ in a film camera, the pic-taking itself is simplified. Afterwards you can digitize and then polish up or dumb down as you wish. Or play it straight.  :)

I got my first scanner (a small Sharp flatbed…probably still have it in a box somewhere) in 1990, and spent about as much time working with film scans pre-DSLR as I’ve spent with sensor output since then. With scans I did a lotta post work on everything, as it was just necessary. With current sensor output I do very little except when the photo is for someone, whether in the form of a processed TIFF or a print.

Edit: I should’ve added above that after playing with the myriad tools & options even earlier versions of Photoshop had, I settled on a subset that consistently worked for me and have stuck with ‘em ever since. Even now using Affinity Photo on my iPad I go with the same basic approach. But I must’ve at times printed dozens of variants of many early digitized photos: emulated lith and other monochrome toning techniques; watercolor filters; swirl filters; adding fake clouds to bland skies; etc. And many of them on printers not made for proper photo output (‘cuz at the time there were no such non-commercial printers).  :o

-Dave-
« Last Edit: December 06, 2017, 01:24:42 am by Telecaster »
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Two23

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #27 on: December 05, 2017, 06:58:06 pm »

All too often, however, (and particularly with photography), obsession is misplaced and counterproductive. Too many (mediocre) photographers seem obsessed with sharpness, resolution, megapixels, bokeh, high-ISO/low noise, and/or high frame rates.


I think of this as putting your efforts into image quality instead of quality of the image.


Kent in SD
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Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris,
miserere nobis.

KLaban

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #28 on: December 06, 2017, 04:23:18 am »

I spend a lot of time in post processing but when I compare the resulting file to the RAW I actually do very little. I think perhaps this has to do with the total freedom I had as a painter and illustrator as opposed to valuing the limitations I have as a photographer. I'm not interested becoming an illustrator with a camera.
« Last Edit: December 06, 2017, 04:42:02 am by KLaban »
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GrahamBy

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #29 on: December 06, 2017, 09:40:35 am »


I think of this as putting your efforts into image quality instead of quality of the image.


:)

Nice summary. Out of focus, blur, grain, blown highlights, blocked up shadows etc are all tools. It's not that hard to use them with a DSLR+LR, but a lot of people seem to think they need to achieve maximum sharpness and smooth tonal gradation... everywhere.

So you get a Holga (or early 80's East German slide film or ...) and the "expressive" tools become compulsory. You can even combine expensive and artistic, by using a Hassy indoor, hand-held in low light (as I saw a while back in Barcelona). And it's a concept, which you can market ("faire un marketing" if you want to be French).

Whatever works, as Woody Allen once said.

(Example added: https://models.com/people/sarah-moon I don't think a Holga or a lens-baby was involved, but who knows. I doubt Sarah would sell many a7rIII's or D850's or Triphasic 100mpixies... )
« Last Edit: December 06, 2017, 09:49:12 am by GrahamBy »
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KLaban

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« Last Edit: December 06, 2017, 10:57:24 am by KLaban »
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Two23

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #31 on: December 06, 2017, 08:37:46 pm »



So you get a Holga (or early 80's East German slide film or ...) and the "expressive" tools become compulsory. You can even combine expensive and artistic, by using a Hassy indoor, hand-held in low light (as I saw a while back in Barcelona). And it's a concept, which you can market ("faire un marketing" if you want to be French).



Or, how about a Holga lens (they sell them separately for ~$20) on a Nikon D800E? ;D  Or shooting a pinhole on you DSLR?


Kent in SD

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Telecaster

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #32 on: December 06, 2017, 10:01:46 pm »

Or, how about a Holga lens (they sell them separately for ~$20) on a Nikon D800E? ;D  Or shooting a pinhole on you DSLR?

I had a Holga lens in Canon EF mount c. 2004. It didn’t lock in place when mounted and actually fell off a couple times. Maybe this was by intent.  :D  I have an M mount pinhole body cap too. The image size (film frame or sensor) isn’t big enough for a proper pinhole effect IMO. Someone should make a pinhole cap for that Phase One 100 megger, though using it might provoke aneurysms in some circles.

-Dave-
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GrahamBy

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #33 on: December 07, 2017, 05:51:00 am »

I have a spare body cap and a lathe and some 0.8mm drill bits, so it would take about two minutes to make one... but maybe I shouldn't worry about getting the hole in the centre and just drill it somewhere near... or more than one hole ?
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KLaban

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #34 on: December 07, 2017, 06:45:19 am »


Or, how about a Holga lens (they sell them separately for ~$20) on a Nikon D800E? ;D  Or shooting a pinhole on you DSLR?


Kent in SD

Love the rendition of the foreground tree.

tom b

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #35 on: December 07, 2017, 07:45:40 am »

Who could forget Lensbaby.

Cheers,
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Tom Brown

Rob C

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #36 on: December 07, 2017, 07:54:09 am »

GrahamBy

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Re: Michael Kenna dumped Hasselblad for Holga
« Reply #37 on: December 07, 2017, 08:32:23 am »

Who could forget Lensbaby.


The deliberately crap lens with the price of a decent 50/1.4 ?

The Holga lens was a much, much better deal (hmm, no longer stocked by regular supplier of toys).
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