Written Responses


Richland Community College Daily Class Blog Students Syllabi Spring 2008 Course Schedule Assignments Written Responses Photo Lab Schedule Resources David Erlanson Gallery	January 16 Ansel Adams, Mt. Williamson, 1944 Kenneth James - Art 125-01 This beautiful print is an authorized reproduction of the classic Ansel Adams photograph. The mounting, and power of colors make for a classic presentation. I love the rocks in this photograph. They give everyone grate view. Now I have not developed a eye for good photographs but I do know that it begins with simple observation of the things around you and in the photograph. I really like the way the light plays off a curtain, simple form, dramatic light, serene feel, pulling the viewer in. Everything in this photograph is sharp. This photograph makes me think of the movie 300.That movie had a lot of tones in it and a lot depth to it, just like this Anselm Adams photograph has. In some parts of the movie the scenes were really dark to go with mood of characters the ,like if someone was dieing or if the men were going to war with someone and then the mood of tones would change if someone was in love or a kid was sad because his dad was going to war. I loved how the moods changed as the feelings of the characters changed. To me that gave the movie a lot more depth. It also gave the viewers a better feel for what was going on in the movie and that made me appreciate the movie a lot more then I might have with other movies as well. Ansel’s beautiful photograph shows you a very different view from what most people usually do when they take a photograph. It looks like he got down on his knees and took this photograph. There is a rock right in front of everything in this composition And that is usually not a very good thing to do ,but for this photograph I think it works.It gives the viewers somewhere to start when they are looking at this photograph.When look at this photograph my eyes start at the rocks and stay there for a bit. Then I think of how the flashes of light on rocks and how cool that looks. Them I start to look at everything else. I have only been in photography for about a week but I just know it is going to be an awesome class. Marlise McDaniel - Art 125-02 Ansel Adams’s photograph of a mountain scene fascinates me for many reasons. The most interesting aspect I noticed is the many ways viewers can interpret the scene. I saw this image in two differing ways. From one viewpoint the photograph is gloomy, dark, depressing. In this view the clouds surrounding the mountain signify the approach of a thunderstorm. The clouds themselves add to the depressing feel with their intention of hiding all but a few select traces of sunlight. This supposed storm adds another dark meaning to the photograph by turning the rocks and mountains into an interpretation of desolation and perhaps even death. The second way of looking at the photograph is decidedly cheerier. The clouds could mean that the storm has passed, while the visible rays of sunlight represent hope. I also liked the way Adams was able to distinguish the distinctive shapes and textures of each rock. This variety makes the rocks seem more like subjects with their own characteristics and less like inanimate objects. The way the rocks are naturally gathered gives them a sense of community, family, and belonging. For all their differences, these rocks are where they are supposed to be. Another reason I like this photograph is its composition. At first glance the work could be described as a mountain scene shot in California, which it certainly is. However, Adams’s choice of composition adds a degree of spiritual depth to the shot. Taking this view into consideration I think the rocks could represent humans, all different yet all fitting together into a certain community. The large mountains in the background may represent God, who is large, mighty, and terrifying to the smallest of the rocks. To me the mountain certainly seems to be lording over the scene as an all-powerful subject. I don’t know whether this was Adams’s intention when he shot this photograph, but it makes sense to me. One thing is true about this photograph: It makes viewers think, wonder, and use their imagination. It is all left up to individual interpretation. Garrett Sayles - Art 125-02 This photograph uses harmony and rhythm very extensively. The repeating lines in both the surface that the film reels are standing on along with the film reels themselves and the shadows they cast are all heavy uses of line. Repeating throughout the photograph, the emphasis seems to be not on the film reels themselves, but the shadows they cast. While at first, the shadows drew me to the photograph, I then noticed the perspective that the photograph was taken at doesn't show the film reels' full representation; the perspective casts them to be visually shorter in proportion to the shadows. The lighting coming from the background casts very large shadows, instantly granting the shadows more visual weight than the film reels. While at first glance I thought the film reels were all in a line at the same angle, I noticed that in the back row, the side reels are turned outwards, and in the front row, the side reels are turned inwards. I feel this variety is very minute, and hard to notice without studying the photograph carefully. Perhaps a greater variety could be used, turning the film reels even further outwards or inwards. However, the slight alternation of the film reels' orientation does give the shadows a sense of movement; the shadows are not all at the same orientation, seeming to move along from left to right (or right to left), something I did interpret as beneficial to the photograph's overall composition. I do however feel that the tones in the photograph are limited. The surface that the film reels are standing on has the most tones; it goes from a very light tone to a very dark tone from the background to the foreground. By contrast, the film reels themselves and their shadows are entirely black. While the surface does have the most tones, it fades to black in the middle and background, probably due to the way the lighting is situated, closing off the surface, 'binding' the reels to the surface itself. To conclude, this photograph does make use of the elements and principals of design, and does it in a fashion that seems to unify it. As simplistic as the concept is – organizing film reels and back lighting them to cast very distorted shadows – I believe this photograph pulls it off well, in a way that seems to bring everything together, even though it does have a few qualities that could be improved upon. Sasha Roberts - Art 125-02 There are many aspects that I appreciate about this photograph. The wide depth of field does not detract from the photograph, it enhances it. The overall sharpness of this composition caused me to spend a much greater time examining each individual section, rather than a single element. I really enjoyed the contrast between elements in this photograph. The darker tones of gray in the sky heightens the appearance of the clouds. I also felt it was interesting that the mountains had such stark contrast against the sky, rather than the two values blending together. I loved the wide range of tones throughout the composition although I am left wondering how the photograph would look if color film were used. There are a lot of characteristics of this photograph that make it appear serene to me. The perspective in which this photograph was taken gives me the impression of great depth as the rocks in the foreground are much larger than those receding into the distance. It seems as though the distance between the mountains in the background and the rocks in the foreground stretches infinitely. The rocks in the lower half of the photograph create a repetitious pattern that I felt made the photograph appear very stable. The symmetrical layout of this photograph’s elements also added to the stability of the composition. In addition to serenity, this photograph also represented strength to me. The towering mountains and jagged forms of the clouds and mountain tops helped depict this. I feel as though the photographer was trying to capture a feeling of hope or inspiration. When looking at this photograph I am not a bystander, I am in the photographer’s position--I am small, but I have a place in the world. Kassandra Swearingen - Art 126-01 I get a sense of large-scale do to the close up on the rocks and the mountains in the back. The landscape scene gives the image a romantic feeling through the use of texture, tonal contrast, and the use of lines. The first thing I notice in the picture is the light source. It brings the focus to the center by lighting up the large rock in the center. The light is natural and coming from the upper right corner. In the foreground, the light source is further emphasize by the shadows on the rocks which probably means no additional light sources were used and the picture is taken low to the ground. The second thing I notice is the texture on the rough texture on the rocks and the ground. You can tell from the use of lines, texture, and gradient that the rocks and the ground are hard and rough. Some do have smooth edges and the light mixed with soft shadows do give some an appearance of softness, but with the texture on the surface you can tell the rocks are indeed rough and hard. The tonal contrast in the picture for me seem to be mainly focus on the lighter and middle/grey values with contrast of the darker values seen in the shadows. This could be due to the printing of the book, but the main emphasis on the rocks for me are the contrast between shadows and light and it seems to lead from center to the foreground and to the background. The lighter rocks are on the side leading to the main focus, which is the light, large rock in the center which leads to the lightest rock behind it which then leads to the mountains and the diagonal lines of the sunlight. The center to the foreground is lead by the large light rock down to sides of smaller light rock which surrounds the large rock at the bottom center of the picture. Andrew Deranian - Art 125-03 The photo on page 45 is literally a textbook example of why someone would shoot b/w. It displays almost every principle of "proper" photography. Your eye starts at the bottom most large rock, the corner of several triangles and the establishing shape for the the whole of the picture. As your eye moves very naturally upwards (probably mostly due to how it is not only the center of the photo but one of the lightest parts) you notice the pleasing asymmetry in the fields arrangement and range of tones giving it a powerful 3-d effect that doesn't become flatter as you move backwards. I believe Ansel was trying to use the rocks as a framing device (with the sky) in the end but still took time to make it as interesting as the rest of the picture. When you finally get to the mountains your eye is still following the same center path all the way into the clouds. Rays of light coming from the clouds are the only thing anywhere close to straight in the whole picture and have the added benefit of being dead square in the center. This is where you can see the other main circle in the clouds, contrasting in both tone and texture with the bottommost rock. Overall a fantastic picture with brilliant use of lighting, texture, tone, composition, location, and framing. Dustin Grimes - Art 125-02 I like this picture as a whole because of the way the different terrains flow together as you look around the picture. The clarity of the near and far objects gives a good sense of depth. I also like the light coming through the clouds and even in front of the clouds.. gives the photo an aura of what’s not in the picture. I’m not sure what the focus is actually on because the rocks in front have so much detail and stand out but at the same time the biggest contrast is in the top of the photo which is also clear. I think this is a good thing for a photo because it gives the person viewing it something to think about and more options as to what the picture might be representing. To me the rocks in front are a crumbled version of mountains that touch clouds .. which ties the picture together.. but that’s just me. The variation of color, size, shape and distance of the rocks gives your eyes a lot to look at, but the fact that you know they are all rocks keeps it simple enough not to distract from the top of the picture even though it’s a majority of the space. I think the clouds are an important part of the photo because they add just enough contrast to those areas. Without the clouds where they are the mountains would seem more of just a big dark hill. They also add some proportional elements to the scene.