Phillip Cohen
(K=10561) - Comment Date 2/5/2006
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Not personally knowing Ansel Adams I cannot say, however from what I have read, he was really great at accepting new ideas as long as it was an improvement or made the job at hand better. I bet he would have had a ball with things like Photoshop. He was an early adopter of Polaroid and used their stuff quite a bit. While he was a master in the darkroom, I think he would have gladly left it behind to play with Photoshop. His fingers wouldln't turn black from the Amidol, he could sit in his comfy chair listening to nice music while creating even more masterpieces instead of standing for hours. In actuallity though he would probably scan his negs, fix them in Photoshop and reoutput them to 8x10 black and white film with a film recorder, and then print them in the darkroom as an inkjet still doesn't look like a real Adams print.
Yes I would imagine his work would really be someting to see, too bad we will never know for sure.
Phil
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Jeroen Wenting
(K=25317) - Comment Date 2/5/2006
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While accepting new ideas I don't think he would have accepted the way most people use digital cameras which is to just rip away without any thought about exposure and compensation and then at home try and make the best of it.
The whole "fix it in Photoshop" attitude so many digital shooters have would I think seem totally alien to him, counter to everything photography stands for.
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Helen Bach
(K=2331) - Comment Date 2/5/2006
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Some interesting points raised here.
Fashion magazines have never shown 'reality' whether literal or metaphorical. Photoshop is just easier to use and more versatile than an airbrush.
Maybe there has been some loss of credibility because of widespread manipulation - though sometimes not enough, I suspect. Now, an amazing photograph can often be dismissed as 'just good Photoshop work'. On the other hand lots of fake photographs circulate and people swallow them whole even though they are rotten with the signs of forgery.
Maybe it's not a bad thing. The spectacular is no more than a cheap artefact, and quiet reality can be left exactly as it is, untouched. By everyone except Jeff Wall. Now we can believe nothing we see.
What would Adams do now? He was heavily into cooking reality so that it was easy to consume, rather than serving up raw reality that might require a little chewing. He'd go for Photoshop - he'd probably write the book. He'd write the book on digital printing as well, because an inkjet print would give him a wider density range (higher D-max, longer tonal scale, whatever you want to call it) than any silver gelatin print can, and he was the kind of guy who would appreciate that.
Best,
Helen
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Jeroen Wenting
(K=25317) - Comment Date 2/5/2006
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Ansel cooked reality to be more easily digestible maybe, but he didn't (as so many people calling themselves photographers these days) create something out of thin air and call that reality.
I think he'd draw the line there. He may have dodged and burnt prints to make them look more appealing but to the best of my knowledge he never took things out of one frame and inserted them into another (for example) to show something that wasn't there.
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Phillip Cohen
(K=10561) - Comment Date 2/5/2006
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I don't see Ansel putting something into a picture that wasn't there, but I do see him taking stuff out such as the rogue power line or telephone pole etc... I see him using Photoshop as the ultimate dodging and burning tool and doing N, N-1 and N+1, heck, N-5 if he wanted, etc... on the same image. Something that is pretty much impossible to do with film. I also see him using a digital camera, taking 3 shots (over, under, and right on)and then overlaying them to get the maximum possible density range with details in both shadows and highlights.
I think that most people have him in their mind as a stodgy old guy that would never bend or change, a purist. I personally think that while he could be pretty set in his ways, his ways were basically create the best image possible, and use whatever tools available to do that. No program can see the image and figure out the composition for you, there is still (thank God) some human interaction required to create a great image that captivates the audience. The rest is just the mechanics to put onto paper what you visualized when you took the image, or in Ansels case what he "Pre-Visualized".
Phil
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zeyad almajed
(K=175) - Comment Date 2/17/2006
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Philip,
I agree with you. I think Ansel would have looked at digital capture as scene information capture. Then use photoshop to delveop the visualization that he sought.
I also would bet he wold have experimented in putting things that were not there, just like Huntington Witherill, if it did serve his creative impulse...
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Kambiz K
(K=37420) - Comment Date 3/2/2006
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You never know might be he could keep one of those Samsung 6-1 compact digital camera handy in his small pocket, which allow him to take image, to record his voice, listen to his favorit music, and many more function.
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Chuck Freeman
(K=13616) - Comment Date 3/14/2006
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I had the pleasure to mewet Mr. Adams back in 1970's. He seemed to be a modest man. He spoke briefly and his photos were breat taking. He was a true craftsman. I doubt he would have used Photoshop.
\ But for sure photoshop is easier than eight hours in a dark room.
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Not an Ansel-but my LAST chance to photograph old store.
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Paul Spencer
(K=117) - Comment Date 3/19/2006
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As a creative genius who used photographic technology to produce art I am sure he would use Digital cameras, photoshop or whatever else comes along in the future, if it could improve or assist in creating the striking images he was aiming for.
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Chuck Freeman
(K=13616) - Comment Date 3/28/2006
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Unfortunately we will never know for sure. Another question, would Paul Strand and Edward Weston use Digital??
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A church photographed 100's of times.
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Chuck Freeman
(K=13616) - Comment Date 3/28/2006
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Unfortunately we will never know for sure. Another question, would Paul Strand and Edward Weston use Digital??
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