John Pfahl & Joel Myerowitz

John Pfahl

          John Pfahl is an American landscape photographer, who decided to change the process of landscape photography to one of his own.  Instead of just photographing the environment around him the way it appeared to him, Pfahl decided that he would begin to "alter" the landscape in a way that made the photographs more visually interesting.  Below are two examples of this style in different compositions and places.  The first, a beach, tree, and shoreline, and the second, a field with many sporadic haystacks:

          The first photograph (top) is altered by placing cloth around the trees at the exact place where the water line begins and ends.  Pfahl obviously considered this placement before he took the photograph, and this could have taken him a very long time to set up.  The "altered landscape" is an idea that I would like to pursue some day, and the way Pfahl executes his vision is astounding.

          The second photograph (bottom) is an idea that Pfahl used in many of his photographs as well.  Instead of letting the viewer create his or her own perspective, he liked to set up a perspective that made your eye go through the photograph in a certain way.  The yellow rope that is placed in this photograph takes your eye to the bottom of the photo, then moves your eye upwards toward the hay stacks and field behind the rope.  If Pfahl was intending to have a direct impact in the way the viewer saw his work, he was very successful. 

Joel Myerowitz

          Joel Myerowitz is a photographer from New York City who is a master at finding interesting compositions and colors in his work.  Nearly every image that I see of his incorporates great lighting and good depth of field.  He usually keeps everything in an image in focus, allowing you to view everything for what it's worth.  Some of his most famous work consists of images from Ground Zero after the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center in New York.  However, my favorite work of Myerowitz is his "Cape Light" series in which he photographs the cape environment and its intricacies.  

          This first photograph (above) interests me, but in a way also is awkward for me to view.  The way that Meyerowitz places a pillar directly in the center of the image, and also has a boat partially behind another pillar leaves me uncomfortable.  I wish that his images were a bit more structured because without that structure, I believe it leaves something to be gained. 

          Below is an image that I enjoy a bit more than the image above.  The way he places the boats in the frame, and also chooses a very good time of day and weather scenario interests me.  The monochromatic scheme is also an interesting concept, considering many photographs of the cape consist of many bright colors that really have a punch.  This photograph truly stimulates the senses and is calming and relaxing, allowing the viewer to feel, hear, and almost smell what is around. 

          Overall, I believe Meyerowitz is successful in photographing the cape environment, and his best quality is the way he handles the light.  You really get a sense of the place and are able to take in more of the environment than is even given to you. 

Andreas Gursky & Muhammed Muheisen

Andreas Gursky


          Andreas Gursky is a German photographer who specializes in large-scale photographs, usually taken at a high angle.  In most of his photographs, he incorporates repetition and a very detailed sense of structure.  The vast majority of Gursky's work consists of large, man-made structures, and often incorporate people to show scale.  Gursky's prints are always very large, allowing the viewer to study his extremely detailed method of photographing the scenery and architecture around him.

  

           The first image (above) is an example of Gursky's subtle use of color in his photography.  Your eyes have no choice but to travel from place to place in the photograph, studying the intricate details over and over.  You could view this photograph for an hour and still not be able to observe every single window in this building.  The method that he used was accentuated by his large format cameras, which are able to correct verticals and horizon lines, causing each photograph to be straight up and down/side to side. 

          The second photograph (above) is the best example I could find of repetition in Gursky's work.  He always seems to find places that are gigantic and awe-inspiring.  Just viewing these photographs makes me want to find these places and photograph them again, in my own way.

          Lastly,  Gursky is extremely technically sound in his photography.  He is very exact in his camera placement and correction of verticals, which allows him to have the repetitive, structured photographs that he can not only capture, but repeat stylistically.

Muhammed Muheisen


          Muhammed Muheisen is a photographer for the Associated Press who specializes in journalistic photography.  The interesting thing about Muheisen, who works out of Jerusalem, but spans the entire Middle Eastern area and more, is that he incorporates great use of composition and color composition in all of his photographs.  I am amazed that he is able to capture these technical aspects of photography while sticking to the goal of photographing the events occurring all around him.

          This first image (above) is a Palestinian child, selling balloons on valentines day.  The use of the bright color in the middle of the frame, with the muted colors all around the child really give a gloomy feel.  You can tell from this image that Muheisen does not abandon the rules of composition and color when he takes his photographs, but rather uses these tools to create a better photograph then most other photographers would be able to capture. 

          I chose this second image (above), not because of its colors, but because of its symbolism.  This photographer is obviously thinking about what is going on in the photograph and taking into account the entire situation instead of just one aspect.  The way the shadows of the guns line up with the child's head set an unrest in the viewer.  Also, Muheisen could have chosen to photograph just the boy, or just the gunman, but he found a way to incorporate both, without losing quality in the photo.  This image could be read as many things, but when I see it, I see a child that is caught in a non-direct crossfire in which he never deserves to be placed.