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.