Mary Ellen Mark and Emmet Gowin

I really enjoyed our story time last week, it was fun to gather around and see pictures straight from the book instead of blurred on the projector. Technology really has gone too far on that one.

All of the photographers we were shown had their different characteristics and looks, but two of them stood out a bit more for me. 

Mary Ellen Mark was nearly my favorite - there really are no "favorites" yet - because her photographs were so real. Real life. Real choices. I loved the images she captured of the circuses; they had a certain mood to them. I don't know how to describe them...kind of sad and yet content. They allow viewers to see beyond the entertaining aspect of these people's lives. I was fixated on one photo when it turned up, though. It was of a pregnant teenager going into labor leaning against a bathroom wall. It was so perfect, which is a strange word for the situation, but the expression on her face told you how her last nine months have been emotionally.

I also enjoyed the works of Emmet Gowin. I think his are less emotional to me, but rather I appreciate and admire his use of subject matter, composition, and what it's all about: lighting. His portraits especially are so serene, and he really captured the moment he intended. I especially liked the peephole photos, with the different distortions and shadows, and the fact that he composed them so well despite the difficulties he must have had. Comparing my simple beginner's problems with the first assignment - dealing with lighting, my camera's settings, and posing - to his photographs intimidates me and makes me want to get better.