# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Finding Beauty: The Life Work of George Tice | OPTIC 2021

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Anna Cabrera and Angel Albarrán are a pair of fine art photographers who have been working together for more than seventeen years. LensCulture had the chance to sit down with both of them at their gallery, Galería Valid Foto, in Barcelona and learn more about their work.

Human beings are part of the reality where they live. In fact we, human beings, are much more than this; we are the eyes of our universe. The universe is a human phenomenon and it appears to us the way it does just because we are humans.

We use our sensory system to transduce the physical world to the realm of the mind. The received information is interpreted, creating our perception of the world around us. Space, time and reality are, in fact, concepts created by us to understand our own reality.

But despite this mental capacity, it seems really difficult for us to accept and understand that we are part of this infinite reality. The same concepts that we invented to help us understand our existence become incredibly complex when we think about them in depth.

Using photography we might not be able to answer the big questions about time, reality or space, but we are interested in exploring how a photographic image can make people think about their reality. Being aware is not just an important part of life, it is life as we know it. Using photography, we want the viewers to increase empathy and arouse interest towards their reality.

-Albarrán Cabrera

Editors' note: To see more of their beautiful, inspiring work, you can find a full feature of one of their series The Mouth of Krishna.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
In the Mood for Beauty - Photographs by and interview with Albarrán Cabrera | LensCulture

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Anna Cabrera and Angel Albarrán are a pair of fine art photographers who have been working together for more than seventeen years. LensCulture had the chance to sit down with both of them at their gallery, Galería Valid Foto, in Barcelona and learn more about their work.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
(English Sub) Portrait of Nature - Myriads of Gods on Platinum Palladium Prints -

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
「自然の肖像 〜八百万の神々〜 ／ Portrait of Nature 〜Myriads of Gods〜」
The introduction of photographer Nobuyuki Kobayashi.

Dir+Cam+Edit : Yasuhito Tsuge
Composer : Ayako Taniguchi
Producer : Hidetaka Ino 
Production : augment5 Inc.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
This is a wonderful, insightful, candid interview - rich with photographic insights, humanity and compassion.

French photographer Alain Laboile is a self-taught master of intimate photography, focusing on his own family. He photographs the freedoms of childhood among six siblings "at the edge of the world" in rural France.

-LensCulture

Editors' note: Interviewed at his home by Alexander Strecker, Assistant Editor, Lens Culture; and Clara Abi Nader, Editorial Assistant, Videographer and Editor, LensCulture.

See additional video excerpts from our interview with Alain Laboile on Part 1:
Interview with Alain Laboile, Part 1

To see more of his amazing photographs, see:

La Famille
La Famille, Chapter 2 - Color
Reflexion Au Tour Du Bassin

We express our gratitude to Alain Laboile and his family for their generosity, wisdom, joy and hospitality.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Video Interview: Alain Laboile | LensCulture

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
This is a wonderful, insightful, candid interview - rich with photographic insights, humanity and compassion. French photographer Alain Laboile is a self-taught master of intimate photography, focusing on his own family. He photographs the freedoms of childhood among six siblings "at the edge of the world" in rural France.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
'Americans': Christopher Morris Captures a Nation Divided

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
TIME contract photographer Christopher Morris sought to make an anthropological study of America-not for this week, or for this past election cycle-but a body of work that future generations could look back on to get a sense of the country's mood.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Worst Possible Illusion:  The Curiosity Cabinet of Vik Muniz

# data[].attributes.body
Japanese street photog

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Véronique Loh Photo | Veronique Loh Photographiste

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Univers photographique de Véronique Loh - Séries "Avant que l'eau des banquise...", "PhotoGRAFFismes"...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
This video is about my passion about liquid photography

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Works | Romina Ressia | Laurent Marthaler Contemporary

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
"You can be tortured by your own nightmares, and the most evil thing can even be inside the nicest of people." Nicolas Bruno has suffered from sleep paralysis since he was seven years old, and by the time he was 15 it was happening every night.

By keeping a dream journal, Bruno was able to decode his dreams into symbols, and recreate them through photography. "Water is a huge element in my work. Being below water symbolises being asleep, and above the water symbolised being awake. That expresses the feeling of being in sleep paralysis, which is when you're stuck between being awake and asleep."

To create these photos, Bruno set his camera up on a tripod and shot on an interval timer, which meant he was able to appear multiple times in the same photograph, changing costumes and moving props; he then stitched the images together afterwards.

Find out more by watching the video above.

If you would like to comment on this story or anything else you have seen on BBC Culture, head over to our Facebook page or message us on Twitter.
And if you liked this story, sign up for the weekly bbc.com features newsletter, called "If You Only Read 6 Things This Week". A handpicked selection of stories from BBC Future, Culture, Capital and Travel, delivered to your inbox every Friday.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
"You can be tortured by your own nightmares, and the most evil thing can even be inside the nicest of people." Nicolas Bruno has suffered from sleep paralysis since he was seven years old, and by the time he was 15 it was happening every night.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Josef Sudek: A Photographer Who Devoted His Life to Beauty

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
BootsnAll - Independent Travel Community for Indie Travel

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Dog owners often look strangely similar to the dogs they love. Animal photographer Gerrard Gethings turned this concept into an amusing photo series titled Do You Look Like Your Dog?.

Gethings works out of London, England, with his assistant named Baxter, a 9-year-old Border Terrier. He had the idea of photographing similar-looking humans and dogs for a while before he found a backer for the project: Laurence King Publishing, which had Gethings shoot the photos for a memory game.

Gethings had one year to find and shoot 50 portraits, and he started with the dogs. After putting out a call for dog models on social media, he was flooded with volunteers. After selecting his dogs, the photographer then set out to find human counterparts based on visual similarity.

Many of his subjects were people Gethings randomly passed and stopped on the street. He came up with a tactful way of asking, "You look exactly like a poodle. Can I take your photograph?"

Once in the studio, Gethings worked to control as many elements of the environment as possible in order to have identical aesthetics in his portraits.

You can find more of Gethings' work on his website and Instagram.

(via Gerrard Gethings via Colossal)
Image credits: Photographs by Gerrard Gethings and used with permission

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Photos of Humans and Dogs Who Look Strangely Alike

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Dog owners often look strangely similar to the dogs they love. Animal photographer Gerrard Gethings turned this concept into an amusing photo series titled Do You Look Like Your Dog?. Gethings works out of London, England, with his assistant named Baxter, a 9-year-old Border Terrier.

# data[].attributes.body
These are two images I made in the last week. I didn't think about trying to make them similar... they are similiar because the emotion that influences my eyes is the same. This is the beginning of a new portfolio for me that I will be working on this quarter.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Giacomo Brunelli stalks the streets of New York with his old film camera, often for ten hours a day, looking for characters and details that are adrift in time. His work has an air of nostalgia to it, and a film noir sensibility. The images are dark, shadowy, moody and a bit menacing - as if we're looking through the eyes of a night detective, a voyeur or a stalker. They provoke an unspoken narrative, offering up clues to an unknown mystery.

True to his love of old things and old ways, Brunelli shoots with a 1962 Miranda camera and prints in his darkroom. We exchanged some questions and answers via email. Here is an edited version of our conversation.

LensCulture: Can you describe a typical day when you are out making photographs in New York?

Giacomo Brunelli: My typical day in NY is very intense, both physically and mentally. I wake up early in the morning and photograph the streets until the light works for me. I take two or three breaks to eat and rest, and walk for 20-25 km a day. By only using the available natural light and no meter, I seek out the light that I like and know best. Having my subjects in that 'space' is one of the most important things in my work.

Overcast skies when everything is dense and suspended are my favorites, they make the background clear and my fantasy can travel faster.

LC: What do you like about black and white film that you can't do with color or digital?

GB: It is a personal response to film photography on many levels, and I enjoy the whole black and white printing process. Holding a fiber-based gelatin silver print in your hands is just different from a digital one. Its fragility and elegance suits my vision.

Also, the way you approach the two miedums differs. Shooting with a 35mm Miranda from the 60s, what I like the most are its limits, like having to change the film after 36 shots, for instance. It forces you to stop and slow down, take a break and have fresh thoughts. The same happens in the darkroom, where you open yourself up to the unexpected. I think I produce a certain type of work because of my printing background. At the end of the day I am an artisan - I know many secrets that come to life with film and in the darkroom.

LC: Are you actively looking for images that could be from old noir movies?

GB: I have only started looking at film noir movies in recent years, so it is more something within myself that attracts me to these kinds of images. I use photography to fulfil my desire to create. I must say that I do find the 'moods' of film noir to be very fascinating - alienation, ambiguity and amnesia.

LC: I know you've also done series in Hamburg and London. How was New York different from these cities?

GB: In terms of the city itself, New York is different because of its skyscrapers. They design the light in the city, and in that respect you have to move around according to their plan. You rarely get to see the sky compared to London or Hamburg! It is also different in terms of framing an image. Sometimes I just need more space in the composition, and shooting with only the 50mm has been a great challenge. I like creating restrictions in my work (like only shooting in 50 mm with black and white film), because they force me to experiment and grow as an artist.

LC: Who are your photographic influences?

GB: I have been influenced by Lartigue, Walker Evans, Cartier-Bresson, William Klein, Robert Frank, Lisette Model, Berenice Abbot, Muybridge, Giacomelli.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
New York Noir - Photographs by Giacomo Brunelli | Interview by Jim Casper | LensCulture

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Giacomo Brunelli stalks the streets of New York with his old film camera, often for ten hours a day, looking for characters and details that are adrift in time. His work has an air of nostalgia to it, and a film noir sensibility.

# data[].attributes.body
Thanks Travis for sharing this! It's an outstanding job of showing the power of photography and blogging

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Street Photography: Documentary | Joel Meyerowitz

# data[].attributes.body
Great documentary!

# data[].attributes.body
Hungarian born photographer who immigrated to France and America. Known as "the Chameleon" for his ability to photography such a variety of subject matter well. Cartier-Bresson stated that every time he clicked his shutter he made poetry.

# data[].attributes.body
Interesting critique of a portrait.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
1Since Mathew Brady did not actually take photographs himself, he was rejected as a photographer by art historian Beaumont Newhall; however, since the 1970s, he has regained the place that should have always been his by rights. Philip Kunhardt now considers him to be the first magazine photographer; Richard Rudisill acknowledges his gift for having established a link between the daguerreotype and American culture; and Barbara McCandless regards him as the inventor of celebrity culture, the ancestor of our modern paparazzi (Panzer 5). 2But how can we account for his unbelievable success and his sad end? "Mr Lincoln's camera man," as Arthur M. Schlesinger called him in the New York Times in 1946, was a shrewd businessman. Thanks to a medal he had obtained at the 1851 London Great Exhibition, he built up a substantial list of useful contacts, people who knew they had to control their image to preserve their aura with an audience. By the same token, he bought studios in strategic places (e.g. in New York near Union Square and in Washington in the business district between the White House and the Capitol), calling them National Portrait Gallery, using the same name as the famous gallery in London. 3What was Brady's connection to power? What kind of an observer was he? We will try to answer these questions by setting side-by-side two portraits of Lincoln and two of Brady's self-portraits.

The Lincoln Cooper Union Portrait

4The Cooper Union Portrait of February 1860 is very much in keeping with the national role Lincoln aspired to. The elements of the setting are reduced to a bare minimum: a column, symbolizing democratic institutions (the studio would always have scenery columns), and two books, possibly suggesting the Bible and the Constitution, in any case a solid education. The background is neutral, without curtain or painted decor. Lincoln places his hand on the two volumes in a casual pose, suggesting learning but also a gentle mastery. His features are distinct and his eyes, staring at us, contrast with the poses used at the time, that is, people looking away. 5Lincoln wears a three-piece suit with the collar of his white shirt turned up by a bow tie so as to hide the unusual length of his neck. The three quarter pose is harmoniously placed in the center of the picture. The hand, the seat of a man's commitment, and the head, the seat of a man's soul, are harmoniously aligned in a confident pose that invites the elector to trust Lincoln's abilities. Last but not least, Brady put his signature on the column to the right of the future president's hand. This discrete gesture reveals his desire for photography (and the photographer) to be given due respect and significance (even if he doesn't yet recognize photography as an art). 6With the gestures reduced to a minimum, the almost empty decor, the subject's straightforward posture, and the total absence of extraneous elements-all of which combine to convey an aura of mystery-it represents an almost full-length portrait of a U.S. presidential candidate that has served as a model for future presidents (like, for instance, Barack Obama). It is thus easy to understand why Gail Hamilton preferred the photographs taken by Brady to the portrait painted by Alexander Healy: "The sun is a faithful biographer and no respecter of persons. He gives us men as he saw them, shining down on their faces at noonday" (Panzer 84). 7The portrait was printed on postcards, often embellished with a landscape (thanks to the technique of wooden engraving) and served as a cover for Harper's Weekly, Frank Leslie's Weekly, and Currier & Ives ' lithographs that illustrated the Cooper Union speech. The elaborate setting; the obvious visibility; the use of different media such as buttons, newspapers, postcards, and headed notepaper, were all instrumental in getting Lincoln elected to the White House. As he modestly acknowledged: "Brady and the Cooper Union speech made me president" (Meredith 68). In other words, the image Brady created showed Lincoln to be perfectly in harmony with the character and style of the nation's highest office. 8This portrait-which, thanks to its closeness, allows us to distinguish Lincoln's features-was replaced on February 21, 1861, at the time of the inauguration, by a portrait signed by Alexander Gardner who was one of Brady's photographers working in his studio at the time. If "Brady gave his models a public identity" as Panzer said (47)-and this was the case with Lincoln Cooper Union portrait-Gardner's portrait of Lincoln, on the contrary, shows a picture of a worried suffering conscience. Let us see how.

Alexander Gardner's Portrait of 1861

9In this portrait, we find no column, no books, no signature. On the table, we discover an upside down top hat, an inkpot, and its quills but no paper. The clean-shaven face of 1860 is now hidden under a bushy beard, and the confident stare has retreated under drooping eyelids. The hands are idle. With the top hat, its blank look, and lifeless body in a sitting position, this composition is an inversion of the preceding one: the sense of commitment and mastery has vanished altogether. The pedestal and the table are cut in half, just like the country. The diamond-printed flooring-pointing towards the sitting president-gives an impression of aggressiveness, and the empty space between Lincoln and the camera creates an atmosphere of solitude. With his eyes closed, Lincoln's American heroism is now limited to his faculty of feeling the pulse of the country's tension. Gardner was sensitive enough to register Lincoln's vigilance. Brady's "serene, comprehensive, pitiless" point-of-view, described by Schlesinger in the New York Times, has now been replaced by Gardner's deep empathy with his model's torments. Remember: This photo was taken in late February, the war started in April.

Brady's Self-Portrait of 1861

10 Brady, a man with a mission for whom the camera was "the eye of history," transformed his New York gallery into a press agency. In his window, he showed a picture taken by Gardner entitled, "The Dead at Antietam," so New Yorkers could see the real nature of this war. "He has brought home to us the terrible reality and earnestness of war. If he has not brought bodies and laid them in our dooryards and along streets, he has done something very like it," wrote The New York Times. Panzer explains his choice to work at the front by his need to make a fresh start. The field of operations offered a new arena for investigation, an open setting opposed to the confined atmosphere of the studios. The columns and the tables were now trees, tents, posts; and photographers were in close contact with high-ranking officers. But taking a photograph on glass plates and bringing them to the studio was a real challenge: "No one will ever know what I lived through to secure those negatives," he said. "The world can never appreciate it. It changed the whole course of my life" (Newhall 91). 11Let's turn to the self-portrait taken by Brady in 1861 after his return from the battle of Bull Run, a heavy defeat for Lincoln's army-of which no photo remains (Panzer 10). Although Brady's portrait is sometimes accompanied by the mention "photographer unknown," Alan Trachtenberg calls it a self-portrait. Brady is standing full length with his hands in his pockets and his right leg forward as if he were about to move. When the war was declared, he said: "I had to go. A spirit in my feet said go and I went" (Rosenheim 64). This position shows that he is no longer content with being a studio photographer but instead has to be where the action is. The profile shot is emblematic of his modus operandi as a discreet but keen observer on the field of action. As in a mute dialogue, the left profile of Brady mirrors Lincoln's right profile. He is held spellbound by what he is staring at. 12Both the boater hat-the emblem of the profession since Bayard's self-portrait (1839)-and the trench coat with its multiple pockets, which was to become the traditional jacket of reporters, are in keeping with his mission. By leaving it unbuttoned, his frailty and receptiveness are underscored. The chain of his fob watch and the bow tie remind us that, despite the American Civil War, Brady has preserved a certain distance that could be interpreted as politeness. His existence as a photographer certainly depended on his capacity to keep in touch with influential people. By this mixture of discretion, watchfulness, motion, receptiveness, and elegance, Brady introduced to his field a new figure which will give birth to a new icon: that of the war reporter. 13But any foundation implies a site and a limit. Thus, at the bottom of the picture, in simple handwriting with carefully drawn capital letters, elements of temporality and localization reinforce the sense of human fragility: "Photo taken July 22, 1861, Brady, The Photographer returned from Bull Run." These elements with their journalistic accuracy as well as their euphemistic and metaphoric reference to the Bull Run massacre, are like an epitaph, as if Brady had run away from the kingdom of the dead to bear witness. And this is exactly what happened: He wandered for many days and in total confusion among dying soldiers before he could find his way back. Through this confrontation with the emptiness of this no man's land, the photographer fills the void of the spatio-temporal framework of Bull Run, and because he remains at the "degree zero of narration" (Seymour Chatman) through these metaphoric references, his self-portrait can emerge as an iconic representation. 14Moreover, the light background is deliberately chosen, since this self-portrait is not a daguerreotype but made on a glass plate covered with wet collodion. Against this light background-symbolic of nothingness-Brady can free himself, build a new identity, and create a new discourse, a new story: that of a historian. Indeed, from 1862 onwards, Brady considered himself the archivist of a national photographic fund (Panzer 113) which he called "an essential auxiliary to future historical inquiry."

Brady with Union Officers Photograph

15A second lateral self-portrait is the one showing Brady and the staff of a Union general. The photographer provides a visual equivalent of Tocqueville's 'democratic leveling' by placing the men on the same horizontal line. Brady here stands apart from the military group. He still wears his boater and holds the shutter release. The general has set up his camp in the forest, with two tents visible in the background. The tree against which Brady is leaning is now the visual marker that separates him from the generals. It signals a break between the sphere of action, embodied by the soldiers on the left, and that of its potential representation by the lone individual standing on the side line (Marin 144). On the one hand, the undifferentiated uniforms, swords, and gestures reduced to their symbolic function are signifiers which in French critic Jacques Derrida's words "are the object of their own repetition, of their own image or resemblance" (138-39); on the other hand, the boater and the shutter release undercut the reality effect created on the left and gives the picture access to the world of the signified. 16The verticality of the swords pointing towards the ground, suggestive of death and punctuating the left part of the photograph at the same time, is paralleled on the right by the string of the shutter release, symbolizing the link with the spectator. Instead of looking away, as in the Bull Run self-portrait, Brady now has become a full-fledged photo reporter. The tents and the trees in the background have become the new visual markers of his peregrinatio, his wandering. His leaning against the tree shows that contact with nature is essential. It is this Kairos, which Brady has chosen to visually signify the foundation of his non-enlisted corps, the corps not of soldiers but of war reporters. Belonging to that corps requires them to be where the action is-that is, on the same horizontal egalitarian line as the men-while at the same time able to distance themselves from them so as to produce a story in pictures. By this choice of presence, Brady has access to an immobile time allowing him to create the corps of reporters. 17In sum, it is difficult not to overestimate the contribution to photography by a man who was half blind. Yet, his pictures supported photography's road to independence, which eventually guaranteed it a key role in the field of politics. Contrary to Barthes's " ç a a é t é" ("This has been"), these pictures announced the future. Among those who followed in Brady's footsteps were Albert Londres, Capa, the reporters of Magnum and Vu who continued the work he had initiated as "sentries of the people" ("sentinelles du peuple"), to use La Rochefoucauld's phrase, thus contributing to the visibility of public debate. Brady's idiosyncrasies, his life experience, his creation of the reporter's trade, left its mark on Lincoln's visual image in Europe just as his studio contributed most of the visual references that were subsequently presented to the European public.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Matthew Brady's Abraham Lincoln | American Studies Journal

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Works Cited Arasse, Daniel. Le Sujet dans le tableau. Paris: Champ Flammarion, 1997. Print. "Brady's Photographs: Pictures of the Dead at Antietam." New York Times 20 Oct. 1862. Nytimes.com. Web. 16 Feb. 2016. Derrida, Jacques. De la grammatologie. Paris: Minuit, 1967. Print. Holzer, Harold, Gabor Boritt, and Mark Neely Jr.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
6 Minimal Landscape Photography Tips I Learned from Michael Kenna

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Most historical accounts of the US in the 1950s and 60s paint a gleeful picture of post-war boom times: high wages, low unemployment, a rock 'n' roll revolution, civil rights and the early echoes of free love and flower power. But you wouldn't pick up on any of that flipping through Dave Heath's masterwork A Dialogue with Solitude (1965), which has been dubbed "the most important book by a photographer in the 1960s" by former National Gallery of Canada curator James Borcoman.

Reprinted in 2000, the book features 82 monochromatic photographs taken between 1952 and 1962 in locations ranging from New York to Korea, grouped into thematic variations on the topic of solitude (anarchy, poverty, youth, race, and so on). Often unaware of the photographer's presence, the pensive characters Heath introduces appear suspended in time and isolated from their crowded surroundings - whether a police officer in the aftermath of a drowning in Central Park or young lovers tenderly embracing on the subway. Heath crafts close-up portraits that reveal the private intensity of these strangers, deeply absorbed in thoughts yet somehow also longing for connection. His photos provide a rare window into the melancholy and trepidation of everyday Americans as epochal events were playing out across the country.

Sadly, it's no coincidence that Heath captured this muted angst so eloquently. Born in Philadelphia in 1931, the largely self-taught artist was forever scarred by the abandonment of his parents when he was four, and the string of foster homes and orphanages he subsequently moved through. Heath has said that photography gave him a way of entering the world and channelling this unresolved turmoil. And while his soulful yet severe photographs might have initially seemed at odds with the dominant US narrative of 1960s emancipation, the passage of time has allowed people to properly digest the deeper emotional truths and ambiguities he portrayed.

He internalised everything and used the people he was photographing as projections of himself - Stephen Bulger

Stephen Bulger, a Toronto gallerist who has represented him for the past two decades, believes Heath's account of that period was the more truthful one. "There was great prosperity, but Dave didn't come from a rich background," Bulger tells BBC Culture. "Dave was rich in creativity, but not monetarily. He was able to scrape by and be an artist at a pregnant time in American history. But instead of getting overwhelmed by the spectacle of it all, he internalised everything and used the people he was photographing as projections of himself."

Peers described Heath, who died in 2016, as a master of the darkroom - his friend Robert Frank paid him to print images for an exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago - and his first solo exhibition in 1958 was held at the same Manhattan beatnik hangout where the likes of Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg would congregate. Heath's name recognition abroad has been on a steady climb since Paris's Le Bal organised the first major European survey of his work last autumn. That exhibition is currently on view at The Photographers' Gallery in London.

"He's what we would call a photographer's photographer," considers Bulger. "Certainly with some collectors, all the curators and many of the photo dealers working with mid-century black and white photography, he was held in high regard. But it really wasn't until [Kansas City photo curator] Keith Davis committed to doing the show Dave needed for years, which was a proper career survey, that his legacy was cemented."
'Introversion of a poet'
Heath took an early interest in photography after coming across what he described as a life-changing 1947 Life magazine photo-essay about a Seattle orphan. Inspired by the possibilities of the medium to go beyond mere reportage, he began training his 35mm lens on pedestrians and patrons at various Philadelphia fairs and parades in the late 1940s. When drafted to serve in the Korean War, he packed his camera along and captured compellingly contemplative portraits of his fellow soldiers.

In 1957, he put an end to his artistic isolation upon relocating to New York, where he not only established himself as a serious artist but also found a like-minded creative tribe, many of whom frequented the Greenwich Village Camera Club. He studied under photo-essay pioneer W Eugene Smith and fraternised with fledgling street photographers Garry Winogrand and Lee Friedlander. He also received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, making it possible for him to travel across the US in the early 1960s and chronicle the seismic shifts at play in US society. But unlike peers who aspired to break ground in photojournalism, Heath was decidedly elsewhere in his sensibilities.

I believe it all goes back to the loss of my mother, the emotional trauma - Dave Heath

In a 1987 interview re-published in last year's Dialogues with Solitudes, Heath recalled not having the required "aggression" to become a journalist. "The other guys had the psychological drive, my timidity held me back," he said. "I think it's the difference between the introversion of the poet and the extroversion of the journalist. That doesn't mean good or bad, it's just a matter of character. Over the years, my work became more private and inward."

It's no surprise that the Le Bal curators paired Heath's wistful body of work alongside three cult US films of the 1960s that broached solitude (including 1967 documentary gem Portrait of Jason by Shirley Clarke). His images bear witness to a kind of a post-war apprehension and unease about the fast-changing relationship between individuals and their broader urban environment.

Heath was a wounded person through and through, and his art was shaped by a yearning for connection and a chronic inability to get there. In that same 1987 interview, Heath remarked that his solitude had been the single greatest driving force in his life. "I believe it all goes back to the loss of my mother, the emotional trauma. I've been creating this work, trying to get to the point of mourning, but it sucks me down more and more instead of releasing me."
Everyday folks and urban outsiders
Heath also set himself apart from photojournalist purists by embracing the medium's countless creative possibilities. He would crop out or darken parts of an image, and employ unconventional darkroom methods such as burning, dodging or bleaching prints to direct viewers' attention as desired. Also known as a master of sequencing, in a pre-photo book era when practitioners were largely focused on the single, isolated photograph, Heath's tension-ridden juxtapositions and multi-layered, image-and-text sketches were nothing short of groundbreaking.

Keith Davis, who organised the first major retrospective of his work at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in 2015, nicely sums up the sheer evocative power of Heath's craft. "He takes a photograph of a trivial event - a little kid tripped and hurt his knee, that's it - but through his own expressive psyche, transforms it into something much more mythic and potent in meaning," he recently told an audience at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Texas.

For all his early career promise, Heath's pursuit of street photography would be shelved indefinitely upon moving to Toronto, Canada in 1970 to teach at Ryerson University - an offer made all the more enticing by his moral opposition to the Vietnam War. He spent more than two decades there, where he acquired a reputation for being attentive and brilliant but also acutely intimidating and capable of bringing students to tears. Chris Buck, an award-winning celebrity photographer who studied under Heath in the mid-80s, considered him a mentor.

He experienced so much pain and struggle in his childhood that he was afraid to really go to that place and dig deep into the pain - Chris Buck

"He was never one to dismiss a student as being untalented or unworthy of his attention or respect," Buck tells BBC Culture. "Despite his reputation for being very frank in his assessments, he was really respectful of the process people go through to become real artists, or to get closer to their vision." While Buck acknowledges Heath's body of work as important, he believes his former advisor was a better teacher than photographer. "And I'd be curious, if you caught Heath at a more candid moment in his life, if he would have said the same."

An early adopter of many technologies, Heath kept producing work in many forms - expressive audio-visual slide programs, Polaroid series and digital colour photography - well into the first decade of the 21st Century. That said, nothing struck a chord quite like A Dialogue with Solitude. With that remarkably prescient project, which is still being reappraised, Heath sought out kindred souls in a fast-changing US - everyday folks and urban outsiders - in an attempt to connect with them and reveal their common humanity.

As for why Heath remains a little-known master of the photo medium? Buck thinks it has to do with him not capitalising and building upon A Dialogue's momentum after the 60s. "Had he done more work, he would have gone deeper and more personal," Buck reckons. "But I think he experienced so much pain and struggle in his childhood that he was afraid to really go to that place and dig deep into the pain. Had he done so, he would have had the kind of mainstream success of someone like Lee Friedlander."
Dave Heath: Dialogues with Solitudes is at The Photographers' Gallery in London until 2 June 2019. Multitude, Solitude: The Photographs of Dave Heath is at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa until 2 September 2019. And if you liked this story, sign up for the weekly bbc.com features newsletter, called The Essential List. A handpicked selection of stories from BBC Future, Culture, Capital and Travel, delivered to your inbox every Friday.
If you would like to comment on this story or anything else you have seen on BBC Culture, head over to our Facebook page or message us on Twitter.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Most historical accounts of the US in the 1950s and 60s paint a gleeful picture of post-war boom times: high wages, low unemployment, a rock 'n' roll revolution, civil rights and the early echoes of free love and flower power.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A Timeless Collection

Welcome to The Ray Atkeson Image Archive, one of the most prolific photographic archives representing the Pacific Northwest and Western United States. The archive includes over 250,000 images spanning eight decades, from the late 1920's through the early 1990's. Ray Atkeson's eye for lighting and composition in both black & white as well as color, created a collection of images that have been both published and collected internationally. We invite you to browse the archive and enjoy the beauty of Ray Atkeson's photography. This is truly a timeless collection of classic photography produced by one of America's Master Photographers.

The Archive

The Ray Atkeson Image Archive is a working, commercial archive and has been used as a resource for stock photography and fine art decor prints for 80 years. The archive is currently managed by Rick Schafer Photography, LLC. Prior to Ray's passing in 1990, Rick Schafer was Ray's stepson and protégé. The archive consists primarily of large format black and white negatives and large and medium format color transparencies. All images are available in digital format upon request. We are working towards having the entire archive completely digitized, however most of the important images are currently digitized. Pricing is available for Estate Prints. Collectors Print pricing is discussed privately with each interested party. Rights Licensing is negotiated on a project by project basis with our commercial clients. Licensing fees are determined based on a variety of factors of which the most important is making sure our clients stay on budget.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A Timeless Collection Welcome to The Ray Atkeson Image Archive, one of the most prolific photographic archives representing the Pacific Northwest and Western United States. The archive includes over 250,000 images spanning eight decades, from the late 1920's through the early 1990's.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The History of Photography - Revised Edition

# data[].attributes.body
Very interesting interview.  I appreciate the part  where he failed and had to learn to slow down.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Christian Klant's portfolio was awarded a 2019 Rfotofolio Merit Award. We are pleased to share his work on Rfotofolio.
Would you please tell us a little about yourself?
I'm based in Berlin, Germany and turn forty this year.

After studying economics and working as a consultant in a past life, I'm thankful that I found my way into professional photography. After experimenting with different analogue techniques beside my bread and butter jobs, I got in contact with the wet plate collodion process and got hooked immediately. Even now, years later, it's still my main process. My current go to format for wet plates is 16×20.

I've used several handmade printing processes like platinum-palladium, carbon, salt, and albumen printing, cyanotype, and even some good old silver gelatin printing. I taught workshops and held lectures about my work, realized several personal projects and photographed commercial campaigns on wet plates.

Beside that the list of my exhibitions is becoming more and more international.
Where did you get your photographic training?
I'm actually self-taught from the very beginning. I never learned, studied or assisted the "proper way". I still wish I would have the time to study arts and photography, but luckily that wasn't needed to make a living from photography. In the beginning I felt like a dry sponge and I absorbed everything related to photography.

I was good in getting myself into situations where I needed to obtain a certain knowledge or skill to get the project done. And luckily, I was also good at getting there almost always on time. Some international collogues say I'm very German (or accurate) in what I'm doing. Well, let's say if Ido something, then I want to do it right. It's part of my character and helpful in some aspects.
Why do you create?
There are two reasons why I create. The first one is simple: I get a commission. And I'm happy that the majority of my jobs gives me a wide range of freedom to create what/how I want.

The second reason is much more important: Because I feel the strong need to express myself. Sometimes it's an urge to produce a certain picture, the other time a whole series. Sometimes it's just to play around with (new) chemicals or equipment, the other time I want to tell something through my photography. But always it's coming out of myself and I'm doing it just for myself. Thoughts about whether or not I want to show my work always wait in the second row.
Who has had an influence on your creative process?
I'm always impressed by seeing how people think out of the box. Showing something from a perspective I never thought about before, when people just do what others claim to be impossible. That motivates me to push my own boundaries, my own comfort zone.

Usually I try to think in "what is or could be possible" categories - for myself and for the process I'm using.

Of course, I'm influenced by other photographers, too. For example, I truly love the work of Peter Lindbergh, Irving Penn, and Karl Blossfeldt.
Please tell us about an image (not your own) that has stayed with you over time.
When I started working with the wet plate collodion process, I was searching for examples showing the true potential of this historic process. The work of Mark Osterman is one of the persons constantly showing what kind of quality he is able to achieve with wet plates (and other processes). He is giving a lot to the community. There is also Luther Gerlach. He is using a wide range of historic processes at a level of quality that most others will probably never achieve.

Another person is. Gustave Le Gray He was one of the first landscape photographers. His seascapes from 1855 to 1860 are deeply impressive to me. How was he able to produce such a quality in both negatives and printing with the possibilities at that time?

Today I'm able to buy lab grade chemicals online, distilled water from a drugstore and pack all my equipment in a car. For Le Gray (and the other photographers at that time) everything was a bit more challenging. But if they have been able to produce such quality work under such circumstances, I should be able to do the same.

The picture "The Great Wave", an albumen print from two wet plate collodion glass negatives, is one of my reference points.
What image of yours would you say taught you an important lesson.?
Exactly one year ago I photographed at the Algarve, Portugal for my project GUARDIANS. It was quite some effort to prepare and plan a wet plate shooting with a 16×20" camera 3.500km from my base. So, I developed some expectations, I wanted to do it right. The day before the following picture was taken I failed. The whole day was a disaster. My expectations have been hidden hard by the reality, I hit myself bloody at my own camera and I got frustrated and exhausted. What happened? First, I set my own boundaries too tight for improvements beside my own expectations. ? Was soll das heißen? Because of the tides and light changing very fast I got in a rush trying to move and act fast. Not a good idea whilst working with wet plates.

At night while thinking about what I'm able to do differently I wrote into my notebook: "Leave room for the unexpected. Do everything as slow as possible. Meditate or just wait while the plate is sensitizing. Don't try to be efficient."

The following plate is the very first exposure I made in the next morning. And I remember my feelings. It was very touching to me and I wrote into my notebook: "There is magic in the picture. Thank You!" I was back in the game.
What makes a good day for you creatively speaking?
The grin on my face at the end of the day!

This usually happens when I'm able to get into the flow of creating, when all the knowledge and equipment are stepping back and my intuition is taking the lead.
Please tell us about the work you submitted for the Rfotofolio Call.
I submitted my series GUARDIANS. A series of 16×20" wet plate collodion seascapes, photographed as tintypes. There is a long story behind this pictures. Storywise it's a metaphor for change containing the elements and their impact. I don't know if it's possible to include a video in this interview. But if so, here is the video about GUARDIANS.
If you could spend a day with any other photographer or artist living or passed who would it be?
Oh, I would love to spend a day (or better a month) with Gustave Le Gray or Carleton E. Watkins.
How important is the photographic community to you?
Very important! I believe in exchange and learning from each other. Sometimes I'm in contact with photographers from Europe, the U.S. within the same day discussing details regarding equipment or handling of the wet plate process or other historic printing techniques.
What equipment have you found essential in the making of your work?
I would call my imagination and my hands the most important parts of my equipment. Most of the other hardware can be replaced. But generally speaking, my 16×20" Chamonix and my Eskimo darkroom tent are just very useful!
Is there something in photography that you would like to try in the future?
I already tried a lot of different processes. Some of them I like more, some less. And it's always important for me to find a good match of subject and process or printing technique. What I never tried so far are Heliogravures and Daguerreotypes. They are on my bucket list.
What's on the horizon?
Right now, I'm in touch with different galleries for an exhibition of GUARDIANS. I'm already feeling a space filled with 13 largescale original wet plates.

For my next projects I want to work with 16×20" wet plate glass negatives and carbon prints. In both, quality and esthetics, the most beautiful combination I can imagine.

Thank you Christian. To learn more about the work of Christian Klant please visit his site at Christian Klant.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Christian Klant's portfolio was awarded a 2019 Rfotofolio Merit Award. We are pleased to share his work on Rfotofolio. Would you please tell us a little about yourself? I'm based in Berlin, Germany and turn forty this year. After studying economics and working as a consultant in a past life, I'm thankful that I found...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Peter Lindbergh — the supermodel photographer | DW Documentary

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Dr Ping Wang: Shanshui (Landscape), travellers and classical Chinese poetry

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, i.e. The Met Museum

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Sunday at The Met-Landscapes: Real and Imagined

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Curators and art historians discuss traditions of depicting East Asian (Korean, Chinese, and Japanese) landscapes and iconic sites as both idealized spaces and actual locations.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, i.e. The Met Museum

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The World of Khubilai Khan: A Revolution in Painting

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The exhibition The World of Khubilai Khan: Chinese Art in the Yuan Dynasty highlights the new art forms and styles created in China under the Yuan dynasty. The unification of China under the Khubilai Khan and the massive influx of foreign craftsmen from all over the vast Mongol Empire generated over a century of incredible artistic and creative innovation.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, i.e. The Met Museum

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Director: Christopher Noey
Producer and Editor: Sarah Cowan
Camera: Jonathan Nichols, Jessica Glass
Lighting: Ned Hallick
Production Assistants: Kate Farrell, Lisa Rifkind, Stephanie Wuertz
Audio Recording: David Raymond
Music: Austin Fisher

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
MetCollects-Episode 3 / 2015: John Carpenter on Amusements at Higashiyama in Kyoto

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Director: Christopher Noey Producer and Editor: Sarah Cowan Camera: Jonathan Nichols, Jessica Glass Lighting: Ned Hallick Production Assistants: Kate Farrell, Lisa Rifkind, Stephanie Wuertz Audio Recording: David Raymond Music: Austin Fisher

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, i.e. The Met Museum

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The Poetry of Nature in Japanese Art: Nanga School

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Painters of the so-called Literati (or Nanga) school, which flourished during the latter half of the Edo period (1615-1868), drew inspiration from ancient Chinese ink painting, calligraphy, and poetry to create a distinctive form of Japanese pictorial art. Such China-inspired paintings with literary associations or poetic inscriptions are introduced and interpreted.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
陳君立老師示範中國現代水墨畫之漬墨法 2018 Apr 16 Chinese Modern Ink Art Demonstration

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A video poem I made recently that is related to the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival couple weeks ago. I chose this Chinese poem that describes the nostalgic feeling of a person that is away from home and family during this time for family and friends to get together and celebrate. Poem written by Su Shi from the Song Dynasty, which still remains popular today. I want to address not just my passion for my culture but also the sense of belonging and loneliness in part of me about how I have passed a journey to become who I am today. Special thanks to my dearest friend Jiaxin Zeng as she has been such a great model for this project.
Featured by movingpoems.com:http://movingpoems.com/2016/10/%E6%B0%B4%E8%B0%83%E6%AD%8C%E5%A4%B4-water-music-song-by-su-shi-su-tung-po/

# data[].attributes.body
Note: Only Editions of 200 or less are covered by this act.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Cynthia Esworthy

NEA Office of General Counsel, JD Washington & Lee Law School 1997

You are a sculptor. On commission, you create a bronze frieze for a city park. A year later, you
discover that the center of the frieze has been covered by a copy of the city seal. Can you force the city to remove the seal?

You have just purchased an office building. In the central lobby there is a large,
permanently fixed sculpture that you find aesthetically displeasing. Can you remove it?

You are a well-known painter. You discover that a company that has purchased one of
your canvasses is advertising one-inch square portions of it so that buyers can "own an original
painting" by you. Can you stop them?

You are an airport. You commission a giant mobile, specifically designed for the interior
of your central terminal. You would like to relocate the mobile to the front exterior entrance of
the terminal, which will require weatherproofing, removal of the motor and rendering the mobile
stationary, and repainting it to match the color scheme. Can the artist prevent the move or
modifications?

You are a photographer. You discover that a limited edition triptych you created and sold
has been separated into three pieces for resale. Can you require that the piece be sold as a whole?

You are a county arts agency. You commission a mural for the side of a county building.
You later discover that a state law requires you to build a handicapped access ramp blocking the
lower part of the mural. Can you paint over the lower part of the mural?

You are a printmaker. A collector has just sold one of your prints for 100 times the
original cost. Are you entitled to a royalty on the sale?

What rights does an artist have once the work is sold? Until 1990, with rare exceptions -- such as Monty Python, which won a lawsuit preventing broadcast of edited programs -- artists in the United States had virtually no power to protect their work from mutilation, misattribution, or destruction. For example, in 1966, Maryland commissioned William Smith to create nine murals highlighting the state's history, subsequently installed but altered the central panel, and then refused to remove his name from the piece. He had no recourse. In 1980, the Bank of Tokyo commissioned and then removed Isamu Noguchi's 1,600 pound sculpture, Shinto, from its Manhattan lobby, sliced it into pieces, and warehoused it, without notifying the artist. He had no recourse. In 1979, the General Services Administration commissioned and then, after office workers complained about it, removed Richard Serra's Tilted Arc, a site-specific sculpture bisecting Manhattan's Foley Square. He had no recourse.

With the 1990 passage of the Visual Artists Rights Act (VARA), protecting the moral rights of attribution and integrity, the successors of Smith, Noguchi, or Serra ---today's artists--- have a far greater ability to protect against similar threats to their work. But, as three artists who spent several years creating a massive sculptural installation learned after Helmsley-Spear purchased the building, these rights are not absolute: the Supreme Court recently ruled that VARA does not prevent the removal and destruction of their work. VARA applies only to a restricted category of visual artworks, extends only limited rights, and is subject to loopholes, exclusions, and waiver provisions that substantially erode its powers.

What are moral rights?

Property ownership does not necessarily convey absolute rights over the thing bought. Real estate ownership, for example, is restricted by zoning legislation. Preservation legislation recognizes society's interest in preserving its architectural treasures, despite private ownership. Similarly, moral rights legislation recognizes that art ownership is not an absolute property right.

The term moral right itself comes from the French le droit moral, an 18th century French concept referring to rights of a non-economic but spiritual or personal nature, existing independently of an artist's copyright. Such rights are based on what the court in Carter v. Helmsley-Spear, Inc. explained as "a belief that an artist in the process of creation injects his spirit into the work and that the artist's personality as well as the integrity of the work, should therefore be protected and preserved."

Moral rights include:

1. disclosure or divulgation, which allows the artist to determine when a work is
complete and may be displayed;

2. paternity or attribution, which allows an artist to protect the identification of his
name with his own work, and to disclaim it when applied to another's;

3. the right of withdrawal, which permits the artist to modify or withdraw a work
following publication; and

4. integrity, which allows the artist to prevent his work from being displayed in an
altered, distorted, or mutilated form.

Works covered by VARA:

VARA covers only limited, fine art categories of "works of visual art": paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints, still photographs produced for exhibition. Within this group, only single copies or signed and numbered limited editions of 200 or less are actually protected. VARA does not apply to any of the following: works made for hire, posters, maps, globes or charts, technical drawings, diagrams, models, applied art, motion pictures, books and other publications, electronic publications, merchandising items or advertising, promotional, descriptive, covering, packaging material or container, nor does it cover any work not subject to general copyright protection.

Rights conferred by VARA:

Of the moral rights panoply conferred by other nations, VARA recognizes only attribution and integrity as legal causes of action. Attribution includes the rights to claim authorship of a work, to prevent attachment of an artist's name to a work which he did not create, and, where there has been a subsequent distortion, mutilation, or modification of the work prejudicial to the artist's honor or reputation, the right to disclaim authorship and to prevent identification of the artist's name with the work. Congress did not define the term prejudicial to one's honor or reputation, but the House Report on VARA advised focusing on "the artistic or professional honor or reputation of the individual as embodied in the work that is protected...While no per se rule exists, modification of a work of recognized stature will generally establish harm to honor or reputation." The court in Carter v. Helmsley-Spear, one of the few cases filed under VARA, relied on expert testimony, focusing on "good name, public esteem, or reputation in the
artistic community."

Exceptions to VARA coverage:

Congress was careful to delineate several exceptions. For example, natural modifications resulting from aging or the inherent nature or quality of the materials used do not constitute statutory modification, distortion or mutilation. Similarly, modification resulting from conservation or public presentation involving lighting and placement is not a prohibited modification unless caused by gross negligence. So, for example, while some natural fading is unavoidable for textiles, excessive fading of especially fragile materials caused by overexposure to direct sunlight could trigger the statute. Similarly, the natural
melting of an ice sculpture falls into the inherent nature exception and would not trigger the statute, but loss could be prohibited separately by contract.

The rights to claim or disclaim authorship of a work and to prevent the use of one's name on a distorted, mutilated, or modified work prejudicial to one's honor or reputation do not apply to a reproduction, depiction, portrayal, or other use of a work of visual art outside the statute's limited protected class. Nor do they constitute a mutilation.

Congress also made VARA rights subject to 113(d) of the copyright law, which addresses problems arising where the work is part of a building. For example, the right of integrity does not apply if the artist either consented to the installation of the artwork before VARA's trigger date [December 1, 1990], or both the artist and the building owner executed a written agreement on or after the trigger date, specifying that installation of the artwork may subject the work to damage by reason of removal.

If the building owner wants to remove an artwork which can be safely removed, the artist's rights apply unless (1) the building owner has made a diligent, good faith but unsuccessful attempt at notification of the artist of his removal intent, or (2) the building owner did provide notice, but the artist either failed to remove the work or to pay for its removal within 90 days after receiving notice. A "diligent, good-faith attempt" involves sending notice by registered mail to the artist at his most recent address as recorded by the Register of Copyrights. This record is part of a system, established by Congress, which permits an
artist whose work is incorporated in a building to record his identity and address, with available update procedures, and similarly permits building owners to record evidence of their efforts to comply.

Another exception involves Congress' specification that the VARA rights are wholly independent of the copyright owner's exclusive rights (1) to reproduce the copyrighted work in copies; (2) to prepare derivative works based on the copyrighted work; (3) to distribute copies to the public by sale or other forms of ownership transfer, e.g., barter, or by rental, lease, or lending; and (4) to display the work publicly. While the artist retains VARA rights, these rights transfer to whoever owns the copyright in the artwork.

Congress further provided that VARA rights were subject to 107 fair use limitations on exclusive rights. If the artwork is copyrighted, there are permissible fair use purposes for which the work may be reproduced, and which constitute a defense to infringement, including "criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research." In given circumstances, artistic parody may also be a defense subject to the four-factor fair use analysis. The statute sets forth four factors which must be considered in determining whether a use is permissible: the purpose and character of the use, the nature of the copyrighted work itself, the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the
copyrighted work as a whole, and the effect of the use on the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

Exercise of rights, including transfer and waiver:

VARA restricts the exercise of the rights of attribution and integrity to the author or joint authors of the artwork, regardless of whether he/they hold title either to the copyright or the artwork itself. Thus while both copyright and physical ownership are property rights which may be transferred, moral rights may not be transferred. Moral rights may, however, be waived. The waiver instrument must be very specific: the
creator must consent in a written and signed instrument specifically identifying the artwork, the uses of that work, and with a clause limiting the waiver to both aspects. Where the artwork is created by more than one author, any one creator's waiver binds the group.

Duration:

For works created on or after December 1, 1990, (VARA's trigger date) VARA's moral rights are granted for the life of the author, or in the case of a joint work, until the death of the last surviving author. Works created before that date, but still owned by the author on that date, are coextensive with and expire at the same time as the copyright.

Remedies:

The legal remedies available for a violation of moral rights are the same as the civil (but not criminal) remedies available for copyright infringement: injunction, impounding, damages, profits or statutory damages, costs and reasonable attorney's fees. Statutory damages range from a $500 minimum to a $20,000 maximum, increasing to $100,000 for willful infringements and decreasing to $200 for innocent infringements.

Under VARA (unlike copyright infringement), an artist has a cause of action in a federal court even if his artwork is not registered with the Copyright Office. Because the burden of proof on the artist diminishes and the amount of monetary damages could increase if an artwork is registered before an infringement, an
artist should register his copyright as soon as possible.

It's important for artists to be aware that, while VARA establishes specific federal causes of action, additional protections are often available under state statutes. In addition, they can negotiate even more expansive rights enforceable by contract. For example, an artist could negotiate a resale royalty and specify an intent to retain rights of reproduction, even though additional contractual obligations are normally limited to the first sale.

Buyers and art owners should equally understand that VARA does not intrude on the standard protections available to them through contracts to purchase or commission, but in fact allows moral rights waivers. Those entering a commission arrangement can further specify that the work is for hire, which would put the work outside VARA protection, but they must meet the other criteria for that category.

FURTHER INFORMATION:

Links for the Visual Artists Rights Act can be found at http://www.loc.gov/copyright/title17/92chap1.html#106a (basic provision) and http://www.loc.gov/copyright/title17/92chap1.html#113 (exception for artworks fixed to buildings) You can also contact the Copyright Office ( http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright) for further information. If you are an artist facing VARA issues, you may want to contact an organization such as Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts or the Washington Area Lawyers for the Arts that provides legal assistance to artists. You may also want to consult organizations in your field, such as the International Sculpture Center for sculptors.

Full Copyright law can be located at: http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
You are a sculptor. On commission, you create a bronze frieze for a city park. A year later, you discover that the center of the frieze has been covered by a copy of the city seal. Can you force the city to remove the seal? You have just purchased an office building.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Secondary Market

Unlike artworks in the primary market, works in the secondary market have been bought and sold previously. These artworks will often come with documentation-such as invoices from past owners or catalogues from gallery exhibitions-that prove their authenticity. Taken together, these records are often referred to as the artwork's provenance.

Before you make a purchase, you can ask the gallery or auction house to share information about the artwork's provenance to ensure that you are buying an original piece.

THE FACT SHEET

When buying an artwork in the secondary market, you can ask the gallery or auction house to send you a fact sheet, which outlines all of an artwork's provenance information. This document will contain details about the work's past owners, gallery or museum exhibitions, and press mentions. It is a strong sign of authenticity when these records can trace the artwork all the way back to the artist's studio.

The fact sheet will also mention whether the artwork is included in the artist's catalogue raisonné, the descriptive catalogue that lists every work made by that artist. Because they take years to produce, Catalogue raisonnés only exist for the most famous artists-and the mention of your artwork in one of these volumes signals its legitimacy.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What Counts as an Artwork's Proof of Authenticity

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Unlike artworks in the primary market, works in the secondary market have been bought and sold previously. These artworks will often come with documentation-such as invoices from past owners or catalogues from gallery exhibitions-that prove their authenticity. Taken together, these records are often referred to as the artwork's provenance.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Techniques such as photography, printmaking, and cast sculpture enable artists to create multiple versions of the same work. While these artworks are not unique, they are still considered original artworks-and can be as important to artists as their one-of-a-kind pieces.

With limited editions, artists restrict the total amount of artworks produced in the edition, so that each individual work will retain its value over time. Printers and artists often destroy the materials that they use to create these works-whether that be printing plates or photographic negatives-to make sure that it is impossible to add to the edition later on.

Pro tip: When discussing an edition with a gallery or auction house, you may want to confirm that the artwork you are buying is from a first edition. In rare cases, artists, galleries, or artist estates will decide to extend a limited edition-and they will label these subsequent editions as a second edition, third edition, and so forth. If the edition is created after the artist's death, it will be called a posthumous edition. Because these artworks are farther from the artist's original intention, they will be less valuable when compared to those from the first edition.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What to Know When Buying Limited Editions

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Techniques such as photography, printmaking, and cast sculpture enable artists to create multiple versions of the same work. While these artworks are not unique, they are still considered original artworks-and can be as important to artists as their one-of-a-kind pieces.

# data[].attributes.body
"“Charcoal is the cremated remains that express the soul of wood by burning the
woods” Charcoal is a black substance made of burned wood that I consider to
be a divine material." ~Lee Jae Sam

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The moon is the oldest mirror for humankind. Since long ago, artists have port- rayed the light of night. While depleting dozens of charcoal sticks, he rids day from every inch of the frame, and instead casts a jet-black night onto it. Every day he is at the midst of night.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Rodrigo Valenzuela is a contemporary Chilean artists working in photography, installation, video and painting. Artist bio and art available at Upfor Gallery.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Works | Eric Winarto | Laurent Marthaler Contemporary

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Works | Bill Claps | Laurent Marthaler Contemporary

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Protect your Highlights: A lesson for Light and Life

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Alan Schaller: Streets in Mind - SmugMug Films

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
9 quick tips for BETTER BLACK & WHITE photos

# data[].attributes.body
Idea for making waterfall image from sugar!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
LOW KEY PHOTOGRAPHY - Black And White Photography With Sugar And Cup

# data[].attributes.body
Spokane Falls Community College Campus 02/26/2019

# data[].attributes.body
John Frame sculptures animated into short film sequences. Absolutely stunning work that I got to see at the Portland Art Museum several years ago.

# data[].attributes.headline
This shares some really important ideas about making meaningful portraits.

# data[].attributes.subject
This shares some really important ideas about making meaningful portraits.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Ryan Muirhead: Conveying Difficult Life Experiences Through Emotional Imagery | Adobe Creative Cloud

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Lightroom CC Dehaze tutorial - Create Lightroom dramatic edits in the Lightroom develop module

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
BootsnAll - Independent Travel Community for Indie Travel

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Designing a Photo Book and Finding Your Creative Voice with Ken Light | Adobe Creative Cloud

# data[].attributes.body
I need to combine long exposure architecture of iconic spokane buildings along with the dance phtoos.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Photographer Steve (Maxx) Landeros Talks About the Shooting Process and More  | Adobe Creative Cloud

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Lois Greenfield: The Secret to Capturing Stunning Analog Images | Adobe Creative Cloud

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Ted Chin: Making Dream Destinations a Reality in Photoshop | Adobe Creative Cloud

# data[].attributes.body
Process for working to create meaningful and emotional images.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Ryan Muirhead: Conveying Difficult Life Experiences Through Emotional Imagery | Adobe Creative Cloud

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Portrait Photographers are amongst some of the best photographers from throughout the history of photography and with good reason.

The ability to express personal creativity through portraiture can be really exciting and rewarding for artists and a great reason for our Smart members to pick up their cameras.

Whether it is self portraits, images of family and friends, or working with models and businesses there really are no limits to where portrait photography can take you.

Which ever it is, being portrait photographers can be a great way for artists to express their individual creativity through the images that they create.

Our previous blog post was all about Wedding Photography Tips which included some useful information for getting the best out of your subjects.

However, this time we are here with a list of 81 of the Best Portrait Photographers who we think you should know about.

The contemporary photographers listed have forged a path within the industry and consistently produce amazing work.

To demonstrate this we thought we would share their work with you in order to inspire you about the possibilities that can be achieved.

Additionally if you are just starting out in photography and want to learn how to get the best out of your camera for portraits you could always sign up to our photography course.

The photographers listed below are in no particular order.

Check them out and be inspired!

Quick Links

Click to quickly jump/navigate to each section

What are Portrait Photographers?

The definition of what portrait photographers are is a very subjective matter as each photographer has their own particular style.

There are photographers whose portrait work is very landscape based and there are also photographers whose work relies on elements of storytelling or fantasy. Equally, there are portrait photographers who exclusively choose to photograph the nude form and express a strong and powerful message about body positivity.

Wikipedia describes portrait photography or portraiture as "photography of a person or group of people that captures the personality of a subject by using effective lighting, backdrops, and poses. A picture might be artistic, or it might be clinical, as part of a medical study. Frequently, contemporary photographers are commissioned for special occasions, such as weddings or school events. Portraits can serve many purposes, from usage on a personal Web site to display in the lobby of a business."

The Best Photographers You Should Check Out...

Liselotte Fleur

Liselotte is a fashion and portrait photographer inspired by the search for perfection and imperfection. Furthermore she loves to capture models in a natural way while telling a story with fashion. Her passion lies with photographing people and using them in the fashion genre.

Liam Rimmington

Liam's desire is to capture the very essence of his subject through photography, whether person, product or landscape. His portraits are soft and warm, and evoke a sense of harmony between the subject and the natural environment.

Ryan Winterbotham

London/South UK based lifestyle, landscape and portrait photographer. Ryan's photography services are available worldwide, and he is more than willing to travel.

Holly Rose

Holly Rose Stones is a fine art, surrealist and conceptual fashion photographer currently based in London/Kent. (and travels to Yorkshire a lot!). Her portrait imagery is simply sublime. In addition Holly also has a Youtube channel where she shares behind the scenes info on how she creates her amazing images.

James Fickling

James has paved a career in fashion eCommerce. Currently working as Digital Production Manager for Jimmy Choo, Belstaff & Bally, he directs and project manages photo shoots for both online and in store content. Moreover his fashion portraiture is damn near flawless and creates a real connection with the viewer.

Adam Hurst

A young photographer originally from the North West of England, UK. Adam's strengths lie within his portrait works yet he also has a keen interest in fashion, landscapes, travel and theatre.

Martin Neuhof

If you ask Martin Neuhof, what is important to him, he does not think long. People are. And travel. This photographer is traveling a lot; He likes to discover new places. Be it in his hometown Leipzig, on tours of Germany or traveling around the world.

Neill Kumar

Passionate about telling and creating stories. Neill wants his work to tell stories of people in new and unique ways.

Marta Bevacqua

Currently based in Paris Marta works mainly in fashion. She believes that emotion and atmosphere of a moment make a truly great portrait.

Chris Boulton

Chris is a fashion, editorial and advertising photographer based in the Cotswolds UK. He has a passion for visual story telling and as a result draws inspiration from the most unlikely places.

Anna Sorhegui

Anna's style mimics that of film with beautiful rich matte tones. Her portraiture takes many forms including, maternity, newborns, babies, seniors and couture.

Charlotte Grimm

Through painting and drawing Charlotte found her way into photography and got stuck in the magic of frozen moments. To Charlotte, photography is not merely picture taking. It is capturing memories, the essence of a moment, the smallest glimpse of a person you might have only met minutes before. Moreover her portrait work is dark, moody and inspiring.

Adam Bird

Adam Bird is a fine art and fashion photographer currently based in Birmingham, England. He began taking photographs in 2012 when he had discovered his passion for photography. Adam is inspired by both fairy tales and nature. In addition his work consists of dreamlike narrative portraiture and is often composed in surreal landscapes.

Corinna Keiser

Corinna is fascinated by the possibility of capturing a magical moment with a photograph and holding on to it for the future. Her approach is uncomplicated, lively, genuine and unusual. Furthermore her images are about capturing the life, personality and spirit of the people she has in front of the camera.

Bella Kotak

Inspired by fairytales, nature and strong feminine characters Bella's pictures lift the veil of the overlooked and reminds us that there's magic in the most ordinary of spaces.

Jessica Drossin

Jessica Drossin is an internationally-published, self-taught, fine art portrait photographer based in Los Angeles. Once she discovered that she could have the same sort of freedom working on digital images that she had when working on paintings she was hooked.

Alex Iby

Nothing makes Alex happier than creating. He is a freelance photographer and his focus is portrait photography, street photography and promotional photos for artists.

Elizabeth Gadd

Having grown up just outside of Vancouver, Canada, Elizabeth fell easily in love with exploring the surrounding forests, hills, mountains and ocean all of which are heavily incorporated in her photography. Roughly half of her portraits are self portraits and she finds the shooting process rather therapeutic.

Alexandra Cameron

Alexandra is a professional photographer with experience in weddings, live and promotional band photography. Additionally she also specialises in actors head shots, product photography, events, fashion, look books, beauty and self portraiture.

Shelley Richmond

Based in Sheffield Shelley is content to travel the length and breadth of the country (and globe). Available for all kinds of projects and adventures, commercial or private but she especially loves shooting out on location in the wilds of the Peak District.

Julia Trotti

Julia Trotti is a fashion photographer based in Sydney and available worldwide. This photographer specialises in fashion campaigns, look books and portraits as well as lifestyle and travel photography.

Lara Jade

Influenced by playful narratives, colour and elegance, Lara enjoys creating stories with a cinematic approach. Furthermore she is inspired by strength, unique beauty and timeless style.

Nirav Patel

Nirav uses light in a very unique way within his portrait imagery. His images are very cinematic and at the same time create a quiet place for reflection on the subject being photographed.

Sandra Gorska

Based in London Sandra is an editorial and fashion photographer.

Seth Doyle

Seth Doyle is a photographer that has great passion for art, drawing, photography, film and pretty much anything creative.

Ailera Stone

Based in London Ailera always liked to escape into other worlds through books, movies and music, but she found out the best way to do that is by taking pictures. By the same token her photography is a way to capture moments and make them magical, bringing dreams into this world.

Felicia Simion

Felicia is a photographer and retoucher based in Bucharest, Romania and available for commissions around the world. Just head on over to her galleries on her website to see some truly amazing portraits.

Alex Benetel

Alex aims to create beautiful photographs that capture mysterious yet dream-like worlds, filled with oddities that encompass aspects of reality.

Oliver Charles

Oliver creates emotional and whimsical stories through his images. He captures people in dream-like scenarios, adding natural environments to the pieces, where he juxtaposes dreaming and reality.

Fire and Joy

At thirteen she picked up a camera and began capturing the stories around her and fell into obsession. She left school to follow her dreams of being a fashion photographer in another city. However, photography wasn't a job, it was her life. Her photography is stunning and you can feel a real connection between the subject and the photographer.

Jimmy Bay

Jimmy Bay is a photographer with a varied portfolio of portraiture displayed on his website.

Katharina Young

Katharina is a fine-art and portrait photographer from Hermeskeil, Germany. Since February 2013, she has been converting her daydreams into images.

Rosie Hardy

Rosie is one of the best self-portrait photographers out there. Her photography is incredibly ethereal and fantastical. Meanwhile her notoriety as a portrait photographer also means she gets to photograph famous faces. Just check out her website to see why she is one of the best.

Ryan Muirhead

Ryan Muirhead makes beautiful imagery using traditional film photography. This video best describes him as a photographer as he talks about the connections he forms with his subject in order to produce his creative, dark yet stunning portraits. Ryan is one of the best portrait photographers out there so definitely check out his ever growing portfolio.

Alex Currie

A young photographer and director based in Los Angeles, California. Alex's imagery intends to evoke an emotional connection in the viewer.

Berta Vincente

Berta Vicente is a Spanish photographer who started taking pictures of her friends at the age of 14. Subsequently she continues to learn and explore, and currently exhibits her work in art galleries in Barcelona, London and Paris.

Nicholas Scarpinato

Specialising in fine art photography Nicholas is based in Los Angeles. He works digitally and sometimes includes elements of drawing or painting within the make up of his images.

Jessica Lehrman

A palm reader in India once told Jessica that she will live the life of a magical gypsy and it's important for the world that she tells the stories of the many people that she encounters on her journey... That is what she is doing.

Misael Nevarez

Primarily based in Chicago and its surrounding neighbourhoods. He is inspired by everyday life and the noteworthy moments in between. Misael enjoys the process of photography and is honoured by the opportunity to see the joy the finished product brings to his clients.

Zhang Jingna

Her photography has been featured on international editions of Vogue, Elle, and Harper's Bazaar. Additionally Jingna's solo exhibitions include venues at The Arts House and Japan Creative Centre in Singapore, and group exhibits include Milan, New York, Hong Kong, and Beijing; with brands such as Vogue Italia, Clé de Peau Beauté, and Tsinghua University.

Noah Hinton

Capturing beautiful moments is something that Noah loves the most. Allowing others to see themselves as the masterpiece fills him with joy.

Cat Lance

Cat is a UK portrait photographer specialising in a relaxed and natural-light approach to creating tailor-made images.

Miss Aniela

Mixing art and fashion, Miss Aniela creates a fine balance of contemporary creativity. Her work centres on a fusion of traditional imagery and digitally enhanced motifs, interweaving in a surreal composition.

Helen Warner

Helen's photography is deeply influenced by story telling, supernaturalism and the Irish landscape. Consequently with the use of inexpensive materials and props, Helen manages to create fantastical and emotive images which seem to capture the crescendos of many untold stories.

Rekha Garton

A professional photographer based in Norwich, UK. Rekha utilises her stunning portrait photography for book covers and has had her images used on more than 300 book covers to date.

Andrea Hubner

Andrea focuses on people and nude photography which is a sphere that began to captivate her and until now remains an inexhaustible source of inspiration for her photography practice.

Marie Hochhaus

Marie Hochhaus is a fashion and portrait photographer currently living and working in Hamburg, Germany. In brief her work portrays the powerful as well as the subtle and dreamy nature of the moment in a strong visual language.
Something to consider:
Smart is the world's leading online photography course offering in-depth training, mentoring and classes to creatives of any skill level. Furthermore with a dedicated module for portrait photographers it is sure to help you on your way to becoming a better photographer. Smart's one to one mentoring programme also puts you in touch with some of the best portrait photographers whose industry knowledge is second to none.

For more information be sure to sign up to Smart today!

Gosia Zuk

Gosia just adores people and likes to immortalise those moments of magic and inspiration in which everything just "clicks". Her intention is to capture as much happiness as possible whilst at the same time peeling back the layers of reality and emphasising what our eyes don't commonly see.

Joran Looij

Joran enjoys beautiful scenery and beautiful light which he incorporates in his portrait photography.

Samantha Little

Samantha Little's incredible portrait work can't help but overlap with her stunning wedding photography with one informing the other. Moreover her portraits are timeless and really bring out the personality of the subject.

Nadine Berns

Nadine Berns is a travelling portrait and wedding photographer based in Houston, Texas.

Nicola Rehbein

Being able to capture a moment, a feeling with a single push of a button has always blown Nicola's mind. Finding beauty in everyday scenarios that most people tend to overlook or don't bother to take a second look at is what really interests this portrait photographer.

Bob Sala

Stuck between 1963 and 1974, Bob Sala tries to photograph his way out of time and space. He says 'The grain in a photograph produces the same warm feeling to him as a needle produces on an old Led Zeppelin record. His portraits hark back to a different time and go beyond making a fashion statement on a particular era; they tell a story of society and culture.'

Nicole Ashley

Nicole's photo shoots are relaxed, fun and comfortable. She thrives on finding ways to customise sessions for clients to make them personal, memorable and meaningful.

Nicole De Khors

Nicole De Khors is a portrait, concert, nightlife, fashion photographer and filmmaker based out of Toronto. Creating visuals is a daily occupation and artistic practice for this portrait photographers work.

Aspen Groen Media

Aspen Groen Media is made up of two portrait photographers, Aspen and her husband Bryson. She focuses on intimate emotions, details and all things beautiful at the same time he is all about the drones, creative shots and stepping outside of his comfort zone. As portrait photographers their images are beautiful and they have been featured on Looks Like Film, The Wild Collective and Tribe Archipelago.

Mallory Francks

Mallory wants your photographic experience with her to be just that, an experience. At the same time she loves people and getting to know what make them all unique as individuals and as a couple.

Kevin Klein

With photography Kevin has found a way to express himself and it's the most rewarding feeling for him. His goal is to tell stories, raw, real, romantic and simple.

Heine Mann

Heine Mann is a portrait photographer from Midtjylland, Denmark.

Azulclarito Casiblanco

This portrait photographers work captures moments from within. To Azulclarito the camera is only an extension of her being and she tries to put her heart in to each 'click'.

David Leong

David is a multifaceted photographer, musician, and urbanist based in San Francisco, CA. His photography services include portraits, lifestyle, interiors and events. He has has his work featured in lots of places such as VSCO, Looks Like Film and the Chicago Tribune.

Paul Wilkinson

According to Paul Wilkinson 'Creating beautiful portrait photography is a subtle art: a balance of artistry, technique and mostly a sense of humour! One of the lovely things we hear repeatedly from our clients, is just how chilled they feel during a portrait session, in spite of how they may have felt initially about being in front of the camera!'

Brett Harkness

A lifestyle or portrait shoot with Brett & Kristie Harkness is truly a unique experience. Brett understands that people look best when they are relaxed therefore the shoot can take place either in the studio or on location. Be it in your own home, down by the river or on the beach. It can happen wherever you feel most comfortable.

David Uzochukwu

Photographer based in Brussels. Delving into the world of self portrait photographers at age thirteen, David discovered his liking for emotional imagery (and dramatic skies). Subsequently his clients include NikeWomen, Vogue Netherlands, Wonderland Magazine, Free Magazine, Numéro, Hunger Magazine, Warner Music, Opéra National de Paris, Adobe Photoshop, and Diez Music.

Sterling Batson

Sterling Batson grew up in Trinidad and Tobago and now lives in New York. His passion is to capture people and life in a raw and simplistic way.

Brian Ingram

Brian Ingram is a portrait photographer born and raised in the south and currently based just outside of Athems, Georgia. In just under four years, he has created thousands of meaningful portraits - and from hard work, persistence and an unyielding passion for making images, he has honed his skills inside and out of his personal studio and created an extensive body of work.

Nina Masic

Nina graduated at Academy of Fine Arts in Sarajevo, and although her major was graphic design she quickly realised that photography was her true passion. In recent years she has been actively pursuing fashion, portrait and beauty photography, as well as high-end retouching. Nina currently lives in Sarajevo where I work as a freelance photographer and retoucher.

Dani Diamond

Dani Diamond has become a household name. His breathtaking portraits and signature style have taken over all forms of social media, from Facebook to Fstoppers.

Maja Topcagic

Maja's work is inspired by movies, books, music, videos, ordinary people and conversations. She loves to compose several photos into one, or play with multiple layers. Maja does a lot of retouching and is often at her computer for 10 hours or more editing photos.

Portraits by Sam

Passionate about portrait photography in outdoor or in a studio environment. Sam takes pleasure in photographing moments of life and sharing sessions with families, couples, children and newborns.

Emily Soto

Emily Soto is a photographer residing in New York City with her husband Vic and Scottish Fold Twinkle. Each image captured by Soto emanates with her distinct visionary and romantic style characterised by a perennial stream of emotively captivating, artistically adept, visual pieces.

Sean Marc Lee

Sean Marc Lee is an American photographer specialising in portraiture, lifestyle, editorial and street fashion photography currently based in Taipei, Taiwan.

Dan Williams

British photographer/videographer working internationally. Dan is currently based in Seoul, South Korea.

David Woolfall

David is a London based freelance photographer. He takes portraits for magazines mainly but loves to work on his own projects which sometimes get exhibited and published.

Mat Smith

Mat's goal as a portrait photographer is to look past the face we present to capture something deeper. Sometimes this results in creating a bright, eye-catching image, and sometimes a more poetic study of the face. Mat often uses simple lighting setups and uncomplicated poses.

Helen Bartlett

Helen's work is based upon a very strong belief in the value and importance of photography, a medium through which, in a fraction of a second, we can freeze time and record forever moments of joy, wonder, happiness, quiet contemplation, and great humour.

Alessio Albi

Rather than taking an ordinary portrait, this photographer utilises the quirks and distinguishing features of each unique setting to add an interesting aesthetic within the frame. Alessio's portraits appear simple and refined, yet intriguing at the same time. The women in his shots are not merely pretty faces. They add value to each portrait through the emotions they convey.

Richard Boll

Richard Boll is a highly professional and passionate, award winning, advertising and editorial photographer based in London.

Michela Riva

Michela Riva photographs portraits and fashion shoots for advertising campaigns and editorials at national and international levels. She personally handles the end-to-end artistic and organisational process of each photoshoot, from concept to end product with outstanding quality and care. Through her love for photography and visual story telling, Michela has created a uniquely recognisable, romantic and original style full of emotion.

Alberto Monteraz

Alberto Monteraz is a self taught photographer whose work focuses on the beauty contained in all forms of silent decay.

Tips From Two Of The Best Portrait Photographers

Lara Jade had this sound advice to say in her interview with Shot Kit -
"There are many photographers out there who claim they don't have the best equipment - you do not need the best equipment! If you don't own lighting learn to master natural light. If you don't have a great camera, work with what you have - visually striking and well thought out images often count for more than technically perfect images."
This sort of advice is really helpful to hear from top portrait photographers such as Lara. It can be quite daunting when just starting out as you think you need all the top gear to make the best images but that isn't always the case.

This next tip was from one of the best portrait photographers around and it is all about advice for new photographers -
"My best advice would be to seek out as much specific feedback as you can from people you respect and whose work you admire. Apply that feedback to your next shoot and then ask for more feedback. It's easy for us to get offended by criticism, seeing it as a bad thing, but if you think of it as an opportunity to develop, you will propel yourself forward at a much greater rate."
Liam's full interview with Looks Like Film can be read here.

Learn how to become an awesome portrait photographer with Smart by earning your photography certificate. Find out more here.

Further Reading

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
81 Of The Most Amazing Portrait Photographers You Should Know About - ThePhotographyGuy.net

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Portrait Photographers are amongst some of the best photographers from throughout the history of photography and with good reason. The ability to express personal creativity through portraiture can be really exciting and rewarding for artists and a great reason for our Smart members to pick up their cameras.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Cheryl Walsh Fine Art Underwater Photographer

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Fine Art Underwater Photography by International Award Winning artist Cheryl Walsh, Orange County, California

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Giacomo Brunelli stalks the streets of New York with his old film camera, often for ten hours a day, looking for characters and details that are adrift in time. His work has an air of nostalgia to it, and a film noir sensibility. The images are dark, shadowy, moody and a bit menacing - as if we're looking through the eyes of a night detective, a voyeur or a stalker. They provoke an unspoken narrative, offering up clues to an unknown mystery.

True to his love of old things and old ways, Brunelli shoots with a 1962 Miranda camera and prints in his darkroom. We exchanged some questions and answers via email. Here is an edited version of our conversation.

LensCulture: Can you describe a typical day when you are out making photographs in New York?

Giacomo Brunelli: My typical day in NY is very intense, both physically and mentally. I wake up early in the morning and photograph the streets until the light works for me. I take two or three breaks to eat and rest, and walk for 20-25 km a day. By only using the available natural light and no meter, I seek out the light that I like and know best. Having my subjects in that 'space' is one of the most important things in my work.

Overcast skies when everything is dense and suspended are my favorites, they make the background clear and my fantasy can travel faster.

LC: What do you like about black and white film that you can't do with color or digital?

GB: It is a personal response to film photography on many levels, and I enjoy the whole black and white printing process. Holding a fiber-based gelatin silver print in your hands is just different from a digital one. Its fragility and elegance suits my vision.

Also, the way you approach the two miedums differs. Shooting with a 35mm Miranda from the 60s, what I like the most are its limits, like having to change the film after 36 shots, for instance. It forces you to stop and slow down, take a break and have fresh thoughts. The same happens in the darkroom, where you open yourself up to the unexpected. I think I produce a certain type of work because of my printing background. At the end of the day I am an artisan - I know many secrets that come to life with film and in the darkroom.

LC: Are you actively looking for images that could be from old noir movies?

GB: I have only started looking at film noir movies in recent years, so it is more something within myself that attracts me to these kinds of images. I use photography to fulfil my desire to create. I must say that I do find the 'moods' of film noir to be very fascinating - alienation, ambiguity and amnesia.

LC: I know you've also done series in Hamburg and London. How was New York different from these cities?

GB: In terms of the city itself, New York is different because of its skyscrapers. They design the light in the city, and in that respect you have to move around according to their plan. You rarely get to see the sky compared to London or Hamburg! It is also different in terms of framing an image. Sometimes I just need more space in the composition, and shooting with only the 50mm has been a great challenge. I like creating restrictions in my work (like only shooting in 50 mm with black and white film), because they force me to experiment and grow as an artist.

LC: Who are your photographic influences?

GB: I have been influenced by Lartigue, Walker Evans, Cartier-Bresson, William Klein, Robert Frank, Lisette Model, Berenice Abbot, Muybridge, Giacomelli.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
New York Noir - Photographs by Giacomo Brunelli | Interview by Jim Casper | LensCulture

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Giacomo Brunelli stalks the streets of New York with his old film camera, often for ten hours a day, looking for characters and details that are adrift in time. His work has an air of nostalgia to it, and a film noir sensibility.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In my personal botany studies I've been thinking a lot about my own connection with plants in my environment. Fortunately our yard has a diverse range of foliage thanks to the garden loving lady that once owned the house we're renting and I've had a lot of good things to study right outside my door.

In the past few weeks I've become interested in eco-printing, a process similar to dying but uniquely different. Essentially, if solar printing and natural dying had a baby you'd have a so-called eco-print.

The essential quality of an eco-print is that you use the natural dyes in plants to make a print onto another surface ( like paper or more commonly, fabric). When you first start looking into eco-printing the majority of resources really talk about the application in fiber arts. Though I love fiber-based work, and create some from time to time, what I really wanted was the ability to recreate this effect on paper.

Threadborne offers a great tutorial on eco-printing both fabric and paper by Wendy Feldberg ( with additional tutorials collected at end of main post). The site includes some good supplemental information about health and safety ( super important) and is one of the best resources I've come across due to its uncomplicated but thorough instruction and effective photographic documentation.

Additionally, I ran across this awesome tutorial (below) for a "boiled book" that combines the basic principles of eco-printing with some more lay-person friendly methodology that makes prints much more predictable.

While many artists might adopt a purist view that adding commercial dye is a bit contradictory to the "eco" part of eco-printing ( and others might argue strongly against not using a mordant to treat the paper to ensure stronger retention of plant dyes), I've found that the boiled book video demo is super easy and beginner friendly.

In my own exploration I really bumbled myself through everything but in the end I found myself with paper that I like so I'm happy. I've got more ideas about what to try but I wanted to share some of what I did as I think that it's pretty simple for anyone with a casual interest to achieve great results without the need of a lot of specialty stuff ( or a degree in fiber arts). Of all the ways I've seen, the instruction provided in the "boiled book" video and what's outlined here is by far the most simplified (but results assured) way of going about this.
ECO-PRINTING THE "EASY WAY"

Printmaking or watercolor paper (140 lb recommended) than has good sizing and can be soaked for long periods of time (fully immersed).

White Vinegar (regular household type)

Big pot or pan that you do not use for food... (or don't use for food later on)

Foliage from your garden or yard (check out some of the stuff you probably should in the lists linked further down though)

Thread or rubber bands

Gloves (seriously, use gloves)

Scrap board (optional)

Clamps (optional)

Items that are helpful but could be substituted for anything similar (or eliminated): tub or bowl that you don't use for food (or will not use for food later on) to put your dyed papers in before and during washing, paper towels to layer between pages to help draw out moisture, a towel to lay everything out on, a table under a fan to help dry out papers.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

1. Cut or tear paper down to a size that fits your pot or pan. You can curve the paper stack a little (as in a taller pot) but folding is not advised because your wet paper will be fragile and this will distress the surface and make it crumble or pill later on if you work back into it with other wet media. Also slightly curving or bending will make some areas of your paper looser and more dye will soak into this band and look weird.

2. Pick stuff to print - layer these between your paper pieces. I would recommend that you use a variety of plants in between each page so that if something doesn't work, the other items might. As advised in the video, it is a really good idea to allow plants to go off the edges so that dye soaks into the veins and around the outline of the plant. Avoid really flimsy plants like clover - they just turn smiley and gross.

3. Tie your stack together with thread (or wrap with rubber bands). The video suggests using a board and clamps and this is a good idea because it keeps your papers tightly (and evenly) bound in the pot. I tried this process with and without this addition and honestly, they seemed about the same so maybe it's not critical (although I think that I wrapped them pretty tight with thread to begin with).

4. Boil some water (enough to cover your stack of paper completely).

5. Add some vinegar. I added about 1 cup to about a gallon of water for my own stuff. I'd say it's fine to eyeball it - just be generous.

6. Soak your stack in the vinegar water for 15-20 minutes or so to make sure everything it really saturated and maintain a slight rolling boil.

7. Add a cap full of dye (or a little bit of a powdered dye packet) in whatever color you prefer. The video shows the use of indigo powered dye. I used black RIT liquid dye (1 cap full).

8. Keep covered and continue to keep at a rolling boil for 1 to 1.5 hours (or longer).

9. When done, put on gloves and take the stack out, drain it, and allow to cool a bit.

10. Using gloves, cut off the thread or rubber bands and discard.

11. Start taking each sheet up and gently pull off the plants and discard.

12. Gently rinse off any remaining plant matter/dye from paper but be super careful not to rub the surface so that you don't disturb the fibers for future use.

13. Lay flat to dry. As I was rinsing my sheets off I layered them between paper towels so that some of the moisture would be removed. This helped when I went to lay them flat on a towel on a table under a ceiling fan and they only took a few hours to finish drying out.

14. Enjoy the fruits of your labor. Make all the things!

Some notes: I used Reeves BFK (in tan, cream, and white), blue Pescia (a printmaking paper), and Arches ( all 140 lb papers) and they worked great. I would avoid cheep watercolor papers ( or anything less than 90 lb) which may only be sized on one side as they will be less likely to withstand the whole process. I tried to sandwich my first stack of papers between mat board and it started to flake apart and while this worked to keep my papers together tightly it was not fun.

There are obviously some things that could be harmful to you ( plus your children and pets) if cooked inside your house. Don't just assume you'll be okay if you don't know for sure what kinds of plants you're using.

Ideally, only do this in a space with good ventilation that is not around your family and pets. However, if you're like me all you have is your kitchen and this means you'll want to be careful to be more conscientious to be safe.

I haven't found a list that explicitly states " don't boil this stuff when you are trying to make eco-prints or you'll die " but I did find some good lists of common backyard plants that are toxic. These list specific parts of plants that are poisonous and logic leads me to believe that you probably don't want to boil these components in your kitchen and then spend 2 hours breathing in are emitted from the "soup".

Additionally, do research and learn what other eco-printers use and have success with. For example - I see all over the web that people use dandelions, peonies, rose leaves, and oak leaves when doing home dying so I know these are safe to use.

I don't want to freak anyone out or deter you from trying this out or anything but this is not something to be taken lightly. Please be careful with pets and small animals in your house. Just think about the whole canary in the coal mine scenario - your pets will not need as much exposure as you will to feel bad. Even though I checked out all the plants I used in my own experiments I still felt pretty nauseated from the smell of my boiled concoctions and was careful to air out the house throughout the process to keep my pets from being in danger.

I followed the above directions for my first batch of small pieces of paper. They turned out great and I was so excited to reveal and rinse each piece. Peonies and rose leaves achieved some of the best results for me.

The second batch had paper that was twice as big - I ( unsuccessfully) tried to steam these in the oven inside a make-shift steamer with a foil baking tin, drying rack, and turkey bag. Epic fail.

This process really just dried stuff out so in a last ditch effort I soaked the stack in some faucet-hot vinegar water for about 5 minutes and then curled and pushed the whole stack into the remains of the first batch and boiled for 45 minutes. At that point I was tired of the smell and said it was enough. But it still worked out!

There really wasn't much difference between the success of the first ( well planned batch) and second ( what the hell) batch so just I'd recommend just throwing yourself into it. The addition of the dye really helps make sure that you get some visually stunning results even if you're not working with ideal plants and don't have pre-treated papers.

I did order some alum to use as a mordant in the future - I want the actual plant dyes to be more obvious in the finished product and this seems to be one way to obtain this effect.

I'm really excited to make stuff when my finished pieces. I'll report back about their light-fastness and water-resistance once I start using them.

Have fun (but please be safe and don't die)!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In my personal botany studies I've been thinking a lot about my own connection with plants in my environment. Fortunately our yard has a diverse range of foliage thanks to the garden loving lady that once owned the house we're renting and I've had a lot of good things to study right outside my door....

# data[].attributes.body
wis·dom

ˈwizdəm/

noun

1. the quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgment; the quality of being wise.

2. synonyms: | sagacity, intelligence, sense, common sense, shrewdness, astuteness, smartness, judiciousness, judgment, prudence, circumspection; More

3.  the soundness of an action or decision with regard to the application of experience, knowledge, and good judgment.

4. the body of knowledge and principles that develops within a specified society or period.

5. plural noun: wisdomssynonyms: | knowledge, learning, erudition, sophistication, scholarship, philosophy; lore"the wisdom of tradition"

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How To Make Eco Prints or Boiled Book Pages

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Plaster flowers. Tutorial / Отпечатки растений. Гипс. Мастер-класс. Молодой лопух.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Hiroshi Sugimoto: Becoming an Artist | Art21 "Exclusive"

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Hiroshi Sugimoto: Four Decades of Photographing Dioramas

# data[].attributes.body
An abstract noun is a noun which refers to ideas, qualities, and conditions - things that cannot be seen or touched and things which have no physical reality, e.g. truth, danger, happiness, time, friendship, humour.