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The photographic news
- Bandzählung
- 29.1885
- Erscheinungsdatum
- 1885
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- Englisch
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- Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst Leipzig
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- Bandzählung
- No. 1384, March 13, 1885
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Zeitschrift
The photographic news
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Band
Band 29.1885
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- Register Index III
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Band
Band 29.1885
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March 13, 1885.J THE PHOTOGRAPHIC NEWS. 167 Jotes. which our supplement of this week is reproduced, it is a is not what is intended. To place it too far to the side again .. . T -n .u. lessens its influence, so that individual taste comes in here I question whether any photo-mechanical process will alto- shall now show you certain photographs where, from the absence 1 gether hold its own against a direct print from the negative. “ Miller’s Dale, Derbyshire,” from the camera of Captain Abney, is a picture in the truest and best sense of the word; but when it comes to the reproduction of such delicate gradations as exist in an original like that from With regard to the position of this point, it must not be so placed as to rivet the attention to the spot. Were it placed in the centre, for instance, the eye would refuse to leave it, which of this point, the effect of distance is poorly rendered, and con fusion is introduced. There ought not to be two such points. This, then, is the first requisite: that every picture have a lead ing point; the second requisite is balance. I do not know if there is any deeper reason for a picture having a certain balance than that the eye demands it. 1 have noticed that different individ uals have different ideas as to how much balance ought to be introduced into a picture, but all are agreed that by no means must both sides of a picture approxi mate in value sufficiently as to make it uncertain to which side the attention ought to go first. This is only a repetition of what has been already stated—viz., that there ought not to be two leading points in any picture. As to the position of this balancing object, as a general rule you will find that if the leading point of a picture be placed well to the side, balancing object ought also to be kept well to the other side. On the other hand, should the leading point be t wards the centre, the balancing object ought also to approach the centre. The eye, however, must be left more or less to deter mine these points, as it is a matter of individual taste. If the leading point in any picture approaches the centre, the balancing object is less important from the fact, of course, that with the leading point here there is not the same sense of want of balance. As, however, the centre ought never to be occupied by this point, we have to consider balance in every picture. A very common fault in street photography is to have had the camera so placed as to show equally both sides of the street; the effect is always monotonous. Artists invariably throw the bulk of the interest to one side, showing only enough of the other side to balance well; variety is introduced by this means. In in teriors where, from the restricted space, this cannot be done, you will find, if you examine examples by good painters, that they concentrate the interest on one side by introducing figures or groups of figures, or by some other means. A picture that can be cut into identical halves is in reality two pictures, not one. The last requisite in a picture which I shall mention is breadth. Photography is so apt to give us confusion from its painful definition, that whatever plan promises to disentangle the mass for us ought to be known and practised. You will find that even in groups, artists never give the same equal prominence to each member as we do in our photographs. We are tied down by our lenses ; we must arrange our groups in semi-circle, or certain of the number shall be unrecognizable ; still, to be right, there ought to be a leading point in the picture which the eye could at once pick up. Unfortunately, in everyday life this arrangement would not be tolerated by those who were placed slightly behind, so that one’s hopes of improvement here are visionary. It is not so in landscape, however, and we can pick and choose our leading object without engendering jealousy. I shall show you a photograph with an unmistakable leading object, and you will find that it lends to the picture distance and breadth not attainable without it. It is by no means easy to explain what is meant by this term; many are under the impression that it refers to a “slap dash ” execution; but this is not all the meaning. Breadth is not in compatible with fine finish and great detail. Breadth is that quality in a picture which renders the design evident from a distance. A picture painted with proper breadth of effect may be examined from a distance, but ought not to suffer by closer examination. It is true that artists often suppress detail in order to gain breadth, but if the detail were not more forcible than it should be, it would not break up the effect of the larger masses, and would not require to be suppressed. The evident design of a picture ought to be quite distinguish able from such a distance as puts the detail entirely out of sight. The question now comes, how Can we influence breadth in photography. As far as I am aware, only in two ways : first, by selecting such subjects as have themselves fine large masses of light and shade; secondly, by choosing the most suitable light. It is evident that unless there be bold colour contrasts, it is use less to expect breadth of effect in a photograph taken in a flood of diffused light, which necessarily robs the scene of its shadows. On the other hand, where the contrasts are naturally strong, such as under trees or by waterfalls in enclosed places, diffused light will give the best effect, as a rule. Many more points could be taken up in this neglected branch of our art, but as this short paper is only intended for mere beginners, it would only intro duce confusion to enlarge further at this time. The three cardinal points forthem to remember are, first, to try, if possible, to have a definite leading point; secondly, to look to the balance ; and thirdly, to choose the lighting which will separate the various parts of the picture most effectively. ever. I think a good deal of the confusion has arisen from forgetting that in the term " technical art,” we have a comple mentary expression which in a great measure helps us to under stand what is meant by “ fine art.” “ Technical art” is the power of producing the best results by the simplest means. Thus, to borrow an example from photo graphy itself, there are various degrees of art in coating gelatino- bromide plates : one must use a spreading rod, another a touch with his finger occasionally, while a third has art enough to coat as he would a plate with collodion, and using neither finger nor spreading rod. This is technical art, and is simply the power of making the most of things. Fine art in no way differs from this, except in that it refers to making the most of things by the head in place of the hand, and is limited only by the limits of the imagination of the individual. The very essence of fine art is that the mind is free to do its best. Fainting is fine art, in that the picture is a true representation of the ideal of the artist. Sculpture, poetry, and music are fine arts, in that they each represent effects in the individual minds of the authors. If a photograph be a work of fine art, then every photograph (provided it be technically good) ought to reflect the ideal of the photographer. On the other hand, should there be a single blade of grass in his picture which he would rather have out, it is enough to prove that he is the creature of circumstances, and that his photograph is not the work of his head, but of his hands, and consequently not a work of fine art. Fine art is not in canvas, or marble, or words, or notes—these are but the ex ponents ; but fine art resides in the brain and imagination of the artist, and he is at liberty to choose his medium of com munication according as is a painter, a sculptor, a poet, ora musician. In no sense can the camera and chemicals be said to be only the brushes and pigments : the latter are humble servants with no will of their own ; the former are masters of the situation, and with their own notions of what they shall take, or what they shall leave. Since, then, we cannot make our own terms with our stubborn friend, we can advise with him, and if we have no further say in the matter, we can at least determine the point of the compass to which we shall turn our lenses, and the time of day at which we shall expose our plate. If by these means we are not always able to pourtray only the beautiful and suppress the common place, nevertheless we can add materially to the pictorial value of our productions by arrangement on our part. In examining the hundreds of pictures in an art exhibition, the designs are so numerous and varied that one would conclude that the artist had no settled plan of building up his picture so that it might tell its story systematically. Yet this is not so. You will find that the story which the picture tells has, like other stories, a beginning and an end. A pattern mosaic has neither, and you have experienced the restless feeling of the eye as it wandered over the surface, not knowing where to begin or where to leave off. Contrast this sensation with that of viewing a well-composed picture. Here the eye picks up at once the evident leading point, and, without being entirely arrested there, it passes on by inperceptible gradations over the whole canvas till it settles naturally in the quietest and most remote corner. Confusion is never beautiful, and there ought to be no dubiety as to the order in which we are to pick up the various points before us.
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