Inspiration

[Rebecca]

My first thought when I read this assignment was that I didnt really know any specific photographers well enough to be able to pinpoint them as a source of inspiration. My love of photography is very much at a basic amateur level and has never progressed beyond this point.
In spite of this I took a look around the living room and realised that, perhaps, my love of photography was a little deeper than I had originally thought.

What I realised was that whilst it is difficult to define a particular photographer there is most definitely a strong theme to the works that attracts me.I am absolutely fascinated how photographers capture the world, its people and the topics that concern us … enveloping all at once the beauty, the horror, the contrast, the need – the sheer variety.

Yann Arthus Bertrand is perhaps, for me, the one who does this best. I went to see an exhibition of his work here in Zurich a number of years ago – “The Earth from Above” .. to me this encapulates so many topics close to my heart that its hard, amongst my limited knowledge, to think of anyone better.
The colours, the shapes, the composition, the perspective, the happiness, the sorrow .. I get goose bumps just thinking about it .. certain shots are trully incredible.

http://www.earthfromaboveusa.com/

These are nevertheless very structured photos. Thats to say the photographer had the time, the luxury and the benefit of setting up the most beneficial surroundings to capture his vision.

There are other more general photographers that inspire me, and they are those that work in the media .. often they have the same level of skill, the same ability to understand a concept and capture it in a way that appeals to many nevertheless without the luxury of time and planning. And once again, that consistant theme .. the world and its people.

I recently went to see the World Press Photo exhibition and came away feeling depressed, elated, inspired and confused all in one. Very impressed.

http://www.worldpressphoto.org

In short, I would love to develop my ability to these photographers level. I would like to look at my own shots and get goose bumps, or even better, for others to look at my shots and have the same.

These photogrraphers are highly skilled professionals who have taken something they re clearly passionate about and turned it into a career. That is inspiration in itself. In this busy world we live in, when it comes to inspiration, if in writing this assignment I become more focused on dedicating the time to learn even 1/1000 of the skill of these photographers I feel I would have made a step forward .. and thats what inspiration is all about. A subconcious pull in the right direction.

[Duncan Rawlinson]

Thank you for sharing this.

In fact, I have seen the world from above exhibit myself and was also very inspired.

If you liked that exhibit you’ll likely get inspiration from the documentary “home”. It looks at humans as just another species and it includes mostly aerial shots. It’s beautifully shot and the producers have released it from free (HD as well!) on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/user/homeproject?blend=1&ob=4

Thank you for submitting this report.

[Author]

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