The Art of Photography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Art of Photography - Essay ExampleOne of best-known portrayals in the occidental world is Leonardo da Vincis painting titled Mona Lisa, which is a painting of an unidentified woman.Some of the early characterizations of people who were non kings or emperors, are the funeral portraits that survived in the dry climate of Egypts Fayum district. These are the merely paintings of the papistical period that have survived, aside from frescos.An often neglected form of art in photography is that of portrait photography. A portrait is the basic rendering of someones likeness. A good portrait photographer not only wants to capture the true likeness, but also the personality of the individual. The photographer leads to be proficient not only in the workings and setting of the camera, but also needs to understand form and lighting. not bad(p) lighting and positioning can make someone appear at their best form if apply correctly. Lighting and camera placement can also aid in correct ing defects such as bring down a nose, making someone appear slimmer, etc. In this form of art, portrait photography takes on many roles, and can help create various moods that the individual is seeking (Clarke 12).Portrait photography is a popular commercial industry a... Studios sprang up in cities around the world, some cranking out more than cholecalciferol plates a day. The style of these early works reflected the technical challenges associated with 30-second exposure times and the painterly aesthetic of the time. Subjects were loosely seated against plain backgrounds and lit with the soft light of an overhead window and whatever else could be reflected with mirrors (Freeman 32-33). permute in photography - the optimist would call it progress - has a number of drivers. Changes in technology, changes in the marketplace and the need for a creative individual to do new things are among the more important.Of course these interact strongly, curiously in the case of the last two, as even the most creative among us need to eat. So when we consider how photographic portraiture has developed through any period of time, one vital musing is the changes in the various market sectors that use it. Of course some market areas are conservative by nature, mayhap most strongly the bread and butter studio portrait for the general public. Even within this constrained genre there have of course been photographers whose work stands out, many who remain unsung, others who by misfortune of fortune achieve fame, even if posthumously - such as the great body of portraits by Michael Disfarmer - perhaps one day the subject for another feature.Arguably the greatest area of development in portrait photography from the 30s to the 50s was the illustrated magazine, for which many of the finest portrait photographers work. A good example is Bill Brandt, who produced striking photographs of literary, musical and esthetical figures in the late 40s and early 50s. Few of