Welcome
welcome to the alienplanet blog section...plse feel free to have a look around and get involved.
my idea is to use the space to add pretty much anything that intrigues me - writings by photographers, shoot ideas, shoot breakdowns, technical stuff etc.
it's intended to be a searchable dumping ground, which hopefully adds value to anyone who wants to improve their photography, or is looking for a shot of inspiration.
Category Archives: Food for thought
The Great Pixel Race
Quantity of pixels:
Quantity of sensor pixels is just not as important a measure as people seem to think. In reality as long as you have a camera that’s 8mb+ you’re good to at least 8″X12″print sizes (roughly A4) at serious resolution! I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve needed to print larger than that for a client…a commercial photographer working on campaigns has vastly different imaging needs, and for them enlargements may be the rule rather than the exception…which is why we have medium format digitals!
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Richard Avedon on portraiture
Following Richard Avedon’s death in 2004, the New York Times said that “…his fashion and portrait photographs helped define America’s image of style, beauty and culture for the last half-century.” The difference between a Richard Avedon and the average portrait photographer can be summed up in the thoughtfulness of his approach to portraiture.
Henry Kissinger’s Portrait
by Richard Avedon
I once went to Washington for what they call a “photo opportunity” with Henry Kissinger. As I led him to the camera, he said a puzzling thing. He said, “Be kind to me.” I wish there had been time to ask him exactly what he meant, although it’s probably clear. Now, Kissinger knows a lot about manipulation, so to hear his concern about being manipulated really made me think. What did he mean? What does it really mean to “be kind” in a photograph? Did Kissinger want to look wiser, warmer, more sincere than he suspected he was?
