Criteria 4

Understand how the genre of landscape photography has progressed

4.1 - Evaluate the rationale which led to the formation of Group f/64 as an alternative modernist aesthetic movement.

In the early 1900's pictorialism was extremely popular, this was a style of photography in which the images created almost have a dreamy painted look to them. The aim of pictorialism was to gain artistic status for the images created and to separate themselves from the mechanic and scientific thought about photography and photographers. They felt that composition and the emotions of the images were more important than the truth or how perfect the images were in a sense of settings. This images were often slightly out of focus, soft and almost dream like. According to (REF FIFTY) "Pictorialism, an approach to photography that emphasizes beauty of subject matter, tonality, and composition rather than the documentation of reality."

IMAGE (REF FIFTY)

This was the spark that created the group F/64, named after the smallest aperture that could be achieved by their SLR's in that time. The group, in rebellion to the pictorial style of photography, wanted to create images that were completely in focus and showed the exact truth. There images were often on higher aperture settings so that every single part of the image was perfectly in focus and sharp. According to (REF FIFTY ONE) "Though members of the group represented a wide range of subject matter in their work, they were united in their practice of using the camera to record life as it is, through unmanipulated “pure” documentation."

IMAGE (REF FIFTY ONE)

The group F/64 was created by four photographers, Imogen Cunningham, Willard Van Dyke, Brett Weston and Ansel Adams. The group didn't like the pictorialism movement and at the time it was the most influential style of photography. According to (REF FIFTY TWO) "Edward Weston and his cohorts believed in what they called pure photography: images made with sharp lenses, printed on glossy papers and employing extensive depth of field to allow sharpness across the entire picture plane." When looking at the way in which they chose to rebel against the pictorial movement they took everything that pictorialism is and was and did the complete opposite. They obviously felt very strongly against the fact that they were almost going against everything that photography was, in the way that a photograph can create such a sharp and perfect image but the pictorialists were choosing to almost ignore that to create a picture that was more like a painting. The group obviously didn't agree with the way in which photography was almost being made to be something it wasn't. It's almost slightly ironic that even though they wanted to create these images that were the complete opposite to pictorialism I still feel that they hold equal importance in the world of art photography, as the images created by the group were as equally artistic but in the complete opposite sense. 

4.2 - Assess the influence of technical changes on the practice of landscape photography.

Landscape photography was very difficult in the beginning. The photographer would  have to take all their equipment, tripods, the camera obscura and wait hours for the image to be exposed. They would then have to keep the image in complete darkness till it had been developed or take a portable darkroom with them to develop the images where they were. If the image was not correctly exposed they would have to rearrange to photography the place again and try a different exposure time based of their miscalculation.

The Calotype

The creation of the Calotype process was massive to landscape photography, as it meant that the images being created now took minutes rather than hours. This meant not only could they created a few different images of the landscape they were photographing but that if the had got the exposure time wrong they had chance in the same shoot to try to correct it. In a technical sense it made landscape photography much easier but it also introduced the idea of printing the images. This meant the landscape photographers could not only create multiple prints of their work to sell but it also created the demand for images to be put into magazines and newspapers. This meant that not just landscape photographers but all photographers found it easier to gain celebrity status for the work that they produced.  

Wet Plate Collodion

The creation of the Wet Plate Collodion process affecting landscape photography in many ways. It meant that landscape photographers could put their images onto glass plates rather than paper, this meant that the images were not affected by the fibres of the paper and created a crisp and clear print of the image they created. Although this was fantastic as it allowed much more clarity to the photographers images it was also very difficult as to print images in the way it meant that the photographer had to prepare the plate and develop the images immediately. This meant that the photographer had to take the darkroom with them to develop the images, which was difficult as it meant that large heavy equipment had to be taken to the location being photographed. 

Dry Plate

The Dry Plate was a massive improvement on the Wet Collodion Process as it meant that photographers could now prepare their plates at a place of choice and store them till they were ready to be used and then restore them till they were ready to be developed. This made landscape photography so much easier as it meant that they had the ability to create images with clarity and they didn't need to take their entire darkroom with them to be able to prepare and develop the images. It did however mean that if they had got the timing wrong for the images that they wouldn't know until their images had been developed, this could mean that a shoot might need to be completely rearranged, where as if they had developed on site they would have been able to correct the mistake then and there. 

Film 

The invention of film had an impact on landscape photography as it meant that instead of having to carry the plates in which the images were exposed onto the photographer only needed their camera and the roll of film. This meant that photographers not only had less equipment but that they could travel further to capture pictures of the places they want and that they could take images of places that would have been to difficult to reach with all their equipment being carried there. 

Digital Photography

The development of Digital photography changed landscape photography in such a big way, before landscape photographers would have had to capture their images and wait till they were developed to see if they had got their settings correct and if the image was how they wanted it. This meant that capturing the perfect image of landscape, or and subject wasn't easy and you had to have in-depth knowledge of you camera and the settings to get it right. Where as with a DSLR you can view the image that you have taken straight away, this means that you have chance to see the image and change your settings straight away to correct any mistakes. This meant that landscape photography became so much easier but it also meant that more people were able to create the images and the market has become flooded with so many images that it is difficult to get your name known for any photographer. 

4.3 - Explain any identified social and political influences on aspects of modern landscape photography.

Conservational Influences

At the for front of every environmentalists minds is the effects that the human race is having on the planet, it's a massive issue that effects every single one of us, so it only seems obvious that it would enter into photography somewhere. Many photographs are now using photography as a tool to document the effect that we are having on our planet or they are using their images to try to get people to change. This has had a massive influence on landscape photography as it is a way in which people have found that they can get people to either feel something about the landscape images or a way to make people change. It's giving more purpose and emotion to the landscape photography, giving it a meaning or making it become more than just an image. A prime example would be Fragile Waters 2017, this is a collection of photographs created by three photographers, Ernest H. Brooks II, Ansel Adams and Dorothy Kerper Monnelly. According to (REF FIFTY THREE) "This exhibition celebrates water and encourages dialogue about this precious, essential resource. It features 120 photographs by three artists who have expressed lifelong commitment to protecting the sanctity of the environment through the universal language of photography."

IMAGE (REF FIFTY FOUR)

This exhibition shows the way in which landscape photography can be used to not only create strong feelings but also to make people change their behaviour. This was to get people to talk about and encourage the conservation of water. 

Industrialisation

With the ever growing industrial world landscape photography has had to change as have the landscapes that we see. New builds are being built all the time and tower blocks and sky scrapers in major cities are becoming more common and more popular. This means that landscape photographers have had to change the way we see landscape from being the fields, hills and trees to the city scenes. This has opened up landscape photographer for many photographers who do live in major cities and don't have the countryside landscape nearby. An example of this would be the New Topographics 1974 collection of images by Robert Adams, Lewis Baltz, Nicholas Nixon and Bernd and Hiller Becher. They, according to (REF FIFTY FIVE) "were inspired by the man-made, selecting subject matter that was matter-of-fact. Parking lots, suburban housing and warehouses were all depicted with a beautiful stark austerity, almost in the way early photographers documented the natural landscape."

IMAGE (REF FIFTY FIVE)

This has influenced landscape photographers a it has given the style a new aspect, that you don't just have to photograph green pastures, that buildings and even unsightly scenes of broken down builds, mechanical machinery can all be used in landscape photography.

Artistic

Art deeply influences all areas of photography not just landscape photography, I think this is because we can blur the lines between art and photograph a lot easier than other subjects. It has had a massive impact on landscape photography in the way that many landscape photographers can also gain status in the world of art and photography with the images that they create. A good example of this would be the Group F/64 again. Group F/64 is one of the most influential art movements of that time and is still talked about and viewed highly even today, below is one of Edward Westons landscape images from the group. 

IMAGE (REF FIFTY SIX)

This shows that landscape photography does have it's place in the world of art. The way in which this influences landscape photography today is that landscape photographers that are wanting their work to be viewed as a piece of art will look at the composure different. For example in the image above, the way it is taken and the shapes and lines in the picture make it very artistic.

My Images

I've created three images in the style of the photographers involved with the group F/64, These images have been taken with a small aperture to make sure all the image is in focus and sharp.