‘Exposing’ . . the World of Special Effects

Wednesday, 11 January 2006 18:20

By Jane Hart....ABN Contributing Editor Advancements in digital cameras and computer technology are providing photographers with an extensive palette of tools and techniques to create literally thousands of special effects that enhance, alter and support their images. These advancements have propelled the evolution of photography as an art form, with some saying that the use of special effects in photographic images has catapulted photography more firmly into the realm of fine art. André Gallant, a travel photographer from New Brunswick, Canada, and author of several photography books including, “Dreamscapes: Exploring Photo Montages,” says, “As an art form, photography has not been as widely accepted as say, painting. Photography has been accepted a little more in the states than in Canada. But the use of techniques to create special effects will only improve on that acceptance of photography as a fine art form. Many photographers now are more artistic than they are straightforward.”Gallant has dedicated an entire book to images of his montages and the techniques behind them, which he has self-published and financed. Believing that photographic techniques should be shared rather than guarded. Thomas Barbèy (pronounced Barbay), of Thomas Barbèy, LLC, originally worked with black and white and color in the fashion industry in Italy. He says he eventually became “burnt out on people and color,” so he started experimenting in the darkroom before computer technology became affordable. He started having much more fun taking pictures of architecture and creating symbolism in his images. Barbèy says he is represented in about 100 galleries now and that many of those gallery owners have never represented a photographer before they saw his work. “I think the reason they accepted my work is because I am more like a painter with a camera,” says Barbèy. “I am a fan of Surrealistic painters. I don’t find inspiration with normal photography.” Barbèy also comments on the number of customers who are drawn to the Surreal quality of his work. He exclusively works with black and white images, which he initially thought might be only for a certain crowd. “But it is very popular, and the younger generation tends to be drawn to black and white,” says Barbèy. “I don’t know [whether] it’s because of the retro feeling or because the images aren’t bombarded with so much color.” A wide variety of photographic techniques are available to today’s photographers. Many of those who are interested in creating special effects mix the old with the new. The end result of this process is often an image that appears to be a painting rather than a photograph. Gallant works with an older, but popular process, known as montaging or slide sandwiching, and uses four different techniques. “The techniques I use are actually quite old, and I experiment extensively with putting slides together and creating images. I create large bodies of work through this process,” says Gallant. “When the product is finished, you’re not sure if you are looking at a painting or a photograph. The effect is an Impressionistic painting that is actually a photograph.” Ernesto Rodriguez, a Cuban-born artist, refers to his photographic process as légèreté, meaning from one source. Buster Baba, director of publishing at Grand Image, the distributor of Rodriguez’s photographic works, comments on his technique: “Rodriguez shoots a Polaroid image and then heats up the emulsion on the film. Next he takes a stylist and works on the film, moving the emulsion around, which changes the feeling of the image.” He then scans the image and enhances the color and texture with computer software. Again, the result is a photographic image that also appears to be a painting. David Lorenz Winston, an Oregon-based photographer, uses software programs to alter color in his images by using hue saturations, adding sepia tones and using blender tools, as well as altering the contents of the images by removing people or changing the background of an image from buildings to sky. “I love to do things in layers because I am interested in relationships. Photography is about relationships,” says Winston. “I am into the content of images and how those images relate to one another. I like to bring irony or humor into images and to uncover unguarded moments.”

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