I am not by nature terribly bold and taking photographs of strangers is something I find very hard to do. I think this reflects in my style which is rather stand-off and structural than up close and involved. A constant dialog I have with myself is whether this is a good or a bad thing. I have to a degree found my voice as a photographer and that voice is not street, I prefer a more studied and formal approach. I do not think this precludes me from making a social statement, but it does mean that my work has a particular way with people; I continually find myself trying to represent people as landscape. On the other hand, I am starting to think that I should not resist this tendency, but go with it and see where it takes me.
This conclusion, however, conflicts with my next Assignment, creating 12 photographs in the style of Robert Frank. His style is very up close and personal, with little concern for formalism. I suspect my approach to photography is more Stieglitz than Frank. That means that I need to draw from Frank something of his style and approach to working that I can engage with. For me this is possibly his critical and question eye, his need to create photographs that ask questions. Another element could be the engagement over time with a subject, immersion into that world. In my case the world would be Munich and it's population. For the last 2 years I have been creating photographs that I intended would come together in a book that would parallel "The Americans", nominally caller Die Muenchener. I am questioning this idea now and think it might be better to instead consider his earlier volume, Black White and Things and create a series of 12 photos in 3 thematic groups, as Frank did. What I explicitly do not want to do is to try and replicate the look of Frank's photos. What would be the point, I am not Frank. I need to conclude this concept soon as the clock is ticking on my course.
In the mean time I have decided to try and get out at least once a week to do some street photography in the city. The occasion that drew me this weekend was the annual NATO conference in Munich, now in it's 50th year. The event invariably draws a large and loud protest accompanied by the massed presence of Munich's police force. This is always a good opportunity to take photographs, although in a very intimidating environment. That made it a rather daunting, but also good place to try to re-engage with documentary photography.
The conference takes place at a hotel smack in the heart of the cities shopping district, creating an interesting mixture of protesters, riot police, weekend shoppers and rather bemused tourists. Munich has a strong tradition of protest and activism, most weekends will have a group setting up in the city center to vent their anger at something, last week it was Egypt. However the NATO conference is a biggie and pulls in a lot of people and thus also a lot of security. I went out with an open mind, with no particular agenda. I find this works for street photography, it is impossible to predict what might happen. The sun was shining (good and bad for me) and the crowd was in a good mood, I have sometimes wondered what would happen if they weren't. The police had the same thought and there were cordons set up around the more expensive shopping areas and government buildings, potential targets for the more anarchic fringe.
My goal was to come away with 10 or so photographs that captured the sense of the event, portraying the people there. It took me a while to get into the mode of street photography, i.e. becoming unafraid to point and shoot in a large crowd. I found myself using my camera in a stealthy mode, i.e. using the pop out screen and looking down rather than bringing the camera to my eye. This gives a sense of presence in shots, but is not so accurate. I have divided the photographs into 3 groups. First of all the protesters.
The first image used a tele to pick this guy out of the crowd. His hair was bright orange and very striking. I am processing to B&W so this is lost, but not the structure. What I wanted with this image was the juxtaposition of the protester with the arch behind, did not really work, the framing is off. I think it is an interesting portrait, but nothing special.
This man had found what I thought was the best protest symbol in the crowd, a rusting WW2 German helmet that with the grass looked as if it had just been dug out of a field. It reminded the crowd of the terribly losses Germany had suffered as a result of the militarism the crowd was associating with NATO. The turned away face leaves some information about the man, but it is the shadowed relic of war that makes this photograph for me.
This was an odd juxtaposition, the hoody and the Hammer & Sickle. Not sure if it works as a photograph, I think some part of the mans face would have helped.
Here I have tried to contrast the anti-establishment crowd with the Town Hall behind, the symbol of government in Munich. I think this is too confused to work, I am too close or not far enough away. Crowds work when there are thousands in the frame or when there is a close up of an individual against the mass. This just looks jumbled.
I found that the photographs I was getting of the protesters were OK, but just OK. People with placards and long hair are good subjects, but there was nothing particularly new or different about this. What I did find interesting were the lines of police fronting the shops. Clearly, there was a real fear that the crowd might vent it's anger on the symbols of capitalism all around. Everywhere I looked there were lines of highly intimidating police heavily armored and armed. This brought out the structural in me.
The first shot was taken from inside the shopping center, entry was permitted, but maybe not if dressed wrongly. This photograph works for me, apart from the structure the lack of faces draws attention to the word Polizei and the equipment these men are carrying. In front of them Saturday afternoon shopping continues as normal. I tried a few times to create photos that juxtaposed the shoppers with the police, but could never get the degree of separation that made a good shot.
Same group of police from the other side:
Here I have tried to place shoppers into the frame. This is a very complex image, perhaps too many layers. I wanted the word SALE with the police and then the shoppers. In colour it is far too confusing, in B&W it might work, I am not sure. There is more involvement.
Perhaps a different crop would work, removing the guy on the right. Unfortunately I did not have the feet of the police in the frame, but this is much better and may have potential. It illustrates many aspect of Munich and whilst still confusing, perhaps the need to disentangle the image might add some engagement on the part of the viewer.
My final two photographs from the day are portraits of the police. The first one is light the second I think darker. In the first the light makes the scene seem airy, the hand holding couple defuse the sense of threat that might be conveyed by the police. I think this photo may have worked better with more of the policeman's face and the presence of the second person in the couple. The challenge of working in the street is that constellations come and go, you have to work with what happens as it happens.
I find this photograph strangely attractive, the two extremely good looking people with their almost medieval equipment creates a strong contrast. Again I am missing their feet, but the eye contact with the female officer suggested at the time to move on and not spend time recomposing. However, it is that firm gaze that I think elevates this photograph above the others.
In my concept of Black White and Things the above image would be Black whereas the one above would be White. I need to think about Things. Not really sure if this will work, but my approach is aligned to Frank. I am accumulating a library of images of the population of Munich that explore multiple aspects of life in the city, what I need to do is to tie them together as a narrative body of work.
Yesterday got me back on track, another step in the right direction.
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