Laura Lee
(K=990) - Comment Date 4/30/2003
|
I have a Holga and do not use it all the time as my primary camera. I don't think it is easy art in any way. When I shoot with the Holga, it is actually more difficult for me to frame things and create a good exposure. And then when I print...oh God, when I print...it's just horrible! It takes so much more work, for me at least. There are a lot of bad Holga pics out there, but sometimes I think the Holga just, well, really works towards the image. I think your question can be applied towards all photography in general though...especially with photoshop...I mean, what if you take the same image that a Holga person would take, some "banal subject" except instead of the lightleaks you instead mess with the colors and add some cool filters... I don't know, I guess if you use the Holga, like everything else, creatively, you can avoid these cliches.
|
|
|
|
Andrew Haworth
(K=356) - Comment Date 4/30/2003
|
Laura, I agree with you on all those points. Like I said up there, I think a lot of really great work is produced on the Holga. And yep, the prints are very difficult to work up in the darkroom sometimes.
I'm just wondering if the Holga usage isn't about to reach a critical mass of trendiness. I mean, it's not like there's a lot of it out there now, but it's a lot more than it was a year or two ago. Will it get to the point that it's "uncool" to use the Holga. If so, will the community adopt another plastic camera en masse?
Just trying to fan some fires :)
Has anyone tried the Holgaroid? The polaroid back for the holga? How about this, a polaroid lift/transfer done with the polaroid back on a holga.. nice.. :)
The photoshop argument is a can of worms I don't want to open. I don't really use it for anything other than retouching, dodging and burning, etc. hehe
|
|
|
|
David Goldfarb
(K=7611) - Comment Date 4/30/2003
|
I think Holgas and Lomos are part of a larger reaction to increasing automation in photography. We're also seeing a revival of pinhole cameras, large format, and alternative processes. People who were already into large format are trying ultra large format. People want to have their hands in the process and they want something that feels like it was made by human hands and not by a machine.
The Holga adds a dimension of chance to the process, and I think that adds to the challenge of working with its quirks. A camera with auto focus, matrix metering, auto white balance, and such, seems to leave nothing to chance.
|
|
|
|
Laura Lee
(K=990) - Comment Date 4/30/2003
|
I have a lomo that some one gave me...it doesn't work half the time. Every other roll I shoot with it comes out so over or underexposed I can't get a thing off of it! I don't think the Holga is anywhere near the Lomo, in terms of hype at least. I don't even own an automatic camera!
|
|
|
|
Wayne Harridge
(K=18292) - Comment Date 5/1/2003
|
Has anyone come up with a holgarizing plug-in for Photoshop yet ?
|
|
|
|
Chris Lauritzen
(K=14949) - Comment Date 5/1/2003
|
Also checkout the Diana and its various cousins. My wife shoots Holga?s, Diana?s, and Lomo?s. You name it if it?s plastic she will use it.
|
|
|
|
Betsy Hern
(K=12872) - Comment Date 5/1/2003
|
There is a Photoshop plug-in. It's called Melancholytron from flamingpear.com
I just bought a Rosko plastic camera, can't wait to try it out. I think some of the fascination of the whole Holga genre is not knowing how the pics will turn out. Definitely not for all those control freaks out there. Loosen up and have some fun!
|
|
|
|
heather martino
(K=3648) - Comment Date 5/1/2003
|
Nice tip Betsy,
I just downloaded Melancholytron trial & did this to one of my (unpopular) photos.
I'm gonna upload it to the main site now - I wonder if I should say I did it with a Holga? Just for fun?
H:)
|
|
|
|
Robert Fox
(K=208) - Comment Date 5/2/2003
|
As an ardent practitioner of medium format photography, I was drawn to plastic cameras as a challenge: if I can make some interesting images with this, I can make even better better images with my standard medium format gear. In summary, plastic cameras are a challenge and a great way to expand your vision and creativity. It's not about the hardware, it's about the final image. For me personally, it makes me concentrate on emotion in an image rather than technical qualities.
|
|
|
|
Shannon Richardson
(K=1004) - Comment Date 5/3/2003
|
They are showing up more and more. I do think part of it is in response to digital cameras. Using a Holga is part chance and part luck. The appeal of the unexpected is one of the great things about using it and you certainly don't get that with a digital camera. But the Holga isn't going to make great photos for everybody. You still need to know how to use manual camera. A good light meter is a must if you plan on getting decent exposures that you can print. I think the best thing about the Holga is that is bringing people back to shooting film and increases their photography skills. As far as a PS plug in for a Holga look I think Pascal Renoux has mastered this by making his digital images look very Holgaesqe.
|
|
|
|
Brent Tannehill
(K=314) - Comment Date 5/3/2003
|
I think Betsy Hern hit the nail on the head...there's something fun and different about not knowing how the photo will turn out. Ever notice how when you use a point and shoot camera, you don't think a lot about composition, lighting etc. Most of these photos aren't great, but you'll occasionally get a great one that you'd never get with a better camera. I take a lot more risks with the cheaper cameras than I do with the more expensive ones, even though the film costs the same.
|
|
|
|
Shannon Richardson
(K=1004) - Comment Date 5/4/2003
|
Actually you pay more attention to lighting and composition when you use a Holga. With such limited controls you are forced to think about what you are doing. Beautiful images are possible with this camera.
|
|
|
|
Shannon Richardson
(K=1004) - Comment Date 5/4/2003
|
This was shot with a Holga.
|
|
|
|
Laura Lee
(K=990) - Comment Date 5/4/2003
|
Another thing is that with plastic cameras, perhaps it is the style of image that is becoming cliched, not the camera itself. Yet not all of Holga images have to be this way. There are already a few posts here with original Holga pics that don't exactly fit the "take a picture of a banal subject, then pass it off as fine art because it has corner softness and light leaks" example. Here's my favorite of my Holga pictures...by the way.
|
|
|
|
Charles Nowak
(K=79) - Comment Date 5/5/2003
|
first of all i believe that the issue you pose to this forum could be applied to a great number of aesthetic styles practiced in mind numbing abundance in this community and in the photography world. countless times parusing the current submissions, one can become burned out on adams/westonesque landscapes and still lifes. though often technically magnificent and stimulating to the eye, this style often reeks of established formulas guaranteed to produce pleasing images with little reference as to the presence of the photographer in the images creation. now im not lobbying for the "camera makes the photographer" party, but the recent insurgence of plastic, pinhole and non camera techniques signals an effort by its practitioners to explore that which has no finite formula, often requiring greater effort in manually assesing light situations in a scene (letting your eye do the metering not gossen), composition and print execution. my response to this question asks, is not the act of photographing a cliche? the hyper-sharp image inherent to the viewcamera or hasselblad? the nude for the sake of a naked person? arguably there are rampant cliches abound in photography and all of the creative visual arenas. But in a medium where exacting compositional and technical formulas give consistent results yielding mediocre images, a little vignetting and soft focusing opens up a world of possibility for someone open to the challenge of equipment lacking excessive technical immenities. afterall, the best camera is ones imagination. there are many reasons why the plastic & pinhole cameras give that "instant fine art" essence to the casual viewer. i believe in part that this is due to the fact that the "imperfections" inherent to this "primitive" equipment references images from the early days of photography when pictorialists were using soft focus with fine art intentions.
|
|
|
|
Britt Park
(K=2210) - Comment Date 5/5/2003
|
To me the only relevant characteristic of a photograph, or any work of art for that matter, is its ability to affect me emotionally or intellectually. Originality as such has no value in and of itself. Indeed on average anything original is more likely than not to be boring, since there are far more arrangements of matter (perhaps a good definition of what constitutes a work of plastic art) that are uninteresting as there are those that are interesting. I feel no need for a connection to the creator of a work of art, and often find that photography that consciously tries to reflect the artist is dull. Does the picture do it for me or doesn't it. That is all that matters. Holga or Hasselblad, what do those 56mm x 56mm of film contain?
Choice of style in photography or in any art should never be influenced by what is "current". It is only art historians and gallery owners who like to see recognizable trends in art. It gives them something to write about and simplifies their exhibition choices respectively. The artist is driven by an internal imperative. No doubt artists are influenced by what they see around them but the great ones do what pleases them even if it is not in style.
|
|
|
|
Fabio Keiner
(K=81109) - Comment Date 5/13/2003
|
of course, they do
and of course, it will end in dead art as always
it's too simple to think "in the hands of an artists it works, otherwise not" - also the artist's hands will start to tatter if he's overwhelmed and spilled by trendy gimmicks (holga combined with polaroid - such an item is available now) on holga pics.
and if your holga pic needs an hour long re-working with photoshop, then this is exactly the opposite of what holga-pics originally where meant to serve
lamentably
:(
|
|
|
|
Aurore Lynch
(K=1687) - Comment Date 9/6/2003
|
Absolutely. Plastic camera images are everywhere. It's amazing. In the last few weeks I've probably come across such images in 5 or more different publications, including a CD cover, a book cover, and the New York Times magazine (well, that figures anyhow... it's NYC). About a month or so ago I first noticed plastic camera images being used commercially in a car advertisement, Mercedes or Acura or some such.
(Sadly, I have yet to see any mention of plastic cameras in my favorite magazine, B&W Photography (british). Though they did surprise me by running a (too short) article about liquid emulsion. Anybody know of any magazine with alt. process articles available in the US?)
Indeed, plastic cameras make lovely images that seem to ooze emotion through darkened edges and failing focus. But I haven't yet come across anything beyond a straight, simple image. There is still plenty of hope for those of us doing more than pointing and shooting with our trusty little pieces of junk. And months ago I became aware of a new 'holgarize' filter for PS, quickly becoming popular. I'm guessing a few of these commercial toy cam images are products of filters. Many were very well exposed, without light leaks, and any toy cam user knows how hard it is to get a perfect exposure, even with a good meter.
But I think it's a good thing. Surely we've all heard the complaints about just how easy it is to make an image with these toys and call it art. Now they will steadily become more common-place, less unique. And people will have to either work a little harder (no more blind from-the-hip shooting) or come up with some other ridiculous image-making process to label art (and the art world, sadly, often buys into it for awhile). I think the negatives obtainable with holgas and dianas and other 'toy' cameras can become wonderful pieces of art when one makes an attempt to CREATE something beyond the simple 2-D scene that was recorded. But perhaps we will finally see an end to those who don't care to try.
|
|
|
|
Mark Beltran
(K=32612) - Comment Date 9/7/2003
|
The Holga "movement" came about in reaction to the everything must be tack-sharp, unlimited depth of field, flawless German lens thing. It's also a reaction to the increasing automation of 35mm cameras and point and shoots. The Holga was anti-cliche and I hate to think that its popularity will have it go down that same road. I don't think it will become cliche. It will taper off and evolve.
|
|
|
|
