Topic: Michael Kenna & Holga

[Alan]

Very interesting interview between Holga direct and Michael Kenna - enjoy.

http://www.holgadirect.com/holgadirect-interview-michael-kenna/

[Suzi Livingstone]

Michael Kenna has an exhibition coming up in London! http://www.filmsnotdead.com/2012/10/26/michael-kenna-chris-beetles-fine-photographs-gallery/

[rolo]

Nice interview. Thanks for sharing the link.

[LT]

yes - thanks for the link - I've not read the interview yet.

I;ve seen some of his holga pics before, and I am really underwhelmed. I really like his standard work, but the holga shots just look like any other holga shot. Which leads me on to something else - the holga seems to be a leveller. It brings the kennas of the world down a level and the less successful snappers up a level to bring them all to the same standard. 

It's probably that the lens effects are so characteristic that the pics all end up looking the same?

just a thought.

[Suzi Livingstone]

yes - thanks for the link - I've not read the interview yet.

I;ve seen some of his holga pics before, and I am really underwhelmed. I really like his standard work, but the holga shots just look like any other holga shot. Which leads me on to something else - the holga seems to be a leveller. It brings the kennas of the world down a level and the less successful snappers up a level to bring them all to the same standard. 

It's probably that the lens effects are so characteristic that the pics all end up looking the same?

just a thought.

I really love his China photos..

[Suzi Livingstone]

http://www.holgadirect.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/535a7b5.jpg

I took this exact same shot - from the cable car over Lantau Island Hong Kong.. apart from a helicopter its the only way you can get this shot 

[astrobeck]

they just look like Holga shots and not necessarily Kenna shots to me....

Leon is right about the Holga being a leveler of sorts.

[gary m]

Subject/composition will always be more important than camera.  At least to me

[Alan]

hmmm - interesting posts above

maybe the holga narrows the divide as suggested
but is that more the camera than the user?
i mean its such a basic camera, it really gives the same dominant results [to a point]
like vignetting, blur, centre to edge sharpness etc etc. that those dominant
characteristics make all images seem of similar style . . .

am i waffling, is that exactly what has been suggested . . . 

anyway as gary has mentioned composition and subject is a big factor and imo Kenna
sees things . . .

[Late Developer]

Leon makes a good point about Holgas being a good "leveller". The same is also true of all tools that don't allow the better craftsperson to express themselves to their full potential; a bit of a blunt instrument, perhaps? The effect can also be seen with football pitches - put a good, fast, passing side on a grassless, muddy pitch and their advantage evaporates....

There's a counter argument that a gifed craftsman can still produce something exceptional with basic kit - but I haven't seen many examples.

[charles binns]

I do wonder sometimes whether the Holga flatters the photographer.  A couple of years ago I went out with my Mamiya Universal Press and my Holga - and whilst the shots I took with the Mamiya were dull and lifeless, the Holga images were far more interesting.

This could have been down to the Holga's quirky lens but it could also be due the fact that the Holga is hand held which seems to suit my style best - I find having to pfaff around with a tripod abit restricting.  I like to move about and it's easy to make subtle changes to the composition by changing the angle of view, when you have a light, hand held camera.

It's abit of an exagerration but I found always setting up and using the Mamiya abit like setting up and shooting a big gun!

[Francois]

Technically, the Holga is quite restrictive. The way I see it, Kenna is a technical photographer. So, having a restrictive tool in his hand can't allow him to get the most out of the scene. On the other hand, there are some photographers which are more emotional and not so technical. So, the Holga would be perfect for them. Give the emotional photographer a Hassy and they most likely would be lost in the settings.

This feels very close to me. I am of the technical kind. While I love using toy cameras, I know the results I get from them isn't as good as some of you. But give me my good old Nikon and I'm in business...

[Jack Johnson]

There's a counter argument that a gifed craftsman can still produce something exceptional with basic kit - but I haven't seen many examples.

I think François is on to something, but this really captures what I was thinking when I read Leon's post. I know I've seen exceptional Holga work, and I wouldn't put this body in that category.

It would be interesting to sift through Holga shots and analyze what aspects made them exceptional and whether it may have been more the photographer or the camera.

The ones I can recall from memory have all been color, though I tend to favor monochromes.

Like François, I think I'm more a technical photographer (or at least a technician), though that's not the photographer I want to be. My best technical shots tend to be the least-compelling regarding content, and maybe all toy cameras are in some way that leveler that forces intent on content.

[Jack Johnson]

Our own Nigel does exceptional Holga work, in my opinion:


Thornes Fruit & Veg by nigelrumsey, on Flickr

[Late Developer]

Give the emotional photographer a Hassy and they most likely would be lost in the settings.

Settings? What settings? Aside from loading it, setting an aperture / shutter speed combination and focusing, there aren't any....!!  Only joking 

Lara and I were at the local camera club's 60th Anniversary bash last night - held at a local theatre in Chelmsford. (We aren't members but I used to be). The guest speaker was Joe Cornish and he was making similar comments. I really like JC's work but I know others think he's formulaic. Worth checking his website.

His preferred kit is a 5x4 using Velvia. However, by necessity to achieve commercial deadlines, whilst he is still using his beloved 5x4, he now has a Phase One 80MP back. He reckons it's as slow and clunky to use as a 5x4 with film but the after-shoot PP is a lot quiker, the quality is top-notch and he can send files anywhere in a blink.

He also uses Nikon DSLR (currently the D800) when carrying a 5x4 up a mountain in a winter blizzard isn't an option but he was proselytizing heavily on the benefits of thinking about the photograph and how to take it in one or two shots rather than the current vogue for spraying shots around like some manic machine-gun wielding maniac and learning nothing of how to create an image how you want it.

[Suzi Livingstone]

Give the emotional photographer a Hassy and they most likely would be lost in the settings.

>Settings? What settings? Aside from loading it, setting an aperture / shutter speed combination and focusing, there aren't any....!!  Only >joking 

Oi, I would consider myself more of an "emotional" photographer rather than a technician (I have the basic foundation but I sometimes prefer to disregard it all and work on gut feelings) but I have a Hassy now and I'm not lost in the settings!! Seems pretty straightforward to me 

[Suzi Livingstone]

I'm not sure how I managed to quote myself in the quote box in the last post, thats how technical I am 

[John Robison]

David Burnett is another well known photographer who, on occasion uses a Holga. His shot of Al Gore on his campaign for US president in 2000 garnered a lot of attention.

[Francois]

but I have a Hassy now and I'm not lost in the settings!! Seems pretty straightforward to me 

Just look at how many are scared of the word F/stop and how many think Shutter Speed is the speed at which you rattle your teeth when it's really cold...

I know it's not complicated in itself. But to some it is. They tend to think that Auto is for taking car pictures and that "A mode" stands for awesome.

If people really knew how to use a camera, do you think there would be a need for the dreaded "Scenes Mode"?

[Alan]

here is some interesting holga work for you visual enjoyment >

http://www.erinantognoli.com/#mi=2&pt=1&pi=10000&s=0&p=0&a=0&at=0

[Sandeha Lynch]

There's a counter argument that a gifed craftsman can still produce something exceptional with basic kit - but I haven't seen many examples.

That's most certainly true with a musical instrument, and for reasons that are probably obvious.  I don't think it's so much the emotional vs technical individual, but rather the photographer having a good understanding of what the Holga (or other) lens can do and using it appropriately, which is itself a technical issue as much as the choice of brushes for a painter.

[Suzi Livingstone]

but I have a Hassy now and I'm not lost in the settings!! Seems pretty straightforward to me 

Just look at how many are scared of the word F/stop and how many think Shutter Speed is the speed at which you rattle your teeth when it's really cold...

I know it's not complicated in itself. But to some it is. They tend to think that Auto is for taking car pictures and that "A mode" stands for awesome.

If people really knew how to use a camera, do you think there would be a need for the dreaded "Scenes Mode"?

Mind you, I  haven't touched a Holga for years now.

[Phil Bebbington]

The Holga was my first MF camera and I still have the original one - 2005 I think. I have drifted away from it though. For the large part I have an idea what I am trying to acheive and so I use the Hasselblads almost exclusively as they seem to tick most of the boxes. Other than weight! I don't even both taking the Holga on holidays any more 

However, it is very light and so I carry it in my bag to and from work each day, just in case.

As for  Kenna's Holga work, I'm not a fan, I must say.

[sapata]

There's a counter argument that a gifed craftsman can still produce something exceptional with basic kit - but I haven't seen many examples.

Sometimes is the feeling you get from an image that counts and not the quality of the image. Like in music for example... The Sex Pistols probably had the worst Kit in the history of music ( and they're not even gifted musicians) but the attitude was exceptional and the message was clear!