Photographically, Fridays are always thrilling. These are the days when I have no time to spare, the days when I travel from Vienna to Carinthia, and on most Fridays I have trouble to come up with something usable. When I’m lucky, I manage to find it in the morning, when I’m not, I leave work for the Underground, knowing that I have about 500 meters with no time to stop, and by then I have to have an image. This was such a Friday.
Weather was less than optimal, it did just not rain, and when I looked across the street, I saw this angel watching over two windows with reddish curtains. That was it, in my hurry I could not find anything more.
Esther Emma Jongste, blogger and creator of one of my most favorite SoFoBoMo contributions, “Colorful Daily Details”, recently asked me if I always have a plan how to process an image. My answer was, that I normally just play around, have some techniques ready, try things and simply go along in the direction where it looks good. It is a bit like having a big block of marble, and instead of exactly knowing how the statue will look like, you chip a little here, a little there, and while you take stone away, a form emerges.
Well, this image was different. In this case I exactly knew what I wanted and how I wanted to get there. The steps were quite similar to those in “683 - Welcome To The Republic”. Nice, popping red, huh??
The Song of the Day is “Guardian Angel” from Lou Reed’s 2003 album “The Raven”. See him perform live on YouTube.
There are 6 comments
Emma (2008-09-01)
Seen On SmugMug in the slideshow, I discovered the multiple Find The Edges effect, you applied to this image too. Here, I find it still even more beautiful.
Ted (2008-09-03)
Wonderful work, haunting. As for the PP.... I am increasingly convinced that photographic art is a process consisting of an observation at the time of shutter release and discovery in PP. Thus art is a concept and that concept involves a process... which also means that I no longer think that epiphany is an instantaneous moment when the stars explode and Archimedes runs naked down the streets screaming, "Eureka!".
Oh, perhaps in geological time the process happens in an instant, but in reality it can happen in hours or over days don't you think?
I also think that there are artists who want to pretend that epiphany is like taking the gods' dictation. That they are such geniuses that they understood the one true route to masterpiece and that it happens to them all the time in instantaneous euphoria. Again, I wonder if you agree. I don't. You're right I think that the concept involves releasing the angel from the stone.
And this angel is wonderful... although whether it pees on my tongue... Hmmmm... got to think on that Emma 🙂
Andreas (2008-09-03)
Ted, the answer is "688 - What Can You Do With A Hanger?". You're right.
andreas (2010-05-20)
Thanks. It's always nice when a comment brings one back to such an old image 🙂
Emma (2008-08-31)
If there was something like red poison. It was there near the angle. But (more important): I get it. ;-)
And maybe it's more something like the sparkling lemonade my mother gave me on a warm summer day. With the taste like (so they say in Holland)there's an angle peeing over my tongue. (es schmeckt mir himmlisch or so you will: it is fit for the gods)
A perfect Friday shot.
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