5 ms·

Keep it Simple – A Guide to Minimalist Photography

55 points by jonphillips06 12y ago

scdna 12y ago
Could not agree more! Even if this is not easy to achieve you always need to repeat that KISS motto in your head while looking through the viewfinder. I believe so much in this principle that this great quote from Charles Mingus is the first sentence of my artist statement [1]: "Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that’s creativity". And the photographer author of that article nailed it when she wrote: "Minimalist photography attempts to explore how much information can be taken away from a composition, before it loses its impact". [1] http://www.jeffmerlet.com/resume http://www.jeffmerlet.com/resume
- exgrv 12y ago
  I also like this quote from Antoine de Saint Exupéry: "Il semble que la perfection soit atteinte non quand il n'y a plus rien à ajouter, mais quand il n'y a plus rien à retrancher", which can be translated as: "Perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away".
  - phkahler 12y ago
    I feel that way about code too. I love getting rid of stuff that's overly complex or unnecessary without compromising useful functionality.
blt 12y ago
So much of the difference between a great photo and an OK photo is simplicity. Even in a casual snapshot, walk around a little and try to block undesirable background details with desirable foreground. Try to surround faces with a solid area of color. I often find that, by the time I have put the subject in good light and found an angle that blocks background noise, my photo has composed itself.
keithpeter 12y ago
Nice pictures, but these are highly constructed. Have a look at William Christenberry's Box Brownie photographs [1] (and his subsequent models of the buildings). Also Tartovksy's [2] and Evans' [3] Polaroid photos. Not Tartovsky's portraits but the building details. I imagine it is a question of definitions. Meta: trying to pass on a Google Image search string results in epic URLs. [1] https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client=iceweasel-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&channel=np&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=6Pi-U6zdAYqN7QbnnIH4CQ&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1021&bih=689#channel=np&q=William+Christenberry+Box+Brownie&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&tbm=isch https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client... [2] https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client=iceweasel-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&channel=np&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=6Pi-U6zdAYqN7QbnnIH4CQ&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1021&bih=689#channel=np&q=Tarkovsky+polaroids&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&spell=1&tbm=isch https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client... [3] https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client=iceweasel-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&channel=np&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=6Pi-U6zdAYqN7QbnnIH4CQ&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1021&bih=689#channel=np&q=Walker+Evans+polaroids&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&tbm=isch https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client...
- disputin 12y ago
  *Tarkovsky.
  - keithpeter 12y ago
    Damn that Google spelling correction. I can't edit the original now either. Thanks
- jchrome 12y ago
  I agree. I was disappointed that they emphasized minimalism with light, shadow, composition etc but then made these photos to look heavily post-processed. Much too much contrast here.
80 12y ago
"The goal of minimalist art, or photography, is to convey a concept – or an idea – provoke an emotional response, or provide a unique visual experience. Compositional elements must be kept to a minimum, and the ones that are left should be essential for conveying the overall idea, or symbolism, of the photo." My understanding was always that capital M Minimalism (which this article refers to) was about the objective exploration of form and material - ie specifically free of symbolism, representation and implied meaning
lsdafjklsd 12y ago
Minimalism != Simple This is a highly stylistic aesthetic, and the 'technique' seems gimicky. For better photographs, learn the basics of compositions and how color / size influence weight in a picture. Two hours with this book and you will be most of the way there! http://www.amazon.com/Design-Basics-Index-Jim-Krause/dp/1581805012/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1405027135&sr=1-4&keywords=graphic+design+composition http://www.amazon.com/Design-Basics-Index-Jim-Krause/dp/1581...
- ddrmaxgt37 12y ago
  Seriously. I came here to say almost exactly this. If you go to something like http://reddit.com/r/minimalism http://reddit.com/r/minimalism, you can find more examples of "minimalism".
  - deleted 12y ago
    [deleted]
- msutherl 12y ago
  Indeed these photos and the techniques are gimmicky – basically amateur/advertising-level work, or a kind of soulless copy of mid-20th century minimalism. If you want to take good photographs, study actual fine artists, not blogs. Stay away from Flickr. Follow actual contemporary artists on Instagram. However, if you want to make backdrops for hipster startup home pages, then by all means. Some resources: - any 'History of Western Art' book - any 'History of Photography' book - http://www.contemporaryartdaily.com/category/exhibitions/ http://www.contemporaryartdaily.com/category/exhibitions/ - http://we-make-money-not-art.com/archives/photography/ http://we-make-money-not-art.com/archives/photography/ - http://www.art21.org/artists http://www.art21.org/artists - http://www.vvork.com/ http://www.vvork.com/
  - StavrosK 12y ago
    Do you have some Instagram usernames of good photographers?
    - 12y ago
wtracy 12y ago
The very second photo--the one of the stairs--I instantly wanted to re-crop. I want to crop it in a portrait format with the side walls almost if not completely removed. I agree with the other commentors who question the decision to call these images "minimalist".
aaronbrethorst 12y ago
The headline made me think I was going to read something about cell phone photography, or maybe carrying around a 35mm film camera loaded with a roll of black and white film. But, instead, the word "minimalist" is being used to describe considerations you should have with every photograph you make. And the photos are not what I'd select to demonstrate the concepts described.
neumann 12y ago
Most of these seem like classic stock photos. They are certainly technically competent, but the collection (and the instructions) are more about style than the art of minimalism. Then again, a blog would be hard pressed to teach the art. For inspiration and a guide, I prefer to browse through collections of great photographers than from random flickr users. For this I love sites like http://triangletriangle.com http://triangletriangle.com, which often features photographers that are excellent at minimalist composition.
localhost 12y ago
A photographer friend of mine once told me that "photography is the art of subtraction". Some on this thread may argue that the reference to minimalism in the title of the blog post is not accurate. However, when compared to the vast majority of photos that you see "real people" create, they could almost always benefit from some of the ideas shown in this post. Edit: some really great ideas about photography can be found in Galen Rowell's excellent Inner Game of Outdoor Photography collection of essays.
asakura89 12y ago
In my opinion, it's much like a photographer's style rather than photograph technique. Say, I'm more interested in colorful object and crowded object. How can crowded is minimal?

55 points by jonphillips06 12y ago

scdna 12y ago

Could not agree more! Even if this is not easy to achieve you always need to repeat that KISS motto in your head while looking through the viewfinder. I believe so much in this principle that this great quote from Charles Mingus is the first sentence of my artist statement [1]: "Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that’s creativity". And the photographer author of that article nailed it when she wrote: "Minimalist photography attempts to explore how much information can be taken away from a composition, before it loses its impact". [1] http://www.jeffmerlet.com/resume http://www.jeffmerlet.com/resume

exgrv 12y ago
I also like this quote from Antoine de Saint Exupéry: "Il semble que la perfection soit atteinte non quand il n'y a plus rien à ajouter, mais quand il n'y a plus rien à retrancher", which can be translated as: "Perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away".
- phkahler 12y ago
  I feel that way about code too. I love getting rid of stuff that's overly complex or unnecessary without compromising useful functionality.

blt 12y ago

So much of the difference between a great photo and an OK photo is simplicity. Even in a casual snapshot, walk around a little and try to block undesirable background details with desirable foreground. Try to surround faces with a solid area of color. I often find that, by the time I have put the subject in good light and found an angle that blocks background noise, my photo has composed itself.

keithpeter 12y ago

Nice pictures, but these are highly constructed. Have a look at William Christenberry's Box Brownie photographs [1] (and his subsequent models of the buildings). Also Tartovksy's [2] and Evans' [3] Polaroid photos. Not Tartovsky's portraits but the building details. I imagine it is a question of definitions. Meta: trying to pass on a Google Image search string results in epic URLs. [1] https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client=iceweasel-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&channel=np&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=6Pi-U6zdAYqN7QbnnIH4CQ&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1021&bih=689#channel=np&q=William+Christenberry+Box+Brownie&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&tbm=isch https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client... [2] https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client=iceweasel-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&channel=np&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=6Pi-U6zdAYqN7QbnnIH4CQ&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1021&bih=689#channel=np&q=Tarkovsky+polaroids&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&spell=1&tbm=isch https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client... [3] https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client=iceweasel-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&channel=np&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=6Pi-U6zdAYqN7QbnnIH4CQ&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1021&bih=689#channel=np&q=Walker+Evans+polaroids&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:unofficial&tbm=isch https://www.google.com/search?q=William+Christenberry&client...

disputin 12y ago
*Tarkovsky.
- keithpeter 12y ago
  Damn that Google spelling correction. I can't edit the original now either. Thanks
jchrome 12y ago
I agree. I was disappointed that they emphasized minimalism with light, shadow, composition etc but then made these photos to look heavily post-processed. Much too much contrast here.

80 12y ago

"The goal of minimalist art, or photography, is to convey a concept – or an idea – provoke an emotional response, or provide a unique visual experience. Compositional elements must be kept to a minimum, and the ones that are left should be essential for conveying the overall idea, or symbolism, of the photo." My understanding was always that capital M Minimalism (which this article refers to) was about the objective exploration of form and material - ie specifically free of symbolism, representation and implied meaning

lsdafjklsd 12y ago

Minimalism != Simple This is a highly stylistic aesthetic, and the 'technique' seems gimicky. For better photographs, learn the basics of compositions and how color / size influence weight in a picture. Two hours with this book and you will be most of the way there! http://www.amazon.com/Design-Basics-Index-Jim-Krause/dp/1581805012/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1405027135&sr=1-4&keywords=graphic+design+composition http://www.amazon.com/Design-Basics-Index-Jim-Krause/dp/1581...

ddrmaxgt37 12y ago
Seriously. I came here to say almost exactly this. If you go to something like http://reddit.com/r/minimalism http://reddit.com/r/minimalism, you can find more examples of "minimalism".
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
msutherl 12y ago
Indeed these photos and the techniques are gimmicky – basically amateur/advertising-level work, or a kind of soulless copy of mid-20th century minimalism. If you want to take good photographs, study actual fine artists, not blogs. Stay away from Flickr. Follow actual contemporary artists on Instagram. However, if you want to make backdrops for hipster startup home pages, then by all means. Some resources: - any 'History of Western Art' book - any 'History of Photography' book - http://www.contemporaryartdaily.com/category/exhibitions/ http://www.contemporaryartdaily.com/category/exhibitions/ - http://we-make-money-not-art.com/archives/photography/ http://we-make-money-not-art.com/archives/photography/ - http://www.art21.org/artists http://www.art21.org/artists - http://www.vvork.com/ http://www.vvork.com/
- StavrosK 12y ago
  Do you have some Instagram usernames of good photographers?
  - 12y ago

wtracy 12y ago

The very second photo--the one of the stairs--I instantly wanted to re-crop. I want to crop it in a portrait format with the side walls almost if not completely removed. I agree with the other commentors who question the decision to call these images "minimalist".

aaronbrethorst 12y ago

The headline made me think I was going to read something about cell phone photography, or maybe carrying around a 35mm film camera loaded with a roll of black and white film. But, instead, the word "minimalist" is being used to describe considerations you should have with every photograph you make. And the photos are not what I'd select to demonstrate the concepts described.

neumann 12y ago

Most of these seem like classic stock photos. They are certainly technically competent, but the collection (and the instructions) are more about style than the art of minimalism. Then again, a blog would be hard pressed to teach the art. For inspiration and a guide, I prefer to browse through collections of great photographers than from random flickr users. For this I love sites like http://triangletriangle.com http://triangletriangle.com, which often features photographers that are excellent at minimalist composition.

localhost 12y ago

A photographer friend of mine once told me that "photography is the art of subtraction". Some on this thread may argue that the reference to minimalism in the title of the blog post is not accurate. However, when compared to the vast majority of photos that you see "real people" create, they could almost always benefit from some of the ideas shown in this post. Edit: some really great ideas about photography can be found in Galen Rowell's excellent Inner Game of Outdoor Photography collection of essays.

asakura89 12y ago

In my opinion, it's much like a photographer's style rather than photograph technique. Say, I'm more interested in colorful object and crowded object. How can crowded is minimal?