Press Review
Paul Melcher
Websites, part 23
Clockwise from top left: www.sokolsky.com, The Atlantic’s WWII gallery, The Guardian’s ”the image almost killed me” and the blog 500 Photographers
Because the pool of photography is getting bigger every day with millions of images being uploaded daily, it has become a real challenge to find and enjoy the best images. It used to be that well trained professional photo editor would do most of the heavy lifting for us, finding and filtering out the gems in an ocean of boring mediocrity. None so much anymore as anyone with a camera, a computer and an internet connection can display his results without any passing quality barriers. Forced out of their important position, from the double pressure of economics and social freedom, photo editors are disappearing rapidly, leaving a giant vacuum never to be filled. And it is quite ironic that the more there are images, the less we have photo editors.
It has become a trade that is left to machines or inexperience and underpaid juniors, who edit with a wallet instead of eyes. While it used to be one of the most respected and important job in our profession, it has now become a vague afterthought, a great opportunity to make cuts and a job to avoid. This is for all photo editors , past, present and future.
1. Melvin Sokolsky
Melvin Sokolsky puts women in bubbles. Beautiful women, that is, in floating bubbles. The result is amazing and it is not surprising, considering the artist. The work of Sokolsky spans many year across multiple medium but his work in photography remains simply amazing, up there with the Irving Penn or Richard Avedon’s of the world. His website is a perfectly synchronized display of his artistic ability.
2. The Atlantic WWII Before the war
The Atlantic has started what will be a 20 part gallery of the most grabbing images of the WWII. Starting with events that preceded the war, like the Japanese invasion of China or the Spanish civil war, the first part is a brings us back in a time of turmoil and critical political change. A young Hitler, not yet in power, on his release from prison after his failed coup while a rising Mussolini poses next to his black shirts. Mostly taken for the Library of Congress, these images are a mix of well known and less well known photograph of a period that so both the rises of fascism and photojournalism.
3. The Guardian
Very often, we see the last photograph taken by a photojournalist killed in action. While usually not visually arresting, they contain huge emotional discharge as they represent the last minutes of a the life of the photographer. The Guardian newspaper of UK has taken a slightly different approach by publishing a gallery of photograph that almost got their authored killed. They are all followed by quotes from the photographers themselves, explaining the situation and how closely they saw death that day. This is a not only a remainder of the constant dangerous these journalists face in order to document the world around us, but also how fragile their lives can be. It is also a great why to honor those that have not perished and continue where others have fallen : a tribute to the living.
4. 500 Photographers
Like La Lettre de La Photographie, 500 photographers is a recipient of the Life.com best photography blogs of 2011. The concept is very simple. Every week, for a hundred week ( about 2 years), 5 photographers of talent are depicted. When the total reaches 500, Pieter Wise, a dutch photographer and owner of the Four Eyes Photography and Art gallery will stop forever. What will remain will be a great source for people to discover some of the 500 best photographers in the world. Currently at # 320, the site started in April 5, 2010 and reveal some really great photographer from all over the world.
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