Welcome back! This week’s photo was shot on a very cold weekend in Amsterdam, Holland in November 2008. “Amsterdam Solarized” was shot with a Nikon D80 with an aperture of f/5.6 and a shutter speed of 1/250. I shot the photo in color and digitally converted it to black and white, and then used a method called solarization to further digitally transform the image.
This photo is a bit of a departure from my typical photographic style. While I do edit all of my images with digital technology, most of my images are processed with minimal editing. This photo, however, is a little different. When I sat down to process this photo, I really wanted to create something dynamic. Solarization, which is a process that dates back to the days of traditional film photography and darkroom processing, seemed like the perfect method of achieving such dynamism. For those of you who don’t know, solarization is the reversal of an image’s tone so that black appears white and white appears black. In a traditional darkroom, it is extremely difficult to get consistent results. Digital technology, however, has made the process much more user friendly. With the right photo, solarization can transform a scene into a bold, provocative, and powerful image. While I don’t typically use Photoshop to achieve more involved processes such as this, at times it can be a huge asset in creating the kind of mood and energy desired.
Images like this really make me question the boundary between digital photography and digital art. To me, when an image is over processed to the point that it is unrecognizable, it has moved into the realm of digital art. As such, I would argue that digital art and digital photography are two completely different art forms. Digital photography is the art of capturing a subject and enhancing what was naturally there with digital darkroom tools such as Photoshop. Digital art, however, is the art of capturing what the photographer sees in nature and transforming it into something completely different. I don’t want to compare the quality of the two different art forms, as there is no comparison – they are simply different. With the advancement of technology, the line between the two types of art becomes more and more unclear. Just in writing this blog entry alone, I find myself questioning my own stance on the differences between photography and digital art. However, it is my opinion that there is a definite separation between photography and digital art, no matter how unclear that separation may be. For me, an image such as this remains in the realm of photography, but maybe for you it has crossed the threshold into digital art. Ultimately, it is up to the individual to decide where photography ends and digital art begins.
Tips on solarization: Image selection is extremely critical. It is important to select an image that has great contrast. Also, it is important to select an image that isn’t too busy, as the effect can sometimes make an image become convoluted and difficult to read. Experiment with different images until you find the one that best coincides with the dramatic processing. If you’re interested, here are the steps involved in the solarization process:
1. Select an image with good contrast and open the image in Photoshop
2. Convert the image to black and white. Add contrast if necessary via the Levels or Curves tool.
3. Add a Curves layer. In the Curves dialogue box, select the pencil to draw and modify the curve.
4. While holding the shift button, click in the bottom left hand corner, then the top center, and then the bottom right hand corner of the Curves graph (you can also try the top left, bottom center, and top right). This will form two dotted lines that connect to each of the points that you just selected. You now have a solarized image!
Thank you for reading! Come back next week for more photography!
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