Photography

Section

Illustration Photography

Phone Buddies Lurk and Ooze Out of Screens in Embellished Photos by Andrew Rae and Ruskin Kyle

Dripping blobs of oily black, cosmic haze, and octopus tentacles emerge from the screens of smartphone users on the streets of London. Illustrator Andrew Rae teamed up with street photographer Ruskin Kyle to add some visual flair to people immersed in their electronic devices. Some of the protagonists are simply standing on the street using their phones, while other have paired their device usage with competing activities like dog-walking and ramen-eating.

“I always go for a walk on Hampstead Heath in the mornings for inspiration and I found myself nearly bumping into people on their phones,” Rae tells Colossal. Because many people in the area also are out with their dogs, “it started me thinking about the phones as if they are little pets or creatures that they are carrying in their hands.”

Rae shares that the idea percolated over time, and in conversation with his photographer friend, the pair realized the potential in the concept. Initially, Rae tried to completely replace the phones with illustrations, but he then decided to incorporate the physical technology as the source, or a part of, of the imagined creatures. In developing each character, Rae worked from some tried-and-true shapes and concepts from his larger illustration practice, and let each one develop organically.

To keep up with new embellishments of tech-absorbed passersby, follow Andrew Rae on Instagram and see more of Ruskin Kyle’s street photography on the platform as well. Just don’t bump into a stranger while you scroll through! (via My Modern Met)

Photography Science

‘Sea-Thru’ Allows Scientists to Accurately Recalibrate the True Colors of Sea Life

Two researchers at the University of Haifa have developed Sea-Thru, an algorithmic method for color-correcting underwater images. The tool allows scientists—and laypeople—to understand and contextualize the “true” colors of aquatic phenomena like fish, coral, and anemones. Sea-Thru was developed by Derya Akkaynak and Tali Treibitz and is a more accurate re-reading of colors, rather than editing tones artificially in Photoshop.

In the paper’s abstract, the duo explain that the way colors come through underwater is not uniform (which is why the aforementioned Photoshop doctoring isn’t accurate). Rather, the distance from the lens and the reflectivity of the captured object determines how its colors appear. So, the way sand appears is differently modulated by the water than, say the scales on a fish passing above the sand. Sea-Thru uses an algorithm to accurately and efficiently adjust images taken underwater.

See the algorithm in action in the video below from Scientific American, and read Akkaynak and Treibitz’s full paper here. (via PetaPixel)

Art Photography

Moments of Isolation and Belonging Explored in Surreal Composite Photographs by May Parlar

All images © May Parlar, shared with permission of the artist

Photographer May Parlar punctuates open landscapes with colorful elements like masses of balloons and accessories separated from human wearers. Her work reflects on themes of belonging and alienation, Parlar tells Colossal, and she seeks to “explore the human condition through a feminist perspective.”

To build her fanciful scenes, Parlar explains that she layers frames to build composite images rather than manipulating the content itself. “I work across different mediums such as photography, film, performance art, sculpture, installation, and landscape art; and all of which gets merged in the end and put together with a glue that for me is the camera”. The artist first was first drawn to photography and filmmaking during her architecture and design schooling in the U.K.

Parlar describes herself as a global nomad, and is currently based in Berlin. See more of her imaginative images on Instagram, and purchase limited edition prints on Saatchi Art. (via Tu Recepcja)

Art Photography

Large-Scale Photographic Installations by Olivier Lovey Blur Distinctions Between Two and Three Dimensions

“Anachronie”, all images © Olivier Lovey and shared with permission of the artist

Olivier Lovey creates large-scale tricks of the eye by installing photographs in-line with their surroundings. The series, Miroirs aux alouettes, “confuses the real and its double. I question the limits of image and representation,” Lovey explains. “I revisit the notion of perspective, trompe l’oeil and mise en abyme“. Lovey creates his illusions both in gallery settings as well as outdoors. “Anachronie” turns a roadside billboard into a reflection of the surrounding mountains, while “Pasteboard” turns a building into a hollow facade of itself. See more of the Swiss artist’s multi-media work on his website and Instagram. If you enjoy Lovey’s work, also check out Chris Engman’s immersive photograph installations. (via Colossal Submissions)

“Pasteboard”

“The Lost Dimension”

“The Beyond”

“The Error”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Olivier Lovey (@olivierlovey) on Feb 6, 2019 at 3:42pm PST

“The Mirror”

“While Waiting for the Beach”

“Ordinary Madness”

Design Photography

Marmalade Type: Colorfully Illuminated Letters Created with Photographic Interference

Graphic designer, artist, and photographer Rus Khasanov (previously) plays with color and perception in a new alphabetical series called Marmalade Type. “This is a bright and colorful typography captured with camera,” Khasanov clarifies in a brief statement on the project. “There is not a drop of any paint here only the phenomenon of interference.” (Learn more about birefringence here).The resulting letters appear to pop off the page as shimmering multi-colored blobs. Explore the full series on Behance, and see more of the multi-disciplinary creative’s work on Instagram and Vimeo.

Photography

Powerful Portraits of Enormous Ocean Waves by Luke Shadbolt

“Maelstrom 9” (2016)

Luke Shadbolt captures the roiling majesty of ocean waves in his large-scale aquatic photographs. Printed at 150 x 100 cm (nearly 6 feet by 3.3 feet), the color and black-and-white images show the dramatic shapes and dynamic textures of open water when agitated by major weather events.

In a statement on the artist’s website, the Maelstrom series is described as “a cursory glimpse of the exchange, cycle and balance of power fundamental to the functioning of our planet and its oceans… Maelstrom encourages the viewer to reflect upon our own naivety and place as a species within the greater natural balance of power.”

The Acquiesce the Front series similarly seeks to draw connections between the human experience and our natural environment. “The physical manifestations portrayed are a deft reflection of those storms that are implicit to the human condition,” and our individual frailty in the face of big events. Yet Shadbolt finds hope in the potential “to learn and grow from these events. While we may be powerless to stop the storm from approaching, we can work to redirect the flood.”

Shadbolt is represented by Michael Reid Gallery in Sydney and Berlin. The Sydney-based photographer and creative director tells Colossal that he is currently in the process of opening a studio in New York City. You can explore more of his dramatic photographs on Instagram and Facebook.

“Acquiesce 5” (2017)

“Acquiesce 2” (2017)

“Maelstrom 1” (2016)

“Maelstrom 3” (2016)

“Maelstrom 5” (2016)

“North Avoca 1” (2016)

“Maelstrom 4” (2016)

“Maelstrom 8” (2016)

Photography Science

Spectacular Mushrooms and Fungi Documented by Photographer Alison Pollack

Cookeina sulcipes, Tropical Goblet. Location: Colombia

Photographer Alison Pollack’s subject of choice is usually hiding in plain sight. To find the minuscule but magnificent fungi and Myxomycetes that she shares on @marin_mushrooms, Pollack drops down to hands and knees with a magnifying glass. “The smaller they are, the more challenging they are to photograph, but I absolutely love the challenge,” Pollack tells Colossal. “My goal is to show people the beauty of these tiny treasures that are all around the forest but barely visible unless you look very very closely.”

Pollack, who is a mathematician by training and “computer geek” by trade (she is now retired from an environmental consulting career), relishes the technical and creative challenges of being a self-taught photographer. She seeks to create compelling artistic beauty with her images while also depicting scientific details in sharp focus. Pollack explains that focus stacking allows her to capture the depth and texture of her small subjects, sometimes incorporating upwards of one hundred photos to create a single image.

To increase the breadth and depth of her discoveries, Pollack travels nationally—and sometimes abroad—to find more fungi and Myxomycetes during her native California’s dry season. She also invests in relationships with other mushroomers, attending weekend gatherings to learn from her peers. “I would love to be able to travel more to different parts of the world to look for and photograph mushrooms and myxos,” Pollack tells Colossal. “Australia and New Zealand, and tropical regions, have mushrooms and myxos that really call to me, and I hope to be able to travel to those areas some day. But every walk in my local woods is a mycelial adventure!”

You can explore more of Pollack’s previous fungi finds on Colossal and follow along with her latest discoveries via Instagram. Pollack also offers prints of her photographs; if interested, contact her on Instagram as well.

Didymium squamulosum. Location: Mt Tamalpais, CA. Composite photo to show detail on both the stipe and cap with sporotheca.

Ascocoryne sarcoides and Trichia. Location: Trout Lake, WA

Willkommlangea reticulata. Location: Fairbanks, AK

Phillipsia domingensis. Location: Colombia

Physarum. Location: Fairbanks, AK

Crepidotus crocophyllus. Location: Pt Reyes, CA

Physarum. Location: Mt Tamalpais, CA

Leocarpus fragilis. Location: Fairbanks, AK

Mycena strobilinoidea and Clavulina. Location: Gifford Pinchot State Park, PA