#42-43 January - February 2014

ISSN: 2285-5734

Challenge Creativity

Andrei Becheru
Atelier Allkimik
Argentik

Jane Long

Summary

42-43 January - February 2014

7 | Editorial
8 | Events
The 7th Generation of Fotopoetica
Wildlife Photographer of the Year

12 | Photo Books
Ancient Trees: Portraits of Time
Photography: A Cultural History

(4th Edition)

54 | Watch & Learn

94 | On SPOT
106 | PhoneCam Project
112 | Guy Tal on photography
Art in Times of Click Baiting

Inside surrealist photography

58 | Photo populis
70 | Project4all
ARGENTIK

82 | Journey = Photography
Khan Tengri on my own

Our World

18 | Portfolio
Andrei Becheru
Jane Long
Atelier Allkimik

Senior Editor: Cristina int

(cristina.tinta@foto4all.ro)
Editors: Cristian Bassa, Andrei Baciu,
Emilian Chiril, Ana Neaca, Dorin Bofan
Contributors: Bence Makkai, Guy Tal,
Mirela Momanu-On Spot
Translators: Irina Dinescu
Graphic concept: studio seven (www.studioseven.ro)
DTP: Ilie Popa (ilie.popa@gmail.com)
Cover photo: Jane Long
Marketing: Cristina int
Online editor: Ionu Dorneanu
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The authors of each article shall be liable for the
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according to the applicable law. The property of
each image and article published by our magazine
belongs to the authors and to FOTO4all.ro.
e-mail: publish@foto4all.ro
FOTO4ALL.ro 20122015

Editorial

All the little

things...
Weve often wondered ourselves or asked people
in our interviews or articles what makes a good
photograph. Once, somebody at first joked and
answered a good photographer. And yes, he was
right: a good photographer makes a good photograph.
But then again, we are stuck with this new question:
And what makes a good photographer?
Well, if you think about it...a lot of things. From being
conscious about the light to curiosity, being a good
observer and having a discipline while shooting, being
familiar to his equipment, having a strong sense of
wonder, enjoying art in all of its forms, having a good
sense of anticipation, the joy of pressing that shutter
and playing around, an eye for detail, the ability
of blending in, a somewhat voyeuristic tendency,
knowing to send emotion further on-to the viewers,
being able to simplify scenes, being honest to his
own art and images, emotional connection to his
subjects-empathizing and experiencing life and the
world around and having a story to share through
images, finding that something which caught his
attention and ley himself absorbed in it... All those
little things that we rarely think about but they have
a huge input for a photographers work.
Last, but not least... patience and perseverance.
Understanding that he might have to return to a
certain location and try again, be willing to admit he
is not happy with a series of photos and retrying, being
committed to the photographic results he desires.
And of course, getting out of the comfort zone... Its
what helps all of us grow.

Cristina int
Editor-in-Chief
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Events

Events
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Alexandra Anton

Anastasia Dumitrescu

Cristina Mina Dalea

Dana Borcea

Iris Tusa

Toni Marinescu

The 7th Generation of Fotopoetica

The exhibition can be visited between the 4th and the 28th of February at the Carturesti
Verona Library in Bucharest and the images displayed will take you to timeless places from
which the conventional and epic were removed, imposing visual vibrations that induce
particular photographic expressions.
The opening takes place on the 4th of February, 19:00.

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Events

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Encounter the rich array of wildlife on our planet in

this world-renowned photography exhibition from
the Natural History Museum in London, UK.
Celebrating its 50th year in 2014, Wildlife
Photographer of the Year provides a global showcase
of extraordinary images celebrating the drama,

Douglas Seifert, USA

Travelling companions
Swimming in front of this dugong
in the Red Sea are juvenile golden
trevallies, riding the pressure
waves created by its nose. They use
the great mammal as protection
from predators and also feed on
any small creatures it disturbs. The
dugong is a tranquil animal, and
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beauty and splendour of the natural world with

astonishing, creative and sometimes humorous
wildlife photography.
The exhibition ends on the 22nd of February.
Some of the images:

it used to be an easy target for

hunters - its closest modern relative,
Steller's sea cow, was hunted
to extinction in the eighteenth
century. These days, it's more at risk
from the loss of its seagrass habitat
and from encounters with boats
and fishing nets. Though dugongs
are slow-moving, this simple
portrait required a certain amount

of physical exertion, as Douglas,

wearing full scuba gear, had to
position himself ahead of the
dugong, while not letting bubbles
spoil the simple scene or scare
the animal. 'I had pre-conceived
this image,' says Douglas, 'and
knew when the shutter clicked
that I'd captured the intimate
portrait I was after.'

Bence Mt, Hungary

Herons in time and space
Bence had set up his hide to
overlook Lake Csaj in Kiskunsg
National Park, Hungary. He had a
specific image in mind and had
planned to use both artificial and
natural light. His subject was the
shy grey heron. To overcome the
various technological challenges
of a night-time shot, he had built
two timing devices for his camera
to execute the single exposure.
One device moved the focus,
while the other adjusted the
aperture within a single frame,
so both the herons and the stars
were in focus. It took 74 nights
in the hide before the conditions
were right and it all came
together. The surface of the lake
was still, reflecting the stars, and
the sky was clear and motionless.
Just after midnight, the seven

stars of the Plough (part of the

Ursa Major constellation) slid
into position above the glow of a
distant town. Bence took the shot,
with both the stars and herons
sharp, but with traces of the
birds movement leaving ghostly

impressions against the sky.

Blending technology and passion
in a masterful manner, Bence had
finally created a picture that he
had planned for many years of
herons imprinting their images in
time and space.

Michael 'Nick' Nichols, USA

The last great picture
Nick set out to create an
archetypal image that captured
the essence of lions in a time
long gone, before they were under
such threat. The Vumbi pride in
Tanzanias Serengeti National
Park are a formidable and
spectacularly co-operative team,
Nick says. Here the five females
lie at rest with their cubs on a
kopje (a rocky outcrop). Shortly
before he took the shot, they had
attacked and driven off one of
the prides two males. Now they
were lying close together, calmly
sleeping. They were used to Nicks
presenceas hed been following
them for nearly six months, so
he could position his vehicle
close to the kopje. He framed

the vista with the plains beyond

and the dramatic late afternoon
sky above. He photographed the
lions in infrared, which he says
cuts through the dust and haze,
transforms the light and turns the
moment into something primal,

biblical almost. The chosen

picture of lions in Africa is part
flashback, part fantasy. Nick got to
know and love the Vumbi pride. A
few months later, he heard they
had ventured outside the park and
three females had been killed.
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Photo book

Photo book
Ancient Trees: Portraits of Time
by Beth Moon

Captivating black-and-white photographs of

the worlds most majestic ancient trees.
Beth Moons fourteen-year quest to
photograph ancient trees has taken her across
the United States, Europe, Asia, the Middle
East, and Africa. Some of her subjects grow in
isolation, on remote mountainsides, private
estates, or nature preserves; others maintain
a proud, though often precarious, existence in
the midst of civilization. All, however, share a
mysterious beauty perfected by age and the
power to connect us to a sense of time and
nature much greater than ourselves. It is this
beauty, and this power, that Moon captures in
her remarkable photographs.
This handsome volume presents nearly
seventy of Moons finest tree portraits as
full-page duotone plates. The pictured trees
include the tangled, hollow-trunked yews
some more than a thousand years oldthat
grow in English churchyards; the baobabs
of Madagascar, called upside-down trees
because of the curious disproportion of their
giant trunks and modest branches; and the
fantastical dragons-blood trees, red-sapped
and umbrella-shaped, that grow only on the
island of Socotra, off the Horn of Africa.
Moons narrative captions describe the
natural and cultural history of each individual
tree, while Todd Forrest, vice president for
horticulture and living collections at The New
York Botanical Garden, provides a concise
introduction to the biology and preservation
of ancient trees. An essay by the critic Steven
Brown defines Moons unique place in a
tradition of tree photography extending from
William Henry Fox Talbot to Sally Mann, and
explores the challenges and potential of the
tree as a subject for art.
source: amazon.com

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Photo book

Photo book

Photography: A Cultural History (4th Edition)

Our World

by Mary Warner Marien

by Mary Oliver (Author) and Molly

Malone Cook (Photographer)
Mary Oliver, winner of the Pulitzer Prize
for poetry, is one of the most celebrated
poets in America. Molly Malone Cook,
who died in 2005, was Olivers partner
for many years, a pioneer gallery owner
and photographer. Our World weaves
forty-nine of Cooks photographs and
selections from her journals with Olivers
extended writings, both reminiscence
and reflection, in prose and in poetry.
The result is an intimate revelation of
their lives and art.
Within the art world, Molly Malone
Cook made her reputation as an early
advocate of photography as an art form;
she was a champion of the work of
now-famous photographers, including
Edward Steichen, Eugene Atget, Berenice
Abbott, Minor White, Ansel Adams, Harry
Callahan, and W. Eugene Smith. There
are famous faces here as well, captured
by Cooks camera, among them Walker
Evans, Robert Motherwell and Henry
Geldzahler, the first curator of twentiethcentury art at the Metropolitan Museum.

A richer, more kaleidoscopic account of the history

of photography
Incorporating the latest research and international
uses of photography, Photography: A Cultural
History, 4/e surveys the history of photography in
such a way that students can gauge the mediums
multifold developments and see the historical
and cultural contexts in which photographers
lived and worked. Mary Mariens comprehensive
survey shows how photography has sharpened, if
not altered forever, our perception of the world. It
provides a unique focus on contemporary photobased work and electronic media.
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The book was written to introduce students to

photography, requiring no previous technical
knowledge of photography. The fourth edition
has been revised to include new material and
to expand topics that have received recent
scholarly and public attention. Material on the
history of photography in China, ranging from
the nineteenth century to the present, has been
added throughout the new edition. For the first
time, adopting instructors may receive access to
a PowerPoint set containing many images from
the book.

Cook and Oliver also lived among

writers, and Cook caught several on
film, including Lorraine Hansberry and
Norman Mailer. Other artists and dozens
of wonderful characters and scenes are
also immortalized by Cooks unfailing
eye for telling detail and composition.
Oliver writes of Cooks work, the people
they knew, and the places they visited or
lived. The poets beautiful text captures
not only the vivifying qualities of her
partners work, but the texture of their
shared world. In Mary Olivers words, Cook
taught the beginner poet to see, with
searching attention and compassion.

source: amazon.com

source: amazon.com
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Portfolio

ANDREI BECHERU
-an interview by Cristina int

C..: You first chose drawing and painting as means

of expression. Tell us a little about yourself and how
photography came into your life.
A.B.: Well, I did not choose drawing and painting, I
couldnt say that in a context in which I had any
choice, only that I loved drawing as a kid. I was born
in Bucharest, in 1984. There are a few drawings my
mother keeps in a folder. I stumbled on them a few
years ago - some of them I remembered, but there
was one in particular I did not, it was from the times
I was in kindergarten, I think the theme was My
Neighborhood, and the actual drawing was nothing
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more than a grey colour wash; at that time I was living

in Berceni and opposite the building we lived in there
was, and still is, a ten-storey building, grey of course.
I studied industrial design at the National University
of Art and one of the subjects was graphic design
in which I frequently used photographs for various
themes, so I occasionally used a digital camera. I did
not afford to buy one and I usually borrowed from
friends. In school I had a film photography course,
but I did not care much for the subject, I have no
idea why.
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After graduation, that was in 2008, I made graphical

work for certain software programs, and at one point
I stopped drawing. It was not gradual, but sudden.
I made sketches when my work demanded it, but
I lost all enthusiasm for drawing. I did not know
how long this would take, a pretty confusing period
followed. Gradually I started to become interested
in photography, I used to make pictures and this
was a more serious undertaking. In practice, I did
not have good results, so I used to spend my time
looking at a variety of images, I had found a refuge.
C..: What is photography to you?
A.B.: I began to make pictures 6 years ago, the
idea in itself fascinated me, I simply made pictures
because this came natural to me in the meantime
I had resumed drawing and painting, I think that it
is possible that my interest in photography had, say,
a therapeutic effect. But the need to put my ideas
and the way I perceive certain things around me in
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photography were considerably more strong then

my use of drawing and painting, as it is easier for
me to use images than words.
C..: Why film photography? Does it have more
substance, is it more alive and more poetic?
A.B.: Yes, I think it has more feeling, even at a chemical
level, because film is a sort of living matter. The
result is often unpredictable, in a good sense, there
are always surprises in the way it captures light and
colour. My first camera was a digital camera. I liked
the look of film, but I lacked the discipline. When
you shoot on film you lose the habit of seeing the
photograph the instant you make it and this counts
a lot, but this is how you maintain your focus. With
digital photography I was at a standstill, at least at
the beginning it was not working for me. At some
point a friend of mine lent me a Canon film camera
for a week. I shot no more than two rolls of film at
the time.
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After I saw the results on the scanned negatives

I realized that they had no connection with the
pictures I had made with the digital camera, that
is the approach was totally different. The transition
from digital to film was gradual. Now I also use a
digital camera, you cannot ignore its utility.
C..: You shoot both in color and bw, but do you have
a preference for one or another?
A.B.: Yes, I work with both and I dont have
preferences, I dont say to myself today I will make
colour photographs, usually your subject dictates
the style and not always straightforward. In the
beginning I was afraid to develop B&W film. It took
me some time until I found a form of developing as
neutral as possible, in other words to strike a balance
in terms of exposure, contrast and shadow details. I
rarely use a film according to the sensibility written
on the box, for technical reasons, shorter times
of exposure, or I look for a certain aesthetics, and
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when I say this I am referring to granulation. In any

case, the entire process is fascinating! I used to take
3-4 film rolls with me and I went strolling around
town, returned with them exposed and after only
an hour or so after I had developed them and I was
able to see the results on the negatives. So, from
this point of view it was not such a slow process. I
think that this technical perspective adds up to my
affinity with B&W photography. On the other hand,
my approach is always instinctive. I love colour
photography, as done by Ernst Hass and Saul Leiter.
In September last year I found this book by chance,
in a library in Istanbul, All The World In Their Faces.
It is a fantastic album 50 years of history in colour
images, Anatolia photographed and documented by
Ara Guler. Until recently, I was familiar with his black
and white images, among other works the city of
Istanbul photographed by him that now has almost
disappeared -we are walking in the dead body of
Istanbul as he says.
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C..: Photographers that influenced you along the way

and why.
A.B.: The list can be fairly long, but in principle there
are images that I often return to, the photography
of Ed van der Elsken had a huge influence on me,
Eugne Atget in terms of documentary photography,
Claudine Doury, Vanessa Winship with the project
Black Sea: Between Chronicle and Fiction, an
astounding B&W series about the ballet of Alexey
Brodovitch, Africa photographed by Sebastiao
Salgado, Leonard Freed (especially with Made in
Germany), the Magnum Photos generation, Nan
Goldin, Moriyama.
C..: What inspires you? Where do you think creativity
comes from?
A.B.: I think that the most important thing is
balance, to preserve your creativity and energy. I am
not interested in finding out where creativity comes
from.
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C..: Music, books and films that you listen to, read
and watch.
A.B.: Lately I have been listening to lafur Arnalds
and David Lynchs music, the album The Big Dream,
and I saw a very cool documentary about the
Canadian tour of the former band The White Stripes.
I have been reading Haruki Murakami for some
time, I started randomly with a book and I couldnt
stop. In terms of films, I want to return to La Jete,
directed by Chris Marker- its a film made up almost
entirely by photographs.
C..: Do you think images have the power to define
our ideas about the world (history, beauty, truth etc.)?
And if so be the case is the photographer and not the
philosopher now king? And what do you think should
the role of the photographer be?
A.B.: To answer the last question, it would be too early
for me to reach a conclusion, besides, you usually
dont take pictures because you think you have a role.
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From my own perspective, at the moment Im
interested in long documentary projects and what it
means to work on a subject for a long time. In 2010,
I started photographing a commuter train route,
from South-West Dobrogea, as part of a long-term
documentary photography project that includes this
area. This same route is used for cereal shipment,
being a vast farming area. The railway line extends
from Medgidia to Negru-Voda, close to the Bulgarian
border. An image triggered this idea of a series. I was
driving and on my left, over a field of wheat, I saw
a single passenger train car moving. The contrast of
colours at that time of day was very strong. It was
summer, overcast, a green hills in the horizon crossed
by this train car, and in the foreground the bright
yellow field of wheat. The train was built in 1924
and today they keep only the body adapted to a truck
engine. Inside there were a few seats divided in two
compartments with a constant strong smell of diesel
oil, the noise of the engine was very obtrusive, and in
wintertime they had no heating. After my first journey
on the Negru Voda-Medgidia train I found everything
I saw very interesting and I returned several times.
The line crossed several villages. There were locals
waking up at 4 in the morning and heading to work
on this train to Medgidia. I took photographs in this
interval and in various seasons, until 2012. At that
time I had a 9-to-5 job, and I took these pictures
mainly on the weekends. Last year in autumn I
wanted to make another journey on this train, but I
found out that the railway authorities had given up
passenger transportation on this line.
C..: Where do you think is photographic art heading?
We now have photographers all over the place,
everybody is taking pictures, we passed the days when
magazines really meant something and the best writers
and photographers worked for them, when it existed
a community that everybody wanted to be a part of.
Things are not quite the same. What is your opinion
on this subject?
A.B.: There wasnt a time without restrictions;
but now there is also a sense of freedom, in
the sense that self-publishing, space of display,
multimedia storytelling are available. I recently
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saw a presentation about the concept of slow-TV
developed by a Norwegian television in a 7-hour
long program in which they mounted a recording
camera on board of a locomotive to film for 7 hours
a railway lines through the mountains. Imagine
someone sitting in his/her armchair which he/she
barely leaves to go to the toilet, I forgot to mention
there are no commercial breaks, and in the end when
the train ends its journey, after 7 hours of viewing,
the viewer stands up from his armchair and says
something like: I forgot I was in my living room, only
now I realize it it sounds a little scary, doesnt it?
C..: What about Romanian photography? Where are
we at? How far behind? Why do we know so little about
the photographers before us, how does the situation
look at the present time and where do you think we will
stand in the future?
A.B.: How much behind are we? How much does it
help to extend the comparison at a general level.
Maybe many will contradict me by saying that
photography is a competitive field, but I dont see
how we can talk about progress if all we do is think
that we are behind, instead of focusing on our own
ideas. I have seen a lot of good things lately, people
with authentic ideas and interesting projects, I
wouldnt worry about that.
C..: Photographic resolutions for 2015?
A.B.: In a few words, street photography as always,
ideas for new projects and ongoing projects last
year I began documenting the project Light for
Romania this project aims to locate schools and
villages in Romania without electricity and to obtain
funds from donations and sponsorships to supply
alternative solar energy.
C..: Any advice for aspiring photographers? What is
the most important thing they should consider when
taking up photography?
A.B.: My experience in the field is fairly limited and I
am not sure that I can find only one missing part, but
when you are taking up photography it is important
to be patient with yourself, to follow your instinct
and not to force the process.
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Jane Long
-an interview by Cristina int

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C.T.: What is photography to you and how did you begin

doing it? Tell us a little about yourself.
J.L.: My interest in photography began as an
extension of my photo manipulation work. I started
working with Photoshop over 20 years ago, mainly
using other people's stock images. Eventually I
wanted more control over the stock I used; objects
or scenes I couldn't source and control of the
copyright of images. Then friends started asking
me to shoot for them and I started to get a better
handle on using the camera, lighting and posing.
Eventually I bought my first DSLR and decided to
start shifting the focus of my business from graphic
design to photography.

C.T.: "Dancing with Costic" is the name of these restored

series. Why dancing? You feel like you added a certain
dynamism and life to those images?
J.L.: In many ways I see this series as a collaboration
between three people, myself, Costic Acsinte
and Cezar Popescu, the curator of the Costic
Acsinte Archive. Whilst the reference to "dancing"
is consistent with the sense of what I wanted to
create for these images, it's more about combining
the talents ("dance steps") of multiple people to
create a new piece (a new "dance").

C.T.: How did you come across the Costic Acsinte

Archive?
J.L.: The Dancing with Costic series initially came
about when I decided to brush up on my retouching
skills. After finding the Costic Acsinte Archive on
Flickr I became fascinated with the images and

C.T.: What are the people in these images to you? What

stories do you know and do you imagine about them?
J.L.: I don't know the stories of most of the people
in Mr Ascinte's work but in my mind they became
characters in tales of my own invention...star
crossed lovers, a girl waiting for her lover to come

their subjects. I wanted to bring them to life but I

also wanted to give them a story.

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home, boys sharing a fantasy, innocent children with

a little hint of something dark. Because of the nature
of photography when the original images were
created, many of the people have static, somber
poses, which I don't think necessarily reflects their
personalities. Certainly these people laughed
and loved and dreamed and that's what I want to
imagine for them.
C.T.: What process did you go through when you
manipulated Costic's photos?
J.L.: First I clean and restore the original image in
black and white. Mainly using the healing brush at a
very small size. Adjust contrast as required and work
out how to fix really badly damaged areas. Things
like copying and pasting a foot and then flipping
it to suit and in one case I brought in patches of
skin from a completely different image where it was
impossible to restore the original. Then a general
dodge and burn to give the image more depth.
Then I start with the skin, masking out the areas that
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I need. Most of the colouring is done in two layers,

one set to colour mode, one set to soft light. In tricky
areas like hair, I'll also have two additional sets of
layers, one that only affects highlights, one that only
affects shadows (using blend if). Sometimes I'll take
a pattern or texture from another image to colour
areas. The colouring for the tapestry top on the
stool in Innocence was from a photo of a box with a
tapestry lid I'd stumbled across in an antique store.
Once I'm happy with the main characters I start
looking at suitable backgrounds and complimentary
pieces, often shooting these to fit. I try to match
the lighting and perspective of the original image.
It's been very frustrating wanting green grass on a
cloudy day when we haven't had rain for months
and I live in a sunny climate!
C.T.: There has always been these debate whether
collages/digital art continue to be photographs or not.
What is your opinion on that?
J.L.: For the most part I try to stay out of it. I create
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what I like and what I feel and hope that what I

produce is something people relate to. I would
however say that a full range of photography skills
is still required to produce these images as well
as art and design principles. It's a hybrid of many
things. Maybe it doesn't need to be categorized as
photography or painting or collage. Maybe it's just
art and you like it or you don't.
C.T.: What is your favourite "Dancing with Costic" shot
and why?
J.L.: Probably Innocence as the little girl just jumped
out at me as soon as I saw her. It took me a while to
develop the right idea for her and I feel that this one
has a good mix of "light" and "dark". Plus it has a few
of my favourite things in it, like the view from my
favourite beach and our (short-lived) goldfish Doris!
Whimsy Brothers is also a favourite as I had a really
strong idea of what I wanted it to look like and the
original image was very difficult to restore as it was
printed on a textured stock.
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C.T.: What inspires you, Jane?

J.L.: I follow lots of other photographers and artists
but I'm also inspired by music, particularly songs
that tell a story. Sometimes I'm inspired by a scene
or a prop but lately I've been trying to be a little
bolder in looking internally for inspiration, putting
my feelings into a visual context and being prepared
to put that into a public forum. I'm a fairly private
person so I usually prefer to let people come up
with their own interpretation rather than tell them
what to think!
C.T.: What kind of music do you listen to, what books do
you read and what films you enjoy watching?
J.L.: I have a rather eclectic music collection,
from classical, to jazz, pop, rock and heavy metal!
Mostly contemporary rock or alternative. Bands like
Marianas Trench, 30 Seconds to Mars. I'm currently
working on a triptych based around an old Kate
Bush song.
I read a lot, mainly historical fantasy and detective
39 foto4all.ro

Portfolio

novels. I love reading stories based around true history.

As to films I'm fairly mainstream. I love lush imagery
like Memoirs of a Geisha but equally I love action
movies, which is really odd as I'm a total pacifist!
C.T.: Do you have any favorite photographers? Who and why?
J.L.: There are a lot of people whose work I find
inspiring. Alexia Sinclair, Maggie Taylor, Brooke
Shaden, Kirsty Mitchell, Jeremy Cowart, Logan Zillmer,
Rod Woodcox to name a few. I love photography
with a surreal element. Something that surprises
me. I also love lush colours and detail.
C.T.: How would you describe your images?
J.L.: I'm never really satisfied with an image straight
out of camera. Post production is an essential part
of the process for me. I like there to be ambiguity in
my images. Things that are almost real or not quite
right. I love rich colours but I want the underlying
feeling to be one of "quiet" or maybe introspection.
foto4all.ro 40

Portfolio

C.T.: Any other words you would like to say to our

readers?
J.L.: Firstly I'd like to thank the Romanian
community. The support for this project has been
overwhelming and I'm incredibly humbled by the
response I've had. What I do is not to everyone's
taste but I think most people have seen it for what
it is, a celebration of Costic Ascinte's work and the
people he photographed as well as a piece of my
imagination.
In terms of advice I'd give others wanting to produce
digital art I'd say there's no such thing as a short cut.
These images took many hours to create, not just in
the technical aspect but in the concept creation and
development and in trying lots of things that didn't
work before finding the ones that did. Don't force it,
if it's not working, put it away and start something
else. The right idea will come along eventually and
you'll know when it's right.
41 foto4all.ro

About Jane Long

Photographer and digital artist Jane Long was born
in Melbourne, Australia in 1970. Currently based in
Brisbane, Australia, she combines photography and
photomanipulation to create slightly surreal images
that straddle the line between reality and fantasy.
Long has spent most of her career as a graphic designer,
entering the industry over 20 years ago and establishing
her own studio in 1996. Completely self-taught, she has
worked with Photoshop since 1994, both commercially
and for personal work.
foto4all.ro 42

She developed an interest in photography as an

extension of her personal photomanipulation work,
wanting more control over the stock images she was
using, both from a creative and copyright point of view,
and progressing to a love of photography in general.
Initially working with friends and family, she used an
old instamatic or borrowed equipment for several years
until her first DSLR purchase a little over two years
ago. Since then she has delved wholeheartedly into
photography, concentrating on conceptual portraiture.
However digital art remains a passion and forms an
integral part of her work.

Deciding to move into the fine art market in April

2014, her first series Self-Preservation has received
several accolades including several images being listed
as finalists for the Macquarie Photography Prize and
Cured being announced as a semi-finalist for the
Moran Photographic Prize.
Her next series Dancing with Costic shot her
to international exposure with features on over
40 prominent photography and general interest
websites including ABC News US, Daily Mail UK, Daily
Mail Australia, SLR Lounge, PetaPixel, Bored Panda
and BuzzFeed as well as a number of photography

magazines and Romanian TV!

She is currently continuing her work on the Dancing
with Costic series as well as a new series with details
to be announced shortly.

Jane Long photography

101 Park Rd Wooloowin Qld Australia 4030
ph: +617 3857 5737
info@janelong.com.au
www.janelong.com.au
www.facebook.com/janelongphotography
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Portfolio

Portfolio

Atelier ALLKIMIK
-an interview with tefan Dinu by Cristian Bassa

Allkimik is Alex Spineanu and tefan Dinu. Together

they are part of a analog photo studio experimenting
with Daguerreotype, Albumen prints, Cibachrome,
Stereograph, Tri-color Gum prints alongside
Ambrotypes and more common 35mm film works.
If you do not know what half of those terms mean,
feel free tovisit them in Bucharest and have a live
chat. Alsocheck them out online atallkimik.ro.
foto4all.ro 44

C.B.: In a world thats hungry for new technologies and

in the megapixel race youve gone back to the past to
do photos. Why is that?
Allkimik (tefan Dinu on behalf of) : The 'Atelier
Allkimik' project belongs in a well documented
trend in photography known as antiquarian avantgarde, which is centred on the rediscovery and
application of pioneering photographic processes.
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Portfolio

Portfolio

foto4all.ro 46

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Portfolio

Portfolio

This trend arose out of a reaction to pure

conceptualism, which ignores aesthetics in favour
of intellectual games, and was amplified by the
advent of digital photography and the subsequent
disappearance of the photographic object.

development must be completed while the plate is

still wet. Although the whole process requires plenty
of dexterity, the main challenge is the continuous
maintenance of all the chemicals involved, especially
the silver nitrate bath.

C.B.: Give us some details on how the ambrotype

process works and what are the biggest challenges.
A: The wetplate collodion process involves the
coating of a support material, usually glass or metal
plates, with photosensitive silver nitrate suspended
in a colloidal solution. The main difficulty, which
ultimately led to the disappearance of the technique
for a nearly a century, is the requirement that the entire
process, from sensitising the plate to development
and fixing, take place within minutes of the exposure.
The plate is prepared right before exposure and the

C.B.: Can you do any outside photography of this type?

How is the setup there? (referitor la electric castle,
streetdelivery....etc)
A: To make ambrotypes outside the workshop, a
simpler version of the workshop must be on hand,
including a camera obscura in which to prepare and
develop the plate. Although Allkimik has ventured
outside the workshop in the past, 2014 was the
breakout year for projects in the field. Highlights
include our backstage portraits of the artists
performing at Electric Castle festival, the on-set

foto4all.ro 48

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Portfolio

documenting of the Romanian film Aferim, which

will be released later this year, and our independent
project aimed at documenting notable sights from
our hometown, Bucharest. For the latter we are
planning on launching a crowdfunding campaign.

in which they render the image. Regarding camera

size, ambrotypes can be created in cameras ranging
from pocket-size to truck-size. In fact, we ourselves
have built a mammoth-sized camera, after a couple
of visits to the local hardware store.

C.B.: If someone was to ask you what hardware do you

use in Allkimik what would be your answer?
A: The ambrotype process was the main photographic
technique of the half-century between 1850 and
1900, yet very few cameras from that era have
survived, due to their all-wood construction and the
moisture produced by the wet plates they housed.
The lenses from that period are the most suited for
the process thanks to their lack of UV treatment,
which shortens exposure times, and the unique way

C.B.: Speaking of Allkimik Alex Spineanu and yourself

are the people working there: how did this Allkimik
concept came up?
A: Both allkimists have experimented with various
alternative techniques before the official opening
of atelier Allkimik. However, it is a huge difference
between experimenting with various techniques
privately and offering them as products for the
general public.

foto4all.ro 50

51 foto4all.ro

C.B.: You organize weekly meeting with portfolio

showcases, movies and other activities. Tell us more
on the activities we can expect from Allkimik.
A: From the outset, the space in which atelier
Allkimik is located functions as an offline social
networking platform dedicated to photography
aficionados, which we named Fotohub. Here we
hosted various events related to photography,
from seminars to projection nights, contests, and
demonstrations, not all of which were organized by
us. Basically, Fotohub is our way of encouraging the
foto4all.ro 52

emergence of a coherent community of lovers of

high quality photography. Our photo documentary
nights, portfolio presentations, and library of
valuable photo albums, all help in this regard.
C.B.: What is the reaction of people when they see
themselves in the ambrotypes?
A: Anyone who has sat for an ambrotype portrait
has surely had a unique experience. At the time the
process appeared, most people were enthusiastic
about no longer needing to sit for a portrait for

weeks on end in front of a painter. Rather, a minute of

stillness sufficed. Presently, our standard exposure of
around ten seconds seems like an eternity for modern
man. However, the long exposure is the key ingredient
in the unique aesthetic quality of ambrotypes, as the
subject's face undergoes several micro-expressions
and an average of these is registered on the plate.
The resulting portrait is natural, sincere.
C.B.: Any crazy plans for the future? Where do you see
this activity going? What should we expect from you guys?

A: We do not make long term plans. We and the

world are in a state of constant change and we
cannot predict for how long we will enjoy and
be motivated by these activities. For now, we
celebrate every moment in which existence
permits us to do what we enjoy and to receive
appreciation for our efforts. In five years, I (tefan)
see myself travelling through Romania and its
neighbours by waggon, photographing along the
way. A small ambrotype will cost ten eggs, or a
hen and a bundle of spring onion.
53 foto4all.ro

Watch & Learn

Watch & Learn

immanence of an ordinary, dirty reality.
Otto Umbehr brings rotation and Andr
Kertsz is best known for distorting the
image. Even the painter Ren Magritte
had the artistic curiosity of reproducing
his own works into the lucid dream
environment that photography preached.
The resulted visual artifacts carved a
serious niche around the theoretical circle,
being later explained in journals like La
Rvolution SurralisteandMinotaure,
where the degree of objectifying is
measurable. These were the techniques
soon to dictate the norms of Surrealist
photography as it should appear to the
enlightened mass public; it is important
to mention that mediums facility does
not commute with the surrealistic
sensibility.

INSIDE SURREALIST
PHOTOGRAPHY
by Cristian Marinescu, Art Historian

Unlike painting, photographic surrealism

seems to stand for post-procession and
manipulation or, in the given terms,
the artists today have found easier
ways of ultimate expression through
heavy digital editing. This article is
questioning the quality of the choices,
the depiction itself, being set in a frame
or outstanding as a non-serial object.
It is often erroneously associated with
richness and opulence and a suffocating
display is rarely evaluated in accordance
to the high arts.
Surrealism was a radical movement
that has started from textual idolatry
scene implemented by Andr Breton, in
1924. The literates asked for disruption
of reason and sober calculation, in
the benefit of a free one-way ticket
to imaginarium, a challenging field
speaking in psychological terms. The
most figurative poems or visual works
were taken as samples as how the
manifesto becomes a complex.
Soon, this activity was given a greater
visual purpose involving photography;
it is the role of Man Ray, Brassa, Maurice
Tabard and Roger Parry to abuse of
double exposures, montage, combination
printing, burnt exposures, with the
absolute effect of washing away the
foto4all.ro 54

Haunted lovers proposal, by Anonymous;

1890's stereo card.

Girl with Tiny Goggles, by Irving Penn,

New York, 1994.

Faade, by Edmund Teske; Chicago, Composite

with Shirley Berman, Gelatin silver composite print,
negatives 1940 and 1956; print 1956; source: Getty
Museum.

Uncanny images with pre-Surrealist

touch survived the decades showing an
instinctive interest in anthropological
fantasy, playing with various dimensions
from out-door participation to the very
intimate thought. It was more than the
simple collage technique that started
during Victorian era sance ectoplasm
photographs, which developed into
formal composition arrangement
recalling especially memento mori
themes at the very beginning of
the 20th century. The photographic
intention is sociologically determined
and meaning fades its true light when
the time of the exposure is up. Yet the
dialogue is not cosmic and the textimage progressions were positive.
Vilm Flusser (Towards a Philosophy
of Photography, 2003) discovers there
is no free will of information, the
phenomenological public speech being
decisive over academics in the third
eye of the photographer.
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Watch & Learn

Cameras stopped giving a feedback
nowadays when all transformations
appear long after the shutter click sound.
Thus ignited the value perception of
picture as the computerized layers
strike heavily and unarranged, poorly
connected. Photo-manipulations that
lack atmosphere and give too much
credit to the concept happen to irritate
the viewer for its lack of sublime and
subtlety.
A genuine Surrealist photograph can
be identified where the liberation of
unconscious is highly structured by ego
activity. This is a Freudian principle that
suggested a conscious set up proposing
to imitate inner affections, the raw
instinct, based on improvisation and
adjustments of the realist-naturalist
imagery. It is also free to coexist with
motion pictures in order to complete
audio-visual performances.

Edgar Varse, Pome lectronique, written for the

Philips Pavilion at the 1958 Brussels Worlds Fair,
designed by Le Corbusier.

Post-historical spontaneity ignores the

critics commentaries, giving a huge
amount of accessibility to recreate the
very first images with contemporary
concepts that can not fall into pure
aesthetical treatment. Many artists
fail trying to relate to a Surrealist scent
when using Street photography as a
playground, borderline interpretations
having to suffer from a lack of authentic
correlation. Last but not least, being
placed in a certain stylistic category with
a contoured past behind, Surrealism is
more than a preeminent tool in visual
culture, but also a technical lesson for
todays practitioners.
Scene from Mary Wigmans Totentanz,
1926, by Ursula Richter.
foto4all.ro 56

Photo populis

shoot publish
in your world

in ours

We are publishing your photos. We are eager to

publish what you photograph. If you want to see your
own photos inside our magazine, you can either send
them to this section or to Under the magnifying
glass column. One other way of having your images
published is to participate in the thematic photo

Goodtoknow
My portraits are more about me than they
are about the people I photograph.
(Richard Avedon)

foto4all.ro 58

contest or challenge we put up every month.The idea

is simple: keep sending your photographs to us at
publish@foto4all.ro.
Every month we will select and publish 5 images in
color and 5 in black and white.

The photographs you send should

meet the following specifications:
JPEG file, 1600px on their long side,
150 dpi, no frame attached. They
can be in color, black and white,
edited or not, its up to you. Please
send them without watermark.

Together with your images (not

more than 3) please add to the
email: your name, your age, some
details about the camera you are
using and a few words or a title
for your photographs.

There is no special theme. We are

looking for photographs that tell
stories.

Only your talent counts.

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Photo populis

Photo populis

It is more important to click with people than to click the shutter.

(Alfred Eisenstaedt)

Cristian Marinescu

Emilian Chiril

Black & White

foto4all.ro 60

Eli Driu
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Photo populis

Photo populis

Black & White

Adrian Banu

The best images are the ones that retain their strength and impact
over the years, regardless of the number of times they are viewed.
(Anne Geddes)

Oana Cndea
foto4all.ro 62

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Photo populis

Photo populis

Color
Cristina int

Oana Cndea

Wherever there is light, one can photograph.

(Alfred Stieglitz)
foto4all.ro 64

Radu Mihai Iani

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Photo populis

Eli Driu

Photo populis

In photography there is a reality so subtle

that it becomes more real than reality.
(Alfred Stieglitz)

Eli Driu

YOU ca
pture

h
s
i
l
b
u
p
e
W
foto4all.ro 66

The camera makes you forget youre there. Its not like you
are hiding but you forget, you are just looking so much.
(Annie Leibovitz)

Color

Send yor work at:

publish@foto4all.ro
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Project4all

Project4all

ARGENTIK

Dragos Rapeanu

by Oitzarisme & Allkimik

Oitzarisme & Allkimik launched an
interesting photography competition at
the end of December 2014. The idea was
quite simple:
Photographers were invited to send their
portfolios and 11 have been selected to
receive a Foma 100 ISO film to shoot
by a certain deadline established by the
organizers. Afterwards, the films was
brought back to be developed by the
Allkimik team.
Three of the photographers won a prize,
while all 11 will have been involved in
the Argentik exhibition, that took place
in Bucharest.
The jury (Sorin Vidis, Stefan Dinu-Allkimik
and Cristian Bassa Oitzarisme Editor)
foto4all.ro 70

chose the winners based on the entire

film and the exposed frames.
The prizes went to: Dragos Rapeanu (1st
prize), Florin Ghebosu (2nd prize) and
Florin Simina (3rd prize).
A selection of photos of each participant
was also featured on Oitzarime.
(http://www.oitzarisme.ro/ )
We decided as well to publish two images
from each of the eleven photographers
involved in the project (Dragos Radu
Dumitrescu, Florin Ghebosu, Florin Simina,
Dragos Alexandru, Dragos Rapeanu,
Gabriel Pahontu, Ioana Novac, Vali
Barbulescu, Mihai Olaru, Matei Gaginski,
George Lazar ), so here you have the
FOTO4all selection from Argentik.
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Project4all

Project4all

Florin Ghebosu

Florin Simina

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Project4all

Dragos Radu Dumitrescu

foto4all.ro 74

Project4all

Gabriel Pahontu

75 foto4all.ro

Project4all

Dragos Alexandru

foto4all.ro 76

Project4all

Ioana Novac

77 foto4all.ro

Project4all

Project4all

George Lazar

Matei Gaginski

foto4all.ro 78

79 foto4all.ro

Project4all

Project4all

Vali Barbulescu

Mihai Olaru

foto4all.ro 80

81 foto4all.ro

Journey = Photography

Journey = Photography

Khan Tengri on my own

by Radu Diaconescu

A beautiful project and an even more beautiful

person behind it. To be so alive and to have such a
strong spirit nowadays is quite rare and we can only
be glad that we had the opportunity to meet Radu,
to listen to his story and to have a few photographs
from this amazing adventure published in our
pages. We thank him and we invite you to enter his
website and read/take a look at the entire story,
not only the mere fragments that will follow here.
(Foto4all Magazine)

foto4all.ro 82

As I pause for one last time catching my breath just

below the 7000 meter peak of Khan Tengri all the
emotions and the memories of the past 5 months seem
to pop into my mind all at once, and I cannot help
but feel overwhelmed. It seems only yesterday that I
started from Bucharest on my bicycle, heading east
towards spring and summer and towards the high peaks
and passes of Pamir and Tien Shan. And now, 9500
kilometers later and after almost three weeks spent
on the mountain, I stand only meters away from the
peak towards which I've traveled for the past months.
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foto4all.ro 84

Journey = Photography

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Journey = Photography

foto4all.ro 86

Journey = Photography

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Journey = Photography

But as the saying goes it's not the goal but the journey
that matters, but still a journey with a goal at it's end
will always be more appealing. Or maybe it's just a
way making it easier to go through the difficult times.
Central Asia, with the vast open spaces of Turkey, Iran
and the Stans is a fascinating place, and discovering
it by bicycle has felt sometimes closer to a real
adventure than anything I've done before. And besides
the incredibly beautiful places probably the most
important lesson I've learned from the entire journey
is that people are good, and that trust and hospitality
are things we should be more generous with in Europe.
foto4all.ro 88

Journey = Photography

What seems amazing about the entire journey is that

in comparison with the time spent in the routine of
the city, while travelling everyday something new
and unexpected seems to be happening, something
worth photographing, worth remembering, and
worth sharing. And somehow, during the 5 months
I managed to write a short journal for each of the
days spent on the road something I wouldn't have
imagined possible when leaving, while posting
on a blog set up to share the story of the journey
(www.diaconescuradu.com/en).

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Journey = Photography

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Journey = Photography

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Journey = Photography

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Journey = Photography

93 foto4all.ro

OnSpot

OnSpot

Be On SPOT
Our story:
On SPOT was born from a simple idea: we wanted to
have a team and to go in the streets to photograph
and to have a good time together. We are friends who
share the same passion and try to learn from each
other, to develop together and most of all, to have
great time doing it!
The group was created by Mirela Momanu and
Fred Fogherty, after the Street Portraits Workshop
which was held during Bucharest Photo Week, a
workshop with more than 30 participants and over
100 images. Take a look here.(https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=6PbkobqUSLU)

that our photowalks always have some surprises,

from challenges to team missions J So, the result is
not only having good photos, but also learning and
inspiring each other!

As future plans, the group has in mind some editing

sessions and software presentations, as well as
more photowalks and meetings with photographers

You are welcome to join On SPOT and to follow us,

and starting from now and in the future issues of
FOTO4all magazine, you will find in this column
images made by our members.
Enjoy & Be On SPOT !

During our photowalks all photographers in any

level are welcome: beginners, amateurs, experienced
and professional, we all have the same passion and
desire to spot the world and to capture it. Freeze the
moment or play with it, a photo as they say, is worth
more than 1000 words!

The best of the photos were awarded and presented

during the exhibition at Casa Universitarilor in
Bucharest, at the end of the event.( https://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=43iJq3FmnwA).
Once the group was established, the best way to
share the work was to create a Facebook page as
well, where to announce the events in time, to post
and share the photos taken from the photowalks, to
see and comment them, with the desire to become
better at it. Now the group has over 200 members,
not only from Bucharest, but also from other cities
in the country and from other countries as well.
(https://www.facebook.com/groups/ONSPOTGROUP/)

As a proof that the passion for photography unites

people from all over the world, Silvio accepted
our invitation to discover the streets of Bucharest,
together with Romanian members of On SPOT,
in January 2015, for a whole week. Not even the
temperature of -17 degrees during day time dared
to stop our adventure on the streets Bucharest!

foto4all.ro 94

The On SPOT Gallery presents the most special

images taken during photowalks and challenges, and
is the base for the next photographic exhibitions
and e-books, articles and promotion of the group
members. (https://www.facebook.com/onspotgallery)

from other Romanian cities ( Sibiu, Constanta, Iasi,

Timisoara etc) or even European (Rome, Lisbon, Berlin,
London, Venice etc). In April 2015, On SPOT is already
inviting you to see the selection of its best photos
made by the members, during an exhibition which
will unite over 100 photos and will be organized in
Bucharest.

If we had fun on our trip, you can see for yourself!

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IN62gC1lQPU)

That is why we initiated a more remote photowalk,

on the streets of Istanbul, in November 2014! There
we met Silvio Naf and Elif Suyabatmaz, wonderful
people and photographers who joined us to discover
more of this life and of the people in the streets of
that amazing city.

The streets are calling us, not only from Bucharest

but from other cities as well. A train ride to Brasov
was a great opportunity to know each other and to
discuss different topics, while doing also photos of
train passengers on our way to Brasov! We must reveal

weekly challenges (where any member can join to

participate with captures on a certain theme), and
last but not least, they select best images posted by
the members for the On SPOT Gallery.

For now, On SPOT group has a team of 4 administrators

( Mirela Momanu, Fred Fogherty, Loredana Bitculescu
and Adrian Mitu), which initiate and follow the
photowalks events, inside and outside the country,
moderate the critique day (when any member can
post images to get ideas and feedback), create the

FRED FOGHERTY
To take this photo, I was first attracted by the light,
of course! When you have this kind of light you would
stop immediately and look around for the best angle
to shoot one nice story. Here Ive been lucky with the
poster and the guy. Only imagine the photo without

the guy ..... not a really good photo! So I arrived in

good position, good angle , my settings were ok (
ISO 200, speed 250, aperture auto ) , and I took the
shot. The result was very good in my opinion, even if
everything happened in 3 or 5 seconds! As a little
advice, in the streets be always ready , look around
you and enjoy! Thank you.
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OnSpot

OnSpot

MIRELA MOMANU
We were about to finish our very first On
SPOT photowalk, on the streets of the city
center. Night was easily falling and one
window, with lots of ice cream displayed,
was shining in the dark, attracting possible
late customers. The happiest customer was

foto4all.ro 96

the huge dog eating the ice cream offered

by its owner as a bonus, while the little girl
was holding a small spoon, maybe waiting
for the next treat? The scene was sweet
and in a split of a second I was tempted
to capture the essence of a quiet, nice and
lovely scene of unconditional love...We all
<3 gelato!

ALEXANDRU FLORIN ANGHEL

This image is taken on my first photowalk
with On SPOT. While Mirela and Fred gave
me some tips and advice, I also tried to see
and understand how other participants are
trying to get their images. I noticed the
bike parked and a potential juxtaposition
with the giant poster in the street

and I was lucky, being the only one who

captured the moment when the owner of
the bike came, started it and left with it.
Beginners luck, I may say. From the 5
captures I took back then, I selected this
one because it looks as if the biker cannot
start the engine and he is disappointed,
while the character in the poster seems
amused about that situation!

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OnSpot

OnSpot

LOREDANA BITCULESCU

CRISTINA BAZAR
These pixels are my first and my last
memory of him. He did not say too many
words. He silently packed his biscuit in the
blue napkin, made several waves in the
coffee cup... I beckoned him to no longer
waste time here. He took his biscuit, heart
and coffee.
No longer did he know which side of the
window the fiction is. So he left it open.

foto4all.ro 98

We crossed our eyes in the only remaining

shard of mirror on the wall. In that moment,
we have spoken more than ever...

I was lost in Brasov and I

saw this door. It was a big, red,
impressive door and the light
outside was amazing. I waited
for someone to pass in front of
it, but I was lucky enough to have
somebody who opened the door.
It was an old lady, very elegant
and charming and I imagined in
that moment that she opened the
door to nowhere. I always wonder
what's behind those closed doors,
but I like to leave some things to
the imagination. (Settings: f/4.5,
1/800 sec, ISO 100, 18-55mm,
shot at 34mm)

***
Neither perfection, nor clarification is part
of what we consider to be ART. Let your
imagination guide your camera, theres
nothing wrong, nothing right. Show off your
personal point of view.

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OnSpot

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OnSpot

DANA CORINA POPESCU

LUCIAN MARIUS DUTU

I love this image not only

because of its great shadow, but
also for its metaphor. One summer
afternoon, at sunset, when the
long shadows fall on the ground,
I photographed people's shadows
from a high location - a bird'seye perspective that I really
like. I am shooting mothers with
baby carriages or with children in
their arms, lovers holding hands,
cyclists etc. I selected this photo
for the story it tells... a priest, full
of goods, living in a consumerist
society and descending,
concerned mainly with worldly
matters. The settings were f 7,1,
1/200, ISO 200, shot at 24mm.
The photo was taken during a
lovely photowalk through Brasov,
together with On SPOT.

This photo is taken in Brasov

during the On SPOT Photowalk,
thanks to Catalin Caciuc, who
lives in this city and lead us
(me and Razvan Simonescu) to
that place. Our challenge, given
by Fred Fogherty, was jumps
and shadows. There we found
a foreign group of boys. After a
little conversation we could take
a few pictures and in this way I' ve
accomplished my goal. Settings:
f / 8, ISO 200, 1 / 1600 sec, focal
lenght 36 mm. Thank you On
SPOT !

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OnSpot

RADU KEMAL
Istanbul it's a big city, millions of people
are building their own life here. Lots of
tourists are visiting its wonderful sites daily
as well. Even so, in this warm Mediterranean
culture one can be alone. I've been trying

to catch between frames of my picture one

of the paradoxes of our society: loneliness
in the crowd. On the other side loneliness
wasn't my feeling, being surrounded by my
photographers friends in this unforgettable
photowalk! May it happen again!

ADRIAN MITU
There was a cloudy and dark weather,
during the photowalk marking the duplex
Bucharest-Istanbul.... Some of us were
wondering together on the streets of the
old city center, while suddenly I noticed in
the window of a cafe this interesting couple.

In that split second I imagined a black and

white classic photo, and I tried to reach as
close as possible, to capture it and not to
disturb the moment and mood. I had a f/1.8
, 50 mm lens on my camera, with manual
settings, and immediately decided to use
f/4, speed 1/200 an ISO 560 to capture this
special portrait and mood.

IOANNIS STAMATOGIANNIS
Im here, Im there, Im everywhere!
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OnSpot

OnSpot
MARILENA DITRIK
I wish my photos could each tell
a story. This photo could be a love
story and also the story of my last
day in Istanbul.

SILVIO SILVISION NF
I left early morning on the streets. The
sunrise was still in process. Behind the
fish market in Istanbul (near Galata Bridge),
there is a lodging for all kinds of materials

foto4all.ro 104

for manufacturers. The owner of this place

was probably waiting for his customers,
enjoying the first rays of sun. He was visibly
taken aback as I just took a picture of him.
He took it with humor. Equipment: Fujifilm
X - T1, 23mm 1.4

That day I walked on the Asian

side of Istanbul, with friends. I
had that feeling of a beautiful
day ending and another one on
its way, but never the same. It was
a moment in time to remember.
It was the end of a beautiful
day and of a beautiful trip, for
me and my friends. We were
somehow sad to leave the town
and a little tired from walking the
whole day in the streets. We were
just running all over, shooting,
smiling (and the people were
smiling back at us), getting lost
and finding our way again. The
hour we reached the sea side, it
was like everything was dusted
with gold. I just stopped to enjoy
the moment. It did not matter if I
was going to take another picture
or not. And then I saw the young
couple, sitting there, just next to
me, together but not too close,
intimate, but not closed to the
world, quiet but not mute. And
that was when I took my last
picture in Istanbul.
Now, all that matters is the
memory of the place and the joy
that I could share it with you.
And also the nice feeling that,
whatever happens with the two
people in my picture, their special
moment will be forever. As love
always is.

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PhoneCam Project
The PhoneCam Project Group is a community that believes that art is
not expensive technology and expensive technology is not art.
Visual arts, and most of all Photography is not about the gear you buy,
its about the image you see and the message you send.
Although the intrinsic message needs no tools to be understood, if you
want to draw, you need at least a pencil and a sheet of paper. Its the
same with Photography. You need at least a camera. Any kind of camera.
Techniques and technology, especially in photography is often mixed up
with arts, and this is why art photography lost in value in digital era.
The most common confusion is: expensive gear = great art.

If you are into arts, if you have a message to share and if you think that the
tool is not an impediment in creating images and messages, feel free to post
here (http://www.facebook.com/groups/ThePhoneCamProject/) your works.
We have only two limitations: phone cameras only and no Instagram, please.

Cristina Georgescu

The PhoneCam Project aims to eliminate this distorted perception about

photograpyh, with a very challenging and very large scaled project: we
can create art even with a 2mpx phone camera.

Cristina Georgescu

Mihai Ursea

PhoneCam project

PhoneCam Project

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foto4all.ro 108

Lepedus-Sisko Pter

Cristina int

Lepedus-Sisko Pter

Cristina int

PhoneCam Project
PhoneCam Project

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PhoneCam Project

Lepedus-Sisko Pter

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Guy Tal on photography

Art in Times of Click Baiting

The quotation above is from an essay written by
poet and art critic Charles Baudelaire in 1859, and
similar missives had been repeated in one choice
of words or another many times since, by people of
varying degrees of notoriety and fueled by different
motivations. In recent weeks I read essays and blog
posts yet again proclaiming photography to not
be art, the death of artists and the rise of creative
entrepreneurs, and one particularly short-sighted
piece suggesting that professional photographers are
no longer artists, and even wondering parenthetically
if they ever were. To anyone even somewhat familiar
with the history of photography the inevitable gut
reaction is this: really? again?

Beyond a commonality in ideas, I think that it is

important to highlight that Baudelaire, perhaps
photographys harshest critic but also one of the
greatest art critics of all times, truly was concerned for
what the technological/industrial trend personified
by photography meant for the future of art as he knew
and loved it; whereas most such recent accounts
usually are written by those financially invested in
a new status quo and who often have little interest
in, or knowledge of art. And of those, Baudelaire was
equally critical, writing, The disease which you have
just been diagnosing is a disease of imbeciles. What
man worthy of the name of artist, and what true
connoisseur, has ever confused art with industry?

We live in a time when we have fewer scholars and

more influencers; fewer mentors and more bloggers,
tweeters, posters and status updaters; when curators
no longer concern themselves with matters of history,
conservation, presentation or provenance, and instead
monitor social media hashtags; and when entire
business disciplines are founded in the number of
ones followers, likers or plussers. It is no wonder (and
even a bit entertaining) that so many social media
marketers have to keep out-sensationalizing each
other like so many advertisers competing for eyeballs,
seeking low common denominators and hoping to
command attention not by demonstrating wisdom,
inspiration or expertise, but by making hysterical
proclamations, including ones already debated and
settled more than a century ago and several times
since. It is no wonder that such people prefer to think
of themselves as creative entrepreneurs rather than
artists, and such characterization also illustrates a
larger and more disturbing trend: the monetization
of creativity imagination in the service of financial
goals, shareholder profits and corporate branding,
rather than the intimate and personal pursuit of
insight, meaning, enlarging experiences, inner
reflections and elevated states of mind.

I am baffled and uninspired by portrayals of artists

primarily as shrewd business people, prolific marketers,
experts in SEO or some other acronym-du-jour,
confidants of industry, owners of exotic gear, bringers
of tips and tricks and inside rumors to the unwashed
masses, debonaire globetrotters or extreme sportsmen.
I can appreciate that such skills can indeed be useful
and rewarding in themselves, but I do not consider an
artist anyone who places a lesser value on art than
they do on the business of art.

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Painter Henri Matisse wisely advised, Hatred, rancor,

and the spirit of vengeance are useless baggage to the
artist. His road is difficult enough for him to cleanse his
soul of everything which could make it more so. And so,
rather than becoming mired in criticism, I wish to share
with you the experience of making the image posted
at the bottom of this essay, which I titled, Slow Dancer.
I was on my way back from Colorado with a couple
of days to spare for personal exploration. A series of
monsoon storms unleashed heavy rains and floods
throughout the Southwest, and, having the time,
I decided to see if I could drive a steep dirt road
leading to a remote desert overlook. It took some

effort but I managed to do so and to find a camp

site not too far from this view. I noted the procession
of clouds drifting from the west, and the way shafts
of sunlight filtered through them, moving about the
landscape like searchlights, dipping into canyons,
isolating random formations and obscuring others. I
hunkered down at times when lightning hit too close
for comfort, and walked about during breaks in the
storm, breathing the fragrant air and admiring the
silence. Later, upon trying to drive out, I learned that
the road had washed away and I went back to spend a
couple of extra days before making another attempt,
and made several more images I liked in that time.
Other than Slow Dancer, I identified a couple more
potential compositions within the span of about three
hours. I noted which formations had to come into
light and what portions will need to be in shade in
order to produce a number of visualized compositions
I hoped will materialize, and as the light moved about
I tried to position myself accordingly to be sure I
was ready for the proverbial decisive moments. For
Slow Dancer I hoped to use the selectively-lit flanks
of the canyon below as leading lines, and I needed

them to be lit at the same time as the foreground

so the tree wold not be lost in the shadows, too. It
took some time but when it finally came together I
felt elated and grateful. A couple of hours later, as
darkness began to set, I spent some time processing
images on my laptop with great excitement.
It is worth mentioning at this point that I had been
to this place several times before and that this was
my third attempt at making this image. The day in
which I made Slow Dancer happened to have been
a Thursday. I spent the entire day within the span
of about half a mile, following the light, visualizing
possibilities, thinking of titles and metaphors I may
be able to evoke, jotting notes and stopping every
so often to appreciate how immensely fortunate I
am to be able to do this, to be there, on a whim,
on a workday, alone in this wild and magnificent
place, and to have it to myself. It was a satisfyingly
exhausting exercise, both physical and intellectual,
and as much effort as I would have put into other
endeavors I once practiced professionally. To me that
is what makes what I do art, and why I can do some
things as a pro that I could not do as an amateur.
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Guy Tal on photography

The freedom to explore deeper, to take the time
I get to spend hours reading and studying the history
needed, to study and hone and practice my skills, to
and science of my vocation; I get to see these places
fail again and again before getting it right these
in their most peaceful and their most violent; I get to
are the things afforded to me by being a professional
interact with wildlife and trees and flowers; I get to
artist, and they are founded in the most primal and
engineer flood-damaged dirt tracks so I can drive
organic aspects of being a human being whole and
myself out; I get to look at a distant hill and wonder
flawed and emotional and inspired and unencumbered
whats there and just go see, and when I get there I
by mundane matters. Conversely, I have no desire to
have the freedom to decide to spend a night or two
force my creative energies into
in a sleeping bag at a favorable
a manufactured, managed and
spot. Just as importantly, I get to
If photography is allowed to
marketed brand, and I will take
teach and to share what I make
supplement art in some of its functions,
offense if someone called me a
and what I learn and to see it
it will soon have supplanted or
creative entrepreneur or some
making a difference in peoples
corrupted it altogether, thanks to the
other label fashionable in the
lives. Certainly there are risks
stupidity of the multitude, which is its
simplistic and single-minded
and sacrifices that go with such
natural ally. It is time, then, for it to
world of business and that has
a life, and that will not appeal
return to its true duty, which is to be
nothing at all to do with my
to everyone, but that is part of
the servant of the sciences and arts
reasons for practicing my work.
what makes these experiences
Charles Baudelaire
Such considerations are only
more meaningful and personal
important to me in the sense
and elevated.
that I need to make sufficient income so I can continue
to practice my work, but no more. Why would I willingly
And so, to the pundits: I dont envy you your followers,
submit to the tyranny of analyses and plans and work
your corporate sponsors or your entrepreneurial zest; I
hours and cold numbers and other trappings better
dont begrudge you the bully pulpit of social media or
reserved for other professions and that likely will rob
your celebrity or your thriving small business. I am not
what I do of the very reason I do it?
out to eat your cake beyond the small slice I need to keep
a roof over my head, and have no interest in investing my
To most non-professional photographers, photography
creative time and energy in competing with you. Indeed,
is an enjoyable pastime; they travel to places like
some of us had even been in your shoes and realized
these for short visits, hoping for good light and to
that, just as our approach to art may not resonate with
enjoy the simple pleasures of being outdoors. That
you, your approach to life did not resonate with us, and
is a wonderful thing. But, having made up my mind
we are happy to coexist. But please do us this one small
to assume the risks of being a professional artist, I
favor: stop telling people that people like us dont exist.
have the privilege and time and desire to do more
Not only are we real but our lives to us are, in so many
challenging (and ultimately also more rewarding)
ways, richer and happier and more inspired because we
things than to photograph the predictable sunrise or
made the deliberate and defiant choice to be artists and
sunset in the usual places. When the visitors leave, I
not creative entrepreneurs.
get to stay; I get to spend a few days in a place that
inspires me without concern for vacation time; I get
The freedom to explore deeper, to take the time
to study and to feel these places, to immerse myself
needed, to study and hone and practice my skills,
in them, to learn things about them that are rare and
to fail again and again before getting it right
not obvious, to smell them and to hear them and to
these are the things afforded to me by being a
see them and to live in them and to experience them
professional artist, and they are founded in the most
in ways not possible on short random visits. I get to
primal and organic aspects of being a human being
investigate interesting squiggles on the topographical
whole and flawed and emotional and inspired and
map even if it takes a few days to drive or walk there;
unencumbered by mundane matters.
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