Le temps change tout...

I remember seeing graffiti scrawled onto the side of Château de Chambord that read: Le temps change tout (Time changes everything). Although I hated the fact that someone had defaced the chateau, I did find the quote fairly a propos.

The above photo is a foreground/background example that plays with the theme of time and change—not at Chambord, but at a the Louvre. A few years ago, the Louvre hosted a temporary exhibition that juxtaposed sculpture from its permanent collection with works by modern artists. Here, the "permanent collection" sculpture, although hundreds of years older than the its "temporary exhibition" counterparts, seems to look on with casual curiosity, secure in the knowledge that she will outlast the plaster newcomers and their plastic wall clocks.

Is this just a self-indulgent post or is there a point?

Mostly self-indulgent, BUT the "foreground" lesson here may be that when you see something you want to photograph (e.g. the plaster men holding clocks), you might try taking some photos of that thing in relation to a foregrounded object (e.g. an onlooker). This fits with my "observing the observer" exploration of foreground/background.

On a side note:
I rediscovered the above image when I was looking for something in black and white to merge with my corrupted digital files. I took the "Rothko on acid" photo from my last post, rotated it, added the black and white photo on top of it, and then used "pinhole light" blend mode to create this strange image:

So my two monitors now have that photo and this one:

I doubt the images will have universal appeal and I know that vivid colors (as a wallpaper) may start to get on my nerves, but I guess I am fascinated by the random glitches of corrupt files because they still have symmetry and they would be very difficult to produce intentionally. I like that they were born from a catastrophic computer failure for which an entire team of professionals has no explanation.

Share your own "foreground" photo for the March Monthly Special (currently with a whopping three contributions).

Inspiration for using the foreground

1. Two ice creams and an ice tea, 2. Friday, 3. 112.365 - Screened, 4. Day 297 / 365 - Cunning Plan!, 5. Looking Through the Window at My Baby, 6. il mio punto di vista, 7. Looking through other people's windows..., 8. YAB, 9. foreground

Don't have an idea for the monthly special? Here is a selection of photos from Flickr that do interesting things with the foreground.

1. Food, such as in the photo of a boy eating two ice creams, has many possibilities: The "it's good for you" food sitting in front of a defiant child, food tempting a person, remnants of a dinner party with someone cleaning in the background...

2. Deep focus allows relationships between the foreground and background to come through.

3. Any kind of screen creates intrigue. Windows, fabric, a tennis racquet, anything that creates texture or partially obscures the subject.

4. Sometimes I think that the writing on the hand thing has been overdone, but maybe that's just because I look at a lot of photos. In any case, I really like this one. Hands, in general are one of the most expressive parts of the body (think about Rodin, for example).

5. Something with severe geometry placed in the foreground can dissect the composition of a photo in interesting ways.

6. In this photo, writing as foreground to a landscape evokes the relationship between text and image. The idea that looking at the landscape may have inspired a poem reminds me of Horace's link between poetry and painting.

7. "Looking through other people's windows" may sound like a voyeuristic title, but here the person is looking out. Click to see the larger version in which a bottle of cleanser gives the perfect touch of reality. What is the view from your window and what objects inside become a part of that view?

8. Why are people compelled to write on fogged up windows? We have all done it. Try photographing your ephemeral creation. Try to go beyond smiley faces and hearts.

9. Foreground any object while maintaining focus in the background and strange things can happen.

Foregrounding the observer

How much time do we spend as spectators? We watch sports, movies, television, people... Photographers have to cultivate the art of observation. If any photo is an expression of how the photographer sees the world, then what does a photo of an observer express?

The photo above was taken at a shoot in Paris. In my opinion, the stylist was a lot more interesting than the model herself. Seen from behind, the stylist's body language grabs our attention but leaves the interpretation to us—observers of the observer.

Why does this image appeal to me? Perhaps because I spend so much time observing others. I have no strong opinions about what the onlooker here is thinking. Is she envious? detached? judgmental? bored? I change my opinion each time I look at the photo. I think that the ambiguity pleases me because it reminds me that the eye of the beholder so important.

What about you? How much time do you spend people-watching? How could you foreground observation in a photo? Maybe at a sporting event, a protest, a museum, a park...? Something to think about for the monthly special. Let's see some of your own reflections on foreground/background. I love the photo that Ilan posted, but I am sure that there are others out there with some work to share.

March Monthly Special: Foreground

After spending a month (that seemed to fly by) on "Background," it seems only right to look at foreground this month. I am defining "foreground" very broadly as anything situated in the front of your image.

At first, this theme may appear more difficult than "background." How often do we put things in front of our main subject anyway? In the candid (above) that I took of Eva at a playground, the foreground serves as a frame that both hides and reveals her face. But are we really going to do a month of people peaking through things? No.

If you look back at the interview I did with Elaine, you will see that the relation between foreground and background plays a major role in at least three of the photos (the poles that frame the boy in the mist, the poster in "Rrrrr," the letters in "Grand Ecran"...). Attention to foreground adds depth to photos. The relation between the foreground and the background can tell a story, it can make a statement, it can add humor...In short, the foreground can have at least as much impact as the background.

So why not give it a try. Experiment with foreground this month, post your results, and come back here to post your link and share your work.