Comments on: The abstract Polaroid photography of GrantHamilton

The abstract Polaroid photography of GrantHamilton

nthdegx — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 06:58:14 -0800

The abstract Polaroid photography of Grant Hamilton.

By: Pastabagel

Pastabagel — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 07:25:18 -0800

Nice find, nthdegx. He seems to have used the lofi quality of the Polaroid to his advantage - the film introduces color variation in uniformly color objects during the development process, and normally that's what people hate about polaroids, and he's used it to give flat monochromatic surfaces som texture. Very cool.

By: DU

DU — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 07:37:11 -0800

Mostly pretty cool, though ones like the Mobil sign just look like a toddler took them.

By: phaedon

phaedon — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 07:37:48 -0800

That was fun, thanks. Photography like this usually drives me crazy, but I really liked this and this.

By: Bovine Love

Bovine Love — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 07:42:36 -0800

Interesting. I have seen some of these sorts of things in person, and digital reproduction really loses a lot; it isn't just the color, etc., it loses the presentation and feel of the exhibit. One of the sad things about the rise of surfing photographs is the death of cohesive, well presented exhibits that mean something as a whole, where any individual photograph may not really resonate on its own. On the upside, it has allowed so new presentation methods (some very interesting flash stuff out there) but these have not been exploited well and often yet.

By: cowbellemoo

cowbellemoo — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 07:42:37 -0800

Mmm me likey. I find it so hard to spot patterns and textures that would make a nice abstract shot, I'm so jealous when I see it come easy to someone.

By: mattbucher

mattbucher — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 07:49:10 -0800

These are really awesome.

By: silby

silby — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 07:53:28 -0800

Some of these resemble an unblurred Mark Rothko painting.

By: Pastabagel

Pastabagel — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 07:57:19 -0800

On the upside, it has allowed so new presentation methods (some very interesting flash stuff out there) but these have not been exploited well and often yet. posted by Bovine Love at 10:42 AM on August 29 I agree. But people are discouraged from using the because (a) people complain about the interface, and (b) its seems as though flash degrades the image quality somewhat.

By: stocknowledge

stocknowledge — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 09:47:03 -0800

Definitely a unique sense of style and a simple presentation of everyday objects delivered from a fresh, unassuming point of view. Beauty is everywhere, if we only know how and where to look!

By: aladfar

aladfar — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 09:51:28 -0800

I've been following his Flickr stream for months, it's good stuff. But I'd argue that the work wouldn't be nearly as interesting without the mass presentation and browsing possibilities afforded by Flash and the web in general. Were these little images mounted and hung in a gallery, I believe they'd fall flat. But seeing them en masse and at different sizes (thumbnail, full size, larger than life) gives them an entirely different quality. It's a perfect blend of old school, one-off photography and the endless repetition of the network. I dig it!

By: Bovine Love

Bovine Love — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 10:21:01 -0800

But seeing them en masse and at different sizes (thumbnail, full size, larger than life) gives them an entirely different quality. Often this kind of small scale work, particularly if it is texture/color focused, are placed en-masse and in particular patterns so that they relate to each other. Presentation of more modern-type art like this usually goes well beyond some framed prints on the wall. It was this sort of presentation that I was talking about.

By: klangklangston

klangklangston — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 10:27:21 -0800

I wonder what polaroid he's using...

By: cowbellemoo

cowbellemoo — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 11:43:39 -0800

klangklangston: He's tagged the photos with "sx70" which I'll assume is the SX-70.

By: cowbellemoo

cowbellemoo — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 11:54:05 -0800

aw man, it's like a transformer....I want one!

By: vronsky

vronsky — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 12:06:01 -0800

I was expecting to hate that - nice surprise. (I remember we had an SX-70 when I was a kid - and yes we shook it like a polaroid picture;)