Question about Noir from the U.K.

Question from the U.K.

With my time focused on local advertising and moving, I’ve certainly been neglecting my new photography blog.  My second post was suppose to explain its reasons and purpose, but as I’ve been lagging to write, I’ll use a reader’s email to jumpstart my posting rhythm.

Question Emailed:

Hello, my name is Michael Macfadyen, I am 17 years old and currently studying photography in Leeds, England. I am currently working on a project that discusses the importance of black and white photography in a genre of photography such as ‘noir’, and the atmosphere, feeling or depth these photographs create. This e-mail is mainly to get an expert opinion or advice for my project. So if you have any free time to reply I would be extremely grateful.

Thank You for reading

Michael Ruari Macfadyen

My Response:

Hey Michael,

Thanks for your inquiry.  It’s interesting you asked this question, as this is where many of my blog posts will go into the future, where I’ll be doing a photo exploration the darker side of Florida and documenting my journey.

Today, noir means many things to many people, but the concept started as a response to the feelings in America post WW2.  While the media had only showed glossy, sterilized movies for some time, Hollywood began to explore the darker side of American life – greed, murder, isolation, paranoia, distrust, manipulation through seduction, etc.  Despite the advances with color film, film makers experimented with unique camera angles (such as from the ceiling or floor), perspective, unusual lighting, depth, etc.  This concept naturally made its way to photography.  While many, using digital, copy this “look” today, its more about the mood and not the look in my opinion.  Perhaps its more about the period in time, and a genre, than the style itself.  In the digital era, I think many lose the distinction between style and genre.

While I’ve collected a lot of digital color equipment and studied Photoshop techniques for paid assignments, I’m always drawn back to shooting, for art galleries, with my Fuji 220 rangefinder in B/W.  With so much changing because of digital, photography is really beginning to lose its authenticity in many ways, and BW film helps reconnect me back to the art.  With very few shots available in a roll of film, each photo is carefully calculated and thought out in terms of a concept, not of a look.  Some of the best photos in history were taken with junk, yet we obsess over photoshop techniques, lenses, lighting, etc.

Like any art, you should make it your own.  For me, the magical, yet dismal quality to Florida’s forests, along with the violent nature of its weather systems,  have always fascinated me.  While Noir generally focuses on people, I try to reinterpret this concept into nature and its surroundings.

I’ll also be exploring this concept through the mass income gap in Florida, which is among the highest in the United States.  You don’t have to drive very far to go from a beautiful forest, to a wealthy retirement community, to a slum – all within 3 miles.  There is a darker, bleaker side of American life that is often not discussed, but better expressed through art.

Hope this helps!  Feel free to email me again.

R.J. Auger

More Thoughts

While I initially began this blog to reconnect with customers, I instead renamed the blog Florida Noir Photography, which will record my thoughts throughout my various journeys in Florida (and in life).  As I’m the type that is always moving, driving, weekend trips, phototreking, running, etc., I’d like to use my quiet time to write and explore my frequent photo journeys throughout the state.  While many states and landscapes are very well documented, Florida seems to be missing many of these same reflections that California, the North East, and even Oregon and Montana have with breathtaking national parks and oceans.

Florida was invented by the air conditioner only a few decades ago, lacking the deep seeded cultural roots of many other parts of the country.  However, the wackiness and tackiness, along with its unusual trees and year-round heat, gain Florida a special flair and a affection that has only begun to be explored.  And of course, it also has its dark, mystical side that separates it from the rest.  Both of these concepts will be explored in the coming posts and years, as well as my reflections on my photography career.

R.J. Auger

Your comments are appreciated!