I come back, again and again, to themes that seem to resonate deeply with my personal « eye ». Shapes, perspective, reflections, distortion, black & white tones and strong composition are somehow so embedded in my artistic senses that they appear and reappear naturally in what I photograph. Here is a corner of the Juilliard School of Dance Drama and Music taken during my recent visit to New York, which integrates all of the above.

JuilliardForm is Substance

Form

I love how artists use composition to lead the eye into and through a piece, often telling a story gradually, as you are drawn in to its two-dimensions, while your brain subconsciously constructs a three dimensional reality via the enormous skill of your mathematically-gifted neurons. I learned my preferred visual aesthetic during hours of immobility in front of the works of many favourite painters and photographers, particularly drinking in landscapes and architectural scenes and the way that they used shape, shadow and line to turn details into a pleasing whole.

In this case, thanks to the presence of a reflective wall, three sets of rails converge in the direction of image centre, itself nestling at the foot of a cascade of stairs which form an arena. Summer glare provides strong horizontal shadows on the steps, while the shine on steel lit the converging rails.

I enjoy the way that the eye is brought into the “well” created by the space, both by the horizontal sweep of the steps and the converging lines of the rails. The fact of responding purely to the shapes at one level, while - at a second look - reconstructing what it is that I am really seeing creates a little of the “trompe l’oeil” whimsy so beloved of French artists and decorators.

Substance

The materials in the image – stone, steel and glass – all have a smooth finish, emphasized by the choice of black and white. I chose to eliminate colour for dramatic purpose, which had a collateral benefit of enhancing that “flat” rendering to the planes of the photograph and its graphic impact.

Misalignment

Were I to attempt this image again, I would try for perfection by better aligning the reflected steps with the real ones, such that the lines flowed smoothly. I could try and dishonestly defend the idea that the misalignment creates a slightly jarring dissonance that makes for visual interest, but that would be self- justification. I will just have to visit New York again in order to get it right!

Technical

This was a “classic” situation, where strong light permitted choices that were not compromises on one parameter or another. Low ISO for quality, small aperture for depth of field and a speed that was enough to provide sharpness, given that the camera was stabilized on a monopod set against fixed objects.

Camera: Nikon D800

Lens: 60mm prime f2,8

Focal Length: 60mm

Focus Mode: AF-C

Aperture: f/14

Shutter Speed: 1/180s

Auto Focus -Area Mode: Single

Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority

Exposure Compensation : 0EV

Metering: Matrix

ISO Sensitivity: 250

Mounted on a Monopod

I hope that you enjoy the peace of this image as much as I do.

Copyright Paul Grayson 2014