What I learned about Colour Photography from Alex Webb
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- Опубліковано 15 жов 2022
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In this video I share how the work of Alex Webb helped me to find a way forward in my colour photography: from choosing saturation levels, to maintaining contrast and building complexity in my compositions. Share it on if you found it helpful.
#alexwebb #colourphotography #color - Навчання та стиль
Haven't watched photography videos in AGES, just suddenly thought of yours, searched up, and saw this uploaded 7 minutes ago. Weird.
Confirmation bias
@@Jmdeleeuw- Please buy a dictionary
For me whats most fascinating about Alex work is his ability to combine the needs and demands of reportage photography to tell stories and show the complexity of a situation while at the same time going beyond the mere happening and create a visual artwork of colours and forms which fascinates also without the story. Thats what i try to learn from masters like Alex Webb
As a Mexican I can see why color goes better with Latin community. From people to landscape I think color represents who we are. Cheerful, funny,party people that always look the good side in bad situation. Hell even day of the death is a bright day for us.
"The Suffering of Light" is one of my favorite photobooks, so glad to see you covering it here. Another photographer with an amazing color palette is Fred Herzog. Looking forward to your video for Harry Gruyaert as well. Keep up the great work Sean!
Absolutely. I love Herzog's work.
Your discussions are so motivating. Thanks for doing this work!
Great video and topic Sean. It reminds me of my own journey with color. I learned photography many years ago shooting Kodachrome 25 and 64 so I'm definitely influenced by that color rendition. My color palette and editing style today is constantly evolving from year to year with stronger and more vivid colors. I've now realized that my color rendition, editing and photography is a naturally evolving artistic process that's never really complete. Thanks so much for the stimulating content.
Sean, great lesson on transitioning from B&W to color and the differences it presents with the challenges we face along the way. Thanks for the effort to put this together.
I am a friend of a friend of Mr. Webb and have had the pleasure of sharing a few meals with him over the past couple of decades. He is as sharp, witty and colourful as his images.
That's lovely to hear, and I'm not surprised:)
Another great video Sean, thanks very much. The Suffering of Light is one of my favourite photobooks and a go-to when in need of some inspiration.
I love your vids talking about other great photographers such as yourself. Really pushes me to analyze my own photography, keep up the wonderful work, it’s appreciated ❤
Thank you Sean! I love your approach and honesty that you present in your videos. What a coincidence that you , Alex Kilbee and Tatiana Hopper have uploaded videos on Alex's Web photography. 🙂. I find myself strongly attracted to colorful and saturated images. I took your advice and ordered a copy of his book👍
Great content as always Sean. Thank you!
I‘m currently reading your book „The meaning in the making“. I‘m blown away by how much it resonates with me and how much I love it. Thank you!
This video is just one more piece that explains to me, why I love your work.
Hey Christian, felt happy to realize that you appreciate Sean Tucker's videos and photographs, too. I'm also reading his book and felt the same as you. So much wow factors for any creative minds. At his point, I hope your recovery is progressing, so that we can hear from you again soon.
Thanks so much Christian. I'm really glad the book is connecting with you.
Thanks Daniel. That's great to hear.
Sean - I just signed up as a member because of the incredible value your videos are bringing. For so long I was stuck in a gear rut, and honestly was frustrated by a lack of confidence or vision. You are really helping, man.
It’s the layering in Webb’s pictures that I notice most..the near ground, mid ground and background appear as three different planes superimposed over one another..it’s uniquely his trademark composition. Multiple narratives inhabiting differ strata of the image.
Love it you mentioned Harry Gruyaert and hope to see a video from you about him. His use of colours is amazing to me!
His work is also brilliant.
Got lucky to meet him in 2021 at Paris Photo. Wonderful work.. along with Saul Leiter and Fan Ho...my heros!
Your story and the idea of hitting a dead end resonate with me. It’s so important to realize when it’s time to try something new. A year and a half ago I sold my gear and moved on from photography. I’d hit a wall creatively and the work no longer interested me, so I gave up. Your story and the beautiful images you shared remind me of the importance of seeking new inspiration and breaking away from habits that become counterproductive. Those lessons go far beyond color. Thank you 🫶
Thank you very much Sean! Always inspiring and motivating video!
Thank you for this topic and for the suggestions, Sean. You're a reference, as always.
I'm a Photographer and Visual Designer from 9+ years but I've started diving into color science a year ago and Alex Webb prompted during this journey with great references.
I will add the Alex book you recommended in my collection.
After a year shooting almost exclusively in color recently I came back into black and white photography. I've realized how amazing is that in black and white photography there are, actually, all colors. From the color research (scientific and photographic) I can notice now how my black and white vision has changed. I'll continue with color science studies while shooting black and white, let's see how our processes go.
Good light, Sean!
Superb vlog Sean. Your such an inspiration!
Wonderful video! You keep coming up with ideas that challenge my future work and help keep this interesting.
Brother Sean, as I’ve said previously, you sharing your professional and personal evolutions is inspiring and encouraging. It is a coveted blessing that you are able to plug-in your life’s journey into the work you do and share with others who appreciate you and your outstanding work. The pic in Alex’s book with the 2-red doors and columns is a pic I could see you mastering in BW. It was grand in color. 💯. Time to order my annual SeanTuck photo book. Be well…stay on the journey. Ed.
Great video Sean, Alex Webb certainly is a extremly talented photographer.
I think Team Deakins podcast (at 7:55) is one of the best podcasts out there in general, and certainly the best one about filmmaking. Absolutely love that duo for their calm, insightful interviews. The only thing I always wish is for the episodes to be longer :)
Great video, Sean, ty!
Agreed. Finding that podcast was such a gift. It's a wealth of information.
amazing inspirational high dose of passion towards photography ! Love your recipe artists you select for projection
Thanks Sean. So much. Can’t tell you how much this resonated. I came from colour and got into B&W because it was so alien and challenging. I won’t say I mastered it but I too quickly found it limiting. I’ll come back to it but as far as my personal development goes colour was - after a break - a bigger challenge. I came from a very formalist, pictorial set of inspirations (eg Ernst Haas, Ralph Gibson) to Eggleston and am actively seeking to make my photos more ‘mundane’ yet interesting, without relying on the pictorial tricks of my first influences that for me made making work easier.
Anyway, a long way to say this really hit the spot for me. Thank you. Ben
this is a video that was very interesting to me, thanx much Sean!
I love and respect your honesty at the end about why you were using B&W
Excellent video Sean! Completely agree. I dived right into black and white with heavy shadows but I feel a significant amount of people have all done the same things and it’s no longer unique. I can definitely agree with your comment of using black and white as a crutch. It is something I think I am good at but it’s definitely easier and almost a go to if I’m struggling for shots. But I’d much rather prefer to shoot like Webb or Gruyaert for something that pleases my eye more. Time to embrace that colour!
Always causing me to turn the corner with my photos. Great video. Studied color in college, didn’t understand any of it. What I finally understood was that color is another design element. Thank you for the proverbial kick!
An absolute creative gem. Thank you
Highly informative, personal also enjoyable video at same time....like always🖤
I've just started with streetphotography and the work I see from other photographers are always B&W.I shoot mostly 99% of the time in color and was beginning to think I was on the wrong path,but now I've seen your video and I am so relieved to find out: that is my style and I love it that way.Thank you!
I’m glad you mentioned Gustavo and Stuart, I feel like they carry a similar visual signature as Alex and like you said, challenges us to see photos better. Cheers!
What a wonderful discovery for Gustavo Minas. Wow. Thanks
The suffering of light is one of the best book I ever bought. The quality is amazing. The pictures are just wow!
Alex Webb makes me think of Henri Cartier Bresson but in color. Geometry, decisive moment/timing + color. Also his ability to find order in chaos is just amazing.
My other favorites in color (although different style) : Jay Maisel and Ernst Haas (I hope one day you will make a video on them too. Ernst Haas used to embrace his shadows too 😉)
Thanks for the video. Very interesting insights as always.
Your videos are always a joy to watch and inspiring.
Thank you for not having a single rgb light in your background!
I ordered The Suffering Of Light because of this video. It arrived yesterday and I’ve started it. I love it love it love it! Great images!
That's great to hear.
Fantastic episode
Many thanks
wonderful perspective; this is why I love color so much; well expressed
You have a great ability to open doors and explore new opportunities. Inspiring video. Insightful and honest. Thanks.
Hi, thanks to this video (and thanks to a video from Alex Kilbee) about Alex Webb, I requested Alex Webb's book The Suffering of Light for Christmas. I am very happy with the book, because what a great photographer! Thanks for the tip!
Thanks for this. Always so inspiring and educational. I do love black and white but something about color just taps into the bit of nostalgia for me (a GenXer) especially with works from Eggleston and Herzog.
Very interesting as usual Sean. I have your 'collections' series and I must say I enjoy the colour photos the most, but that is in some ways because they follow the B&Ws. They seem to take me on a journey of viewing in which your B&W forms help me to see the colour photos in a new (more structural) way. Have just bought Meaning & Making for Kindle and am very much looking forward to that.
I think the most important line in this video is when Sean said, "If I had taken this photo I would have thrown it away". How many great photos have you guys thrown away, thinking it was trash.... May be it was a masterpiece!
What's really kind of interesting about Webb's color work is that when you push the contrast like he does, you'll generally get even more saturation then what you find in the end product of his work generally speaking. So we know he does look for color and colors that contast each other, but he also de saturates colors quite a bit too.
Love your videos ❤
Thank you for this upload, Sean. I often feel I'm cheating or failing to find my own style by allowing the work of other photographers to influence my creative direction, so it's reassuring to hear another photographer unapologetically embrace this method to get out of a creative rut.
I have a whole on "imitation vs innovation" which might be helpful as you define this line for yourself: ua-cam.com/video/8biyvaDs81Q/v-deo.html
Brilliant! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you. I always find something to learn, think about in your videos, and this one was no exception.
I prefer B&W, feel more comfortable with it, and love manipulating color photos into B&W in Camera Raw. There is something exhilarating about adjusting sliders for grayscale and other "color" settings in B&W, at least for me. However, every so often I do keep the images in their original color and go to town on all the different color sliders. This is especially true for some of my flower (mostly roses) and architectural geometry photos.
Funny story: I sent a friend of mine a set of 13 photos from SF's 2019 Chinese New Year Parade. They all featured a large dragon facing the camera and then the body being moved around by people. Very colorful, but I sent her the photos in B&W, which I preferred, especially because of all the motion blur. Well, she complained about the lack of color, so (she is a good friend who is home-bound for a while now) I reworked the photos in color to keep her from kvetching. And I found that once I dug in and tried to make them into something I liked, the color images were cool, too. I liked them, but for the color, especially the red dragon's face.
Ya never know.
As always, thank you for sharing.
Thank you for sharing Sean, it seems every video you publish just dissects right to the heart of the matter and resonates so well with me. I’m on the opposite path, I find colour work in the digital space so very overwhelming and triggering. The seemingly endless choice of pushing and pulling colours in post give me anxiety. Whenever I shoot BW I find a certain solace in it, but as you have pointed out maybe I’m just hiding from my own shortcomings… in any case thank you.
Good luck on your journey into black and white.
honestly I've felt the same thing you're talking about and this summer I've taken a lot more photos in colour
For me, it was Jay Maisel that snapped me out of being stuck in the low contrast/saturation look.
Embracing vivid colours really is challenging but so satisfying.
Such a helpful video. Thanks
Hi Sean - I noticed that Gustavo Mimas and Stuart Paton are running a workshop at some point in June (2023) - I’m hoping I might be able to get along to it 😉
Gustavo is amazing!
Wonderful video - so thought-provoking. We have to keep growing as artists and explore new territory. And be inspired - but not copy. Thank you.
Thanks. Good, useful content and I appreciate your discussion of the ‘internal’ aspects of photography. I’m 63 and been a photographer for most of my life, pro and now amateur again (meaningless terms I know). £ are more useful than gushing soocial media words, so, great job and thank you.
Thanks so much for the support
I took a workshop with both Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris, beautiful experience. They see life color complexity and poetry in such an unique way
That's great. I'm very jealous:)
Great video! Would LOVE a video about Harry Gruyaert!
Thanks Sean for sharing your story and sprinkling in just the right amount of context and caveats to turn a concrete individual journey into helpful advice to everyone who wants to learn from it!
Btw.: with the music that sets in at 13:04, is it weird that I felt like some kind of altar call was coming up? :D (Seriously though, it’s really interesting to see/hear techniques that are used extensively in Christian events and media, only in different contexts. This can spark all sorts of questions and thoughts - I love that.)
And black and white is limiting too. A comfort zone but as the Rock says: comfort zones are great, but nothing ever grows there.
I like that you mentioned Gustavo Minas.. because I know him through Instagram, but didn’t know you did as well. He’s good!!
He's amazing.
Thank you, Sean, for sharing your thoughts. Maybe the work of Ernst Haas can also serve as inspiration for your photos in colour. I wish you lots of fun in this new world!
Absolutely. Haas has some amazing work.
Great video Sean, I never used to buy photobooks, and TSOL was my first purchase 4 years ago, at the time, I balked at the price (£45), but its an essential purchase, as you say to understand filling the corners, layering and colour.
Agreed. It's a great addition to my book shelf.
We are the same journey with color ! I do 90 % of my work in B&W but have been experimenting with color and yes I battle with the same “fear of color “ lol. I still prefer B&W and it’s where my passion for image making is but there are times when color would or can be the better choice when choosing to make the final image.
I love his Mexico work, I have his books La Calle and Suffering of Light.
This is an interesting take, I switched from colour to bnw as I thought I was hiding behind great colours in the scene more than not, and that bnw forces me to take a better image.
I've just gone the opposite way recently, having shot colour over the last 6 months pretty exclusively, I am now shooting mono. I tend to focus on one or the other for a while, rather than switching between the two on a regular basis. I just shoot for myself, so any pressure to shoot in a certain style is my own!
If I were ever to be arrested, I would enjoy standing in a field of yellow flowers and if Alex Webb took my photo I’d want it to be my mug shot. Just saying’ 🙃. Lovely video Sean, thank you.
Sean, always enjoy your videos and thoughts!! In one of your older pieces taking about the importance of spending time with your thoughts to gather inspiration and ideas you mention listening to some ambient music playlists on Spotify. Are you able to share those, or direct us to which ones you refer to? Many thanks!
Sean's videos, are inspirational.
Having said that, no video will make you go out and shoot. It is a self realizing (of missing meaning) that push you to "do something".
PS: I often tried to do the same. Convert photos, that didn't "look right" to B&W. It never helped.
Contrary, B&W can be liberating, not having to deal with color. You add the color component only when it has something to contribute. As someone said, color can be a distraction, like looking at someone's clothes and not the person, himself.
If you want to achieve a style like that of Alex Webb (or Gustavo Minas) you also need a place with such nice colors (not easy to find in Europe).
Webb is great. I lucked out and managed to get his Brooklyn photo collection book in Oxfam last week. Meant to be.
Excellent learnings from your video, thank you for sharing your learnings. My top two take-home messages in particular were (1) whether you like or dislike his photography his images really make you stop and take notice (2) i too find some of his work to strong. But it does challenge me to try different techniques and isn’t that what good photographers and their art prescribe.
Great. Thanks Paul.
Thanks!
Alex Webb's pictures remind me of the work of hipgnosis who did all the famous album covers of the 70s mainly pink floyd. the one with the hands (6:20) and the next one at 6:46
All I can say is thank you so much.
hehe thats what i was always talking ... if ur photo is bad make it black and white and u can rescue it xD
COLOUR THEORY....is what Alex Webb mastered!
I am an absolute dedicated black and white photographer.............but man has colour got a lot going for it............
I’d always liked punchy, saturated colors (especially reds that pop), and I felt for many years like I was out of sync with the rest of the photographic community, which was embracing muted colors or lots of orange+teal palettes. Discovering Alex Webb in a way gave me “permission” to lean into those colors. His compositions still blow my mind. I remember looking at the Hands photo and as I sat there, all I could think was “how the hell did he align all those at once, and at a depth of field to have it all basically in focus??” That’s gotten me to work at stopping down my lens more and putting more in the frame.
I love colour work. Colour triggers more emotion through the use of colours and only in the composition. Currently though I have moved somewhat to b/w. Currently I have to simplify certain aspects and I am somewhat stuck. Great tips in the video, as usual, and it confirms that there is a way to work out of a rut. But is it a rut or have we reached a plate of sorts and need to move onward from what we have done to expand on our knowledge and skill?
Love Alex Webb 🔝
Ironically, I find Black and White is what I am currently exploring. I believe that certain subjects need to be in colour and others in black and white. Just my perspective and my approach to certain subjects. It’s how I tell my visual story. Cheers from Australia. 🇦🇺
A couple of other colour photographers worth checking out: Pete Turner, who is very well known, and the lesser known Eric Meola, who is probably most famous for his B&W work with Bruce Springsteen and the cover of Born To Run.
Sean, thank you ever so much for another great video and a very interesting topic.
I think, though, that shooting in BW takes a totally different skillset than shooting in color, with neither the one or the other being "better". I'd like to compare it to playing either electric or acoustic guitar--where both instruments are basically close relatives, but require a totally different approach to playing it. Some things work better (or even exclusively) on the electric, others on the acoustic one. For example, Jimi Hendrix' "Star Spangled Banner" would sound boring on an acoustic guitar, while Paco de Lucia's flamenco style play would sound terrible on an electric.
I consider it mastery, if a photographer can effortlessly switch between BW and color and create compelling images in either medium.
As for the saturated colors of Alex Webb--it would be great to see the original slides, and not the "reproductions in print". While an avid slide shooter myself (mostly Fuji Provia), I have absolutely no experience with Kodachrome. I suspect, however, that the extra color boost was introduced (purposely), when creating the prints from the original slides (e.g. Provia tends to lean towards a blueish color cast, when underexposed; but then, each film stock behaves differently).
Just my two cents, and once again a big thank you for your contributions, your work and efforts you put into your channel.
harry gruyaert is a great one to focus on as well, Also Greg Girard for great colour work at night.
My favorite Alex Webb photo is of the little boy sitting with a parrot on his head. Why? Bc it is simple yet connects emotionally with me. Photos can be too complex which leaves a disconnect.
Definitely check out: Harry Gruyaert, David Alan Harvey and Steve McCurry for more of that color.
Love watching your videos!
What filter are you using while talking on the couch? Black mist filter? If so which one? 1/4? I am looking to invest, but can’t afford to get the whole range right now.
Damn, Alex Webb, first time I’ve seen any of his work. Absolutely fantastic. Some of the best composition I’ve ever seen along with colours that make you look 3 times. Love it.
I'm glad I could introduce you.
Colour is wonderful - black and white is wonderful ....
Always excellent videos. I think one of the strongest uses in his work is the use of color in layering. I don’t think his layering would work nearly as well in BW. I think his use of 35mm lens plays into this as well. Allows deeper DOF than something like a 50. Also, the super limited DR of Kodachrome FORCED him to let his shadows turn to silhouette. I suspect he maybe even under exposed to saturate the hell out of the Kodachrome mid-tones. Compared to someone like Herzog who also used Kodachrome..Herzog doesn’t have that silhouette contrast and over saturation. Kodachrome really wasn’t candy colors like Velvia…it was more earthy IMHO. . I’m a huge proponent of creativity through limitation.
Agreed. I think Herzog exposed a little brighter which is when Kodachrome became more 'pastel-like'. Both are great looks though.
I read once, somewhere, that "if the colour in the shot doesn't add anything to it, make it B/W".
I am not a pro, so i don't know if that's right but i tend to stick to that mantra...
What I learned about life from Alan Watts: Don't force anything (wu wei). You will know when you do so. It will not ring true, it will feel artificial, not genuine. Go out the door and leave your expectations, your logic, your thoughts behind. (You can later return to them if you feel unsafe without them). Expose your unburdened self with free-floating attention to all that presents itself to you. Do it again the next day, and the next. And see what uniquely touched you.
Thanks
It seems that a lot of us get influenced by the many landscape photography vloggers, for whom one of the first things they almost always do when processing an image is pull the highlights way down and the shadows way up. Apparently "nature abhors contrast". I confess to the same -- though I try to move each "just enough" -- but maybe it's time for me to experiment with the idea that it's okay to crush the shadows in color photos...or at least not worry if every detail in them is not easily seen?
"Choosing against that": what a great phrase! I don't find that Alex' work appeals to me personally, just a matter of individual taste.