April 2010
The story behind it
01/04/2010
I walk on the snow, ice and rock, away from the confusion. The Serra da Estrela is full of people, almost concentrated on the top. Hundreds of people and cars. There is a traffic jam, moving slow. People seek for parking places. At the same time, it is very easy to keep away from this, to feel the silence and the wide horizons of the mountain. The Sun starts to lower, among light clouds. The lakes at the top of the Serra are frozen, with large ice covers. On one of the, the water level has gone down, moving the ice large plaques. Some break on the rocks, underneath. The light is beautiful. there are fox footprints on the snow. It is beautiful.Comment
Technical issues
01/04/2010
It was done in negative medium format film, Fuji PRO 160C 220, with the Mamiya 7II 6x7 medium format camera, 50mm f/4.5 lens. No tripod, since light was enough and the aperture was set at f/8, using hyperfocal distance. It was later scanned and converted to B&W. The nice film grain is visible (though it is known for having fine grain, among negative film). All detail is there, in the whole photograph. The large latitude of the film enables getting detail in dark shadow areas and on highly lit areas (on the verge of burning).Critial review
01/04/2010
This is a B&W photograph with a load of power: the placement of the visual attraction in the centre (dark rock and shadow area, with broken ice slabs), with diagonal lines from the corners to the centre (cracked ice layer); there are strong light vs shade, white vs black, smooth vs rough contrasts; for its simplicity, composition, weirdness of the unique situation, it leads to parallel interpretations. These are left to the observer's mind. It is highly metaphorical and mysterious - what usually happens is a stone falling from above and breaking the ice, not the other way; the remains of the broken ice bring up another clash, between the fragility of the ice and the strength of the megalith.Unique!
Where you should place it
01/04/2010
The first idea that comes to my mind goes towards a place where power issues are at stake. It doesn't necessarily mean in relations among people, but among ideas, between the usual and the unusual, the establishment and the creative. It is also a photograph that invites observation, resulting contemplation and parallel interpretation, as referred. It needs a place where it is fully seen. I wouldn't see it house living room, but more in an office.
