Absence

Every month I sit down to write my blog. Many times, I already have an idea in my head that has been percolating long enough for the words to flow quickly and easily. Then, there are the times when I struggle and feel like I’m struggling to find or settle on something, often at the very edge of the month (my deadline). Last week I was given a word … absence. I wrote that word and some additional ones that seemed to have a connection to “absence” and to photography. I thought they would be great “sparks” to ignite my writing. In some ways they are; and, yet, nothing happened—no words, phrases, sentences or paragraphs emerged over the last week. My notebook, where I hand write everything first, has been devoid or absent of any marks until now. That’s only because I have one more day to write before I am “late” and miss my end of the month musings to share.

To keep things simple, I’ll define absence as “missing or not present.” It will give me some leeway as I explore a few ideas that have come late in the day relative to this concept in general and as it relates to photography, life and creativity. Sometimes we are missing inspiration and ideas, whether for writing, photography or even for how we might fill our day. When those times come, it’s easy to be discouraged and give up – at least temporarily – because it’s frustrating when things don’t move smoothly or as we “expect” them to. It then becomes easier to sit around and stew, or scroll—to waste time, sometimes way more than we realize. I know. I’ve done it (kind of like emotional eating). I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one.

However, going into the mindless zone is not productive on any level. We are better off going outside and taking a walk. The exercise and nature provide a good opportunity to do something healthy and also allows us to clear our heads. Not surprising, doing this can provide the breaks we need for inspiration to creep in—and it does. While there was no walk for me today, reading a book by Torsten Andreas Hoffmann, Photography as Meditation, opened the door and helped me look at the words I had written a week ago with new eyes. For this discussion, I have settled on Absence as it relates to Space, Color and Context. Keeping to these three areas will help me (and you) consider the concept more closely and, perhaps, differently within photography and beyond.

Sunset absent of “cloud drama”

ABSENCE AND SPACE

As visual artists, whether photographers or painters, we have a canvas. It has a shape and size that we determine either before or after creating an image. It is an empty box, and our job is to fill it however we wish according to our vision. How we use the space we are given determines the outcome (as well as how we use our cameras). We can “fill the frame” with our subjects or we can include very little of any subject in the frame and make the “negative space” speak more powerfully. This approach emphasizes the concept of absence.

If we want to create tension, we can jam our subjects in the box and provide no breathing room. Over twenty years ago during an image review of slides with Nancy Rotenberg and her husband, Michael Lustbader, I was given some feedback from Michael that I still remember (and hear). He told me I had a good eye, that my exposures were good, but, in a very high-pitched voice, my compositions “are so tight!” It was the best thing I could have been told. He was right. I was not allowing my subject’s proverbial shoulders to drop. I was creating unintended tension by overutilizing the space I was given. Leaving room for your subjects to breathe is important. I may not always succeed in the field, but I am mindful of the space I use and work to leave enough of it empty. When I do miss the mark, I “crop like I mean it,” so that the final image is intentional.

Using all the space in the frame.

Leaving “enough” space

Leaving enough space ahead of your subject also matters. It is often referred to as giving your subject “room to move.” Leave too little room and your person or bird or bear hits the edge of the frame too quickly and awkwardly, making the viewer wish for something different. Yes, you can “add canvas” to an image after the fact to create that needed space, but why not consider doing it and making it happen in the field.

Want or need more empty space, absent of “stuff?” Empty out the frame. Make use of negative space to complete your visual thoughts. Leave the space around your subject empty or absent of stuff. It can make your subject stand out and the space itself can also be the subject. Using negative space is a compositional technique that offers opportunities to create simple images with strong emotional impact. When you see or create them, you actually appreciate what is missing. Our mind often fills in the blanks. Simplicity can speak volumes in its quietness.

So, absence of “stuff,” and thinking about removing elements within a frame that don’t belong will help you create stronger images. Remove what doesn’t add to why you stopped to shoot in the first place; clear the clutter and give your subjects the room needed for them to be clear and effective. We don’t need to reduce everything to bare bones or minimalism (though that is another option). We just need to allow the distractions to be absent or missing. Try it, and see what happens!

Room to Ride …

Simple color and space

ABSENCE AND COLOR

We live in a world filled with color. As a lover of nature, in general, but more specifically, flowers, I love color. I cannot imagine living in a monochrome world. How would I survive without purple? That said, for the longest time I could not conceive of images without color. “Seeing in black and white” was a foreign language to me. I saw the images and appreciated the impact, but did not understand how to get from color to black and white did not have a viable path for me to follow. Did I appreciate and enjoy black and white images? Of course. Did I set out to try black and white? Well, once. One time in the days of film, I took a class on black and white photography. It involved learning the basics, buying a red filter and a few rolls of film. I went out and exposed the film, developed it in the dark room and made a few prints. I still have them.

When I switched to digital in 2005, I tried again to shoot with black/white in mind. I set my camera to monochrome mode, saw the black/white images on the back of my camera and thought, “cool.” When I got back to the computer, the coolness went MIA because I was shooting in raw format. Images I knew and remembered shooting in monochrome were now color! What? Yup. What I didn’t realize at the time was that if I had set the camera capture mode to “raw + jpg,” I would have seen the raw image in color and the jpg image in black/white. Perhaps, then, I would have developed more enthusiasm.

Removing color from the world makes us see deeper into the essence of things.

–Rob Sheppard

It is the absence of color and simplicity that allows the art deco pier on Jekyll Island to shine.