The Great Soprendo
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Interesting
Bbc1
Bbc1
vivian maier prog starting now
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minkeysteve
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BBC1 now Vivian Maier documentary
If anyone's interested, she's the nanny who's work was only discovered after her death
If anyone's interested, she's the nanny who's work was only discovered after her death
Re: BBC1 now Vivian Maier documentary
I was going to post to watch it if you missed it. But thread already here. I found it interesting and loved some of her photos. Liked the fact that the guy was going to give some of the photos "back to the street".
Worth a watch on catch-up if you missed it.
I was going to post to watch it if you missed it. But thread already here. I found it interesting and loved some of her photos. Liked the fact that the guy was going to give some of the photos "back to the street".
Worth a watch on catch-up if you missed it.
The Great Soprendo
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I enjoyed it too, but I couldn't help thinking that there are too many commercial interests at stake for us to get a decent independent view of what her best work was. Because it is all published posthumously, and by those who own them, we have no direction from her about which work she would have wanted to publish or not. Or indeed if she wanted any of it published at all. A very interesting aspect was the fact that she hadn't even developed a number of the rolls she took, so had no idea herself what the negatives looked like, never mind prints, and never got any of her work printed properly. In a way, though, that was very telling: she was mainly doing this for herself, and like all good photographers, knew what the result would be without even having to see it (compare that with today's scattergun approach and obsessive chimping between frames).
Also, while she had a top quality camera, it also shows that you can be a great photographer without a variety of lenses and gizmos. A basic setup with a fixed lens does the job. And unfortunately now I think I might need a Rolleiflex...(already have a Rolleicord mind, so no need, but you know...).
Also, while she had a top quality camera, it also shows that you can be a great photographer without a variety of lenses and gizmos. A basic setup with a fixed lens does the job. And unfortunately now I think I might need a Rolleiflex...(already have a Rolleicord mind, so no need, but you know...).
I'm hoping my photos get "discovered" when I'm gone and make thousands each! 
Money is involved now with her photos, whether this bodes well or not I don't know.
She had to be three foot away from her subjects to get a lot of those street portraits. Most didn't look posed either.
Money is involved now with her photos, whether this bodes well or not I don't know.
She had to be three foot away from her subjects to get a lot of those street portraits. Most didn't look posed either.
The Great Soprendo
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I'm hoping my photos get "discovered" when I'm gone and make thousands each!
Money is involved now with her photos, whether this bodes well or not I don't know.
She had to be three foot away from her subjects to get a lot of those street portraits. Most didn't look posed either.
V difficult too - at 3 foot you are at the minimum focus distance on a Rolleiflex and there isn't that much depth of field there, even stopped down. She obviously knew her camera inside out and how to get the best out of it. Probably a lesson there also for those of us who chop and change between cameras and never really master the one we already have (I know I'm guilty of this).
That was a superb, poignant programme about a remarkable woman.
Based on that 12 frame roll, a sort of photo diary of her day, her hit rate appeared to be phenomenal.
Based on that 12 frame roll, a sort of photo diary of her day, her hit rate appeared to be phenomenal.
The programme left a lot more questions about Vivian Maier than it answered.
She was clearly remarkable, tragic, compulsive, technically phenomenal, and totally fearless. And perhaps a little bit nuts.
She was clearly remarkable, tragic, compulsive, technically phenomenal, and totally fearless. And perhaps a little bit nuts.
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