Carli Davidson – Photographer

Here is something to make you smile, trawling the web I came across the work of Carli Davidson. She is a US photographer with a wicked sense of humour and a great gallery of images. The ones that first caught my eye were from a series called Shake, see the pictures, you will understand. Refreshing to see a photographer with such an individual vision. Carli works a lot with animals as subjects and clearly gets the most out of her subjects, the old adage ‘never work with animals or children’ does not apply to Carli

“Carli Davidson is an internationally recognized photographer. She has a background in both commercial and documentary photography, as well as over 7 years experience as an animal trainer and caretaker. Her love of both art and animals led her to work as an animal care technician and photographer for the Oregon Zoo, as well as a volunteer photographer for local animal rescues. 

 Her photography has been featured in Photo District News, The Atlantic, The Times UK, STERN Germany’s VIEW Magazine, Portland Monthly, The Village Voice, The Oregonian, The Portland Tribune, and numerous Zoo publications. She is also a regular photo contributor to Andrew Sullivan’s The Daily Dish.

 Carli has taught for the Newspace Center for Photography, and The Oregon Zoo, and has spoken at numerous institutions including The Art Institute, and The Evergreen State College.”  Do go and see more see more of Carli’s work on her site here you will smile a while

A telling story – a picture essay on being six by Tom Dinning

Tom Dinning is a bit special, his blog is always interesting, he is not big on equipment but is huge on ideas. His photography is a way of talking to you, sometimes his posts are specific and sometimes, as with this, telling a story.

Many people struggle to know what to photograph,  if you need a prod or poke to get you going then telling a story is a good start. Just going out with a camera and hoping a story will happen is a bit unrealistic. You have to think about your story before, maybe make notes of the areas you will need to photograph to convey your ideas and purpose. A story can be as simple as how to do something, I blogged about one photographer who made a picture essay on wine making, if you missed it have a look here.

Tom Dinning has taken a different approach he has remembered when he was 6 and how it felt to be taken to the city (Sydney) by his father and has photographed how it left a lasting impression. Always the success of Tom’s work is the way he makes it personal his pictures and essays are generally about his response and for that reason always enchanting and up close. Do have a look at this post on Tom’s blog site and make something personal of your own.

“Today I am six years old again. I am dressed in my best Sunday attire. Shoes polished, hair slicked back in the style of my father who guides me through the stations as we approach the city. ‘Three more stops,’ he assures me. I’m in no hurry. This journey will last all day and into the rest of my life.”  …….more here

“People stand on street corners like they always did.”…..

“Back then there was little of the shine and gloss of a modern city. It was brass and sandstone, tiled walls and awnings that sheltered us from the Sun in the summer or the winter rain.”….