Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
2009
www.hasselblad.com/cfv39-refurb
HANS STRAND
KEVIN THEN
Editorial
ContEnt
After five years at the helm, Christian Poulsen has decide to resign as CEO of Hasselblad. Christian, with passion and uncompromising determination, transformed Hasselblad from an exclusively analog to a modern digital camera company in less than five years. His biggest achievement, however, was not only enabling Hasselblad to offer fine digital solutions, but to create, together with his team, a fully integrated, truly digital camera platform, which allows all components from lens, to camera, to software to be linked and blended together in a manner no other high-end camera manufacturer has offered to date. What began with the H2D, H3D and H3DII, was recently further enhanced by the H4D, which sports leading-edge technologies like True Focus with APL, as well as the highest resolution and image quality currently available on the market. This has created the foundations for an ongoing technological success story: this has enabled Hasselblad to successfully remain in the drivers seat in the high-end segment of professional photography today. It is obvious that an important mission has been accomplished. Christian Poulsen who, by the way, has always been a big promoter of the VICTOR project leaves the company to pursue other interests, but remains a strategic technology adviser to the Hasselblad board. His place at the rudder will be taken over by Dr. Larry Hansen, who has been on the Board for several years and is the Chairman. Larry comments: We look forward to a new phase. Hasselblad and the entire industry are faced with constant changes, which, of course, open up a range of opportunities. Adding to the focus on technology of the management team for the past five years, Larry Hansen brings tremendous expertise in the photo industry and related business developments. He brings over 26 years of experience gained from a number of top management positions held in the German-based optical and opto-electronics company, Carl Zeiss. For the last 16 years, Larry fulfilled the role of Chief Executive Officer of Carl Zeiss Asia Pacific, located in Japan, managing the profitable growth of the companys complete portfolio of businesses throughout Asia. In addition, he initiated and developed thriving photographic business collaborations with Japanese corporations such as Sony, Cosina and Kyocera. So, Christian, many thanks for everything you have done for both the brand and the photo industry; and Larry, welcome time to start the next chapter. Yours sincerely Stephan Bittner, Publisher
Fournier tra vels the world photographing people and places that are witness to humanitys passion for space (cover and ri.)
04 >> NEWS
David Trood: the Hasselblad Masters new unusual photo book Joel Meyerowitz presents the wild side of parks in NYC Wildlife photographer 2009: Jos L. Rodriguez wins with a 503 CW picture
20 >> SEVEN UP
VICTOR asked seven representatives from the international photo scene to choose their personal top photographer Newcomer and to explain why these are the ones to watch.
36 >> RAYA
The fashion and beauty photographs taken by multiple award winner, Raya, are wonderful to see. More important, however, her images always tell a compelling story.
40 >> pREVIEW
Italian photographer, Alberto Peroli, used an H3DII-31 to document a social project in Bangladesh. His photographs show that the camera can do great reportage work.
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VICTORNEWS
JOEL MEYEROWITZ A HOMAGE TO NEW YORKS PARKS DAVID TROOD A BOOK ON A VERY SPECIAL JOURNEY
Wilderness in New York City? Pictures by award-winning photographer Joel Meyerowitz taken in his home town from 2006 to 2009, prove its true. Assigned by New Yorks Department of Parks & Recreation, he visited 9.000 acres of park, documenting and celebrating them. Taken with analogue 4x5 and 8x10 inch cameras, the pictures were scanned on a Hasselblad Flextight X5 scanner. The degree of control I have with these high-quality scans from Hasselblad as well as digital printers by HP, is better than anything I could have achieved in the darkroom. I cant tell you how many times we will make a large print, put it up on the wall, stand back and say, this is fantastic! The images reveal hidden corners of wilderness in the city. It is the first time since the 30s that New Yorks parks have received such photographic coverage, documenting one of the citys great legacies. The title: Legacy: The Preservation of Wilderness in New York City Parks says it all, with 250 of the 3000 pictures Meyerowitz took, on 300 pages and with two, four-sided gatefolds. Born in 1938, Meyerowitz based his Legacy project on childhood memories of a New York with green space open and wild, alive with rabbits, migratory birds, snakes, frogs, and the occasional skunk. That gave me my first sense of the natural world, its temperament and its seasons, its unpredictability, and its mystery. An exhibition of large-format prints of Meyerowitz Legacy images can be seen at the Museum of the City of New York up till March 7, 2010. (Joel Meyerowitz: Legacy: The Preservation of Wilderness in New York City Parks, Publishers: Aperture Foundation).
At the seashore, in the desert, by a volcano Hasselblad Master David Trood traveled the whole world looking for the source of creativity for his unusual photo book At any given moment
On December 5, David Trood (born in Australia and living in Denmark) launches a very special photo book, where the 42 year-old processes the essence of his photographic life: At any given moment invites readers on a journey to distant places, encouraging them to discover the source of creativity. The book tells of a courageous journey in search of the unusual, the bizarre, but also the mundane. Made a Hasselblad Master in 2006, David Trood, who began taking pictures at 16, has achieved a lot in his professional life. At any given moment sets a new challenge, as he not only took the pictures, but also wrote the text and designed and published the book, to ensure his message would not get lost. My objective with this story is to create an understanding within the spirit of humanity that there is the same essence in us all, and when we make the conscious choice to look, we will see that essence reflected in everything around us. If you prefer to reduce the environmental impact, you can download the book for a small fee from www.atanygivenmoment.com. (David Trood: At any given moment)
The winning photo The Storybook Wolf taken by Jos Luis Rodriguez, captures the dynamics of an Iberian wolf leaping over the fence on a Spanish farm
For Legacy: The Preservation of Wilderness in New York City Parks (le.), Meyerowitz photographed at the New York Botanical Gardens in autumn (be. le.), and at the Van Cortlandt Park in spring (be. ri.)
Photos: David Trood (4); courtesy Joel Meyerowitz and Edwynn Houk Gallery, excerpted from Legacy: The Preservation of Wilderness in New York City Parks, published by Aperture (3); Jos Luis Rodriguez/Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009
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www.broncolor.com
MDRS #03. MARS DESERT RESEARCH STATION/ TEAM 54HANKSVILLE/UTAH/ USA/NOVEMBER 2008
VINCENT FOURNIER
With carefully staged pictures that could have been taken on the moon or Mars, Vincent Fournier invites the viewer to dream of distant planets. While putting together his Space Project, the photographer visited the most important observatories, training camps and space centers around the world with his H3DII-39.
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MDRS #01. MARS DESERT RESEARCH STATION/ TEAM 54/HANKSVILLE/UTAH/ USA/NOVEMBER 2008
MDRS #02. MARS DESERT RESEARCH STATION/ TEAM 54/HANKSVILLE/UTAH/ USA/NOVEMBER 2008
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MDRS #04. MARS DESERT RESEARCH STATION/ TEAM 54/HANKSVILLE/UTAH/ USA/NOVEMBER 2008
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ANECHOIC CHAMBER/ESTEC/ EUROPEAN SPACE RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGIE CENTRE. NOORDWIJK/THE NETHERLANDS/ APRIL 2008
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Right: BAF ROOM 65 #01 Below: BAF ROOM 65 #02 Both: FINAL ASSEMBLY BUILDING/BUILDING S5E/ GUIANA SPACE CENTRE/ CSG FRENCH GUIANA/ KOUROU/FEBRUARY 2007
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GNRAL BORIS V. NAIDYONOV WEARING THE RUSSIAN SPACE SUIT SOKOL. STAR CITY/YOURI GAGARINE COSMONAUT CENTER/CGTC/RUSSIA/ZVIEZDNI GORODOK/CHTCHIOLKOVO NOVEMBER 2007
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His landscapes are remote and barren, yet they exert enormous attraction on the viewer, reminding them of childhood fantasies played out on the moon or Mars, or of the incredible journeys of Jules Vernes. My niche is building complex images that possess a natural fidelity. I want people who view my work to feel as though theyre inside this world that Ive created through photography, which forces me to experiment with my craft as much as possible, Vincent Fournier explains. The Brusselsbased photographer has been using Hasselblad cameras since 2004 first a H3D-22 and then a H3DII-39 , traveling the world for his largescale Space Project, aimed at documenting all types of undertakings that reflect humanitys efforts to conquer space. The resulting landscapes and abstract interiors are rather uninviting, the compositions extremely static and sterile; yet, even though it might appear that they were taken in a studio, the pictures were shot in real existing locations. In quasi-monochrome spaces, Fournier introduced very precise color accents. The photographs were often taken in secretive, even mythical places, such as the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Russia, the Mars Desert Research Station in Utah, the Guiana Space Center, and the Atacama Desert Observatories in Chile. With dogged persistence, Vincent Fournier applied for the necessary permits so that he could take his camera into the most important observatories, training camps and space stations around the world. In addition, Fournier (who was born in Burkina Faso and grew up in France) joined the French branch of the Planet Mars Society that aims to simulate life on Mars, collecting information that could prove extremely useful for future trips to the red planet. He even took part in the societys intense training course, and in 2006, was one of a few photographers chosen by the society to take part in the Mars Desert Research Station project a global exploration of deserts, including the Canadian Arctic, the American Southwest and the Australian Outback. In fact, it all began back in Hawaii. While photographing the Mauna Kea observatory, Fournier was struck by the extremes he saw between the volcanic landscape de-
void of any human presence and the enormous, sci-fi-looking radio telescopes used by scientists to eavesdrop on space. It was at Mauna Kea that he decided to start a project dedicated to landscapes with observatories. I eventually decided to enlarge the project to the space centers around the world exploring the idea of man and space, whether we are looking at the sky, whether we are going in the sky. For the commercial and fine-art photographer color softness is an important creative means just like the appropriate natural lighting. I like the softness of the light at sunset and dusk sometimes just a few seconds after the sun rises or sets, Vincent Fournier explains. To get a shot just right, he will go out a day earlier to plan the details of his compositions. This allows him to decide how to make best use of the few moments of perfect light needed to achieve the right effects for photos such as those taken in the area around the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) in Utah. I wanted the MDRS images to look like paintings historical landscape paintings with a sense of science fiction.
Vincent Fournier: Space Project, Verlhac Editions, 100 pp., 49,00 The London Step Gallery presents Fourniers Space Project from January 13 to 17 at the London Art Fair, www.vincentfournier.co.uk
MDRS #11. MARS DESERT RESEARCH STATION/ TEAM 54 HANKSVILLE/UTAH/ USA/NOVEMBER 2008
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COVERSTORY
Chen Man
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Sarah Maurer
Emil Larsson
UP
Which photographers are currently on the move to the very top? VICTOR got seven international photo representatives to choose we present their newcomers and tell why these are the ones to watch.
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Norman Konrad
Julian Hibbard
Barrie Hullegie
Xander Ferreira
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LIVING SCUlPTURES
British photographer Tim Flach is known for his unusual portrayal of animals. His horse images manage to convey the relationship between man and steed without including any human subjects. Though domesticated over 5000 years ago, Tim Flachs perspectives present the noble beast in an entirely new light. Trailblazing images between motion and repose.
Tim Flach considers this shot of the Andalusian, Farol XXIX (above), one of the ultimate horse images. With this extreme close-up (right), Flach wants to encourage the viewers eye to wander
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To make the Lusitano, Unico II, shake his head dynamically, Tim Flachs assistant rubbed foam over the animals head. The photo shoot took all day
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Eye to eye with Hassan a white Arabian (left). His back (above) transforms into an abstract sculpture, producing a large variety of shades of white
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Flach let the breeder decide on the exact background for the cremellocolored Lusitano stallion, Idolo. The result was a setting where horse and backdrop blended perfectly
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A closer look in needed to discover the condensed breath of the thoroughbred, Montpelier (left). With the Lusitano, Dante (right), Flach wanted to show muscles and structure rather than the whole horse
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Destined for glamor: Cassias mane is elaborately and lovingly plaited before British photographer Tim Flach trans forms the proud curve of the mares neck into a monumental landscape
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LIVING SCUlPTUREs
TIM FLACH
Born in London, England in 1958. Flach studied commu nications design from 1977 to 1980 at the University of East London (UEL), and then photography at the renowned Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in London from 1982 to 1983. Soon he was assisting photo grapher Brian Worth on major hotel brochure photo shoots and other PR work. Apart from the practical experience Worth provided him with the opportunity to use the studio for his own works. Flachs work has been recog nised with awards from the Association of Photography and British Design & Art Direction. Flach has had solo exhibitions in Dubai, Shanghai, Tokyo, Berlin and Houston, Texas, and lectures all over the world. His clients include Lavazza and British Royal Mail.
Whether face to face or eye to eye even when you look really close its hard to tell exactly what youre seeing. Despite the vividness of his pictures, British photographer Tim Flach loves to confuse the imaginative viewer. I like to bring unexpected elements to people, show them the less familiar, Flach explains, speaking about his particular way of seeing and capturing things. In his case, the things are animals and, above all, horses. Flach was given his first professional photographic assignment at age 18 when he was still a student. The project involved an 18-foot-long python. In his foundation course he was again photographing animals at the London Zoo. He hasnt looked back, You cant expect rational behavior when you're dealing with animals they're totally unpredictable. It leads to a tension between existing structures and a contrast between chaos and order. This tension creates the ideal conditions for the photographers work. He likes to take portraits of animals as though they were people sometimes face to face, sometimes in profile. As a result, the intuitive perspective becomes one of his stylistic elements. People tend to project human attributes onto animals, and thats fascinating, into something odd by his choice of unusual perspectives and angles, thus showing it in a completely new light. It has earned him a number of international awards. My pictures also reveal how we read things, how they astound us and how they become emotionally transformed, he explains. It was six years ago when he photographed a horse for the first time, together with other exotic animals such as Chinese pigs, bats, elephants and monkeys. He started this particular project by asking himself a simple question: What does a horse symbolize to me? The answer turned out to be a lot more complicated, for the relationship between man and horse, and the depictions thereof, have existed for thousands of years. Its a coexistence that has been constantly evolving. For centuries, horses were mans beast of burden, used for hunting, agriculture and even defence. It is only recently that theyve found their place in the world of recreation. This has led to new businesses where horses are objects of speculation highly appreciated investments, running into the millions. Through the ages, people have been developing equipment and accessories for a variety of horserelated activities culminating today animal look like a boxer about to step into the ring; and even contraptions to measure the horses breathing during training. You dont know its function, but you immediately start to search for a meaning, Flach explains with a grin that betrays his own confusion at seeing all the equipment. It clearly says something about the significance horses have for human beings, evident also in the various breeding programs. Tim Flach wants to show todays relationship between horses and people, free from clichs. Human figures are absent in his pictures. His chief interest is in paying homage to the steeds visual form. With this in mind, he goes as far as to take the horses out of their natural habitat at a cost of 1,500 English pounds for two, for example and relocates them in the sterile setting of his London studio. It is in this studio, located in Shoreditch, a former industrial area and now up-andcoming neighborhood brimming with artists studios and hip restaurants. In the studio Flach shoots his famous photographs, expertly switching between cameras or, more specifically, between his three Hasselblads: a Hasselblad 553ELX with a 150mm lens, a Hasselblad H1 camera with an Ixpress 132C digital back and with HC 100mm and 120mm lenses and a Hasselblad H2D-39 with HC 50110mm lens. Flach also draws upon the lighting techniques of fashion photography, using a special ring flash system for arising in the stall in different light. With the exception of a few rare cases, this perfectionist photographer avoids post-processing his work in Photoshop. Flachs pictures convey a sense of less is more, aiming to give the viewers enough room for their own personal interpretation of the subjects. For this reason, certain details only become apparent after repeated viewings: the triangular shape, the hint of an ear seems to suggest that the abstract sculpture may, in fact, be breathing horse. Its a surreal and suggestive type of photography that has gradually evolved into Flachs life mission, and he intends to continue in the same direction. I have spent twenty years or more solving other peoples problems: photography is often used to communicate ideas. It was a very creative journey, and it took me all this time to get on the right track, Flach says, as he moves off into a universe still bursting with possibilities. There is no doubt that he intends to convey these visions in his own special way starting with his very first book project titled Equus. Therefore he was travelling the globe, in the search for equines in their natural environment. The opus will be published in October 2008 by PQ Blackwell of Auckland, New Zealand. CARLA SUSANNE ERDMANN
Flach realizes. His work is also often quite abstract the perfect antithesis to anthropomorphism. Flachs super-sharp images are close-up impressions of four-legged, hoofed animals and other mammals, reptiles and fish. Its goosebumps material. Deep furrows in the skin appear like rocky gorges, pores like craters and feathers like trees. Flach likes to condense incredible proximity even further, reducing everything to the basics, transforming a living being into nothing more than color and structure. The animals body seems to disappear altogether. Flach turns the familiar
in high-tech horse racing gear. The sums can be quite spectacular: an Irish group once invested approximately 13.4 million euros for a two-year old race horse that has yet to see the starting line a cost that doesnt even include the required expensive equipment. The long list of equipment includes: nylon suits designed to give the horse a shiny coat after shampooing and drying; transport masks that make the
linear, direct light, and he prefers to photograph the animals in front of a black backdrop. However, Flach spares no expense when it comes to adjusting the background to achieve the right effect. For example, in order to create the perfect blend between the rare cremello-colored coat of the Lusitano stallion, Idolo, and the background (page 46), Tim Flach sent the breeder a color palette to pinpoint the subtle color changes
Masquerade (from left): Wildest Dream, an Arabian wearing a fly protector; Al Patra, an Arabian sporting a post-op mask; the tho roughbred fitted with oxygenmeasuring mask; Hotspur, an Irish sports horse, protected by six teenth century armour; a British pony wearing a hair straightener
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RAYA
Born in Tel Aviv/Israel in 1971 | moved to Paris in 1981 | freelance photographer since 1998, located in New York since the autumn of 2006 | Published in WestEastMagazine, Elle, Harpers Bazaar/Russia, Dansk, Esquire, Gala, Cosmopolitan, Dandy and Icon, among others | Advertisements for Daniel Hechter, Club Med and M. Frey, among others | Awarded the prize for Best Fashion Photograph in Cannes 2005.
The beginning. When I was young I collected Harcourt postcards. At the time I had no idea Id become a photographer one day, but I was fascinated by glamorous, black&white pictures of all those beautiful actors and actresses, and all staged with such great lighting. The heroes. I admire Vincent Peters pictures because he manages to make women look both sensual and glamorous. Im also impressed by the allure of Dominique Issermans photos and her gorgeous use of light. The hobby horse. I love looking at paintings and big brand magazine ads, as well as watching TV ads. Even at a friends house, if I see a copy of Vogue lying around, I just cant resist picking it up immediately to check out the fashion sections. The excitement. I once had a photo shoot in a small, Spanish hair dressing salon in Miami, where everything was colored pink. We arrived there with three models Advertisement for Eva Christal (2006, very top); for Icon (2006, above); for Dansk (2005, right)
directly from a photo shoot on the beach. We were terribly late and we had just two hours to get the models made-up, have their hair done, drag old ladies in from the street to play extras, sit them in hair-dresser chairs, dress a models small dog completely in pink, stage and photograph the lot. It was the fastest shoot Ive ever done in my whole life. The dream. I admire all forms of art. I dream of one day filming an incredibly glamorous perfume advertisement, which I would write and direct. The nightmare. All my acquaintances want me to take photos of their children, and they always ask me to take pictures of their weddings. That kind of stuff has absolutely nothing to do with my work; and, whats more, I dont have enough patience to do it. I dont even take a camera with me when on holiday. The star. Id love to take pictures of super model Stam. Shes not only very beautiful, but she also fits perfectly into my type of stories. The philosophy. Never lose hold of your self-confidence, set yourself high goals, and always try to be better. The treasure. Im particularly proud of the work I had published in the Russian Harpers Bazaar the piece was about quality jewellery and all the important brands like Dior and Chanel were represented. There were at least ten security guards there during the entire photo shoot. The Hasselblad. I photograph with an H2D, and I worship it. It is easy to use, not too heavy, has good lenses and feels like a small format camera. Its also very important to me that the H2D has such incredible precision in the detail and the sharpness, because I do a lot of jewellery photography. Raya is a Hasselblad Master because she has perfect control over the smooth transition between the glamour, romanticism and mystery in her pictures. Her knowledgeable interplay with being and appearance, light and shadow, produce stories that take the viewer far beyond what is apparent in the pictures.
Freelance work (2006, very top); for Icon (2006, above); in 2005 Raya received an award at the international Fashion Photography Festival for the picture with the rooster (right)
www.rayaphotographe.com www.hasselblad.com
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Picture from the Phantom series for C&G Magazine (2006, above)
ALBERto PERoLi
>> more than just a reportage on a country touching portraits from Bangladesh
MARK ZiBERt
>> the Canadian shoots just about anything even Adidas in China
IMPRiNt
PEtER MAtHiS
>> sensitively photographed high performance
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