Anyone reading anything interesting lately?
Every night I look at Will in the World and curse for myself for not finishing it. I've finally realized that the only way I'm going to finish the thing is by making it required reading. When it's late and you're tired and it's been a long day, somehow a learned biography of William Shakespeare just does not hit the spot.
But I have stumbled upon a really interesting book about post-war American photography called The Ongoing Moment that is unlike anything I've ever read before. The author, Geoffrey Dyer, doesn't even own a camera, but he was interested in the subject and wanted to know how one photographer's images inform other photographers. How they play off each other so to speak.
He also talks about the process too of being a street photographer. That's something I've always wondered about but never knew. Some photographers like Stieglitz hid the camera because they thought if people knew they were being photographed the moment was somehow perverted. Stieglitz would actually hide his camera in his coat on the subway to photograph people. Then there are other photographers like Garry Winograd who were very blatant photographing on the street. You can actually see people staring at him in the photographs. Diane Arbus was also of this same school of thought. She actually thought it was a more honest photograph if the subject was aware she was being photographed. An interest debate, no? I'm not sure where I fall. I guess both have their place.
So what are we all reading/watching/listening to? I'm curious!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Correction: It wasn't Alfred Stieglitz who hid his camera on the subway, it was Walker Evans.
ReplyDeleteCasey, I have been reading Stephen King's 'On Writing" - it is excellent and really inspiring! I have never read any of Stephen King's books and now I am eager to discover him. The book is part memoir and part advice on the craft of writing. So many books have been written on writing but I think a lot of them are not worth reading. But with Stephen King's incredibly humble perspective, I feel like this is a book worth reading for any writer who needs a little boost.
ReplyDeleteSomething that stuck with me was that when he started writing, he had the letter on a thumbtack on his wall. Soon enough he had to replace the thumbtack with a nail because the pile of rejection letter has gotten so thick.
I have been too afraid to submit and dragging my feet and I am now inspired to at least collect more rejection letters!