2020 Co-op Awards of Excellence Recipients
The Algonquin College Cooperative Education Department is proud to honour its extraordinary 2020 Co-op Awards of Excellence winners!
I was honoured to photograph them, on location.
https://www.algonquincollege.c
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Changing Lives
Again, I was very fortunate to photograph the portraits used for the Algonquin College, Changing Lives campaign. The
subjects used in the series are real students or recent graduates, not models. It always is a pleasure to work with them
in a photo session.
.... more at https://www.algonquincollege.com/change/
AC wins three Prix D'Excellence awards....
I was very fortunate to be the photographer for the team which won an award for this entry. It starts with a concept created by a very talented team, a photographic session with a person who portrays depth and character, one very talented graphic designer, and some magic in the air ...
Lens Culture Recent Feedback
Your photo entry to the Street Photography Awards 2017 (shown below) is among the top-rated entries we've received, congratulations!
Too Much FunLima, Peru
During our competitions, all submissions are rated in the review process.
We then look at the ratings of ALL submissions across ALL competitions and notify photographers who had highly-rated submissions. It's an impressive accomplishment considering we get thousands of submissions from 150 countries!
2018 - Lens Culture Review of Creative Portraits
Photographers Statement: I think a creating a good portrait involves an unspoken communication between the photographer and subject.
The subject creates the mood and synergy and the photographer reacts to tell the story.
LensCulture: I chose your portfolio for review because it’s visually interesting and clearly exhibits a high level of talent. I have taken some time to study your photos, looking for visual clues that communicate how your ideas for your creative photography manifest in the images. You included a brief statement about your photography, but it appears that you are working on creating portraits in a unique, artistic way. Your photographic style emerges from these 5 photos. In your statement you say that, “I think a creating a good portrait involves an unspoken communication between the photographer and subject.” And you say that by doing this, “The subject creates the mood and synergy.” And, I can see this in your portraits.
If I had to categorize the group of photos or your style, I would call it artistic portraiture. Your images strike me as illustrating a lot of ideas having to do with human expression. I see the photos as studies of alluring expressions of the human body and mind. For example, I see mystery in photo 1, whimsy and fantasy in photo 2, contemplation and focus in number 3, curiosity and even seduction in photo 4. I can also see that these evocative emotional states could all be in some way qualities you may want to discuss in your artist statement.
This group of photos seems somewhat posed and directed, which is the style of this genre of photography. The black and white approach in the photos adds a sense of subtle environments and emotional drama. Together, the lights and darks in the compositions serve to elicit emotional responses in the viewers and I see that you lean more toward the dark tones. For example, photo 3 is very dark in a way that helps the viewer connect with the artistic implications of the model. For me, the images are powerful in a group, but they are also beautiful as individual photos.
Since these are all portraits they also talk about how the subjects may experience these alluring mental states as part of their own identity and are, in fact, performing them. The performances are dramatic. The lighting, the contrasting lights and darks in the presentation and the use of contrast all enhance the sense of emotional drama. An example of this would be photo 4, which has very dramatic lighting.
I think another thing that is interesting about these photos is to look at the variety of facial expressions of the subjects in all the photos. In most of the photos the subjects are not looking at, or confronting the viewer. In a way, the expressions may or may not reveal truth about their identity as much as what they want us to believe about their identities. We wear certain clothes, we listen to certain kinds of music, we drive a certain car that all hopes to communicate something about us. We like to try to control the way others see us. But, many times our actions can contradict what we project to others, telling the truth about who we are.
One thing you might explore is the idea of Mise-en-scène, which Wikipedia defines as, “an expression used to describe the design aspect of film production, which essentially means "visual theme" or "telling a story"—both in visually artful ways through storyboarding, cinematography and stage design, and in poetically artful ways through direction.” But it also has to do with the atmosphere created by light and shadow. Image number 4 is getting at this idea of communicating something moody and atmospheric. This also relates to what I said above about the background or hair light.
Your images are very dynamic. They are full of life, curiosity, and mystery! Creative portraits can be a very exciting, challenging practice, especially when the images are supported by your ideas and photographic style. I would strongly encourage you to keep pursuing this idea. But, keep looking at lots of portfolios and continue to challenge yourself to do something unique, that you haven’t seen. I very much enjoyed looking at your photos and thinking about the ways they express your ideas. I appreciate the way your images are masterfully considered and carefully designed. I can’t wait to see what you will do next!
Lens Culture Street Photography
Morning News: Lima, Peru
My guest presentation for Blair T. Paul's - Mill of Kintail Workshop
http://www.cmacfarlane.ca/workshop-july-15-16-2017
Guest Speaker at Mill of Kintail - Blair T. Paul, Workshop
Quotes from http://www.blairpaul.com/classes-and-workshops
"My special guest will be accomplished Canadian photographer Chris MacFarlane.
As well as showing you examples from his portfolio, he will be discussing the importance of strong composition and other technical matters.
Chris has extensive experience as both a photographer and teacher, and I think you will quickly see the parallels between photography and painting".
Lens Culture Review of Selected Portraits
Photographers Statement: I think a creating a good portrait involves an unspoken communication between the photographer and subject.
The person being photographed provides the mood and the energy and the photographer reacts to tell the story.
: The Fiddler
: Pause and reflect in a small town pub.
Almonte, Ontario, Canada
LensCulture: "I think my favorite of the group here is The Fiddler. I really like the moment of reflection that you have captured, and the way the man’s instrument holds the front-most plane in the picture, and actually overlaps the form of his face, to me characterizes the fiddle as something almost sacred, if not just to the man, then to the tradition of music in general.
: Shopkeeper Joan
: Village shopkeeper.
Almonte, Ontario, Canada
LensCulture: Shopkeeper Joan sticks out for me too, because it’s the only image here where you’ve allowed substantial environmental context to exist in the image, where background objects are recognizable but don’t dominate the visual weight of the image.
: Portrait On A Country Path
: I could see someone coming towards me in the early morning, on a country path and as she got closer - I asked her if I could take her photograph. I'm sure she couldn't understand me, but she new I wanted her photograph. This was my third (and closest) picture and she gave me a very gracious, little smile.
Peru
LensCulture: I think Portrait on a Country Path is very lovely as well. The texture of the woman’s face and her expression shows a lot of personality, and the image might be the clearest and most legible out of all these because of the sharpness you’ve captured in her face.
Lens Culture Summary: "This is a really lovely selection of portraits, and I read them as honest, sincere, and well-crafted portrayals of your subjects. I think it’s evident that you have a good eye and strong technical skills that bring your subjects to life in a nice way".
February, 2017 - Presentation and Discussion - The Photography Matters Group
http://photographymatters.ca/PM/Home/Home.html
At the February meeting Chris MacFarlane treated us to his excellent A/V shows on various topics that showcased his long and ongoing career in professional photography. His work exemplified the Freeman Patterson advise, "Get in close"!
Please see,
http://www.cmacfarlane.ca/photography-matters-presentation
Recent Exhibited Work
Three prints were selected from Chris' "Human Landscape Series", for the "37 Photographers / One Model Show" at the Griffin Museum of Photography - Winchester MA, USA.
The exhibition was the brainchild of workshop instructor Karin Rosenthal and curated by Karin as well as Paula Tognarelli.
His work, as well as fellow workshop photographer Jim Babb, inspired Karin to move from the 'maybe we should exhibit ...' to reality.
The Book may be purchased from:
http://griffinmuseum.org/product/37-photographers-one-model/
Review by the Boston Globe and Mail:
'The images are about presentation rather than personality or character. This is in keeping with Rosenthal’s own work. The other photographers in the show all studied with her, and one can see the affinity of their work with hers. “My preferred genre in photography has always been nudes in nature in which I explore the body as landscape and the cycle of life,” she writes. “Many of my nudes also have overtones of surrealism . . . a lurking, sometimes disturbing, reality coexisting with a more conscious visible one'.
Exhibited Prints
The Journey |
The Brain |
Exhausted |
 The Journey
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 The Brain
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 Exhausted
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This work can be purchased through Crated.com by clicking on the title above.
[email protected]
Review - Magnum
The Journey: It is dramatic and tense, but not in obvious ways. The figure is simply standing in the landscape, but the muscles in the back and head and the water on his skin all signal some kind of adversity to me. The overcast light and heavier "print" also assist in this feeling.
The Brain: Reminds me of Emmit Gowin's work. If you don't know this amazing photographer you should look him up, especially the images he has made of his wife.
Exhausted: A more relaxed body in the landscape....here, I am beginning to wonder about the reality of the landscapes in which I find the model; are these actually sets? It's an interesting question for me as I wonder about the veracity of the environments in which you've placed him.
Credit: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=oa.10153795992809132&type=1
Canadian Art Concepts Corporation (CACC) is a Toronto-based Canadian company, specializing in representation of Canadian and international artists, Canadian art promotion, arts marketing, art exhibitions and events, both locally and internationally.
http://www.canadianartconcepts.com/news/chris-macfarlane/