When considering the work of Stephen Shore, I have owned the book Uncommon Places for around two months however at my current stage of heightened awareness of photographic philosophies, the task of engaging with the book with a clear mindset felt almost impossible. Although this post is based on my experience of the book, I feel that at this moment in time, the best I can do is consider the work of Shore in comparison with other contextual research I have engaged with throughout the surfaces and strategies module.

The book itself conforms to that of a catalogue with each image titled with the time and place. This is useful as the viewer is able understand the techniques or phase of experimentation that Shore was engaging with at the time. Schmidt Wulffen writes in Shore (1982) about the presentation of the book ‘viewers step into a specific place defined by Shore. In this way, the audience becomes involved in uncommon places, which can also be be seen as a biographical experiment’. Such comments make the decoding of the photographs more revealing, understanding the range of formats Shore utilised throughout different periods of his career in order to develop and take his work in different directions. Exemplifying what Shore states is his grammar of photography, flatness, frame, time and focus. Figure 1 is an example where this emphasis shifts with the focal point no longer arranged from the centre of the frame (Shore, 1982). Although still identifiable as a Shore image due to the semiotic union (Culler 1982) of the road markings, colour pallet of the cars which are juxtaposed, in addition to the sky which provides a surface to emphasise the building in the background and the street lamps. The color blue contained within the sky provides a richness which is synonymous with his work. Bringing the image together by creating a relationship between the background and foreground. What I really enjoy about Shoe’s work is the sense of boldness within his use of colour, being able to identify combinations and use them to create something that is quintessentially American and although dealing with the vernacular, he is able to create a sense of ‘being there’ transporting the viewer to another place in space and time. When contemplating figure 1, I am further drawn to the edges of the frame, in the omissions of the building to the left of the image and the blue vehicle to the right, we are unable to see what these elements look like, however Shore provides enough information for the viewer to make these connections for themselves. Being largely unable to view the opposite side of the road creates a tension which is universal. The sense of danger of being near a busy road and possibly the thoughts and feelings of how one might cross the road.

Within these considerations it may be important to summarise and consider Shore in relation to my research of Eggleston and Alex Webb. All of whom are currently informing my work in the sense of thinking about composition and colour. Their relationship in terms of their relevance to my own work. Webb commenting on his pursuit of busy images that fall short of chaos (Webb 2014) in addition to Eggleston who has spoken of the use of the Confederate flag as a guide to composing his images. The images below I hope reflect the infomed context my work is taking. At present I am beginning to think carefully about the choices I make and will attempt to encompass what I have learned about the work of Shore in my shoots this week. One of which is a couple shoot away from my project however I am looking forward to experimenting in a different environment away from the current space I have been working in. 

Culler, J (1982) Culler, The Persuit of Signs, Routledge, London.

Eggleston, W. (2002) William Eggleston’s Guide. New York, The Museum of Modern Art.

Shore, S (1982) Uncommon Places, Thames and Hudson.

Webb, A and Webb, R (2014) On Street Photography and the Poetic Image. Aperture, New York

This week I attended an online webinar with Craig Easton and Colin McPherson who are members of the 6 by 6 photography collective. The purpose of 6 by 6 is to ‘start conversations, debate and grow a network of documentary photographers in non traditional spaces’.

The specific webinar that I attended was entitled ‘Desert Island Pics’ and took the form of an interview between Easton and McPherson, whose task was to discuss 6 of his favorite photographs explaining why they were so important to him. The opportunity to listen to a working photographer who is relatively local to me was an excellent opportunity and on a human level, it was good to gain an insight into his influences. The first photograph that was discussed was Alfred Buckman’s ‘Areal View of Edinburgh’. McPherson spoke quite emotionally regarding this photograph explaining how it evoked his childhood and memories of growing up in the same place. This was interesting in relation to my own project as I have gravitated towards taking photographs in an area where I spent my own childhood. For reasons associated with objectivity, I felt that this was unstable ground for my own research project and in exploring my feelings deeper about this, I am led to consider my own feeling and motivations. As McPherson moves on to discuss an Image taken by Robert Frank, he refers to the idea of being an ‘outsider’ and how Frank was an outsider when he took the photograph. An idea that resonated with me to some extent on a range of levels. 

Although my project is rooted in the place where I spent my childhood, I very much feel like an outsider when in the area of Reddish which is peculiar as I still have many connections. This led to deeper reflection as to why I feel this way. As a result I began to consider my own connections with the location, my own relationship with the project theme of lower level football and the connection I have not yet challenged which is the influence of my Father. As a child, playing football, my biggest supporter in addition to my biggest critic was my Dad. Born in Glasgow, adopted to a family in Motherwell, a small town outside Glasgow, my Dad left the army and arrived in Manchester with a friend who convinced him of opportunities for work in the area. I was always curious about my Dad’s lack of connection with Scotland and although he was a proud Scotsman, he spoke of family but never really appeared to have any close bonds with them. 

In later years of his life he often spoke of the importance of ‘putting down roots somewhere’. A piece of advice that I will always remember. And a statement that is revealing itself to be a statement which is important about my own intentions in the sense that the project is about my own feelings of being an outsider as my Dad clearly felt. 

Moving on with the webinar, McPherson then began to discuss an image taken by Paul Graham from his project ‘The Great North Road’. A stunning photograph which has echoes of Stephen Shore. McPherson made a number of pertinent observations about how the photograph made him feel. In relation to the light in the background, McPherson referred to the photograph as being ‘animation by light’ which I thought was a poignant remark and an excellent assessment of the use of light and colour in the photograph. Further comments referred to the sense of momentum and progress from the vehicles toward the right of the image. Upon initial research of the work of Graham, I am drawn to his excellent combinations of composition and colour in addition to his vernacular subjects. McPherson on a number of occasions referred to the craftsmanship of photographers that inspire him. The subversion of conventions as illustrated in the work of Robert Frank, light and metaphor in the Paul Graham image in addition to the vernacular landscape and decisive moment encapsulated in the Jeff Wall image ‘Sudden Gust of Wind’. The discussion inevitably turned to the constructed nature of this image with some debate over the ethics however I agreed with McPherson in the assumption that the intent and the vision of making something spectacular out of the vernacular and banal.

To conclude this post, I really enjoyed the webinar and being part of something not directly associated with the MA course offered an element of freedom to think and listen without the burden of trying to get as many notes as I could. It was useful to listen to Easton and McPherson talk passionately about their influences and it served as a really good example of working photographers speaking in a photographic vocabulary that I am now becoming confident with. Reading the images while still very much learning but with a new, informed method of contemplation.

Looking at the various surfaces I could potentially exhibit my project I have explored exhibition and photobooks which could be described as quite formal modes of exhibition. In researching publications and zines such as When Saturday Comes in addition to traditional childrens football annuals such as Match and shoot I found that a popular theme is to pay homage to the past, using retro fonts associated with a scoreboards and elaborate montages of images with text wrapped around in all manner of ways, very busy with space at a premium. 

In researching the football publication ‘Glory Magazine’ I found that this product breaks most of the popular conventions mentioned above. The website describes the magazine as a  ‘high-end football and travel publication, aiming to put the ‘beautiful’ back into the beautiful game.’ This assertion is quite accurate and is reflected in a number of ways. 

The material of high quality card and a matte finish provides the owner with a sense of value, the main image is framed nicely, emulating a window which invites the viewer/reader to explore the journey within the magazine. Black text provides the brand identity which has more in common with a wordstamp as opposed to a traditional mast head with the title simply the location of which the issue is about. The positioning phrases of ‘Football / Travel / Culture’ serve to further the subject themes to be expected of the content inside. Finally. The presence of six stars which appear to be spot laminated further reinforce the claim of being a high end product.

The theme of clean white space, simple framing and text layout draws similarities to what one would expect to see in a gallery. Further alluding to the potential audience of this publication. 

Looking inside, the magazine takes the form of an illustrated and written journal of the producers, they document their experience of travelling through the country, attending various football matches. White space again dominates the pages, text presented with a serif font and usually positioned in the middle of the pages. Sometimes using two columns, often using pull quotes. Occasionally texts is place on top of larger images which is done tastefully with minimal distraction to the main subjects. Illustrations of football pitches, team line ups and old football boots also serve to enhance the verisimilitude of the magazine. 

Some pages are shortened and when placed together, make up a broader image, in this case the crest of football team with famous player profiles written on the back. This again furthers the high end market. Having referred to a high end market regarding this magazine/zine some major questions arise such as. who might the audience be? Colberg writes that understanding the audience of a photobook will determine the concept of the book (2017:47). This makes Glory Magazine interesting as the text is very different from similar publications. The quality of the paper stock is high in addition to other aspects highlighted above. The photographs serve to create a narrative where the viewer is restricted in what photographs they look at via the use of pages, supported by lengthy text which explains the thoughts and feelings of the composers. Image and text work collaboratively in order to create a travel journal in a reportage style which enables the viewer to consume a broader experience of what the producers experience was. In one sense, the magazine is a photobook, in another sense, the magazine is a journal which documents a person’s experience of time and space. Colberg (2017:45) makes reference to duel elements when considering the concept of a photo book which are ‘the photography in question’ in addition to ‘the form of the book’. In this case I would argue that in the case of glory Magazine, a third element should be considered which is the text encompassed within the book. The reason for this is related to the consumption of the magazine which has over 50 documentary and portrait images which are contextualised and supported with written testimony. 

The length of the text impacts on the consumer experience as It creates an immersive read sometimes supported by photography and vice versa. In a personal sense, The selection of content makes the consumption a difficult experience. I argue this as an invested participant of the subject matter, having consumed the text, the photography was at times secondary which detracted from the photography rendering a confusing experience. This led to the consideration of my own position as a potential audience of this product. A collector of mainly catalogue style photobooks due to my economic position, Happy to pay around £50 for a book, Glory magazine priced at £10 is slightly on the expensive side and in no doubt due to the production costs. On reflection this may be justified as the magazine isn’t a quick read, and my experience was one of taking my time to read and look at it over the course of about a month. 

Due to the quality of production, I do get a sense of value in owning this product and the whole experience of consuming it encourages one to want to buy another. The result of this assertion leads to Glory Magazine is somewhat of a collectors item. It shares many conventions of a photobook in addition to written content one would expect to find in the supplement of a quality newspaper. It is designed with a visually literate audience in mind aiming the text at a niche audience within the boundaries of the mass market appeal of football fans. 

Glory Magazine (2016) Issue 2. Self Published. Glory Mag.

Colberg, J (2017) Understanding Photo Books, tHE form and Content of the Photographic Book. London, Routledge.