Amazing news!

I really enjoyed visiting the latest Tate Modern photography exhibition Great photos and a really interesting theme, well organised and interestingly arranged. Street photography (of people) isn't something I'm particularly good at or explore so it was lovely to get some stimulation and inspiration.

When I got home I looked at the exhibition's microsite and noticed they were running a competition in conjunction with Flickr. I had a few photos that fitted the criteria so entered the best one.

Didn't think too much about it after that. Fast forward a month or so and I noticed my flickr site was getting a lot of hits. Odd, thought I. Why is this happening? Eventually the penny dropped and I had a look back at the Tate's site which is where the screen shot above was taken.

Wow! I'm very pleased and very, very flattered to be included in the 100 photos the judges selected. Apparently these are now going to be collated into a book and will be shown within the gallery as a slideshow. How cool is that!

Connected post here

Photos that might make you cry

Days with my father is a stunning website put together by Philip Toledano.

Stylistically I love the subtle focusing and soft palette of colours but what moves me more is the obvious affection between son and father. He writes how the death of his mother and his father's inability to record short-term memories compelled him to begin a record of their time together. I admire them both for their honesty, the words and pictures expose a relationship to strangers and invites viewers into an intimate arena. Not sure about the navigation, it's very 'slick' but it's a bit idiosyncratic for my puritan tastes.

Mr Toledano also takes great photos of, among other things, bankrupt business and phone-sex operators. Worth spending a lot of time looking at these. (The photographs, not necessarily the phone-sex operators).

In his biography Philip writes about how a photograph should be "like an unfinished sentence...there should be space for questions", sentiments I'd agree with. Pictures can paint a thousand words but they don't have to tell the whole story. I like the idea that they can stimulate a train of thought and create a connection with the viewer.

Related post: photos and memories

Gone baby gone

A tense, crime thriller directed by Ben Affleck shows that his talents are equally noteworthy for behind the camera efforts. Showed his writing promise and acting talent in 'Good Will Hunting', yet this time around allows his younger Brother Casey to play the lead in 'Gone baby gone'.

Nice use of language and dialogue between strong cast memebers, nicely paced so that as the intrigue increases you are drawn in. What let's the story down though is the ending, it's just a bit unbelievable and far fetched. Good to see a movie set somewhere other than LA or New York, the rough Boston Neighbourhood Dorchester is shown warts and all. And maybe cinema sound systems are getting better but the gunshots in this film were fantastic, very loud and sharp.

scores on the board? 7.5 out of 10

Batman - The Dark Knight

Not bad, not bad at all. In fact very, very good. I really enjoyed the latest installment in the Batman story for several reasons:

Pace. This movie doesn’t stop. It pumps up the adrenalin from the very beginning and rarely slows for the next two hours. At first I didn’t appreciate this but quickly adapted. It felt like a trailer at times, ie high octane, energy fueled scenes full of soundbites.

Darkness. Have yet to see the first Batman movie Christopher Nolan made but I’m assured that it is just as dark. And by darkness I mean tone as much as lighting. Compared to Burton and Schumacer’s earlier batman films this latest offering avoids any campness or cabaretesque moments. And this feels right, much more believable. Very few scenes are shown in the daylight hours but when they are, blinding white sunlight bleaches out colours and offers an environment just as stark as the nocturnal stage.

Locations. Chicago, New York, Battersea Power Station stood in for Gotham city. It shows you’re a big budget movie when you can afford to take over a couple of Staten Island ferries, have a cast of hundreds of extras in major US cities and then start blowing up Battersea Power Station.

Cast. Heath Ledger left this life with a fitting epitaph presumably ensuring he achieves James Dean status. His Joker is a scheming, Machiavellian evil lunatic and the manner in which he lisps and sucks his lines achieves a suitable amount of distaste from the audience. Christian Bale is also a lot more believable as Batman than previous incumbents – a driven, ruthless man teetering on the edge between good and evil. Great supporting actors as well: Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Maggie Gylenhall.