Overview

camera obscura noun - a darkened box with a aperture for projecting the image of an external object onto a screen inside. It is important historically in the development of photography. Pinhole photography is from time to time a trend in artistic photography. Use with a digital SLR allows metering and composition by trial and error, and is effectively free, so is a popular way to try pinhole photography. And so I did, documenting Philadelphia subway commuters. They are grandmothers, couples in love, acquaintances, and 'average people' simply on their way. People riding the subway look lethargic, dissatisfied, and generally disengaged. A project shot over the span of two years, this body of work became part of my life, both in mind and body. Holding the shutter in bulb mode until I thought enough light had exposed the sensor, while discreetly being aware of my surroundings and subject, became second nature. My demeanor was met with both positive and negative attitudes as you can imagine! These digital photographs exposed by a pinhole are unconventional. The subway car dirt and grime is not visible, due to long exposure times, the subway's rough ride, and no lens. Instead of conforming to today's race towards hyper-detail, Philly Subway Pinhole captures people's essence. The phenomenon behind the pinhole has always fascinated me. I modified my Canon 30D's body cap and ended up with a digital pinhole camera- a dark chamber capable of recording light inverted by a pinhole! Don't forget, all of these pictures were taken without a lens! Exposing each photograph took 30 seconds on average, even with high sensitivity. I would often open the shutter as soon as the subway train pulled out of a station, hoping everyone would stay still. Hot pixels and sensor dust distract and take away from your viewing experience. I removed most manually. Too bad I didn't have a Sensor Gel Stick during this project! These trains are filthy. Pinholes capture essence and not gritty detail. Interactions on the subway pass quickly. Riders would sometimes sit for half of the exposure and move. The shutter always seems louder when you don't want anyone to notice. Every time the mirror flipped up, I held my breath in anticipation of the unexpected.

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9781500714871

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Born on Christmas, Ryan grew up in the Pocono Mountains of Eastern Pennsylvania. He took his first pictures on vacation at Disney World in Florida when he was 11. As a young teenager, he began photographing life around him with a webcam that could save pictures. Ryan showed very much interest in the arts and won various awards during high school. He enrolled at Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia and earned a BFA in photography. Throughout these years he worked for a local portrait photographer at VIP Studios and assisted his sister, a wedding photographer in central PA (Check out her website Heidi Erika Photography, which he developed for her). His true passion is in photographic lighting and color correction. Understanding digital color is so important to him that he wants to teach others while conducting his own technical photographic studies.

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