What I've Learned: A Photographer's Journey - Paul Marvuglio

What I've Learned: A Photographer's Journey is a Masters of Photography series dedicated to our students, exploring the stories behind the imagery they have created. For other student interviews check our blog posts. 

  Paul Marvuglio is a photographer that is currently retired and works on his craft in New Jersey, USA. The photo below was posted to our photostream by Paul and it immediately caught our attention. We loved the sense of atmosphere of the setting and the plethora of different textures and tones in his black and white work. His photos often have a real richness in detail and a level of intensity to them. In Paul's images we are also reminded of the work of Eugene Atget of Paris streets. Interested, we got in touch with Paul to do a Photographer's Journey exploration to find out more about his work and his inspirations.  

Tell us about yourself

I spent my working life in the pigment industry working with colour which “explains” my preference for black and white photography. I now am living in New Jersey and have finally retired. This is my second stint in New Jersey was born here but have spent 20 years out of the state. I live just beyond the urban sprawl in the garden part of the Garden State, 45 minutes from the Hudson and an hour and a half from Manhattan. I was a snapshot photographer for many years. When I retired my photography became more serious endeavour and provides a bridge from my working days to my at leisure days.  

How long have you been into photography?

I started in 1965 taking snapshots, but didn’t get into more involved photography until 1971, I had a wet darkroom until 1987 and then went back to snapshots until 1998 when I converted to digital. I did not get seriously interests in landscape photography until 2004. Since then I have created 6 self-published books. This was more a scrapbooking effort than a literary effort. I substituted piles of pages for piles of prints. My photography is now trending toward urban photography hence the course. The big adjustment was not shooting on a tripod. It felt uneasy for a while.

What made you want to start taking photographs?

I was stationed in Greece and would take pictures to send home. Then in 1971, I started to take pictures to send to the grandparents back east.   [caption id="attachment_11815" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA[/caption]

What do you enjoy in photography?

Between photographing and printing I enjoy printing. Photographing is an immediate process 1/125 or 1/250^th of a second and you’re done. You capture what you pointed the camera at. Printing is a more involved process requiring involvement for a longer period of time. While you are bound by your ”negative” on what you can create, the final print is bound by your skill and creativity. Making a silk purse from something other than silk. The wet darkroom was changing in the immediacy of your actions. Reproducibility was difficult for other than for straight prints. The digital darkroom offers a more considered approach to image creation. You have the ability to “sketch” until you find the image you prefer and then print. You can then print it again with or without additional corrections from the place you stopped, not from the beginning. What I like about printing is having more control over the result. At the end of the day you can look at what you created with a sense of accomplishment, rather than “how did that happen?” [activecampaign form=15]

What is your favourite piece of kit?

The camera I have used mostly is a Canon 5D with a variety of lenses (mostly a 17-40), as I moved to more urban type shooting and traveling by Air I have taken to using a Olympus Pen F with a 24-80 mostly due to the weight reduction. My style is to carry my camera in hand all day using my pockets as a camera bag. The Pen F has a little more distortion at wider angles than the full frame Canon. I started photographing with a Petri 7S range finder with a match the needle exposure system. A digital version would be my choice today. From a software choice I use Photoshop CC mostly because I know how to use it. I have tried Lightroom but I go back to PS because I know how to do it in PS. The DXO Silver Effects Pro plug-in; is the software I would hate to lose it offers a great deal of control in converting to black and white. Ease of use and familiarity is what drives my preferences I like the Canon because my fingers know where the buttons are, muscle memory. This also applies to Photoshop. I am a creature of habit.  

What was the most influential moment in inspiring your photography?

I don’t really have an epiphany moment. What encouraged me to purse photography further is when I had a photo accepted in a juried art show. I then approached exhibiting as an exercise to determine if my photography had and merit.

What does your photography say about you as a person?

Photography can say little about you as a person; it can reveal a level of skill and artistic ability. Who you are; photography can only infer; through the photographs you chose to take and share with others. Even that can be misleading. What you take is in some way dictated buy your situation - combat photographers are duty bound to picture death. If working for House and Gardens, plants and flowers are the photographs of choice. What is taken is also dictated by what is selling or what an editor thinks meets his needs. What photography says about me is I have an eye for what and when to take a picture and my selection of subject has some artistic merit. Additionally that I have mastered the technical skills needed to create a useful image. My photography tends to be, as one teacher put it; classical. My photography is not edgy but more traditional. I tend to print darker than most. This prompted another photographer to comment that my photographs were morbid. You could use my photographic style to describe me as a cautious, follow the rules sort of person, a bit of a perfectionist and not particularly perky with a dry sense of humour?  

Which photographer or book has had the biggest impact on you? Why?

Two photographer’s books are involved in creating my approach to photography. Ansel Adams series on photography and Vincent Versace’s “Welcome to OZ”. Both developed the concept that photographs are “composed”. That photographic development and printing are not a static rote process but can be manipulated to create a photograph that expresses your view. The concept of fine art photography verses documentary photography.

Are you working on a photography project?

I have several photographic projects under way.

1. I am compiling a portfolio of a series of food at farmer’s market pictures.
2. Scanning Family pictures to create a book of my extended family to allow others in the family to see them. Now just a box on pictures in my closet.
3. A longer rang project is to photograph “Passages” in Paris. Those narrow shopping areas more alleys than streets. I am now at the research stage as to where. The project will start in 2020.

What are your favourite photographs that you have taken?

1. Princeton Battle Field Farm. This is a farm in Princeton taken from a post that marks the battle of Princeton. It is a 6 image panorama. (photo 2)
2. Victor Emmanuel Monument Rome. This image started as a colour slide in 1960 was scanned in the early 2000’s and converted to black and white. It had defects –Halos, these were finally repaired his year (photo 4).
3. Tearoom. This a Teashop in Paris at the Place des Vosges, 2014 (photo 7).
4. Passage Du Chantier Paris. There is a person in the picture, 2017 (photo 3)
5. Street Performer Italy. This is a composite of a street performer in Venice Italy. His expression changed as people walked by. A frown if you did not donate a smile if you did. Street photography after post processing (photo 6).

 

What is your favourite photograph from a different photographer?

Yousuf Karsh’s portrait of Winston Churchill. I don’t know if it’s the image or the back story. Churchill’s expression was the result of Karsh plucking the cigar from Churchill’s mouth.  

How did the course benefit you?

The ability to be in the moment and approach urban photography, not as outsider looking in - candid photography, but as an insider photographing the surrounding goings-on.

In the course you have taken with us, what was your favourite lesson?

Joel Meyerowitz Lesson 29: Tuscany- Inside Light. First it was a conversation between two people. Not a single individual talking at you. They were talking together and at you describing their creative process... The conversation on how two people can take their different skill sets and cooperate in producing something. In this case a book. Two views one task.     A Photographer's Journey credits. Photos 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,9 by Paul Marvuglio Photo 8 by Yousuf Karsh   [activecampaign form=15]  

What I've Learned: A Photographer's Journey - Alexandros Tsiolis

What I've Learned: A Photographer's Journey - Mark Darbin

What I've Learned: A Photographer's Journey is a Masters of Photography series dedicated to our students, exploring the stories behind the imagery they have created

  Mark Darbin is a photographer based in Portsmouth, on the south-east coast of England. We first noticed Mark when he uploaded the photo below to the photostream. We loved the originality and the humour of the shot, which are themes that run through Mark's work. When we reposted the photo on our Instagram, it was tremendously well received, so we decided to get in touch to find out more.    

How long have you been into photography?

I’ve had several film cameras over the years but really got into photography about 7 years ago when I got my first DSLR.   I think that I needed a digital camera, with the more immediate feedback and the freedom to take as many pictures as I wanted, to enable me figure out how to use a camera properly.

"What I really enjoy is the challenge of trying to make a photograph out of a scene where there appears to be nothing, or to turn something mundane into something unusual."

What made you want to start taking photographs / what do you enjoy in photography?

I started off with the usual family photos and then moved onto landscapes, abstracts and macro photos.  From there I developed an interest in more urban based photography, which came out of a visit to the Tate Modern where I started photographing people interacting with the exhibits.   [activecampaign form=15]   I’m an introvert by nature and am fairly reserved. Having a camera in my hand gives me time to think. What I really enjoy is the challenge of trying to make a photograph out of a scene where there appears to be nothing, or to turn something mundane into something unusual.  It’s that moment when you make a picture out of what appears to be a perfectly normal object, or situation, and it turns into something interesting.   [caption id="attachment_10481" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA[/caption]   As an example, I’ve chosen the picture of two people on a beach juxtaposed in a litter bin. It’s a fairly standard picture in some ways, but the real reason I took it was that they were the only people on the beach, on a fairly chilly dull day, and they’d chosen to sit exactly perpendicular with the bin and at just the right distance to line up with the slot in the top.

What is your favourite piece of kit (camera, lens or other)?

I usually use an OM-D EM10 with either a 17mm or 45mm prime, but at the end of the day these are really just tools.  The one thing I have which is irreplaceable is an old and very battered OM-1 which was my father-in-law’s. He bought the camera for a trip around South America in the 70’s, and was still using up to when he passed away last year.    

What does your photography say about you as a person?

Hmm, I had to ask my wife about this one … most of the time I tend to stand in the background and observe.  I find the ordinary often absurd and very funny. As an example, I chose the picture of the two photographers taken from above (see below). A very rare brown bird had been spotted and they were trying to get a shot of it. This picture was taken from the sea wall and what drew me to take it was the weight of the lenses, the way the couple leant into each other and the lines. And this was all for a small brown bird that was about the size of a tea cup. However, I’d stress that I’m really not making any judgement on the amount of kit they had etc., especially as, from looks they gave me, they really couldn’t understand why I would want to photograph them. So the joke went both ways.  

Which photographer or book has had the biggest impact on you? Why?

Wow, difficult question … there are so many, I really like Daido Moriyama, Saul Leiter, Mark Power, Joel Meyerowitz, Ansel Adams etc. Sadly I think this comes out in my photos which sometimes seem to be all over the place and often have no consistent style. The book that has the biggest impact changes over time. However, the one that more often than not seems to be on top of the (very small) pile that I own, is Vivian Maier’s. Getting past the long lost genius myth, I think that what I really like is that she can make some very candid, personal pictures, but you never feel that she was being voyeuristic or intrusive.  I think that you need to bear this in mind when photographing on the street. Whilst what you do may be legal, I’m very aware of the moral implications of sticking a camera in someone’s face. Vivian Maier never lost the humanity in the process … and she was also the only person who could ever take a good selfie.

What are your favourite photographs that you have taken? 

I’ve mentioned two above. One of the other ones I’ve chosen is the dog and graffiti cat (see top of article). I’d been walking past it for about a year thinking there must be something that can be done with it.  On the day I took this I saw the dog coming in the other direction and had enough time to crouch down on the opposite wall. Fortunately, the dog lurched in at me as it went past.     Another picture I’ve chosen was taken at the design museum (see above).  I noticed the couple at the top left and took the shot across the atrium to get some height, just before they all moved.  Hopefully the narrative is fairly self-explanatory.

What is your favourite photograph by any other photographer?

There are so many.  To narrow this down I’ve chosen from photographs that I’ve actually seen, rather than in a book or online.  I really like Saul Leiter’s work and was lucky to see an exhibition at the Photographer’s Gallery. The one I’ve chosen is Through Boards (see below).  I really like the negative space and the use of his signature red colour, both in the street scene itself and in the foreground, which almost makes it look like you're looking through a Rothko painting.   The scene itself looks very mundane until you see the man looking inwards from the car at the women and the group on the left. Whilst it’s useful to try and copy what other people have done, I’d eventually like to be able to make photos that only I could make: Saul Leiter’s colour pictures are instantly recognisable, no-one else could take them.    

 

How did the course benefit you?

I was originally drawn to the course because of the street photography sections and on the basis of Joel’s work in urban environments, and it was really useful to see how he approaches this. As a result I’ve stopped using the back screen on my camera and have started using the view finder again, which makes me much more visible, but also seems to allow you to get closer to people … and “sorry, but I really liked your smile” does work when someone asks why you’ve just taken their photograph.

"Joel’s questions around [...] what drives you to take a photograph are really useful, especially when combined with the idea of being able to construct a narrative around why you’ve made and selected a particular picture"

    I must admit that I wasn’t really interested in the student review sections, but these have proved to be really thought provoking, particularly lesson 18 and 19.  One big problem I find is trying to assess your own photographs, particularly trying to separate yourself from the situation in which they were taken. Joel’s questions around finding the identity of the human being who made the photograph, what drives you to take a photograph etc. are really useful, especially when combined with the idea in Lesson 3 – Looking at Pictures, of being able to construct a narrative around why you’ve made and selected a particular picture.

What is the best piece of photographic advice you have come across?

“… photography looks like pictures, but is really ideas”.   Photo 1,2,3,4,5,7 by Mark Darbin Photo 6 by Saul Leiter   [activecampaign form=15]

What I've Learned: A Photographer's Journey - Jeff Hulton

 

What I've Learned: A Photographer's Journey is a Masters of Photography series dedicated to our students, exploring the stories behind the imagery they have created

  Jeff Hulton is a photographer that has lived outside Boston for over 30 years, originally coming from Connecticut. He graduated from college in New York City and spent his sophomore year studying in Austria. We noticed the quality of Jeff’s photos when he uploaded several to the photostream on the Masters of Photography website. His portrait of a young boy (see above) grabbed our attention in particular, which we reposted on our Instagram page on 8 June this year. Wanting to know more about Jeff’s life and attitude to photography, we contacted him for a chat.

What made you want to start taking photographs?

Photography for me started at home with a mother and a cousin who loved to take photos. In college in Austria I discovered that art was far more than documenting your travels and came back to NY to study seriously. I had the greatest of privilege studying with Sol Libsohn, co-founder of The Photo League and later with Fred Picker at ZoneVI Workshop. After 11 startups in high tech I now spent most of my time pursuing the next image. Initially, like many people I started documenting my family, my travels and my environment. After visiting the top art museums and cathedrals of Europe, I realized that Art and photography could be so much more. When back in NY, the more I studied other photographers work and sought out my own images, the more I realized I was seeing things in the world very differently and needed to express this. I am attracted to the abstractions of place and things, the qualities of light and the juxtapositions of color and so many “normal things” we encounter every day.  

What do you enjoy in photography?

Photography for me is a way to discover the World. I take the greatest pleasure in walking or driving down new roads with my camera to simply experience and react to the marvelous things I see. I also for sure love Landscape but always seek out a new way of seeing traditional places.  

"my photos suggest I am a very inquisitive person that sees things in an abstract way. I see connections of form and colour where obvious connections don't exist"

What was the most influential moment in inspiring your photography?

When Sol Lipsohn in my junior year of college stood me up in front of the class with another photographer who excelled in showing the passion of his baro in NY but suffered from weak technique and said “You Mr. Hulton need to learn from this man and YOU Sir need to learn from Mr. Hulton. If the photo doesn’t move you it’s not going to move me!” [activecampaign form=15]

What does your photography say about you as a person?

I guess my photos suggest that I am a very inquisitive person that sees things in an abstract way. I see connections of form and colour where obvious connections don't exist. I think of this in music like what bebop meant to straight ahead Jazz. The forms are there but man those guys took another road to get around it! Marvellous!

Which photographer or book has had the biggest impact on you? Why?

Next to Sol Lipsohn and working in his class, I think my favourite photographer is Brett Weston for the way he saw landscapes, natural detail and used form, light and shadow to illuminate something completely new. He clearly got me going in a different direction. And then there is Harry Gruyaert! How he sees colour [activecampaign form=11]and form inspires me.

"Joel Meyerowitz has a great ability to help you focus on “spirit” and “life” and this is what I need to constantly refresh in my own work.The best images are never about equipment, place or technique, they are about spirit, light and your emotional response."

Are you working on a photography project? Or do you have one in mind that you'd like to start?

I have three projects underway looking for expression. I have spent 4-5 sessions working in an old group of grain elevators in Buffalo. Seeing what Charles Scheeler did with similar subjects inspired me to try and abstract these forms in black and white. I am also distilling a group of images I did in Mexico with Arthur Meyerson’s Masters Class. For the first time I stepped out of my comfort zone a bit and worked a lot in colour and form. The work of Harry Gruyaert helped me see this way. The last and longest going project is to curate many, many images I have made in Yellowstone over the last 8 years. I get back there every year and each time my images drift farther from straight photography. And then there’s the upcoming 21 days in Japan come November/December!  

What are your favourite photographs that you have taken?

I think I have two areas that have given me images I love. One are the portraits I have made when I found a connection with my subject. I have one from 1972 and one from last Oct in Mexico. The other area is the new color photos of form and light I did in Mexico. While these images have no direct rational meaning, they seem to capture something special for me about light, color and the interaction of form.

What is your favourite photograph by any photographer?

Probably the blowing curtain image that Minor White did (see below). It speaks to me of a form of energy/spirit behind the image.  

How did the course benefit you?

Joel Meyerowitz has a great ability to help you focus on “spirit” and “Life” and this is what I need to constantly refresh in my own work. The best images are never about equipment, place or technique, they are about spirit, light and your emotional response. The course reinforced this and provided more ideas on how to approach your search for the next image.

In the course you have taken with us, what was your favourite lesson and why?

I loved “The Magicians Trick” because it shows you concrete examples of how to Up your Game and Raise your Desire.” Who doesn’t need that?

What is the best piece of photographic advice you have come across?

“Steal with your eyes” - Fred Picker. One of the great lessons of the Masters of Photography video series is that you can “steal with your eyes” not just listen. How Joel moves around like a dancer driven by his desire to interact with the subject on an emotional level. That is where great stuff happens.   Follow Jeff on instagram: @jhulton     [activecampaign form=15]     Image 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7 by Jeff Hulton. Image 5 by Minor White.  

Interview with Joel Meyerowitz by NYC-ARTS

  Joel Meyerowitz talks to NYC-ARTS about his endless passion for photography.  

Inspirational photographs by Joel Meyerowitz

How the Masters of Photography website works

In order to maximise and deepen the learning, the courses of Masters of Photography are composed of 4 complementary and inter-locking activities. By delving into these activities you will gain the most from the website and develop your photographic sensibilities.

The 4 activities are:

1. Watch: the courses come in the form of carefully crafted videos. There are between 25 and 35 lessons to watch for each masterclass.
2. Read: downloadable and printable documents are provided summarizing the lessons in support of the video courses. Our blog will provide valuable information about the courses, the masters as well as photography tips.
3. Do: key lessons are followed by an assignment designed to apply what you have learned.
4. Get feedback: you can upload your assignment photographs on the website and then select and submit some or all of them for feedback from your fellow students on key elements of photography: Content, Creativity, Composition and Technique.

The website has 4 sections structured around these 4 activities:

1. The masterclasses Once you have enrolled for a course you'll have created a student login that will give you access to the course’s lessons and the downloadable support material.
2. Your own Student Dashboard Your login will give you access to your private student section where you can update your details and upload assignment photographs, which are public and published on the Photostream.
3. The Photostream All the photos that our students upload will appear on the Photostream. Everyone visiting the site can see the photographs but only our students can give feedback. The Photostream is a great way not only to get feedback on your own work but also to get inspiration and ideas from the community.
4. The News and Updates section Our Blog's aim is to become a great resource for everyone interested in photography. We will give information about the masters, their exhibitions and books and also about the courses, tips, behind the scenes glimpses, site updates and upcoming courses.

  Enjoy!  

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Learn from the greats

At Masters Of Photography our main goal is to inspire you to take better photographs. The best way to achieve this is to learn from people who have completely mastered their craft, photographers that are at the very top of photographic achievement. We have, therefore, partnered with the very best in their fields to teach us many aspects including landscape, portraiture, still life and street photography. As we add more courses we will cover more categories including nature, wild life, fashion and abstract. Our masters are extraordinary people with a wealth of experience and an infectious passion for photography and the world that we live in. We have asked each of them to create their own arc of learning and to give us their own point of view. Each course is a one to one, intimate lesson that captures their particular knowledge, ethos and philosophy.

Developing your eye

The courses are not so much about the basic technical aspects of photography as they are about developing your eye. As Chris, the founder of Masters of Photography puts it: “We don’t necessarily need to understand how to technically use a camera in order to create better photographs...we just need to understand how to use our eyes and minds to create images that say what we want them to say.” The courses are therefore suitable for photographers of all skill levels. From people who have just picked up a camera for the first time to experienced photographers who want to find out how these masters create their images.

The Courses

Each Master’s course is around 5 hours long and split into 25 to 30 bite–size lessons, packed full of engaging, informative nuggets. The production concept for these Master classes is to walk side by side with our master photographers, listening, watching and being inspired by how they create their incredible imagery. To make the courses even more interesting we wanted to take these masters to locations that both excited us and enabled them to demonstrate exactly how they create their images. We’ve travelled with them around the world from New York to Cuba and Morocco to Italy, capturing them at work. So come and join our masters and start your journey. To learn more about Masters of Photography come and visit our blog regularly. We’ll provide more detail about the Masters themselves, their courses as well as resources, tips, behind the scenes, news and updates.

We're live! Online photography courses

We’re excited to announce the launch of the Masters Of Photography website!

Masters of Photography provides online photography courses from the greatest photographers in the world. A year ago we asked ourselves a very simple question. Who better to teach us how to capture our images than the greatest master photographers? Surprisingly this didn't exist on the web. And so, the project was born. 12 months later after a lot of work, this is the first time that great, legendary photographers are brought together in one place to share their knowledge, expertise and experience with all of us to create this unique resource. These online photography courses have been specifically produced to be accessible to everyone. From amateurs to professionals, it will inspire all of you at any level to go out and improve your photography. These are not technical lessons. The platform allows the students to watch the master classes and download the associated written material. It also has assignments after key lessons to apply what you have learned. Students can then upload their photos to the site to be reviewed by the community. It has been a joy and a privilege to work with the Masters and to follow them on location in the USA, UK, Cuba, Portugal and Italy. We launch the series with the legendary artist photographer Joel Meyerowitz and will follow soon after with the iconic photographer Steve McCurry. More Masters courses are already in production and we will continuously add them to the site. We hope that you’ll enjoy these unique courses, your teachers and the website. In the mean time, you can learn more about Masters of Photography by visiting this blog regularly. We’ll provide more details about the Masters themselves, the courses as well as resources, tips, glimpses behind the scenes, news and updates.