Dallas Simmons' Blog

  Depoorter is a Belgium-born Magnum photographer who has won multiple awards and honors for her work including the Magnum Expression Award. Her work is focused on the relationships that she builds and maintains with the subjects in her photos. The initial interaction between her and her subject is often unplanned. However, through the process, they connect and cause an artistic element to present itself. The relationships with the subjects of her photos really show through the comfortability and expression in each person's face and mannerisms. She has also turned these interactions into books and short films to better capture images.  My favorite aspect of Depoorter's work is the attention to detail. In each picture such as the ones above and to the left, the background surrounding the subject is very interesting. This adds to that artistic element and makes the photos look like paintings in my opinion. 

      Sebastião Salgado, the Brazil-born economist did not take up his true calling until the early 70s. Salgado frequently traveled to Africa for work. As a result, he often attempted to document his experiences and found  interest in photography. In 1974 he became a freelance photographer for an agency in Paris. By 1979, Salgado joined the international photography group Magnum.       Salgado specializes in straightforward photos to describe the economic state of the world and global issues such as poverty. I believe Salgado's goal is to spread awareness without sugarcoating anything. He also specializes in  dramatic landscape photos. These photos to me have a sort of supernatural feel. The two above are my personal favorites.               I personally really enjoy the work of  Sebastião Salgado. I believe that this is the best photographer I have seen yet. I really enjoy the landscape images. T...

     Herbert (Herb) Ritts was a famous portrait photographer who focused his artwork on black-and-white photography. Ritts' big break came while attending college in Los Angeles, CA, where a friend of his took an interest in acting, drawing Ritts to photograph the star. The star's publicity drew publicity to Ritts allowing him to take photography seriously and eventually do shoots for stars in magazines such as Madonna.       To me, a good portrait should have an underlying message or story. I believe that portraits are more than just photos of people. They should make any viewer feel something. For example, the image above gives me a supervillain story vibe. The model's facial expression and the metal fingers tells a story of a crazed villain in my eyes.  My personal favorite portrait was the above photo. I enjoy portraits involving black people due to the color of their skin seeming like an emphasis even though it may not be the main focus. Ritt...