deviantART: by:samdobrow http://search.deviantart.com/?q=by:samdobrow&section=today deviantART RSS for by:samdobrow en-us Copyright 2009, deviantART.com Sun, 27 Dec 2009 15:10:19 PST deviantART.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://s.deviantart.com/minish/widgets/apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png It's Live! http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/28922831/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/28922831/ Sun, 13 Dec 2009 12:54:58 PST
samdobrowphotography.com

All my personal work and fine art photography will be presented on a different site in the next several weeks. I think it is important to differentiate commercial photography from personal and fine art photography.

Your comments on the new site are welcome and encouraged.

]]> ~samdobrow Anticipated book "Iconic Figures" availa http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/28356123/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/28356123/ Sat, 14 Nov 2009 14:54:59 PST previewed and purchased online. Fine art books are one of the most economical means of collecting art. The print quality of this book is of such high standards that pages could be cut out of the book and framed. An entire portfolio of exceptional quality prints can now be purchased and enjoyed in the format of a book at a cost that is less than the price of a single archival print.

Artist Statement

The female figure is a fascinating subject for the artist and photographer. Her soft, round features are magical. Light and shadow define the texture of her skin and sculpt the figure of flesh and muscle on her skeletal form. Through pose, posture, and expression she offers insight to her soul.

Beyond the physical beauty of these subjects is a person, a soul, an erotic being. The women in this book exude a sensual self awareness. They transcend their state of nudity radiating beauty from within.

As a fine art photographer, I take great care to bring dimensional form to the figures I photograph. I shape light to expose my subject with such realism that you can almost touch her. As a portrait photographer my attention focuses deeper. I seek to reveal the woman inside the figure, the woman behind the physical beauty. I capture the moment when she is truly alive in her skin.

This moment is hard to describe, it is something that just happens. It is a moment when the model and photographer are fully engaged in the shoot. Each seems to forget the other is there yet they are both working in synchronicity. Each knows what to do and it happens. Tension is in the air, her robe drops to the floor. She strikes a pose, looks through the lens, and touches the soul of the photographer. The beauty of a woman emerges, the shutter clicks, strobe lights illuminate, and the photographer captures it.

Iconic Figures is my vision of beauty. It is sensual, erotic, and primordial.

]]> ~samdobrow Update http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/28259809/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/28259809/ Tue, 10 Nov 2009 01:58:18 PST
I love to push the edge with color in my photography but recently I've felt myself being pulled back to monochromatic images, esp sepia toned images. Another interesting thing, when I worked with film I was obsessed with getting the finest grain possible shooting with low ISO films and processing ever so slowly with cold chemicals. Now with digital, I can get images with no grain what so ever, sharp as a tack and guess what... I'm adding back grain typical of 200 ISO film.

Is this a side effect of listening to Hendrix and The Doors?

]]> ~samdobrow Open for Business! http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/23910037/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/23910037/ Fri, 27 Mar 2009 00:24:36 PDT [link] has been an adventure and it is now online. More artwork will be posted in the future. Every piece of art offered for sale on my website is an original - personally proofed, printed, signed, matted, and framed. Artwork is available with or without frame.

Please create an account and sign in to view pricing. My deviantArt followers can take advantage of a special 75% discount good during the month of April 2009 by entering the coupon code "dA75". Paypal is available for quick, easy and reliable check out!

If there is something you have seen in my gallery that is not offered in the store, send me a note and I'll make it available to you.

]]> ~samdobrow Nude Nite Orlando Exhibition http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/22975703/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/22975703/ Tue, 03 Feb 2009 00:45:49 PST [link] at Nude Nite Orlando [link] on Feb 12 - 14. Nude Nite is a juried art exhibit focusing on nude art and eroticism. It is one of the largest art exhibits of its type in the US. My work is one of 200 pieces selected for the exhibit. The work is offered for sale at the exhibit.

]]> ~samdobrow Please Vote for my Photo http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/22040826/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/22040826/ Wed, 17 Dec 2008 21:33:02 PST [link] It is #8 on Week 7. Once you have the thumbnails for Week 7 showing, click on the menu item at the top of the window "VIEW AND VOTE". When my photo comes up in the sequence, Please VOTE it a 10. Thanks!

Sam

]]> ~samdobrow A Totally New Perspective on Fashion http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/21148805/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/21148805/ Sat, 25 Oct 2008 00:46:03 PDT
Let me start by saying that my perspective on fashion is that it serves to enhance the beauty of the model and that it is secondary to the model who is wearing the fashion. This is not mainstream fashion photography though. Mainstream fashion photography has commercial intent and the emphasis is on the garment not the model - the model is there to make the fashion look good. But neither of these constructs are what really blew me away.

What blew my mind was that fashion need not be beautiful or even flattering to qualify as fashion photography. The larger than life sized, fashion photography I was looking at was photographed with technical excellence. Hard light allowed the texture of a thread bare, burlap-like fabric, hand tied around the model forming a garment to pop right off the page. The framing of one picture did not show the model's face, instead it was waist down to bare, calloused feet standing in dust. Another picture of the same model, head to toe, revealed leathery skin and imperfect teeth forming a stoic, removed stare. I was looking at fashion photography of an impoverished african woman "modeling" her rag-tied clothes on location! This body of work could have been shot in a Dafour refugee camp. It was neither beautiful nor flattering but it was clearly fashion photography. The photographer had made a visual fashion statement.

Go figure!

]]> ~samdobrow FashionPH Magazine Features the Work of Sam Dobrow http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/20888339/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/20888339/ Wed, 08 Oct 2008 11:27:19 PDT downloaded from the FashionPH website www.fashion-ph.it. This international exposure further supports the appeal of Sam Dobrow's glamour photography to a progressive, fashion-aware, European market. Sam described his work to Elisa Benni of FashionPH:
"My photographs portray women in a confident, powerful, sexy, and sensual manner. The concept of a feminine superhero with a sensitive and alluring persona rather than a "typical macho female character" allowed me to present a very feminine yet strong character. I allowed the wardrobe to convey the sense of strength and character while using low key lighting and a slightly soft focus to convey the intimacy of the character. My intention was to convey power and strength of character differently than through physical strength and violent behavior (fighting)."


Sam Dobrow's photography can be seen on the web at www.samdobrowphotography.com

]]> ~samdobrow What is the Voyeur Collection? http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/19616042/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/19616042/ Sun, 27 Jul 2008 00:24:29 PDT
I believe that for an act of voyeurism to occur, simply viewing nudity is not sufficient. Merely photographing a nude person, especially when they are fully aware of being photographed does not qualify as voyeurism. This is not to say that voyeuristic images can not be made between a willing and aware model and photographer but somehow there needs to be an element of obscured view between the model and photographer – a partial barrier that creates an illusion of privacy. The role of the barrier is important to both the photographer and the model; it allows the model to pose with a sense of privacy and it concurrently allows the photographer to peek into that private world with the camera.

Voyeurism evokes some level of eroticism that arises by viewing someone from a position of secrecy. The eroticism can be evoked by model’s poses, the perspective of the camera, a sense of discovery, or just from how the light exposes the model’s nude form. Using the proper lighting and photographic technique is critical to capturing the moment. The natural tendency of the voyeur is to "see more" and get closer to the subject. Many images in this collection become more obscurred as the viewer gets closer to the image and the figure becomes apparent only by backing away from the optimal viewing distance. In this collection, I apply a variety of lighting and post production techniques to "frustrate the voyeur" by bluring the figure, partially obscurring the figure, and conveying a sense of discovery of the voyeur.

The collection has been started as a folder in my gallery. Artistic critique is encouraged but that does not mean comments like "I want to sex the model". I'd like to know how well the voyeur concept is emotionally conveyed in the image and other critiques on the composition, technique, lighting, etc. I am also interested in comments on the "cohesiveness" of the collection and what you think makes this body of work cohesive.

]]> ~samdobrow Next Destination: France/Italy http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/19361788/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/19361788/ Sat, 12 Jul 2008 20:42:55 PDT
]]> ~samdobrow Off to Mexico http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/18990088/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/18990088/ Sun, 22 Jun 2008 20:14:15 PDT
]]> ~samdobrow Festival of the Photograph http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/18833787/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/18833787/ Sat, 14 Jun 2008 07:30:24 PDT
]]> ~samdobrow FestImage www.festimage.org http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/18654530/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/18654530/ Tue, 03 Jun 2008 23:29:05 PDT
Here are a few tips to make the visit and voting easier:

Navigate to the site [link]

1. Click on the Language flag
2. Register and wait a while for the email confirmation.
3. Click the "Voting More" button to read the voting instructions
4. Click see pictures and then click the star below photos you like to add to favorites
5. After you've taken a couple hours to view the nearly 1500 images and selected your favorites, click the Favorite Works link on the right side of the screen to see your favorites
6. You MUST vote for 10 images or your votes won't be counted!
7. Note the number of points you assign to each vote - 10 points is your favorite.

Hope you enjoy all the artwork and vote your favorites. If you find my entry [link] leave me a note here that you saw it!

]]> ~samdobrow Online vs Brick and Mortar Art Gallery http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/17533395/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/17533395/ Wed, 26 Mar 2008 22:04:19 PDT
Since my commercial work hasn't reached the point of specialization yet, I've tried to demonstrate competency in a wide variety of areas by grouping different types of photography into different online galleries. My advisors say that may be self defeating. I feel it is a bit of a "Catch 22". So my immediate goal is to improve my photography and improve the presentation of my works. To do this I am applying some discipline to the structure and format of my online galleries at samdobrow.com [link] . As my "voice" emerges, my gallery will reflect that transformation.

I decided to treat my online gallery as if it were a brick and mortar gallery with limited wall space that people would walk through and sequentially view the art. This mindset forces me to discipline my self as to what and how many images I post in the gallery. It forces me to apply the sequencing concepts of a photo story or photo book to the organization of the gallery. First, I have strictly limited the number of images in any single gallery to 36. I call the front page of my gallery the "Gallery Wall". The Gallery Wall allows me to "hang" six rows of six thumbnail photographs and neatly fit it on a single web page. Once someone clicks on an image it opens the door to the gallery and starts a sequential presentation of enlarged images as if a visitor were walking through the gallery. Images must flow with color, pattern, texture, perspective, and content.

Each gallery has its own concept and the images in the gallery are selected and sequenced with the concept as a guiding principle. I am working on strengthening the gallery by continuously replacing the weakest image with a stronger image and selecting only the best image from a photo series to represent the work. I'm not there yet but you will see some pretty strong, but similar, images removed from the gallery as new images are added. For example, my goal is to eliminate more than one image of the same subject in any one gallery - that is tough to do but necessary when you work with a great subject. I may have more than one image of the same model in a people gallery but the look (outfit, setting, makeup, color, etc.) must be very different.

I've made an initial update to my website to strengthen the content, reduce the similarity of images, and sequence the images for visual flow. Every time I make a new image it has to compete with the other images for space. Please visit my website [link] regularly to my progress. I always welcome feedback so feel free to post your comments here or send me a private note.

If I really had discipline, I'd treat my dA gallery with the same rigor but for now this is my hobby site not my commercial site so you'll see more of my work here and the best of the best at samdobrow.com.

]]> ~samdobrow Real People! http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/16585824/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/16585824/ Tue, 18 Mar 2008 08:38:11 PDT
I'm interested in learning if anyone has done something like this before and what kinds of challenges to anticipate.

UPDATE: Lots of people flake out after saying they are interested. Best source so far has been ModelMayhem. Lots of upstart and part-time models looking to build a portfolio. I need to get a balance of people that are not models.

OK, I AM DYING TO SHOOT SOMETHING! WILL THE REAL PEOPLE PLEASE STAND UP![2/11/08]

Well, patience and determination is starting to yield benefits. Check the new environmental portraits in my gallery. [3/18/08]

]]> ~samdobrow PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST "LOVE" http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/15962046/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/15962046/ Thu, 31 Jan 2008 00:53:12 PST :love: CALL FOR ENTRIES! :love: :hug:

THIS IS A SURPRISE: dA Love is awarded "Book of the week" by Blurb! Read the article here: [link]

UPDATE: The first copies of the book have been delivered and the print quality is great!

======= W I N N E R S !! =======

Preview the book and buy a copy here: [link]
Production and delivery can take 2 weeks so don't wait. Order your book today for Valentines Day gifts!

Congratulations to the following winners .......

First Place: TristanGreer "I Need Love" [link]

Second Place: Tracie76 "Recipe of Love" [link]

Third Place: "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" [link]

Honorable Mention - published in the book

Amersill
Tracie76
Greit-pearl
samdobrow
DementdPrncess
TristanGreer
Jolenex
True-RefleXion
ArhcamtIlnaad
Avanti666
Nurofinn

disclaimer: I adjusted croping to format for the book layout. Blurb does not allow me to make any other adjustments on submitted work. Color, resolution, brightness and contrast are the responsibility of the artist preparing their work to the technical specifications provided.

========================================

NEWS++++NEWS++++NEWS++++NEWS

The contest will go on. We have received over 50 entries and the judging begins. If you entered into the contest and did NOT receive an email or note requesting your email address you must send me a note with a valid email address to receive your link to the upload site. All Finalists must upload High Res files the project website at blurb.com by Friday. The project site will send out an email with a unique link allowing you to upload to a private area that can not be seen by the public nor other Finalists. I will view the images and download the winners into the book making software.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I am sponsoring a deviantART photography contest on the topic “LOVE”! There is no cost to submit an entry. At least forty (40) winners will have their photographs featured in a hardback book available for purchase online. The book will be a 7" x 7" format to convey intimacy and be ready to purchase as gifts in time for Valentine's Day (February 14). Other books I've made [link] To submit the entry, the owner must post a link to the deviantART image under this Journal Entry. The winners will be announced on deviantART.

PRIZES:
  • FIRST PLACE: Photo on the front cover of the book plus a free copy of the book

  • SECOND PLACE: Photo on the back cover of the book.

  • THIRD PLACE: Photo on Title Page of the book.


This book will be a collection of artistic photographs that convey the emotion of love. I am seeking photographs of people in settings that convey a message of love. The photos may be of a single person, a couple, group or family. Images may also be conceptual or abstract. The photos will be judged on artistic composition including use of light, form lines, rhythm, texture, color, space, depth of field, etc. as well as the emotive aspect of the image. Photographs may be black and white or color. Photomanipulation and photomontage are also permitted as long as the images originate from a camera. Vector art and similar graphic art is not permitted.

HOW TO ENTER:

(1) Upload the image to your dA gallery
(2) Put the following information in the description for the Deviation
  • Your description of the photo explaining how or why the image conveys love. A short poem about love relating to the photo is also acceptable.

  • Legal Name of Photographer (copyright)

  • Date (or at least year) the photo was taken

  • Location

  • Exposure (f-stop, shutter, ISO) if known

(3) Place a link to the deviation in the comments below with the title of your deviation

The artist's name and photo description will be published with the photo. Photographer retains copyrights and ownership o... ]]> ~samdobrow New Projects, New Directions http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/14820402/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/14820402/ Sun, 30 Sep 2007 21:43:27 PDT [link] . In late October I will be shooting a photo story in San Miguel Allende, MX with National Georgaphic Expeditions and Magnum photographer David Alan Harvey (wow). With a little spare time, I'll be developing a photobook from my trip to the French-Italian Riveria last spring and the San Miguel Allende trip. Stay tuned for some really great art this fall.

If you like my work, please show your support by purchasing prints and displaying them on your walls. Economical prints are available from my Shutterfly storefront [link] . Signed archival prints (with proper handling ink will resist fading for 100 years) can be ordered by email (samdobrowphotography@gmail.com). I can provide the prints window mounted on museum rag board and framed - ready to hang. My photobooks are a great way to share art with your friends - consider giving them a photobook as a holiday gift this year. Stop by my website [link] and visit the gallery for a large selection of art images. Drop me a note for a quote.

My beauty, glamour and artistic nude portfolio is now available as a 33 page 12"x12" full color photobook. Details here ==> [link]

]]> ~samdobrow Glamour Gallery Now Open http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/14331005/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/14331005/ Sat, 25 Aug 2007 08:32:04 PDT [link] .

These photos were taken at Rolando Gomez USVI workshop. Twelve (12) photographers and six (6) models converged on a private residence in St Thomas for four days of intensive photography. Photographers worked as a team of two for the entire workshop and rotated so they were able to shoot each model at least once. The models were up every morning by 4 am to get in line for their make up and all had to be ready before sunrise for a 3 hour shoot. During the day the models would work one-on-one with photographers who wanted to commission their services outside the workshop schedule. Then in the evening the models had their make up redone and were required to be ready for a sunset shoot which lasted until it was too dark to focus the camera. Long hot days, minimal accomodations, and focused work was required to capture these images. Photoshop for the mastering. I hope you enjoy them! Comments welcome here but please respect the models.

]]> ~samdobrow NEW! WEBSITE ONLINE NOW http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/13430768/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/13430768/ Thu, 21 Jun 2007 09:33:14 PDT
Take a tour [link] and leave me a note and let me know what you think about te new website.

]]> ~samdobrow origin of photographers http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/11136489/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/11136489/ Thu, 21 Dec 2006 09:28:06 PST
The photographer was awed by what he saw and began to memorialize the light, the darkness and everything in between. The photographer proliferated the images of light and darkness until one day he became confused by all the images of light and darkness. The photographer began to blaspheme the images of light combining them into false images; things that God had not created.

Angrily, God cast the the photographer into the underworld where there was only darkness and told the photographer that all photographs must emerge from pure darkness. From that time forward, the photographer lived in the darkness of darkroom. Until one day the devil came to the photographer and said, "for your soul I will free you from the darkroom and you shall create images of light and dark without the darkroom". And the devil gave the photographer a computer forbidding the photographer to use the darkroom anymore.

When the photographer began to use the computer, he realized he would never again be able to memorialize God's creation because the computer only interpreted light and darkness as zeros and ones. No matter how hard the photographer tried to refine the purity of light, something was lost in the dichotomy between the light and the darkness. So the photographer continued to create images of something less divine than pure light and he shared his misery with others calling it "art".

]]> ~samdobrow on provocation http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/11121636/ http://samdobrow.deviantart.com/journal/11121636/ Tue, 19 Dec 2006 21:51:15 PST
]]> ~samdobrow