Tag Archives: cello

Cello Detail

February 1, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Close up photograph of a cello — strings, fingerboard, bow

This is a photograph from my three-year project photographing the members of two professional classical music groups. Most of the photographs were made during the fall academic terms while I was on a sabbatical, though much of the post-processing, editing, and organizational work continued beyond those periods. In fact, some of the photography continued in the same way, and I continued to photograph both groups outside of the specific time frame of the project. This is one of the photographs from that outside work, as it was made in June 2014.

As I photographed these groups I found more and more things to “see” photographically and more and more ways to photograph them. Part of the reason for this, no doubt, is that I had never before had the opportunity to focus on a single project for so long where the main subjects are people! Frankly, at the beginning of the project I had a lot to learn about that — and one of the best outcomes for me has been learning how to create photographs of human subjects, from the technical, aesthetic, and human perspectives. But I also have become much more aware of the visual possibilities of things I might not have considered photographing before. This detail shot of a cello might not be the ideal example, as the forms of string instruments have long interested photographers. However, I recall first “getting” the qualities of the large string instruments when I made a photograph of the entire lower string section early on in the project. I saw the obvious after making that shot, that these very large instruments, with their attractive shapes and rich wood textures and evidence of use and wear are visually interesting objects and evidence of the relationship between the player and his or her instrument.

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Music & Musicians, Photographs: People

Cellist Louella Hasbun

May 21, 2014 G Dan Mitchell 3 Comments

Cellist Louella Hasbun practices backstage during intermission at a performance of the Symphony Silicon Valley

I’m going to make this partial a story about photography and partially a story about musicians—but first some quick background. I have been an “embedded photographer” with two classical music performing groups since the fall of 2012 while working on a project that will continue through the fall of 2014. The nature of the project is a bit of a long story, so I won’t go into the details here, except to say that I am fortunate to have what must be nearly unprecedented access to the world of these wonderful artists. I like to think that the lengthy time I have had to work with them has let me develop a special affinity for them and what they do, and I think that it has also allowed them to come to trust me and what I’m going as I photograph them. There are few endeavors that regularly exhibit the same level of physical, mental, and aesthetic focus and energy as music. There is a raw power in watching this when scores of performers work together in an orchestral performance, but there is also a very special power in the intense inward focus on individual performers, too.

As I have worked with the orchestras I have learned a lot of practical things about how to photograph them. Some are simple and mundane—such as what equipment works well for my approach. Others are a bit more complicated to explain—such as how to anticipate and capture momentary expressions that come and go so fast that they are perhaps not seen by those who don’t know to look for them, or how to photograph musicians in moments of peak engagement, or how to use stage and backstage lighting to best advantage, or how to see a short-lived moment and quickly make a photograph in poor light and without intruding on that moment. This photograph perhaps illustrates the last two of those points. Over time I have learned to look for what I think of as “pools of light” in the backstage environment. Much of this environment is quite badly lit, both in terms of the levels and the quality of the light. But there are a few spots that I have found where a small area may fall under a work light or similar. I watch these areas intently, and any time someone “lands” in one of them I watch to see if a photograph develops. For a moment, this cellist sat in one of those “pools of light” and, focusing inwardly, practiced intently for a few moments. It is almost like photographing wildlife, and I had just an instant to find a composition and make a few exposures before the moment was over.

Photographs: Music & Musicians, Photographs: People

Low Strings, Rehearsal

October 6, 2013 G Dan Mitchell 5 Comments

Members of the cello and double bass sections of Symphony Silicon Valley at a September 27, 2013 rehearsal

And now, as they say, something entirely different. I am midway into a three-year project that has me photographing classical musicians in San Jose, California – primarily the Symphony Silicon Valley and the San Jose Chamber Orchestra. Symphony Silicon Valley is the direct descendant of the San Jose Symphony, a group that has been described as the longest running symphony orchestra in the western United States. The San Jose Chamber Orchestra is a smaller group that has a reputation for exciting and high quality performances and for promoting new works by living composers.

Since many of my usual photographic subjects are inanimate objects – as we like to say, “Rocks. Trees. Water.” – photographing performing artists is, in many ways, a very big change for me. This work is all about the people and, in fact, the point of the project is to tell the stories of these artists in a more complete way, showing and telling aspects of what they do that are not usually seen by the public and concert-goers. It was a bit of a stretch for me at first, walking around among performing artists and finding ways to see what they do photographically and record what they do and show who they are. However, I may have an advantage or two over some who might try to photograph such subjects. I have a lot of background in music, having taught it at the college level for many years, having been a performer myself at one time, and being married to a fine musician. There is as much music as photography in my life, and for this reason I believe that I am sensitive to aspects of the musical life that might not be apparent to other photographers who don’t have this background. Related to this, I have personal friendships among many in this world, which gives me a bit of an entre that has helped a lot.

I’ll likely share more of this work from time to time – from among the 2000 or more photographs that I have made so far. This photograph was made at a rehearsal of Symphony Silicon Vally in late September, 2013. Here the orchestra is preparing their performance of Prokofiev’s Lieutenant Kije Suite. (Folks who know the music might even be able to figure out where they are in the work – there is a hint in the photo.) For this shot I photographed from the balcony with a long lens in order to compress the perspective of this part of the stage occupied by some of the orchestra’s low string players.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: cello

Cello Detail

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Cellist Louella Hasbun

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Low Strings, Rehearsal

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Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.

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Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.