By William Ellis.
Taken at the start of 2016 when I was just starting photography for school, I was looking for something that showed the other side of the streets we walk on in Canberra.
Back Street Dystopia
By William Ellis
Fujifilm Finepix S1
Taken at the start of 2016 when I was just starting photography for school, I was looking for something that showed the other side of the streets we walk on in Canberra. Very happy with my photograph, I proceeded to put a black and white filter along with some clarity and contrast to express the vibe of grime.
Don’s response
Back in the day photographers would get this grainy effect by underexposing and over-developing a high ISO film stock before printing on a ‘hard’ high contrast paper. Photographer Will Ellis has achieved the desired grittiness by digitally amplifying the noise and bumping the contrast. (Much quicker and far easier, but just as effective.)
Applying a vignette to the upper left corner helps to unify the image tonally and the low angle gives a slightly off-balance atmosphere that I think works well.
