Cool! Beauty In The Everyday / Wabi-sabi

Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC Macro for Nikon

12/12/2007 11:45:53 AM · #1

To me - this is the perfect photographic challenge. Ambiguous, yet definitely with significant meaning. Very excited about this one (shooting - not necessarilly receiving votes ;P).

Message edited by author 2007-12-12 11:46:20.

Motek

Nikon D80

12/12/2007 12:06:18 PM · #2

//nobleharbor.com/tea/chado/WhatIsWabi-Sabi.htm

Louis

Nikon D800

Nikon AF Nikkor 85mm f/1.8D

12/12/2007 12:09:41 PM · #3

Also check the challenge request thread, which has lots of good resources.

Yo_Spiff

Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III

Olympus 12-100mm f/4.0 M.Zuiko ED IS PRO

12/12/2007 12:17:08 PM · #4

I think this one will have a lot of entries. Lots of subject potential.

smurfguy

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

12/12/2007 12:25:09 PM · #5

Very cool! I hope I have time to get in this one!

JaviZ

Canon EOS-40D

Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

12/12/2007 05:33:38 PM · #6

I have uploaded my 1st DPC entry, crossing fingers! :)
In fact I think this is my first post @ this Forums!

Greetings from Argentina!

Warmly,
JaviZ

bvlindalou

Canon EOS-400D Rebel XTi

Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II

12/12/2007 05:38:58 PM · #7

Originally posted by JaviZ:

I have uploaded my 1st DPC entry, crossing fingers! :)
In fact I think this is my first post @ this Forums!

Greetings from Argentina!

Warmly,
JaviZ

Welcome! and good luck......hope you have fun!

FocusPoint

XIAOMI Redmi Note 8 Pro

12/12/2007 05:51:10 PM · #8

hmm?

Donna21

Fujifilm FinePix S9000

12/12/2007 06:01:21 PM · #9

Originally posted by FocusPoint:

hmm?

Wabi-sabi and Bokeh all in one! lol

yanko

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

Carl Zeiss 50mm ZE f/1.4 Planar T for Canon

12/12/2007 06:04:21 PM · #10

Originally posted by metatate:

To me - this is the perfect photographic challenge. Ambiguous, yet definitely with significant meaning. Very excited about this one (shooting - not necessarilly receiving votes ;P).

True. Voting should also be fun since there will probably be some real hidden gems in this one.

Donna21

Fujifilm FinePix S9000

12/12/2007 06:08:20 PM · #11

The opposite challenge should have been either Perfection or Consumerism, lol.

I've got a few ideas for this, but they are all dependent upon the weather. I hope something works out.

UrfaK

Canon EOS-650/T4i Rebel

Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

12/12/2007 09:31:04 PM · #12

Most of my portfolio is filled with junk[the subject matter of my pics I mean :D]... I think it's beautiful but thats me..Dunno if I'll be able to make it to the deadline.. My finals are ending on the last date.. hoping I can make it.

Melethia

Canon EOS-80D

12/13/2007 02:28:07 AM · #13

From a link already mentioned:

Pared down to its barest essence, wabi-sabi is the Japanese art of finding beauty in imperfection and profundity in nature, of accepting the natural cycle of growth, decay, and death. It's simple, slow, and uncluttered-and it reveres authenticity above all. Wabi-sabi is flea markets, not warehouse stores; aged wood, not Pergo; rice paper, not glass. It celebrates cracks and crevices and all the other marks that time, weather, and loving use leave behind. It reminds us that we are all but transient beings on this planet-that our bodies as well as the material world around us are in the process of returning to the dust from which we came. Through wabi-sabi, we learn to embrace liver spots, rust, and frayed edges, and the march of time they represent.

Wabi-sabi is underplayed and modest, the kind of quiet, undeclared beauty that waits patiently to be discovered.

Might I suggest we all go out and enjoy the challenge of this challenge, and fret not over "DNMC" or scores. I think there's a lot to be learned simply in looking with the above in mind. Go see what you can see!

12/13/2007 02:36:21 AM · #14

I'm not sure I'm getting this. So these would be considered Wabi Sabi?

Old big machine:

just a door at my work:

raish

Olympus C-2500L

12/13/2007 03:25:29 AM · #15

Originally posted by FocusPoint:

hmm?

Terrific picture. I suspect that comparing it to something else, or making it into a kind of sock puppet alligator, is pretty contrary to the idea of wabi-sabi. The wabi-sabi and the beauty lie in the fact that it is a plank and that it has undergone transformation through its own nature and the ravages of time etc etc. The inimitable form created by natural process and the essentially ungraspable nature of the beauty therein seem to me the heart of the matter. These are just my thoughts - I really don't know.

Still, maybe soomething that looks like something else will win. Or, as a modern day Abe might say if he were seeking dpc votes: 'you can't please all the people all the time, but you can sure as hell appeal to the lowest common denominator'.

raish

Olympus C-2500L

12/13/2007 03:32:44 AM · #16

Originally posted by Puckzzz:

I'm not sure I'm getting this. So these would be considered Wabi Sabi?

Old big machine:

just a door at my work:

Eenteresting... I think yes, they would, but . . .
*The graphic quality of the pictures maybe overshadows the simple beauty of the objects and their decay.
*Lines and forms enhanced by the use of b&w - very good photography, but is that the object of the (wabi-sabi) exercise here?
*ER - haven't actually got any more - just thinking out loud because I find the idea fascinating :-)

12/13/2007 04:20:28 AM · #17

Originally posted by raish:

That's why I'm confused...is it to photograph an everyday object to portrait it's beauty?

Tej

Canon EOS-400D Rebel XTi

Carl Zeiss 50mm ZE f/1.4 Planar T for Canon

12/13/2007 04:50:12 AM · #18

Originally posted by Puckzzz:

Originally posted by raish:

Eenteresting... I think yes, they would, but . . .
*The graphic quality of the pictures maybe overshadows the simple beauty of the objects and their decay.
*Lines and forms enhanced by the use of b&w - very good photography, but is that the object of the (wabi-sabi) exercise here?
*ER - haven't actually got any more - just thinking out loud because I find the idea fascinating :-)

That's why I'm confused...is it to photograph an everyday object to portrait it's beauty?

Well, (mostly) we first pick the already "not-so-ordinary" subject and than capture its beauty. In this case the subject needs to be ordinary (or something which might not look interesting to our cluttered minds) and present its beauty. This is very similar (or might even be same) to zen photography. Maybe an addition(from zen) could be to see beauty in imperfection (a broken mug, punctured tyre, cracked wall etc etc). Does this help?

[Edited for example] Example - //www.photochart.com/photo_2816_Wabi-Sabi%20Sedan.html

Message edited by author 2007-12-13 04:56:54.

yanko

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

12/13/2007 04:52:33 AM · #19

Originally posted by Puckzzz:

Did you see Melethia's quote in her post and the link she provided? That pretty much sums it up. I think if you just show the passage of time you will be ok.

For me your "Day 2" shot would be a bit of a stretch because as raish eluded to, you made it look that way with your grain/noise treatment. The subject's own features should stand tall and your photographic technique take a step back. Basically do as little as possible and let the subject speak for itself. That is how I would try and approach it.

Melethia

Canon EOS-80D

12/13/2007 05:10:57 AM · #20

Not the best example, but a partial kinda fit, maybe.

At least to me it shows the hidden or not usually observed beauty of an every day object. The deeper meaning of wabi-sabi may not quite be there, though.

raish

Olympus C-2500L

12/13/2007 05:22:26 AM · #21

Originally posted by Melethia:

Not the best example, but a partial kinda fit, maybe.

At least to me it shows the hidden or not usually observed beauty of an every day object. The deeper meaning of wabi-sabi may not quite be there, though.

Right with you. I think maybe the lustre of cad. pas. (as it's called in the UK) is a little synthetic. Even so, it's a pretty/beautiful thing. I suppose the trick is to create a photograph that makes the beauty evident. (Still thinking out loud).

12/13/2007 05:50:34 AM · #22

Keep thinking out loud ;-)

I think I'm getting it :-) and an idea to go with it...

Melethia

Canon EOS-80D

12/13/2007 06:21:42 AM · #23

Based on that quote I posted, I'm thinking it can be a thing, either natural or manmade, or possibly a place, though I don't think a standard landscape shot is called for. Perhaps a landscape or nature shot but with a particular subject/focus - a dying log? Or a place, but again with a particular subject/focus. I'm just thinking this through, too... I think the emphasis is on the simple beauty of something that is often overlooked, and how that beauty plays into the cycle of time. Or something like that?