Background

So for quite a while I have admired Benjamin Everett. I mostly follow him on instagram for inspiration. He is a photographer, but more than that, he is an artist. He makes no bones about the fact that he digitally manipulates his images to achieve dreamy, otherworldly scenes. For the purist, set aside your expectations of what you think photography should be, and behold what is in the mind‘s eye and skilled digital artistry of Everett. You will be enriched if you do.

Image © Benjamin Everett

Why I Think This Image Works (Color, Light, Subject, Moment, Emotion)

Maybe I am just naturally drawn to blue in general, but I love a cool toned image. It is also slightly desaturated, which is calming to the eyes. The light draws the eyes along the leading, wavy lines in the ice, growing lighter as they eventually reach the peak at center-right. The eye then moves to the upper left of the frame to linger on the gentle storm passing. It is reminiscent of the old romantic painters, like Albert Bierstadt. A characteristic of a Bierstadt, or any of the romantic painters of the day, was the trademark light vs. dark motif. Everett clearly evokes this sentiment, minus the settlers and natives that were common to the 19th century paintings. This is the dark and light of a desolate landscape devoid of the human presence.

Simplicity is Everett‘s forte. He is a master of distilling his scenes down to the most important visual elements, and this image is no different. Starkness. Coldness. However, I wouldn’t go so far as an emotional loneliness. The eyes are soon drawn to the blue sky with sunlit cumulus clouds in the distance, conveying a feeling of hope and warmth. The storm is nearly passed. All sweeping lines flow directly to warm rays of a sunnier day somewhere in the near future.

It is romantic, yet simple. Cold, yet hopeful. Stark, yet lovely.

Please, if you aren’t familiar with his work, go spend some time admiring the photographic artistry of Benjamin Everett.

I would love to hear your thoughts! Comment below to start a conversation about this image… do you like it? If so, why? If not, why not?

— Andrew

I had an idea a while ago to feature an image once a week by other photographers that I find interesting. In the effort to provide inspiration to myself by enjoying the work of others, I hope it will serve to inspire a wider audience as well. I will write a short bit about what I like about the image, and why I think it works.

You can expect a wide variety of photographic art, so not just landscapes and nature! I hope you find this as fun and enriching as I do.

Let me also offer an invitation… if you come across an image you would like me to see, and perhaps feature, please shoot me an email with the subject “Picture of the week.”