In our series of photography book recommendations, I bring you a theme that is already touching: the personal photographic project, if you are thinking of entering one, cannot miss this exam.
Anyone who is thinking about a personal photographic project, or who has already embarked and is a little lost because they do not know very well the steps to follow, how to define the idea, how to shape it or who doubts in one of its phases. , is the ideal recipient of this reading.
- ? The photo project is not in your plans.
- It’s also not the book you’re looking for if you’ve just started photographing and are still working on automatics because you don’t know any more options and don’t even know how to handle the triangle of light.
- The book is intended for professional or amateur photographers but with a solid technical basis.
Don’t expect to find recipes to display properly, compose, make a good approach or anything like that, it’s not such a manual, but it focuses on the most conceptual and artistic part of the project.
A brief introduction in which the author describes the path to access this work and how it is structured.
Focused on why, why and how a personal project talks about the importance of enthusiasm, involvement and work as key to undertaking a personal photographic project.
The theme of the project documentation is introduced, both the internal work file that includes all the relevant information about the work and the project file that will accompany it during its presentation. Topics to be developed in other chapters.
It presents different working methodologies or models of joint projects after explaining how they were defined, then details the status of the projects in order to establish an order and an evolution of the personal photographic project.
Finish with a tip on how to read the book based on these states, as the chapters in this book are based on them.
A chapter of reflection, to discover and define our photographic identity based on personal identity, through the different tasks and reflections it proposes.
It is a chapter dedicated to creativity, understanding how it works and how to incentivize it to achieve a creative process model.
This is the starting point, but you have to understand it and define it to develop it. This chapter is dedicated to the search for the idea and its definition.
To develop an idea, we need to investigate it and the project we are going to carry out, this chapter guides you through this process.
Chapter on the importance of experimentation as an engine of the creative process. Different forms of experimentation and how they can help in the personal photographic project.
As indicated by the chapter title, it focuses on explaining the creation of a working file to document the project, title, definition, objectives, justification, or planning are part of it.
Shooting goes beyond clicking. This chapter covers various aspects related to it, such as planning, location, timing, image definition, sketching, resource mobilization, and more.
Talking about editing the personal photographic project is about the selection of photos to be included, order and consistency. This chapter helps you in this arduous task that can be so arduous.
Find out in this detailed chapter which format is best for your project; how to mount an exhibition, from the size of the works to the layout, through the middle and taking into account many other aspects, such as the stamping, framing or editing and publishing of a photobook.
No one does a personal photographic project to put it in a drawer or on a hard drive. The author describes ways to improve the visibility of your project and how to prepare the project file for introducing it.
Questions that generate other questions in order to open the doors of creativity and close this complete work.
Ends with an index of the authors’ names that appear throughout the book and bibliography.
Artist, teacher, writer and curator, she is the coordinator of the area of Author and Projects of La M-quina, School of Photographic Specialization of Madrid, in which she develops a vast teaching work in the subjects that have become her specialty: the history of photography, photographic language and management of personal projects. In addition, she has collaborated with academic-level entities and works as an independent viewer and consultancy of photographic projects.
Together with José Antonio Fernández he formed the artistic couple Rojo Sache, his works have received more than 100 international awards and have been exhibited in galleries and museums in several countries of the world, has numerous and diverse national photographic awards.
His artistic works, as well as the rest of the information, can be found on the website of Rojo Sache.
The author’s experience as an artist and as a teacher is present on each page. The didactic tone of the text is evident, but in a close and positive way. Reading the book, you think it would be ideal to have her as a teacher because her way of communicating is excellent, not peedant, far from forced technicalities or the need to show that she knows more than you do.
Added to the pedagogical and artistic branch, it is able to see the personal photographic project from different points of view, covering many lagoons or lagoons that can appear from the same approach.
Exercises, proposed tasks, and ongoing examples are another strength of this work.
If there is, but it comes from the layout, which I think can be improved, I like that there are spaces in the margins of the books, but not at the price of leaving very small print and very tight pages, I think the space could have been used better.
It is a very complete book that is essential for anyone who wants to embark on a personal photographic project and get it right.
The author, as an artist, teacher and curator, knows the whole process very well and has a very rich and understanding view of it, which makes him take into account every detail.
It is not a book to have a good time, but a study or reference textbook, although it is pleasant to read and with a very close language.
I totally recommend reading it if you plan to do a personal photographic project.