What attracts me to this and many other Gibson images is the strong sense of story and the very striking graphic quality of the image.

Hand on Door from the Somnambulist series by Ralph Gibson — 1968

Stairs of Montmartre, Paris — 1925 by Andre Kertesz

What makes this, and tons of other Kertesz images fantastic is the precise and deliberate composition. Kertesz was simply a master at guiding your eye to interesting places in the photograph. The shapes of the shadows and the position of the railings are both delightful to look at and they guide your eye perfectly toward the humans in the photo.

Kertesz was also keenly aware of all planes of focus in an image and how they work together. The connection between the foreground, midground and the background elements of this image helps to suggest a story as well as make the image graphically striking.

Sidelong Glance by Robert Doisneau — 1948

What makes this photograph so appealing is the sense of story and sense of humour. The woman is looking at the art in the‚foreground painting‚but the man sees ‘art’ in a different painting off to the side. The model’s bare bottom in the painting is the brightest element in the image so our eye (as well as the man’s roving eye) goes right to it. The point of view of the image, the fabulous timing, as well as the fact that the subjects seem unaware that they are being photographed all add to this image’s appeal.

Rayography — [Kiss] by Man Ray 1922

The image above is a photogram which means it was taken without a camera. Faces and hands were placed over photographic paper and exposed to light. Man Ray preferred to call the photograms he created Rayographs (after himself).

Joseph Koudelka — Portugal — 1976

What attracts us to this image is the sense of story combined with brilliant composition. I don’t know what the story is here but it’s a drama. Older man waits in background with a shadowed profile overlooking a private conversation. The woman is smiling in profile, perhaps trying to soothe or coax the young girl, and the child is concerned. What is happening to her? For me, this scene is filled with tension.

Compositionally, this image is a master-class. Angular lines add to the tension in the image. Triangles (our eyes love‚triangles) are everywhere . Corners, angled light rays, noses, table ends, knee bends, elbows are just a few of the triangles that we see. Look harder and you’ll see more of them…it’s no accident that they are there. Even the interaction (both obvious and subtle) between the 3‚individuals‚is triangular. Some fine black and white printing with a rich assortment of tones further‚adds to this image’s impact.

Saint-Cloud by Eugene Atget 1921–1922

Although newer photographers might look at this image and go “meh”, there’s actually lots of interesting stuff to look at due to the careful composition. The repeating cone-shaped trees and their shadows are the focal points of the image and their shapes are somewhat repeated by the other trees in the background. Great use of leading lines and shapes created in both the positive and negative areas of this photograph make it far more intriguing than it initially seems.

The‚George‚Eastman‚house also has quite a good collection of Atget photographs for those that want to see more of this Master’s work.

http://www.geh.org/fm/atget/htmlsrc/atget_sld00001.html

Feininger is perhaps best known for his‚architectural‚ and street shots of New York City in the forties and fifties. This portrait does not represent Feininger’s average subject matter and yet it is amongst his most famous photographs for many good reasons.

The Photojournalist by Andreas Feininger — 1951

What draws us to this photograph is obviously the unique way it’s presented. The Leica camera is turned to one side so that the lens and viewfinder act as the subject’s eyes. Both lenses have specular highlights which mimic the catchlights seen in portraits. In addition, the image is beautifully printed with rich blacks and whites with detail. The eye is skillfully guided to the focal points (lens and viewfinder) in this image, likely through selective dodging and burning (selective darkening and lightening of specific parts of the image). It’s the combination of technical skill and well thought out composition that make this image superb.

A Haas quote that I really dig is, “The best pictures differentiate themselves by nuances‚¦a tiny relationship ‚ either a harmony or a disharmony — that creates a picture.”

Binoculars by Ernst Haas — 1952

This photograph works on‚multiple‚levels which is likely why it works so well.
The‚binoculars‚themselves look like human faces so we are‚immediately‚attracted to that aspect. However, other elements also make this image interesting. These elements include the fence and the buildings in the background. For me, the fence, binoculars and background buildings represent the fact that ‘making it’ in New York is difficult. The fence separates you from the buildings but you can see them through the binoculars. Getting there, is a battle…but if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere.