Great Photographers In the Spotlight:
Franco Fontana
Born in Modana Italy in 1933, Franco Fontana didn't study photography - in fact he had no formal training at all. He worked as a decorator, a job that ironically shaped his sense of form line and - of course - colour.
His early works were more traditional - black and white and realistic, but something about it didn't sit right with him. He wanted to show what things felt like.
Then came a breakthrough - a trip to Basilica in southern Italy, where the landscape was empty, but alive with bold colours and strong lines. Suddenly his camera was no longer a tool for documentation, but a brush - and the world became his canvas.
From that moment on Fontana chased abstraction, minimalism and the emotional language of colour. His bold use of colour in minimal compositions created a unique visual language that would eventually influence generations of photographers. He's possibly the greatest colour photographer you've never heard of...
Franco Fontana Online
https://francofontanaphotographer.com/home
A great little YouTube documentary about Franco Fontana
Resources To Develop Your Photography Skills:
The Exposure Triange for Beginners
For many starting out in photography, the relationship between aperture, shutter speed, and ISO can be confusing. To further muddy the water, the terms ‘stop’ and ‘f-stop’ are often used interchangeably but refer to different things. This beginners guide to the exposure triangle will set you straight in no time.
The Art of Photography
The Art of Photography is Ted Forbes excellent YouTube channel covering all things photographic, It's well worth checking out his videos, especially the earlier ones that cover composition and intent. Ted's now the author of an excellent photography book: Visually Speaking which is all well worth a look and a spot on your bookshelf.
Jamie Windsor
Jamie Windsor is a filmmaker, photographer, and YouTuber ho worked for over 20 years as a graphic designer and filmmaker in London for clients such as The BBC, London 2012, and Arts Council England. He started a photography business in 2011, primarily shooting portraits, weddings and interiors. In 2015, he started a photography YouTube channel, which took more of a full-time role in 2018. His channel features a mix of photography-related tips, techniques, and philosophical and ethical questions about the practice of photography. He aims to examine the why as well as the how of photography.
Harry Borden on YouTube
"Harry Borden is a professional portrait photographer from the UK who has worked globally with a myriad of celebrities. He is also my Dad. This channel is dedicated to his career and consists of videos of him talking about different shoots which interest me, with valuable insights into portrait photography".
Adobe Tutorials For Lightroom
Too many Lightroom users fail to explore or use the HUGE amount of really great learning materials provided by Adobe themselves. Don't be one of those people...
The Lightroom Queen
And if you are using Lightroom and can't find a specific answer to your question, then you probably need The Lightroom Queen. She produces an FAQ and Missing Manual to Lightroom, both of which are excellent and kept bang up to date. But the real benefit of this site are the excellent user/member forums. Check them out!
V&A Photography Collection
The V&A began acquiring photographs in 1852, and its collection is now one of the largest and most important in the world. Its first director, Henry Cole, was an amateur photographer himself and a great supporter of the art of photography. He began a photography collection in 1856, the year that the V&A, was established. Since then, the collection has grown to be international in scope and comprises over 800,000 photographs dating from 1839 to the present.
The Tate on Photography
The Tate has an A-Z of art and - obviously - photography is in in under P. Well worth checking out all the various links on this link rich page.
The Royal Photographic Society
As an educational charity, the RPS offers free resources to all those with an interest in photography. These include our model release form, inspiring teaching materials linked to our exhibitions, access to the archive of our RPS Journal going back to 1853 and information on copyright and best practice for photographing wildlife.
The Photographers Gallery
From interviews and discussions with photographers on their influences and practices, to a multitude of reflections on the role of photography and its relationship to other art forms, through to radical new thinking and research into the changing shape of the medium in a digital age. You can explore content through format, category or through a range of specially curated themes which propose edited perspectives on photography's relationship to art and culture.
Zone Focusing for Street Photography
James Mahers' excellent guide to zone focusing will free you as a street photographer and help you bag mpre of those elusi.ve great shots.