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DPChallenge Forums >> Photography Discussion >> crying babies
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05/30/2013 12:25:25 AM · #1
I believe Jill Greenberg has shot these, but the retouching may be Amy Dresser. Both superstars.
Amy Dresser is very free with her retouching techniques.

05/29/2013 10:56:17 PM · #2
05/29/2013 10:04:14 PM · #3
As I clicked on the link I was thinking this was probably another thread complaining about challenge topics and/or rule sets ... :-(
05/29/2013 09:02:22 PM · #4
im intrigued by the lighting, the processing is too overcooked for me. but really i dont see the lighting as being too complicated to decipher, its just a large setup. you can pick out most from the catchlights in the eyes, the hairlight is obvious as is the background light.
05/29/2013 05:58:48 PM · #5
For those who are not so repulsed by her subject matter, here are a few links.
Strobist trying to reverse engineer her lighting.
Flickr trying to reverse engineer her editing, particularly the bit quoting Amy Dresser who retouches for Greenburg.
You may not feel her style is for you, but her style is quite extreme, so if you work up a few in her manner, I promise you you will learn a few things you can use.

Message edited by author 2013-05-29 17:59:35.
05/29/2013 04:19:05 PM · #6
Originally posted by tnun:

Originally posted by fldave:

She talks about some of her work here.


this is worth it if only for the bear pics.

Cool! She tortures monkeys, too!
05/29/2013 02:52:09 PM · #7
Originally posted by fldave:

She talks about some of her work here.


this is worth it if only for the bear pics.
05/29/2013 09:10:10 AM · #8
personally i don't like anything about them.
i don't want to see pictures of kids crying like that, i think the processing is unrealistic (or ultrarealistic, but still looks fake), and the fact that she's making children of this age cry like this on purpose is just plain wrong. Kids cry enough as is, why do things to make this happen.... how about i come over and punch you in the face, or steal your stuff to make you cry then take pictures of it? It's art so it's okay. :p
05/29/2013 07:13:02 AM · #9
reminds me of this video.

poor kid:

//stereogum.com/72462/new_mgmt_video_kids/video/
05/29/2013 06:24:48 AM · #10
LOL. I thought it was some sort of rant.
05/29/2013 06:11:58 AM · #11
Ha, I thought this was a score thread at first.
05/29/2013 05:25:28 AM · #12
in art, controversy = success. so there's that. :)
05/29/2013 04:36:27 AM · #13
Revolting in every way possible is my opinion.
05/29/2013 03:47:20 AM · #14
yes. and I know a grown up who does a such a wonderful cry-face I think she even fools herself.

but when is saying "tasteless" witch hunting?
05/29/2013 03:39:42 AM · #15
Thank you, Beetle. I have also considered this aspect of the story, which is why I'm not as passionately against them as some commenters. I would judge most of them to be about 2 years old, which is when all sorts of waterworks and tantrums happen, to the extreme.

Also, I don't know the exact story, and was paraphrasing a comment I read somewhere about the sessions, so I may have misrepresented what actually occurred! Regardless, I posted the images because I also felt they were something provocative and controversial, yet not without artistic merit. Granted, it is not always easy (or possible) to separate the two.
05/29/2013 03:22:07 AM · #16
Ok, I am not saying I agree with this (even though none of us really know the whole story), but this reeks of witch hunt to me and I think somebody needs to at least play devil's advocate for a bit, so here I go.

Some kids are drama queens. They can turn on tears and tantrums faster than YOU can take a breath. I've had one of those kids myself, and saw several during my years as pre-school teacher.

They are NOT distraught - they just know how to tug at your heart strings hard enough to feel lousy and turn around and shower them with gifts (of whatever sort applies here).

Some kids you barely even have to look at sideways and they'll carry on like you practically killed them. Give them what they want, and it is like a light switch....... there WAS no distress, only carefully orchestrated manipulation.

So there - another angle to consider.
05/29/2013 01:11:19 AM · #17
I'm a little ambivalent on the issue. I think forcing kids to smile is just as bad. Actually, that would be my technique - I'd dress up like a clown and try to force them to smile, then get all the screaming, crying pics I want with no guilt. :P
05/28/2013 11:50:26 PM · #18
I personally think they're horrible in every way. Gimmicks sell.
05/28/2013 11:40:08 PM · #19
I think that any artistic merit that these photos might appear to have is totally obliterated by the method employed. That is absolutely child exploitation, and quite heartless imo.

And the exploitation is on more than one level - As Jill once said, "I also thought they made a kind of political statement about the current state of anxiety a lot of people are in about the future of the country. Sometimes I just feel like crying about the way things are going."
Well, stirring up anxiety and disappointment in children, to the point of tears, is not the way for an adult to deal with that.
05/28/2013 10:35:16 PM · #20
I think the whole thing is tasteless, morally and artistically, if there is a difference. From my own experience as a child who was not very nice on occasion I am very aware of the sad effect on other children of teasing and meanness; I must also say that my own infliction of pain was accompanied by a not very nice feeling as well.

Do you really like the photos that much? Do you like them as much as a genuine candid of a child?

Would a lawsuit change your mind?
05/28/2013 10:12:54 PM · #21
I really love the images but totally agree with the feelings about how she arrived at them. I think these are a perfect example about the fine ethical line we might walk when wanting to get a great image.
05/28/2013 10:08:09 PM · #22
Making children cry, so that you can sell a photo and turn a buck? Smells of child exploitation to me.
05/28/2013 10:02:42 PM · #23
As father of two special needs children, I have gained a bit different perspective on children than I was raised with. I have no trouble taking pictures of a child crying, but to make a child cry so I can get a picture? FWIW - IMO we do not know enough of a child's reality to know what their perception of the situation is, and thus no basis on which to assess damage or lack thereof. From my point of view, if you are going to make a child cry, it had better be for a really good reason (safety, health, etc.) and not something so trivial as getting a picture. Children are very much people, and while most don't remember much prior to age 10 or so, I have many memories that go back much further. For me, everything was much more real as a young child. People - of all ages - should be treated with dignity and respect. Not as props to be manipulated.
05/28/2013 10:01:04 PM · #24
Originally posted by Hipychik:

I like them. Like the tears and the editing!!! :)


Oh... I totally love the images. I just don't like how she got them.

I loved seeing her work for a long time... until I heard her method.

One of my favorite images of our third child is of him in desperate tears.

BUT... I didn't cause them into being so I could photograph them.
05/28/2013 09:47:35 PM · #25
I like them. Like the tears and the editing!!! :)
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