What to buy in December 2008

I thought for the month of December there should be something special. Well here it is:

AUGUST SANDER
“PEOPLE OF THE 20TH CENTURY”

This is a seven volume edition showing a large number of people portraits of one of the greatest photographers of the last century.
August Sander grew up in Cologne/Germany and made himself a name by portraying people from all social backgrounds in early 20th century Germany. The result is on of the most stunning overviews of a whole generation, ranging from woman to men, from farmer to factory worker, from scholar to politician. August Sander was revolutionary for the time in his attempt to create something that would go beyond the simple portrait work he did in his job. The way he portrayed people in their social and professional environment, the natural compositions and the attempt to show the soul of the people set a whole new style of photography and was ground braking for the development of modern photography.

“Revered as a father of modern photography, August Sander (1876– 1964) so refined the art of portraiture that his moving images of his fellow countrymen have been heralded both as an important sociological document and a photographic masterpiece. But those images make up only a portion of this deluxe seven-volume set, which will stand as the definitive collection of Sander’s considerable achievement.”

The price of this massive volume has come down so much that it really is the bargain of the year. Don’t waste any time, just get it! For example at amazon.com.

Ming

This is my beautiful wife Ming, December 2007 in Mallorca.

Photographers: Michael Doerr

Michael Doerr is a photographer from the Southwest of Germany. He focuses on Portrait and Nudes, creating beautiful and very personal images of great strength. Most of his images are in black and white, using natural and very intense light situations to emphasize the atmosphere of the moment. What always fascinates me about his photography is that you find yourself almost like being in a dreamlike situation when looking at the images. The approach toward the model is very personal and you can feel that photographer and model are relating to each other. Check it out, it’s worth it!

You can find examples of Michael’s photography here. or you check out his website.

Singapore Beach

Sometimes the beach life in Singapore seems so slow, the atmosphere reminds me of the life in Europe the French photographers in the 1930s captured so well…

legs

I like the nice bend of these legs and the colors which fit into the tropical environment that we have here in Singapore.

39

It’s my birthday today. One more year before I officially enter the “middle aged” category…

My daughter Maya (four years old) is very excited about Baba having a birthday too. So we’re having cake and candles tonight I’m sure it’s going to be a lot of fun!

Chinatown

This was taken in Singapore’s Chinatown. The foam pads inside the HOLGA that are supposed to cushion the film rolls came off and ended up inside the roll film. That’s why the exposure looks so weird. I like it, it looks cool!

Tibet

In Summer 2006 I went to a place called Xiahe. This is a small town in the southern part of China’s Gansu province, on the way from Lanzhou to Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province. It’s a high altitude place at about 3000m (10,000 feet) above sea level, sitting in a valley between the mountains and the Tibetan grasslands.

Xiahe is not part of Tibet Autonomous Region but very Tibetan already. It belonged to Tibet before the provincial borders were changed in the early 1950s. However, it hosts one of the biggest and most important Tibetan monasteries and attracts a lot of pilgrims from the Tibetan grasslands.
The place is very impressive: The landscape, the architecture, the dirt (!), and above all the people. I found it amazing how determined and passionate these people are when it comes to their religious believe. There are (very) old folks who spend days walking around the whole monastery compound again and again, throwing themselves on the ground every hundred meters to pray and to worship.

Doing my photography was more than rewarding. People were friendly (despite some very fierce looking knives being worn) and open and I had an awesome time with old pilgrims, football playing young monks, noodle shop owners etc etc etc.
I am glad I did the trip in 2006 when the whole atmosphere was very relaxed an open. I am not even sure if authorities would let me in right now. Xiahe was facing some serious protests earlier this year when Tibetan monks demonstrated against the 2008 Olympic Games.

This image was taken with a Hasselblad 500CM + 80mm, no crop.

My November Strip

Somehow the images on my blog don’t get enough comments…

Rome

Another image from my “Roman Holiday”. This was taken at the Forum Romanum.
I love the perspectives and the colors…