colossus, originally uploaded by TommyOshima.
David Bram suggested I look up Tommy Oshima’s Flickr photostream, and I’m really glad that he did. There’s a lot of excellent work there, including some superb Holga images. After reading Mr. Oshima’s profile, it’s clear that he is extremely thoughtful about what he’s shooting, which is probably why it’s all so impressive.
I particularly like “Colossus” because of the moody atmosphere. Shooting in Black and White is a commitment to abstracting your photograph of the world, and this is furthered by using a Holga which adds the black vignetting and other optical distortions especially evident around the edges. The graininess is also especially effective in communicating the mood of this image. Shooting with a fast film was probably required for the stormy conditions, but it’s also a great aesthetic addition to the image, enhancing the mood rather than interfering with it.
See the entire, vast, photostream here.