{"id":98057,"date":"2018-06-23T00:20:56","date_gmt":"2018-06-23T07:20:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=98057"},"modified":"2018-06-23T22:35:48","modified_gmt":"2018-06-24T05:35:48","slug":"why-photographers-should-study-cinema","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2018\/06\/23\/why-photographers-should-study-cinema\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Photographers Should Study Cinema"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dear friend,<\/p>\n

Practical suggestion: If you want to find inspiration, motivation, or interesting new compositions to apply to your photography, study cinema<\/a>!<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Why study cinema?<\/h2>\n

Well first of all, there are several reasons why<\/em> to study cinema:<\/p>\n

First of all, there are so many great and epic compositions you can learn from cinema and film. To be honest, 99.9% of contemporary photographers have boring compositions. Great cinematographers from the past (Alfred Hitchcock, Akira Kurosawa, Stanley Kubrick, Ridley Scott) have turned their film-making into moving art and painting. I got so much inspiration first from the guy behind ‘Every Still a Painting’ (YouTube Channel) where I realized:<\/p>\n

\n Cinema is just moving painting\/art.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I realized this most vividly when I watched ‘7 Samurai’ by Akira Kurosawa for the first time. There were scenes and stills that literally looked like (slightly moving) paintings.<\/p>\n

\n

Analysis of 7 Samurai<\/h2>\n

For example, here are some scenes which have burned themselves into my memory:<\/p>\n

1. Epic death<\/h3>\n

\"51976BED-A4CE-4A92-95A9-05A26102DCC2\"<\/p>\n

Thanks to Sylvius<\/a> for the correction:<\/p>\n

\n Kyuzo, the stoic samurai sitting among flowers is not a death scene. He was calmly waiting in the shade to ambush a couple of bandits. Kyuzo died on during the last battle scene.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I mis remembered this scene, but it still inspired me!<\/p>\n

The first scene that has burned itself into my memory is this epic scene– of one of the stoic, badass samurais who goes to a beautiful shaded area with flowers, and dies. Still thinking of the scene; it puts chills through my spine.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"51976BED-A4CE-4A92-95A9-05A26102DCC2\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
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\"784FD757-E7AE-4324-95AB-B0366CBDE7EA\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

And it has also taught me a moral lesson (more important), which is:<\/p>\n

\n Devote your life (and possibly even die for) something greater than yourself.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\n

Because for me ultimately, art is philosophy. Cinema is the director sharing his\/her philosophy with the audience, doing it with moving images.<\/p>\n

\n

2. Boy lying in flowers<\/h3>\n

\"C4AA28E0-5B1F-4AD9-9A54-A722AFA852A7\"<\/p>\n

The reverie, and day-dream of the boy lying in the field of flowers– with the light glowing. Truly shows the beauty of black and white film, lighting.<\/p>\n

And the composition: The golden angle<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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\n

3. Spacing, depth, and layers of the subjects<\/h3>\n

Here, note this scene where all the samurai are in a room, deliberating. Note the spacing of their heads, and the different directions they’re looking:<\/p>\n

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\"906BFAC4-AC85-48CE-A642-8B44E95E174D\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n
\n

Don’t just watch films: study, dissect, and analyze them!<\/h2>\n
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Back to the essay at hand:<\/p>\n

Lesson:<\/p>\n

\n Don’t just watch movies; study, analyze, and dissect them!\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And also, remember– you are what you eat. My suggestion of my personal favorite films:<\/p>\n

\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

a. Stanley Kubrick Films:<\/h3>\n
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