The art of the understated still life photograph
Still life photography is a beautiful art form, and Instagram has been the perfect platform for artists to showcase their work.
One photographer in particular who stands out on the platform is Tiff Seidel. I discovered her work after browsing through several accounts focused on still life photography, and she differentiates herself by making minimalistic photographs with a splash of color.
I find her work so beautiful because she focuses on taking photos of bright, pigmented flowers with a subtle, subdued background. I appreciate her photo feed for its dedication to the “so what” of her brand. Seidel hones in on the most important part of the photo: the flower. She doesn’t allow for other distractions in the frame, which enhances the beauty of the main subject of the photo.
I really want to emulate this style of photography in my own work. While my mobile journalism class has taught me several methods of making photos, such as adding layering and using leading lines, I have an affinity for the visually entrancing but understated photos that Seidel shoots. While I personally don’t have flowers to shoot, I could really mimic her style by focusing on the object and using light to brighten the colors of the focal point of the picture. I have learned that lighting can do so much for a photo, and it’s very simple to create your own lighting studio on the go.
By simply wrapping aluminum foil around pieces of cardboard, you can hold them up to each side of the camera to fix any shadows that may appear in the photo. I want to use the sun as my key light, as natural lighting is necessary in these types of shots. The makeshift reflector will act as secondary lights, emphasizing the focal point of the photo.
I also have learned so many unknown iPhone camera hacks that have been absent from my editing style for my entire nine-year experience with Instagram. You can easily retouch photos in the iPhone camera roll, by fixing the brightness and brilliance. I will certainly be using these hacks in my future work to naturally brighten and enhance my photos without any filter. It’s such a simple, but effective step to take when editing photos.
Looking at still life photographers work on Instagram has been a very useful way for me to pick up on good photographic technique. The best way to learn about how to do anything in life is to research the topic and study how successful people have built their audience. This is the same concept for photography. I truly think my photos will become better over time as I continue to study amazing artists on Instagram like Tiff Seidel.
