10 8 June 2019I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.ukI subscribe 0330 333 1113Also out nowThelatestandbestbooksandexhibitionsfrom the worldofphotographySonyWorldPhotography
Awards 2019
£34.99, 216 pages,hardcover,
ISBN 978-09572010-8-8.worldphoto.org
Ifthere’sonethingI admireabout
theSonyWorldPhotography
Awards,it’sthediversityof images.
Noteverybody– myselfincluded- willlikeeveryimagein thisbook,
butthat’snotnecessarilya badthing.If youdidn’tget
to visittheexhibitionat SomersetHouseduringits
shortrunin Londonearlierthisyear,pickingupthe
bookis a greatwayto familiariseyourselfwiththework.
Highlightsincludetheoverallwinner,Federico
Borella,forhismovingproject,‘FiveDegrees’;Brent
Stirton’s‘Akashinga’series;anda selectionof work
fromNadavKander,recipientof thisyear’sOutstanding
Contributionto PhotographyAward(seeourfeaturein
nextweek’sissue).If you’renotsurewheretostart
withcontemporaryphotography,thisbookis a great
entryintoit – it’llcertainlyget your brain working.
★★★★★Amy Davies
© FREDERICO BORELLA©
MANDY
BARKER
AlteredOceanByMandyBarker,Overlapse,£30, 144 pages,hardback,ISBN978-MandyBarker’simagesare
beautiful– artfully
arrangedsplashesof
colourona richblack
background,fullof movementanddepth.
Thesepicturessuckyouin,urgeyouto
lookcloser,butonceyoudotheydelivera
slapin theface.Whatappearedto be
pleasingshapesandcoloursturnoutto be
piecesof marinedebris:bags,footballs,
balloons,knotsof fishingrope,bottles,
straws,throwawayitemsthatforone
reasonoranotherhaveendedupin
theocean.
Mandywasraisedontheeastcoastof
Englandin Hull,andasa childspentmuch
of hertimecollectingbitsof shells,natural
objectsfromtheshorelineanddriftwood.
Yearslater,duringreturntripstothecity
toseeherparents,shewasshockedby
theamountof discardedmanmade
objectssheencounteredonthebeach.To
raiseawarenessof thescaleof theplastic
pollution,shebegandocumentingand
photographingwhatshefound.
Overthepast 10 years,Mandyhas
producedsixmajorbodiesof work
focusingonplasticpollution,thewayit
travels,andtheimpactit hasonmarine
life. Working alongside scientists, she hasseenfirst-handthedevastatingeffects
ourthrowawayculturecanhave,anduses
a mixtureof artandsciencetodrive
homehermessage.Thebeautyof the
imagesattractsourattention,whilethe
factspresentedalongsidethemserveto
shockusintoaction.
Thefirstof Mandy’sprojects,‘Indefinite’
exploresestimatesof howlongit takes
plasticobjectstodegradein seawater.The
second,‘Soup’,focusesontheinfamous
‘GarbagePatch’in theNorthPacific, while
thethird,‘Shoal’,seesinanimateobjects
transformedintoschoolsof fish.Her
fourthproject,‘Penalty’,wasmadeduring
thebuild-uptotheFIFAWorldCupin
2014 andfeaturesfootballsfoundin the
seaorontheshorebymembersof the
public.Thefifthseries,‘HongKong
Soup:1826’,includesplasticcollected
frommorethan 30 differentbeachesin
HongKong.Finally,‘BeyondDrifting’
looksat marineplasticdebrispresented
asmicroscopicsamples.
AlteredOceanis a powerfulandtimely
catalogueof Mandy’sphotographicworks
thatshowshowphotographycanbeused
toeducate,inform,increaseawareness,
andencouragepositivechange.
★★★★★Tracy CalderBOOKBOOKBOOKExperimentalPhotography
(52Assignments)
ByChrisGatcum,AmmonitePress,£12.99,
128 pages,hardback,ISBN978-
Ifyou’veeverwatcheda childtakinga
photo,you’llhavenoticedhowwilling
theyaretoexperiment.Withoutany
knowledgeof theruleof thirds,lead-in
lines,goldenhours,etc.,theyarefreeto
expresstheirvisionof theworldwithout
fearof judgementor,in fact,anynotionof whatmakes
a ‘good’or‘bad’picture.Asweageandbecomemore
experienced,weoftenlosethischildlikecuriosity,
whichcanleadtodull,formulaicpictures.Thishandy
hardbackoffers 52 weeklyassignmentstostopthe
‘creativerot’.Projectsrangefromcreatingbokehfilters
tofreelensing,cameratossing,andchannellingyour
innerJacksonPollockbysplatteringprintswithpaint.
Theprojectsaredesignedtobefunandcover
everythingfromcomposingpicturestoprocessingand
printingyourwork.If you’rein a photographicrut,this
could well lift you out ofit.★★★★★Tracy CalderBy Mandy BarkerPre-productionplasticpellets
(nurdles)spiltfroma cargo
containerduring2012’sTyphoon
Vincente in Hong Kong