ABOUT STEVE
Steve Bennett is a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based fine art photographer. His love affair with photography dates back to his adolescence, when his father, a radiologist and avid amateur photographer, taught him how to process film and create prints. The magical experience of seeing an image materialize in a tray of developer made a lasting impression on him.
During college and graduate school, and the subsequent years of making a living as an author, freelance technology spokesperson, and communications consultant, photography moved to a back burner. In the nineties, an opportunity to help promote Hewlett-Packard’s then-new digital camera rekindled Steve’s love for photography. After that, his affinity for the art turned into a passion.
Currently, Steve’s photographic work falls into two categories: literal images of world as is and images that have been digitally transformed into flights of the imagination.
The former includes traditional candid street shots, “unintentional” still-life compositions, detailed close up/macro images of natural and human-made subjects, and expansive landscapes. On the street, he looks for poignant moments within the ordinary as people go about their day. Steve also seeks opportunities to frame commonplace objects in novel ways, whether it’s by placing the camera on the ground and shooting from an “ant’s eye” perspective, by highlighting juxtapositions and colliding geometrical forms, or by revealing hidden order within seeming chaos.
When viewing the world through a macro lens, Steve’s goal is to draw viewers into realms of rich patterns and forms that are invisible or not readily discernable to the human eye. And when capturing majestic landscape scenes, he reaches for a sense of splendor, the sheer awe and humility evoked from experiencing nature on its grandest scale.
Steve’s explorations into worlds that can only be imagined are typically based on composites of photographs of natural and human-made elements. He might combine a series of macro images from different sections of a spider’s web to create a new world, a mix of the actual and the possible. Or, he might overlay photographs of pedestrians at rush hour to capture the frenetic energy of urban living. When printed on canvas, metallic paper, or directly onto metal surfaces, Steve’s surreal images project a dreamlike look and feel.
While Steve spends his formal work time as the creative director of AuthorBytes, which provides web and online services to authors and publishers, photography brings everything into focus for him.
EYE SPY
I typically take three types of photos: candid street shots, “unintentional” still-life compositions, and landscapes.
People
People
My subjects are often people in transit, people at work, or people stopping to ponder for a moment as they wait for a bus or for the crosswalk light to change. I find the greatest challenge is to be on the lookout for the ordinary and mundane.
My code for doing street photography is simple: be unobtrusive, don’t make anyone feel uncomfortable, be polite, and above all, never portray people in a way that compromises their dignity—basic Golden Rule stuff.
Still Life
Still Life
As I’m out and about (I walk a lot), I’m always on the lookout for seemingly disconnected elements that come together as a pleasing whole through my point of view, framing, and camera settings.
Even on the same paths I take day every day, year after year, there are always new compositions awaiting discovery. The photographic opportunities abound—if I’m actively observing, rather than simply hurrying (or worse, iWalking) from A to B while thinking about C and D.
I tend to raise the viewfinder to my eye or plant my tripod's legs on the ground when I encounter the following:juxtapositions, like matter in the wrong place (e.g., a fish lying in a crosswalk) … opportunities for “creative deconstruction,” zeroing in on parts of machines and other objects through creative framing and/or close up techniques … instances of order within disorder that create dynamic visual tensions, such as a wheel with symmetrical spokes lying atop a field of chaotic hay … colliding geometrical shapes or disruptions within patterns that tantalize the eye … symbolic and interpretive objects, such as ”zoomorphs” (inanimate objects that resemble animals and fanciful beasts) and "anthropomorphs": (objects that have human qualities) … and opportunities for presenting an “ants’ eye” view, often useful for presenting things that people have lost or tossed on the ground, and highlighting the hefty footprint that humans leave wherever they go.
Here’s my philosophy when I discover elements of interest to me: never touch, move, or otherwise alter anything in the scene. This is my version of the "Prime Directive," a foundational rule upheld by Star Trek’s United Federation of Planets ("never interfere with the internal development of an alien civilization"). For me, photography is, in part, about revealing hidden compositions that delight the eye, and in part, documenting a moment on the planet.
Landscapes
Landscapes
For me, the epitomy of raw beauty is one word: Iceland. It has everything from pastoral and postcard-perfect scenes to desolate expanses that whisk you back in geological time. Photography has boosted my wanderlust, and I’m looking forward to continually finding new favorites places to point my lens.
Photography. It brings everything into focus for me.
All text and photos © 2019 Steve Bennett. All Rights Reserved.