Ian Bramham's Photoblog
Hommage to Bill Brandt
Posted by Ian Bramham (Manchester, United Kingdom) on 1 April 2009 in Cityscape & Urban and Portfolio.
I was in Halifax recently and went to see the snicket where Bill Brandt took his famous photo in 1937: Bill Brandt's Snicket
It was an amazing experience to be able to stand in the same spot on the same slippery wet cobblestones and look through a camera viewfinder at essentially the same scene that Brandt photographed so eloquently all those years ago.
There are times in life where you can feel vividly and directly connected to the past and this was one of them for me. It felt like a real privilege and honour to be there.
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For purchasing high quality archival prints of any of these photos you can send me an email by clicking here or by going to MY NEW WEBSITE where prices are listed in the gallery sections under each individual photo.
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Links to the websites of other photographers whose work I love and who have all helped me enormously over a long period of time. I find the work of all 3 to be inspirational.
Jean-François from Les Issambres, France
EXTRAORDINAIRE ! J'AIME !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
1 Apr 2009 5:28am
John Leech from Grange-over-Sands, United Kingdom
...so did you take a reference print, its certainly incredibly faithful to his original. It is interesting to compare the grime factor - it was obviously grimmer up north in Brandt's day than it is today with the working warehouse now having an executive apartment appearance. Its always a joy to see this view. Good one Ian, I know I'll aim for the same when I get chance!
1 Apr 2009 6:52am
@John Leech: Hi John, no I didn't take a reference print of Brandt's photograph with me but when you get there and see the place in real life you realise that there's only two ways of photographing it - either looking up from the bottom or downward from the top. Of the two. only the way that Brandt did it makes any compositional sense. I was more interested in seeing this place because of Brandt and the connection you feel to the past when you are stood in aplace with so much history.
MadScientist from Düsseldorf, Germany
I've written often here that I find your works extraordinary, but this beats everything.
1 Apr 2009 9:01am
Viewfinder from Bradenton, FL, United States
Wow, you and Bill B. Amazing photograph. Great work!
1 Apr 2009 1:34pm
Bookfool from Mississippi, United States
What an awesome comparison. The only difference seems to be the fact that yours is sharper. Was it more polluted, back in 1937 or just a foggier day? I wonder.
1 Apr 2009 1:38pm
@Bookfool: Thanks! It would have been a lot smokier in Brandt's day with far more pollution. In Brandt's day there was a working railway line (steam trains) on the other side of the snicket which leads to a bridge over it.
Laurie from New Jersey, United States
This is a wonderful composition. Excellent shot.
1 Apr 2009 1:55pm
IanSmith from London, United Kingdom
Wow, this is a find and a half!! What an amazing experience it must have been to see how little things have changed. Congrats.
1 Apr 2009 2:01pm
Pavan Kaul from Mumbai, India
Superbly framed and processed, Ian! I love the dynamic composition and the wonderful texture and detail in the path and the wall!
1 Apr 2009 2:09pm
Krims@nline.be from Wemmel, Belgium
Stunning perspective enhanced in drama by the black & white. Well done!
1 Apr 2009 5:16pm
Ilan from Israel
Great scenery!
Very well done. I love the black and white conversion here, great composition.
Splendid work!
1 Apr 2009 7:07pm
Mike from Lichfield, United Kingdom
Its great that you've managed to capture this shot with almost the same weather conditions as Bill's. I haven't as yes studied any of his work but I can say I prefer your photo as it has a lot more detail in the wall. I also think your crop is better. Surely the lack of detail in the wall on the original was processed deliberately that way? I'm computerless for a couple of days so I'm having to use my phone to get on the web. I'll take a closer look at your photo when I'm back online. Cheers for your viewpoint and advice on my photo, it's very much appreciated.
1 Apr 2009 8:04pm
Polydactyle from Montreal, Canada
Very nice lines again! The b/w conversion and the light are fantastic.
1 Apr 2009 11:09pm
hugo poon from hong kong, Hong Kong
Wow, Ian, absolutely amazing!!! I could feel the excitement.:-) Very strong image and beautiful words!
2 Apr 2009 12:08am
ordinaryimages from Kentucky Bluegrass, United States
Perhaps chance provided the composition, but you handled it well. best...jerry
2 Apr 2009 2:43am
Nicole from Komono, Japan
Wow, what an amazing opportunity to stand in the shoes of a great like Bill Brant! He's one of my favorites, did more than one report on him. I love what you have done with the photo btw, dare I say improved on the original?
2 Apr 2009 3:03am
Michael Rawluk from Williams Lake, BC, Canada
Super shot. I am sure Brandt would love it. It is evocotive of his work.
2 Apr 2009 6:44pm
Danny from Hong Kong
Hi Ian,
This is a very beautiful picture with great composition.
5 Apr 2009 3:00pm
@Danny: Thanks very much Danny....how have you been keeping!?
Robin from Sweden
A couple of years ago, I read about people trying to recreate Ansel Adams' famous moon shot. Someone had calculated the exact time and place where the conditions would be exactly as when Adams took the picture back in the 1930's or 40's. Seems you've done something up the same alley.
5 Apr 2009 6:22pm
@Robin: Thanks but I wasn't really interested in recreating Brandt's photo but more interested in just seeing this spot and standing in his footsteps.....a kind of pilgrimage if you like. The vivid feeling I got of connection to the past was very strong.
613photo from United States
This is so cool. It looked kind of familiar when I first saw it a few days ago, but I was in a hurry and didn't even see your link...much less click on it. Pretty amazing to me that a place would look the same after all those years.
8 Apr 2009 12:52am
Nikon D40
1/200 second
F/8.0
ISO 200
24 mm (35mm equiv.)