Thoughts & musings

Cincinnati, Ohio based artist specializing in minimalistic artistic photography. Focusing on capturing the magnificent and mysterious wonder of the world!

What you may ask is "minimalistic photography"? Quite simply what you see in my photography, actually exists in the real world as I discovered it. No additions, subtractions, merging or digital items added to the photo at all. Also, nothing is staged, everything is captured in the moment the photo was taken.

What makes my photos "artistic"? My eye and sense of how I see the world as well as framing and shooting the subject with a creative lens. I also choose to enhance my photos (cropping, brightness, shadow, color, contrast, clarity, etc) with a careful touch just to bring out the subjects best presentation that matches how I want to display the art. And to create the final artistic piece, I custom design the presentation to bring forth my particular aesthetic and and vision.

The world is a truly wonderful place and I hope you enjoy the journey I take you on!

Fine Art Photographer

benjamin kutay

09|Thoughts: Sizing Photos for the Space

In previous articles I have discussed the topic of sizing photos properly for print resolution and quality. But there is another aspect to sizing photos and the final fine art presentation and that is choosing the right size for the space in which the art is being displayed.

When one thinks about a space in which we as humans live in, one must consider all of the elements in the space and how they relate to each other. One relation would be materials, another may be colors or textures but a very important dimension is spatial relationship. When determining what size the final art should be, it is important to consider two big items: typical human proportions (the viewers) and how the art spatially relates to the objects it is near and/or the wall it is on.

Let' start with human proportions:

-assume the average human is 5'6"

-place the art 60" to 65" from the floor (in an open space)

-place the art 6" to 12" above an object in a sitting space (tabletop, chair rail, couch back, etc)

-the art or art grouping should be centered (H & W) but can also be set at the upper third (rule of thirds grid)

Placement considerations:

-art above sofas/big furniture should be ~2/3 to ~3/4 of length

-art above fireplaces should be in between the mantel and the fireplace opening or the same width as the opening

-in general, art should not take up more than 4/7th (0.57) of the visible display space

-note: most matting/framing will add 3"to6" to the art size

When to Group:

-when the art does not meet the above requirements to fill the space

-smaller than 17": groupings (i.e. 3 or more) is recommended

-18" to 24" in size: pairing is recommended

-25" to 40": single display is ok based on the display area

-greater than 41": best for 1/2 or entire wall art (make sure to measure the wall width)

-Note: for groupings, it is recommended to leave 3"to6" between the art

-groupings should be in odd increments to create a natural center

Portraits:

-portraits are typically meant to be viewed as a distance of 8'to10'

-the minimum face height in the portrait should be 4"to6"

Keep in mind all of the above recommendations and good luck on your next project!

Here are some references for further reading:

https://www.wayfair.com/ideas-and-advice/wall-art-size-guide-S8009.html
https://www.thenest.com/content/wall-art
https://thehappyhousewife.com/home-management/appropriate-picture-size-for-walls/
http://www.marshallphotography.net/wall-portrait-sizing-info
https://homeguides.sfgate.com/proper-size-painting-wall-53365.html

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08|Musings: The Artists' Dilemma

Earlier this year I identified a promising opportunity to display my work in a non-gallery setting. A local styling salon looked promising to hang 6 to 7 large pieces of photographic art of mine and I was very excited at finding the situation. I started to really work the idea, measuring the space, planning the format and hanging techniques, and identifying a collection of photos that looked interesting to me and would be acceptable to my client.

Now part of the deal would be that I would have to pay for all of the printing and associated costs of producing the final art. In return I would have at least 6 months guarantee on the display space and they would offer to market and sell my works for zero commission. A very intriguing opportunity indeed! I of course got extremely passionate about the potential and leaned forward with gusto. I was able to come up with a themed set of 6 photos and settled on a large print format of 55" x 37", a large presence for a big space. Also to prepared, I would need to special order hanging mounts that would be used to hang the photos on the walls. Not thinking of any negative consequences, I eagerly leaned in and ordered them to the tune of ~$200to300.

Alas, I was a bit too overconfident. As I made preparations to finalize the digital print files, I could feel something did not feel right with the owner. I talked to her honestly and it seems she was having some severe reservations on what impact the art might have on her place of business. Unfortunately it no longer was a good fit to proceed with the opportunity and I decided to not continue to pursue. A valuable lesson learned indeed. Be confident and optimistic in all opportunities but be careful to overreach. If you overreach too much, the support may vanish and you will be left to crash. Luckily I had not proceeded to print my photos as they would have ran into the $1000 range but still the $300 still stung quite a bit.

So here is our dilemma as artists: "Be careful about pursuing your ideas and dreams too fast and hard, give enough space to catch yourself if things change not if your favor. But stay gracious in any outcome that comes."

07|Thoughts: Follow up -Sizing Photos for Viewing Quality

If you remember from a previous post I recently started a new project to take part of a seascape shot and crop into a final art piece. Now this lended itself to a few critical questions that I had to address: How should I crop the image? How big should I print at? Is the final resolution appropriate for an art photo? To tackle this I had to teach myself a few concepts along the way to be successful.

So as a followup I am excited to report that the print turned out to be perfect!!!

Here is a quick recap of the topic:

What resolution is the final photo at?: DPI or PPI (dots per inch or pixels per inch) can be an elusive concept but it doesn't have to be so confusing. Quite simply it is the number of pixels divided by the size in inches. I would calculate per side (length and width) separately but you can also add both pixels dimensions together and divide by the sum of the inches of both sides; either works. In my photos' case, my long side was 6071px over 42" or 144PPI vs. my short side of 1734px over 12" which also was 144PPI. Consistent but a little under the lower recommended value of 180PPI. Now is this a problem?

It depends...PPI is a reflection of quality but also of viewing distance so think of it as quality of viewing area. (a formula referenced is: minimum PPI = 3438/viewing distance). It is critical to have a higher PPI when the viewer is very close to the photo but can drop without a noticeable loss in viewing quality for very large photos/distances. So for my photo it is calculated at 144PPI for a target viewing of ~2'to3' and I am happy to report it looks fantastic on the wall.

06|Musings: The Photographer's Duty

Recently I was on a trip overseas and had the fortune to be back in Belgium in a particularly good area for street art in which I had visited almost a year ago. On the previous visit I wandered across a beautiful painting of a slightly bemused young lady painted on a corrugated security door. It was tastefully done in vibrant bold colors that made for a very striking image. I captured it with my mobile phone for record and then afterwards vowed to return when I could to capture with a better camera. Fast forward to just a few weeks ago and I was back with my professional camera to document the image properly.

I was able to locate the neighborhood and the exact street but wandered around quite puzzled...where was the art?? As I backtracked for the third time, I stared at a brown, painted corrugated security door...Oh my goodness! The new proprietor had painted over the visage leaving no trace of what I had seen in the past. Quite frankly it was shocking to me and quite sad.

After I moved on, I walked the city enjoying the sights and trying to find any new, hidden art in the nooks and crannies of the streets. I did discover some new pieces and was happily elated with my finds. During this walk, a powerful thought struck me regarding what a photographers duty really is...we are historians of time. Our duty quite simply is to capture discrete moments of time, showcasing the beauty and majesty of the world in that moment to preserve and share. The disappearing street art was just a very visceral and concrete example of this, but really any image taken is capturing a discrete and unique moment in time that will never be replicated or seen again. We need to respectful of this heavy duty and make sure to preserve as many of these moments as we can!

05|Thoughts: Sizing Photos for Viewing Quality

I recently started a new project to take part of a seascape shot and crop into a final art piece. Now this lends itself to a few critical questions that I had to address: How should I crop the image? How big should I print at? Is the final resolution appropriate for an art photo? To tackle this I had to teach myself a few concepts along the way to be successful.

How to crop?: For me the first lens was to focus the shot to the subject(s) of most interest to create the final vision. I was able to use the maximum width of the original photo but ended up cropping out around 1/2 of the length. I ended up with a very long and thin landscape photo but one which I liked the style.

How big should I print at?: I did some quick math to figure out the aspect ratio - the width in pixels (long side) divided by the length in pixels (short side). For my cropped photo this ended up being 3.99 to 1 or 4to1. I then thought about how big/small I wanted the photo to be on either dimension and decided to reduce the ratio to 3.5to1 or when converting to inches, a 42" x 12" print. This felt right for the photo and also the space I wanted to display in.

It depends...PPI is a reflection of quality but also of viewing distance so think of it as quality of viewing area. (a formula referenced is: minimum PPI = 3438/viewing distance). It is critical to have a higher PPI when the viewer is very close to the photo but can drop without a noticeable loss in viewing quality for very large photos/distances. So for my photo I believe I will be ok (at 144PPI ~2to3' distance) but it will be a test when I hang on the wall! (I'll update when it comes in)

A very interesting topic indeed!! Here are some references for further reading:

http://www.rideau-info.com/photos/whatisdpi.html

http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/what-print-resolution-works-for-what-viewing-distance/

https://photo.stackexchange.com/questions/17835/how-to-calculate-viewing-distance-for-a-print-size

04|Musings: End of a Show

My first (and debut) art show came to a close and I am extremely proud of the reception to my fine art photography. I had the fortune to stop by the gallery a few times during the run to check on my photos and see what response I was getting to them. The consensus was that most people who saw them did not believe they were photos! Wow, that is very cool and so humbling. To be able to stretch people's perception of what a photo could look like and be presented is very high praise and I could not be happier to be in the place I am as a photographer and an artist.

One learning and a future goal of mine is to be displayed in a dedicated art gallery. My experience at Red Tree was exceptional and the owner and staff was truly wonderful to work with and display at. However, outside of the opening night I felt the clientele unfortunately we're not very receptive to experiencing the great art on the walls. I went in multiple times during the show's run and noticed almost everyone went in with a very closed purpose: to work, meet up with someone or do some activity. No one was wandering around looking at the art on display by the local artists and they were not being receptive or curious on what was being presented to them. I think to really capture the community, a dedicated gallery should provide the right exposure and mindset of visitors that I need to gain more insights into my work. So onward to the next show and to Red Tree...you'll always be my first and I'll be happy to come back next year!

03|Thoughts: Releasing the Art

I have been very pleased with my growth as a photography artist and thrilled especially with all the wonderful responses I have received to my fine art prints since their recent debut. I wanted to take time to capture what I have learned so far that seems to be triggering the most responses within myself and those that have viewed my art in person.

1) Allow the photo to be revealed. This may seem to be a strange statement but when I think of what has been most successful with my most powerful photos, is that I took a very beautiful image and just "polished" it to reveal it's best qualities. It is a very intuitive process for me but the edits must feel and come across as natural to you, the artist, and the viewer.

2) Make an artistic statement. One of the things I was most thrilled with, on my fine art prints, was that I was not afraid to be bold and to be different. I had thought carefully before creating them and had come upon a very clear vision of how I wanted the final art to look, feel and elicit responses. I kept this vision clearly in my head through the whole process of creating the final pieces and "wow!", they showed magnificently and I was proud that I was able to breathe that life into them.

3) Create an experience. Some of the most pleasing responses I have received on my fine art prints relate to the fact that a lot of people do not believe they are real photos. I have gotten response of "they are digitally created", "they are paintings" and "they are writings on a photo". I love that I have created and shared an experience that people find so surprising and stretches their perceptions of what exists in the world!

02|Musings: An Artists Debut

I have had such a wild rush of emotions as I got ready for my debut as a fine art photographer a few weeks ago. I was fortunate to have found the opportunity at Red Tree art gallery and the wherewith-all to push myself to overcome my fears and anxieties to put my art out there for the world to see and experience. Oh my, what a strange experience it was!! I had reached out to all of my various network of people in the city and it felt like I had made a call to have the "Avenger's" assemble! I was thrilled with the support and warm response I received and was grateful for those that were able to show their support the night of. The closest I can relate to the experience was on my wedding day long ago to my ex-wife. I also struggled with being the center of attention that day as well and this came very close to having that same level of strange, out of body experience and wish to crawl into a corner. It was a wonderful experience to have though and one that I will never forget. I would encourage anyone who is on the cusp of trying to make the leap as an artist to stretch themselves and don't give into the anxieties in your head. Listen to what the external world is telling you and don't be afraid to put yourself out there!

01|Thoughts: Protecting Digital ARt

I had an interesting conversation today with a colleague of mine in regards to digital photography. She was complimenting me on my new website and was stating how she was going to copy my photo of the Allium flower ("Beautiful Serendipity") to use as her screen saver. I mentioned in return that she should ask for my permission before hand and she was genuinely shocked at my response. I stated that a photographer or anyone else in the digital realm who creates, owns the creation and all of its uses. She was completely blown away by that revelation and I am sure she would not be alone in the world in that thinking. So on the topic of protecting digital art, takes steps to do so and know you have basic rights as the creator or the art. (see this wonderful article for a more detailed explanation: https://www.format.com/magazine/resources/photography/photography-copyright-law-guide)

And remember always be kind to the artist and respect their work! Ciao'