Jitka Brynjolffssen ran Friday’s session on still life, which she defined as: ‘A genre of photography used for the depiction of inanimate subject matter, typically a small group of objects. It is the application of photography to the still life artistic style.’ A brief history of still life in painting embraced ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome, the Renaissance and the Impressionists and beyond. She explored still life photography through the work of Henry Fox Talbot, André Kertész, Josef Sudek, Irving Penn, Sharon Core, Veniamin Skorodumov and others.
Jitka organised a catholic range of still life submissions by the group under 10 headings: Black and White; After the Old Masters; Fleeting Beauty – Decay; Food and Drink; Outdoor Opportunities; Art Objects; Flower; Others; Just for Fun; and Dark Field. She argued and showed that lighting and framing are important aspects of still life photography composition – and suggested it is also good if the image presents a story.
Photos: 1. Magpie, Cambridge, 2011; 2. Toad, Orford, 2010