Deus Ex Machina

The Latin phrase "deus ex machina" comes to English from Horace's Ars Poetica, where he instructs poets that they must never resort to a god to solve their plots. He is referring to the conventions of Greek tragedy, where a mechane (crane) was used to lower actors playing a god or gods onto the stage. A "deus ex machina" is an unexpected, artificial, or improbable character, device, or event introduced suddenly in a work of fiction or drama to resolve a situation or untangle a plot.

Ex Machina

Despite Horace's warning, we must learn to appreciate what can and does come of the machine - ex machina - the camera. Photography, as any art, is defined by its materials and process: the lens, the shutter, the film and the chemistry. The photographer has limited control over chemical and physical parameters that are defined by science and dictated by manufacturers of photographic materials.

In this Creative Eye Workshop you will learn to appreciate the unique qualities of a photograph which are the result of interplay between physical reality, the photographer and the camera. No matter how precisely one works, one can never be very certain what an exposed image will look like once processed. In fact, the unique and unpredictable results of photography provide the magic that enchants the photographer as well as viewers of photographic images.

Requirements

You are expected to have mastered the basic craft of photography, have a working knowledge and experience with computers and Photoshop or other image editing software. You must have at your disposition suitable photographic equipment and a computer with image editing software in order to prepare your images for presentation in class. Demo image editing software will be provided where required. If you wish to use conventional photographs, they must be scanned into a digital format.

Workshop Outline

	Photography Workshop Activities
Session 1	The distinctive look of a photograph: The Medium The Lens The Shutter
Session 2	Photo Exercise - The Lens    Special character of lenses    Making space move    Animating empty spaces
Session 3	Photo Exercise - The Medium    Tonal Quality    Colour Quality    Detail    Subjective Rendering Photo Exercise - The Shutter    Moment in history    The Critical Moment    Movement    Jest and memory    Sequences    Temporal proximity
Session 4	Discussion and appreciation of photographic work