Was looking at the winners of the Lens Culture street photography competition recently. Some beautiful results (trying to stay positive), truth is I also kind of find them a bit... vacuous, at least the two major themes currently in vogue- major shade and reflections.
The first has been going on for a few years- the Alex Webb Effect, super saturated colors alongside deep shadows. They do, in fact, make for a dramatic combination, except like with any trend, they can get awfully repetitive and formulaic. Personally, I thought we had reached that point quite some years ago- guess we were just getting started.
That style can at least render some impressive results at times, the second I have less tolerance for- reflections, and while those too can render the occasional winner, for the most part, they never rise to the levels of surrealism they aspire to- and are more likely to come off as the slightly more imaginative cousin of a special effects filter... they’re pretty. Reality mirrored as pretty props set on decorative doilies for popular consumption. They always strike me as something to do when ya can’t come up with something more meaningful, something that reveals something revelatory of the human element in the urban environment, be it through humor, wit or emotion...
Just the ramblings of an old man...
