Photographer; Joel Robison

Joel Robison is a conceptual portrait photographer who currently lives in Cranbrook, British Columbia Canada. In his biography on his website he states he 'enjoys creating whimsical worlds where size, movement and function don't play by the rules that we know.' The project of Robisons I am intrigued in is called 'Joy Of Reading.' This collection of Photographs he has produced uses his usual techniques in all of his projects using Photoshop to create an almost surrealist effect, yet adding a certain theme (for this one it is reading) and experimenting with this theme.

Below are a chosen selection of Photographs from his collection 'Joy of Reading.'

Genres of books appear in Robisons work often, for example this photograph is about magic. The way he represents this within the photograph is effective. Within the composition, you can't see his face, only his feet and legs which appear to be standing of top of the books. The position his feet are placed as he stands on the book portrays a childlike feel, as if reading about magic gets him excited at the thought of real magic. This then shows the imagination you can get when reading certain books. The two elements beside the books of the cup and owl also enhance the childlikeness within the photograph as the owl, obviously fake, shows that Robison seems to be recreating a scene from one of the books or making up a scenario in his head, almost as if he is a child playing around. Because of this, it shows the message that books in many cases bring out the adventure and imagination in adults and that books can have a lasting positive effect of the brain. The photograph is shot in a home with natural lighting, showing the nature of reading and that most people generally read at home. Also this shows that most people probably let their imaginations run away with them when they are at home in secret, so they can then really get into the book. All the different elements in the photograph explain the common way to read. Having a cup of tea or coffee whilst reading and lastly having something comforting, like a toy or blanket, these elements then become subtle and homely creating the warm senses you would experience when reading.

 This Photograph out of his collection portrays a more surrealist feel. The composition has only 5 main elements within it. The sofa, cup, book, man and picture on the wall. All these components are of similar size which make the Photograph instantly surrealist. The cup and book sit alongside the man on the sofa on the same scale, if not bigger than the man. The painting on the wall behind the sofa fills in the blank space above the other elements and makes the viewer put the rest of the composition into perspective as the painting seems to be the main part of the photograph that you would compare the other elements to. For example you would look at the oversized cup and compare it to the normal sized Photograph on the wall to put it into perspective therefore making the viewer stand back and review the photograph as a whole. The elements are central in the composition which shows a homely feel reflecting the theme of this collection. There is use of natural lighting within this photograph that has most likely been enhanced using photoshop by changing the brightness and the contrast. As well as this, there is nothing else in the composition apart from these 5 elements. This keeps the Photograph simple and doesn't complicate the background. Looking at all of Robisons work in this collection, there is always spacing around the subjects to balance out the composition. Focusing on the element of the cup, it would have been taken separately, then placed over the background Photograph, yet as I look at it, it has been taken with the same lighting as the background due to the shadowing on the cup, therefore, this tells me that he has shot all these elements separately but within a short amount of time to get the same lighting. It is after he has shot the Photograph that he would go on to photoshop and put all of these elements together to create the final piece.