Patrick Joust is an American photographer born in California and currently living in Baltimore; he photographs places that are often overlooked. Recapturing those images that are so easily forgotten and ignored during people’s journey’s through life, may it be to work everyday or just a trip to work. He often captures things that can often seem mundane, matching this with gloomy twilight or night time lighting (e.g. Street Lights and lights from houses). The mix of lighting and mundane almost common scenes, really gives a sense of reality and universality to the viewer as anyone could recognise a scene like that. However, the fact that it is so familiar also is what makes it so eerie and gloomy, something I really enjoy about his work and a style I would like to incorporate into my own work.
The piece on the right is one of these scenes that I love so much, capturing the mundane in a special way that allows for the mind to wander and explore your imagination. There are lots of pieces to this scene that help its overall presence. One of the important techniques he’s used is the low camera angle and the centered frame around the shopping trolley; the use of this gives the feeling of being tiny with a shopping basket looming above you, and something that really gives the uneasy feeling. The crystal-clear reflection below the basket also gives that feeling of something not being quite right but still realistic. The lighting in this scene is also quite strange and very effective, in the foreground it is very clear and you can see every little detail that’s in focus with no fogginess. However, as you get further back in the image the scene becomes much foggier and gloomier very quickly creating that eerie dark scene that I want to create and mimic. This fog mixed with the strange green and red lights adds the extra feeling of unknown (almost feels like a UFO).
Some of Joust's other photographs
The next image is one of Joust’s that I also really liked as it has the indoor feel that in many ways is reassuring but the mix of light and colours gives it an eerie feel, that I would like to take on and deepen in my own works. The warm cosy lighting along with the wooden walls and old vintage kettle, gives the true feeling of home and warmth. However, with the low angle just reaching over the counter top it adds the feeling of something not being exactly right, along with the strong light contrast, the bottom middle almost being in complete darkness. This uneasiness that isn’t so strong in this scene but very in the other, is what I want to emphasise in my own pieces, I may also add my own touches and other skills I have learnt from previous experiments with 3D modelling to bring that feeling to fruition. As 3D modelling is very different from photography but I hope I can create a similar feeling with such a different medium.
Good Contrast to the "Red" series below
Reflected very strongly in my next piece
More of Joust's photography
In working on my next piece I have been experimenting with strong red lights. Red lighting being something that is not particularly natural and gives off the idea of something or someone causing the red light. I have used this as an idea of not seeing what the source is and then revealing it as you move. But in doing so I remembered that Joust had done a "Red" series of photography where he has captured using his own or other sources of strong red lighting. I realised these fit well with my current direction of work, I am not using the outside nature that he has captured but I am mixing it with the indoors like the non "red" photograph above. In the piece I am currently working on (as of writing this) I have used an Strange red glowing orb at the end of the hallway, which I thought especially reflected well with this piece to the left that Joust has done. having this ominous orb lighting up the area around it.
