I'm continuing to read the Genius of Photography and wanted to do some research online into Robert Adams. However, I became distracted when I came across Lewis Baltz via an article on the British Journal of Photography website (http://www.bjp-online.com/british-journal-of-photography/opinion/1650138/lie-land). The article discusses how photography has progressively moved away from an idealised view of nature and the landscape.
Lewis Batlz' work shows a far from idealised view of the man-effected landscape. He focusses on locations which are inbetween places or on the outskirts of places rather than being "places" in their own right.
His images are lifeless, lacking in movement or energy and are often quite flat. They get their interest from their geometry, the contrast of shapes and by the simple balance of the compositions.
I was also intrigued to read that he insisted on the images being displayed as a series. Almost to emphasise the monotony and insignificance. And also that he listed the details of the location where each photography was shot - again removing any chance of mystery or sense of specialness or unattainably (a common feature in much photography).
I'm sure that I'd walk past these locations without being drawn to shoot them (a definite failing on my part!). I hope that my eyes will become more attuned to the potential of these locations as I find these images very compelling.
Some of his photographs do have greater depth, but even then the depth is as compressed as possible, with large proportions of flat sky and a very flat horizon.
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