Target Photographs: Sally Mann

REFERENCE PHOTOGRAPHS

Sally Mann, Untitled (Bridge on Tallahatchie), 1998, Gelatin silver print, 37 x 47 1/2 in

Sally Mann, Untitled (Fontainebleau Smokestack, Louisiana), 1998, Gelatin silver print, 20 x 24 in

Sally Mann, Untitled (Stick), 1998, Gelatin silver print

Sally Mann, Untitled (Valentine, Windsor), 1998, Gelatin silver print, 40 x 50in

Sally Mann, Untitled (Scarred Tree), 1998, Gelatin silver print, 38 x 48 in

Looking at the chosen target photographs and the photographs I created, there are some similarities, but quite a few differences. I chose to use a DSLR camera as well as travel to multiple locations to capture my own photographs inspired by the photographer herself, Sally Mann. Although our printing approaches are different, my photographs resemble Sally Mann’s photographs of the Deep South series in similar and different ways.

Sally Mann’s photographs and mine have a few similarities in regard to ideas and physical subjects. She traveled to the southern states when photographing the Deep South series which inspired me to do the same while being in Kansas. Although Kansas isn’t a southern state, there is a lot of flat land, trees, and ponds in the little parts of a town similar to the subjects in the prototypes. I took the time to travel to different towns in Kansas: Overland Park, Topeka, and Lawrence. While referencing the prototypes, I wanted to capture some of the ideas that Mann used, light and memory, because I personally connected with those specific ideas. One of the locations I chose was my grandparents’ house in Overland Park, so I wanted to capture the memory of growing up there with the little park across the street. In Untitled (Tennis Court at Overland Park), 2020 I used the fence as a way to center in the tennis court just like how Mann used her mistakes to put the focal point on her subject. In Untitled (Barn Topeka, Kansas), 2020, I travelled to my friend’s grandparents farm that has been in their generations for years. This specific location is the land where her great grandma died which correlates to Mann’s photograph of Bridge of Tallahatchie since an African American died there as well.

Not only are the physical subjects similar, but in order for my photographs to look remotely close to the prototypes, I needed to do some editing. The 19th century printing process Mann uses shows no color, little mistakes, and various amounts of exposure. I used photoshop to conquer the same appearance as if I were to use the same printing process as her. The Hue/Saturation adjustment and Curves adjustment was a huge tool in achieving the certain aesthetic. Although I took a majority of my time editing the photographs, I realize that the amount of time used to create the photographs and edit them felt like the same amount of time Sally Mann used in capturing her photographs on a gelatin silver print. Specifically, Untitled (Barn Topeka, Kansas), I made sure was overexposed so the lining of the tower would be blown out because I noticed in Mann’s photographs are very white spots that bring the viewer’s eye to the subject. By examining the prototypes, I learned that Mann wanted to focus the brightness on her subject which I intended to do the same as shown in Untitled (Private Pool), 2020.

While the themes and color of the photographs are similar, our photographs are set differently with the effects and contrast. Sally Mann’s photographs mainly had mistakes on the negatives which created different hazes, tears, and scrapes. It was hard to create the same textures because I used a different, although I did try by using slower shutter speeds. The photographs I took didn’t turn out similar to hers, but I understand that Sally Mann’s mistakes were one-time opportunities that brought her photographs to life. My photographs also differed from Mann’s photographs with the brightness and contrast in each one. With my editing, my pictures turn out with very dark blacks and very white whites while Mann’s photographs have an overall fade that creates different types of grays. I noticed that the advantage to the old printing process is that the contrast will be different versus a digital camera with edits.