I touched on the topic of photographers moving into the realm of motion. It is an amazing topic and some argue that it is THE issue facing still photographers in the coming years. Without getting into that debate, let’s take a look at Magnum Photos and see how they are embracing motion with gusto.
Head to Magnum’s homepage and you can’t help but notice a little motion right off. The largest display panel is reserved for a flash animated slideshow. Nothing overtly spectacular there. However most of the featured links whisk viewers off to more slideshows, and seeing the collection in live motion is captivating.
By the way, automated slideshows are, indeed, a form of “motion,” which is term that that has gotten thrown around so much that it has lost clear meaning. However, when you are watching “movies” or “videos” on the Web (or handheld devices) they are all pieces of motion, even if made from still images.
The banner of Magnum’s homepage lists, “Agency,” “Photographers,” “In Motion,” and “Blog.” I find it pretty interesting that that they list “In Motion” and not “Photographs.” Of course you can dig into photographs by searching. But the prominent listing of “In Motion” shows Magnums deep commitment the media.
If you are a fan of socially conscientious photojournalism, you will find the content of Magnum’s “In Motion” section utterly compelling. But you should find it just as compelling even if you are only visiting to better understand how to use still images in superb motion pieces.
Magnum has always been known for its photographers’ time-stopping, powerful decisive moment images. Given that, it’s not surprising that what I find most notable about their motion pieces is how long they pause on the great shots, really letting them sink in before moving languidly on to the next image.
Sure, there are motion pieces with music, narration, subtitles and different transitions. And these add a lot. But the directors of the pieces have concentrated on highlighting excellent imagery over flashy, fast transitions, zooms and pans, and loads of additional, lesser images.
Critique Time
What do you think about the works “In Motion” section of Magnum? What do you think is the best way to put still images into motion?