What Camera Did Vivian Maier Use
All photographs copyrighted by Vivian Maier / Maloof Drove
A street lensman whose work and life I hugely admire is that of Vivian Maier. For those of you who haven't heard her story, she worked and lived as a nanny her entire adult life– and shot street photography on the side for herself. She created incredible black and white and color piece of work through the 1950'south all the fashion through the late 1990′s. She shot an incredible amount of images– that amount to over 100,000 negatives.
Recently the documentary: "Finding Vivian Maier" on the mystery behind her life and discovery came out. I realized I oasis't written an article on her yet– so I wanted to utilize the opportunity to do so.
Vivian Maier's Discovery
One of the incredible things about Vivian Maier (likewise her captivating images) is her story.
She was first discovered by John Maloof, who happened to find Vivian'south negatives while at a piece of furniture and antiquarian auction while researching a history book he was writing on Chicago'southward north-west side. Vivian's belongings were beingness auctioned off from a storage locker (due to non-payments). When he kickoff constitute her work, he didn't know what he had.
Maloof acquired more than 100,000 negatives from her, 20-30,000 negatives were nevertheless in rolls, undeveloped from the 1960's-1970's. Slowly by steadily he started to develop the rolls himself, and started scanning them with an Epson V700-series by himself. Fortunately most of her negatives that were developed in sleeves had the date and location penciled in French.
Maloof tried to Google her, and discovered that she passed away just a few days before in an obituary. This is the expiry tribute he read of Vivian Maier who passed away at age 83:
"Vivian Maier, proud native of France and Chicago resident for the last l years died peacefully on Mon. Second mother to John, Lane and Matthew. A free and kindred spirit who magically touched the lives of all who knew her. Ever ready to requite her advice, opinion or a helping hand. Motion picture critic and photographer extraordinaire. A truly special person who will be sorely missed but whose long and wonderful life we all celebrate and volition always remember."
He then put her images and asked for advice on a Flickr Hardcore Street Photography Thread, where he discovered how truly great Vivian's piece of work was. Since so, Vivian Maier's work and popularity has exploded hugely– and he is dedicated to promoting her and preserving her legacy and work.
Vivian's History
Vivian Maier came to the states from France in the early 1930's and worked in a sweat shop in New York when she was about 11 or 12. She was described as a Socialist, Feminist, a movie critic, and a tell-it-like-it-is type of person. She picked up her English by watching films, and too wore a men'due south jacket, men's shoes and a big hat most of the fourth dimension. She took photos everywhere she went, without showing them to anybody.
Maier showtime discovered photography effectually 1949, while still in French republic. Her first photographic camera was a Kodak Credibility box camera, which is an amateur camera with only one shutter speed, no focus control, and no aperture punch.
In 1951, Maier went to New York and joined a family in Southampton equally a nanny.
In 1952, Vivian Maier purchased a Rolleiflex camera and started to get more than prolific with her photography. She stayed with her original New York family unit until 1956, when she moved to the North Shore suburbs of Chicago. In Chicago, she got employed past the Gensburgs family, who employed Vivian every bit a nanny for 3 boys. They soon became Vivian's closest family for the remainder of her life.
In 1956, Vivian Maier Maier moved to Chicago, where she built a darkroom in her private bathroom. This allowed her to develop and print her ain black and white film. In the early 1970's once the children she was nannying grew upward, she had to abandon her home in Chicago. This forced her to stop developing her own movie. Every bit she jumped from new family to new family, her rolls of undeveloped, unprinted work began to collect.
In the 1970'south Vivian started to shoot more color street photography, using mostly Kodak Ektachrome 35mm film. Some of the cameras she used was a Leica IIIc, and various High german SLR cameras. Her color piece of work was much more abstract than her earlier black and white street photography. She started to photograph less people, and focused more on "plant objects", newspapers, and graffiti.
In the 1980's Vivian started to have financial instabilities. This caused her processing to be put on agree, and her color Ektachrome rolls began to pile up.
Between the belatedly 1990'due south and early 2000's, Vivian had to put downwards her camera and keep her belongings in storage while she tried to stay afloat financially. She was temporarily homeless, until she was given a small studio apartment which the family of the kids she took care of in Chicago (the Gensburgs) helped pay for. Her photographs in storage then were sold off in an auction due to non-payment of rent in 2007. The negatives were auctioned off by the storage company, where John Maloof discovered her piece of work.
In 2008, Vivian fell on a patch of water ice and hit her head in downtown Chicago. Although she was expected to make a full recovery, her health began to deteriorate, forcing Vivian into a nursing domicile. She passed away a brusk time later in April of 2009.
Cameras
Vivian Maier's outset photographic camera was a Kodak Brownie box photographic camera. In 1952 she purchased her first Rolleiflex photographic camera. Over the form of her career she used Rolleiflex 3.5T, Rolleiflex 3.5F, Rolleiflex 2.8C, Rolleiflex Automat and others. She later besides used a Leica IIIc, an Ihagee Exakta, a Zeiss Contarex and various other SLR cameras.
Film
During her life Vivian Maier shot mostly Kodak Tri-X and Ektachrome moving-picture show.
Vivian Maier'due south Working Style
One thing I am particularly interested in is Vivian Maier'southward working mode. Based on her contact sheets (with her black and white Rolleiflex work), yous can meet that she was quite conservative. About of the photos she took were but 1 shot of a scene. Sometimes when she thought the scene was really interesting, she would work the scenes and shoot upward to 8 shots (more than half the roll of 12 shots in a medium-format film).
Shooting with her Rolleiflex, many of her shots shows she was unnoticed past her subjects. However some of the photos, y'all can see that her subjects look at her curiously (showing that her subjects at to the lowest degree had some idea she was photographing them).
Some of the photos she took also looks like they were photographed with consent by her subjects. She might have briefly chatted with her subjects before taking their shot– as some of her subjects simply grinning and look straight at Vivian.
She also zone-focused while shooting (pre-focusing her lens to a sure distance and shooting with a relatively small aperture). She photographed people who were stationary– and also people who she institute interesting every bit they walked by her.
In terms of her working distance, Vivian shot at dissimilar distances. Some of her photos are intimate portraits shot at a close distance (less than a meter away). She wasn't shy to go close to her subjects to fill the frame. Other photos are shot more at a distance to bear witness more than of the environment and of an interesting scene.
Regarding subject affair, Vivian Maier photographed street scenes, portraits of people, interesting compages, self-portraits, as well as random objects in the streets.
Well-nigh of Vivian'due south piece of work was shot in New York and Chicago, but she too did take some photos while traveling in India and Egypt.
Her color work differs much from her black and white piece of work. First of all, her color work looks more than like the archetype "street photography" you would see by the likes of Garry Winogrand and Joel Meyerowitz. It is much more spontaneous and has a specific focus on colorful scenes. She also shot most of her colour piece of work on 35mm, which creates more than dynamic framing in her shots. Most of her black and white work was on her Rolleiflex, which wasn't as quick and nimble as her Leica and 35mm SLR cameras.
Lessons Vivian Maier Has Taught Me in Street Photography
Below are some lessons Vivian Maier has taught me about street photography:
one. Shoot for yourself
One of the most important lessons I've personally learned from Vivian Maier is the importance of shooting for yourself. Maier never really showed her work to everyone else while she was still alive and shooting. It wasn't until John Maloof discovered her work in a storage auction did her work reach a huge audience.
Nobody still really knows her motivations in her street photography because she never really talked to anybody nearly her piece of work. Not just that, but she never left behind any written records regarding her motivations in street photography.
Regardless, it is clear that she shot street photography to satisfy something inside herself. She shot prolifically- at every chance that she got. Even though she did work full-fourth dimension every bit a nanny, she used her fourth dimension in-between chores and on the weekends to create her scenic images.
Takeaway point:
Sometimes we forget the most important person to impress with our photography is ourselves. With the proliferation of social media, nosotros ever feel the need to impress others. Nosotros want to get tons of followers, likes, favorites and adoration from others.
If Vivian Maier started shooting street photography nowadays, she would have probably stayed off social media. She would have shot purely to satisfy herself– and not worry or care what others thought of her work.
I think the beauty of street photography is sharing it with others. Even with Vivian Maier– I recall it would accept been a shame if nobody ever discovered her work. Her images inspire, in their simplicity and dazzler of everyday life.
While it is admirable to create images to inspire other people– don't forget that you want to impress and satisfy yourself. Starting time shoot for yourself, and if others happen to enjoy your work– that is an extra plus.
2. Exist prolific
Vivian Maier left behind 100,000+ negatives, much of which was undeveloped. When John Maloof kickoff discovered her work, well-nigh 20-30,000 negatives were nonetheless in rolls, undeveloped from the 1960's-1970's.
Why did she accept so much undeveloped piece of work? Office of the reason was the fact that she was ever moving and didn't have much stability. Not only that, only she had financial issues her entire life– and she passed away nigh penniless.
I besides think a part of the reason is the fact that her primary goal was to only go out and document the world. She might accept thought that she could just do all the shooting while she was healthy, and could ever end upwards developing and press her work afterwards.
Maier photographed constantly, over 50 years throughout mostly Chicago and New York. Her fashion changed and evolved over time, photographing street scenes in black and white, and then working in color with more than abstract scenes.
Letting her undeveloped work pile up is very similar to that of Garry Winogrand, who was also a prolific shooter. He was as well busy shooting, that he didn't have plenty fourth dimension or energy to even develop his rolls.
Takeaway signal:
One of the best means to become a groovy photographer is to but accept a lot of photos. The more photos y'all take, the more you ameliorate your eye and skills. And the more photos you shoot in the street, the more likely yous are to strike gold and capture phenomenal images.
Malcom Gladwell wrote in his book: "Outliers" that almost experts had to dedicate at least ten,000 hours to their craft to master it. I think in photography the same idea applies. To get a truly great photographer, we need to spend a lot of time out shooting and creating images. The more time we spend photographing, the more hours we put towards those 10,000 hours to become a master.
Fifty-fifty though it is hard to brand time to shoot in our everyday lives– try to find fourth dimension in-between your busy schedule. Always carry your camera with you, and photograph whenever you have a small interruption. Photograph in the morning before you become to work. Photograph on the subway or bus. Photograph during your lunch break. Photograph after work, on the manner abode. Photo on the weekends. Photograph on the way to the store. Every opportunity is a photographic opportunity– and allow the images and hours of piece of work pile up.
3. Embrace your day job
Vivian Maier had a day task. She was a nanny. She didn't piece of work equally a full-fourth dimension photographer. She was simply a photography amateur and hobbyist. She didn't photo to make money. She photographed to please herself, and capture everyday life.
When I used to have a twenty-four hour period job, I used to always tell myself: "Homo, if I didn't have this stupid day job I would have and so much more time to photograph. I wish I was a full-fourth dimension lensman, then I could ever be taking photographs."
Funny enough, presently after when I got laid off and did start pursuing my street photography full-time, I establish out that I didn't have that much more than time to photograph. Instead, I constitute myself busy writing articles for the weblog, answering emails, planning workshops, putting together business proposals, working on finances, and other tasks on the computer. Many of my friends who are total-time photographers practice commercial and wedding work– and don't even accept the energy to photograph for fun after their work-days are over.
I recollect there is a huge do good of having a 24-hour interval job. A twenty-four hour period task gives yous the financial stability to shoot street photography for fun– on the side, on your own terms. If you lot shot street photography for a living, the images you created had to delight your clients. You wouldn't be only shooting for yourself.
So regardless if yous accept a mean solar day task, you can even so create keen images. Some of the best street photographers I know are employed total-time and even accept families. But they always carve our free time to shoot street photography either during their dejeuner breaks or on weekends. Plus having a day job gives them the financial stability to afford photography books, film, cameras, workshops, and money to travel.
Takeaway point:
If yous have a day task, don't be fooled that by becoming a full-time lensman will give you lot more gratuitous time to shoot. Y'all tin nevertheless make incredible street photography with a twenty-four hour period job (similar Vivian Maier).
4. Photograph yourself
I love Vivian Maier's self-portraits. They are simple, seductive, humorous, and witty. She was quite creative in photographing herself– and shot herself her entire life. She photographed her shadow, reflection through water, reflection in mirrors, and incorporated many different compositional elements in doing so.
Takeaway point:
Sometimes it is difficult for us to find subjects to shoot on the street. But regardless– nosotros e'er accept ourselves to photograph.
And so photograph your own shadow, your own reflections, your own image. Superimpose yourself on your subjects, photograph mirrors, windows– and button your creativity. Look at Vivian Maier's self-portraits for inspiration (also bank check out Lee Friedlander's self-portraits) and have fun.
5. Being "discovered" involves a lot of luck
When I started shooting street photography, I wanted to become "discovered" to accept my piece of work recognized and appreciated. I wanted to be in famous galleries, exhibitions, and museums. I wanted to exist a photography household proper noun.
Simply what I discovered through Vivian Maier is that being "discovered" is mostly luck. If Vivian Maier work didn't happen to institute past John Maloof, her work would've disappeared into obscurity. Fifty-fifty though she was incredibly talented, nobody would always know her work.
Fifty-fifty for myself– the popularity of this weblog is a lot of luck. Granted that I take worked hard on the blog for the last three years– but I was lucky in terms of the time I was born (having the internet), getting featured on other popular photography blogs, as well as building the correct connections.
Takeaway indicate:
You tin can be the most talented photographer in the globe and never receive recognition for it. To proceeds recognition does involve a lot of luck, knowing the correct people, and being in the right space at the right time.
Then don't let your popularity dictate your self-worth in photography. At that place are tons of incredibly talented photographers out there who nonetheless oasis't been "discovered" considering they don't know how to market their work via the internet to the masses. I personally am not the best street photographer out there– just the only reason why I'1000 well-known is through this blog, and that I know how to finer use social media.
Photo for yourself, and if you happen to go "discovered" capeesh it. If y'all never do, don't worry. But keep shooting for yourself.
Conclusion
Vivian Maier has taught me the importance of shooting for myself, and non worrying and then much about what others think about me and my work. I recall she is a great reminder to all of us– that the about people to print with our piece of work is ourselves.
Videos
Vivian Maier, street photographer and nanny
Finding Vivian Maier – Official Moving picture Trailer
Yous tin can detect data regarding the "Finding Vivian Maier" film here.
The 8mm Films of Vivian Maier
These observational clips offer a rare glimpse into the late street photographer'due south largely unseen experimentation with film. Read the full feature on NOWNESS hither.
Photographers Similar to Vivian Maier
Vivian Maier owned many photography books, and certainly she was inspired and knew other photographers. It isn't certainly exactly which photographers inspired her
If you like the street photography of Vivian Maier, I recommend the following photographers:
- Robert Doisneau (also photographed a lot of children, and his piece of work is fun and whimsical)
- Lee Friedlander (check out his self-portraits, which remind me a lot of Vivian's work)
- Diane Arbus (also did a lot of street portraits with a Rolleiflex)
- Helen Levitt (also shot a lot of street scenes in New York, lots of kids also)
Books
If you like the piece of work of Vivian Maier, check out some of her books below:
1. Vivian Maier: Street Lensman
I recommend this book equally a adept introduction to Vivian Maier's work. Very affordable (around $23 USD) and bang-up print quality and selection of images from her black and white work.
2. Vivian Maier: Out of the Shadows
This book is a different drove of her work from the prior book, with more data well-nigh Vivian's background and biography. This book is currently going for around $38.
iii. Vivian Maier: Cocky-Portraits
If you lot are a fan of Vivian Maier's self portraits, this book is for you. Sells for ~$33 USD.
4. Vivian Maier: A Life Through the Lens
A new book on Vivian Maier you can pre-order for ~$54. It volition be released October 14, 2014. Around 288 pages long– it should be comprehensive and a smashing resource to accept.
Links
- Official Vivian Maier Website
- Vivian Maier [Wikipedia]
- About Vivian Maier
- Vivian Maier Hardcore Street Photography Thread
- The Best Street Lensman Y'all've Never Heard Of [Mother Jones]
- The Life and Piece of work of Street Photographer Vivian Maier
How has Vivian Maier inspired you in street photography? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
What Camera Did Vivian Maier Use,
Source: https://erickimphotography.com/blog/2014/04/14/5-lessons-vivian-maier-has-taught-me-about-street-photography/
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