Ovation TV | Close Up: Gregory Crewdson

[gwcstudio]

I love his stuff, but: he doesn't work the camera, he doesn't do the lighting, he doesn't build the sets... What is he, an "executive photographer"?

[koocky86]

The picture with the car and the snow reminds me so much of Edward Hoppers pictures. Awesome.

[hurrayleon]

Gregory Crewdson means for photography what Peter Greenaway for cinema

[mplayer98]

My name is not Oswald! It's Penguin! I am not a human being!

[sunday1K1indoflove]

and as for the "he doesn't hold his own camera" discussion. He shoots with a large format camera, 8x10 negatives, have any of you ever held a large format camera to take a photo? No you haven't because it's physically impossible. He's made a career out of this and one photograph is worth three or fours times the amount that your car does. He can can have whoever he wants to do the set up for him. If you put batteries into my flash and i took a photo using it would you say you took it?

[sunday1K1indoflove]

First off photography is an art, i myself am a photography student and the first thing you learn is that you aren't a photographer until you've shot about a thousand rolls of film. The people that run around with $10,000 worth of equipment and have never stepped into a darkroom to produce a gallery worthy print, ARE NOT PHOTOGRAPHERS. This man is and he is an artist along with that. Anyone on their way to getting a degree will tell you the camera doesn't make the image the person behind it does

[derris]

He's one of my favourite photographers

[hyperskreem]

this is my favorite photographer next to david la chappelle...he's is my biggest inspiration...

[rustynasty143]

annie leibivitz is more true to her subject than this guy.

[groove707]

The vision is king. There are a lot of highly competent image makers but few with anything original or compelling to say. I can play guitar like Carlos Santana. So what? None of the probably thousands of guitarists who can play like that are famous because that was not our vision. Gregory Crewdson deserves respect for having a vision and courageously promoting it. In everything, knowing how is always subservient to knowing when and why.

[laratheloi]

how is he a photographer if he doesn't even hold the camera?

[mawalls2001]

Being a photographer has more to do with than just "holding the camera." It's about composition, lighting, and more. There's a great deal of technique that goes into it. The shutter release is just the mechanical aspect. You could set it to timer and then no one's "holding" the camera. The captured image however remains the photographer's creation.

[reyreyeddie]

you're all cockheads

[orica77]

Can some one please tell me what he says in 2:25-2:30?

..."and I think that ????? aspect its a great metaphor for what I do now"

Thanks

[juanfarrell]

in retrospect

[headrest1]

debe mucho a  Edward Hopper

[RickLordTV]

Lighting is everything in a photograph, it is subjective in every way. Whether the lighting instruments are huge or small or placed a certain way compared to another, Gregory's lighting scheme is still very interesting and compelling. I love working with Motion Picture Lighting instruments for still digital photography. The only way to truly paint a scene.

[LindaGriggs]

He's so much like Cindy Sherman in a way....not a photographer, just using photography. They both set a stage. I love Gregory Crewdson's photos but I can't help but think she says more with less. But then again, the scale and the ambition in Crewdson are so high profile they demand a kind of attention that Sherman's don't seem to get. Well, it was Sherman's marketing choice to be "self-effacing". ha ha

[3589546]

Old ways of thinking? Lol. I just find his work boring. All effect. Yeah, he has a good gallery. I like koons because he has very strong ideas. Crewdsons look like stills from David Lynch movies.

[3589546]

He spends so much time planning a photo to look real. Why doesnt he just find chance effects. Boring, wasteful fluff. He's already been dropped from the top tiers of art history. Thankfully.

[canitakeyourpic]

he trys to make them surreal not real. when have you ever seen a scene ike his in real life?

[SIXnop]

Where are you getting that he's dropped off the top tiers of Art History? I mean, he IS still represented by one of the best galleries in NY, Luhring Augustine.

Some people are harping on him because he said he doesn't hold the camera... Whoopty-doo. He's an artist that uses photography, not a photographer. That's the huge difference which most people miss. Don't get cemented into old ways of thinking.

Why not take a shot at Andy Warhol? He had assistants make his art for him.

[typodaemon]

Crewdson's work typically depicts a surreal scene with interesting lighting and layout that does not convey a distinct message. Some people like Crewdson's work enough to pay for them and as such he has made a name for himself.

His photos generally aren't bad, but most people aren't interested in carefully examining what appears to be a mediocre photo at first glance. Most people prefer photos that quickly convey a distinct message.

[turquoiseandgreen]

it is cool that he would open up about his process. i bet there are a lot of crew people who would watch this and think--5 or 6 pictures in 5 WEEKS??? there are a lot of full features that shoot in that time. but most of them suck... wonder what this crew gets paid.

[mbakerphotography]

I hate Gregory Crewdson. He's a joke. I feel the same way about Jeff Koons. They don't do shit. It's ART. Get your hands dirty!!!!! The people behind the scenes are the ones who deserve the respect and cash, not this fat guy "I never hold a camera" what a fucking joke.

[goldomega]

People behind the scenes deserve the cash and respect? What do you think Crewdson is? Every artist has their own process. In his process, he functions the same as a director on a movie set. A director may not personally do the hauling or rigging or setbuilding, but he's still the one with the creative vision, the idea that makes the shoot possible. It's his job to coordinate it all.

Don't judge him by his process, judge him by the result.

[elvisandfanny]

I love Gregory Crewdson's images. Thanks for a glimpse into the man behind those beautiful photos.

[funpoleece]

All that setup for a picture of an empty street?

[BennyJBishop]

it does seem kinda strange and a waste of time till you see his completed photo. You do have to have artistic appreciation but if you do you see why his photos are brilliant! They really tell a story, whether it's from the image or from your imagination is the question.

[mightymyung]

It's not about having an "artistic appreciation". That's saying that only people who have an eye for art can understand or comprehend his photos. Like music, not everyone has to have an "artistic appreciation" for music, different people have different tastes. Just wanted to clear that up.

[BennyJBishop]

well, in certain terms your right! i do have a pretty loose idea of what artistic appreciation is though and i think you get more from crewdsons art if you do have an appreciation of the creation process and story telling of it, but again, your right, you really don't need to be an artsy person to like his work.

[Scudbook27]

You don't have a clue what you are talking about cobraii27. Gregory Crewdson is a Photographic Alchemist..............a Master!! How many other 'Commercial' Photographers do you know that can demand $80,000 to $100,000 per print?

[gwcstudio]

@Scudbook27 - what someone is willing to pay for something is not always an indicator of how good it is. A lot of art is manipulation of perception, and perception of value is part of it. I like the stuff Crewsdon produces, but I feel it's a bit of a circus act more than that it's photography, if that makes sense.

[chunkypunkyboy]

actually, he's currently teaching at yale (where he got his MFA), so yale doesn't think he's dumb. the reason he doesn't do the digital work or the lighting is because he can pay other people to do it for him because he's made loads of cash making pictures like these. he functions much more as a director than as a photographer. it's the same as when people say "oh have you seen the new michel gondry film?". crewdson authors the narrative, supervises the execution, and puts his name on it.

[traer1120]

I think I actually agree, although the final image is really good, and in fact he has taken one of the best photo's i have ever seen, he didn't actually do it, he made it possible and that's it...the person controlling the lighting, the person behind the camera clicking the button, that's the person i look up to. yes, someone said about the 'new michael gondry film' blah blah...but at the end of the day, it's the people behind it all that make it all come together. Well done to them!

[hellmik]

If any photographer would come up with it, why don't they?

[typodaemon]

Why would any other photographer put out photos like these if they don't think they're good?

Demanding a great deal of money for a photo doesn't make it good. Getting absurd budgets for a photo don't make them good. Teaching at Yale doesn't necessarily make you good either, Yale is more concerned with prestige than competence.

[BigPreme]

@cobraii27 where is your work?