Reminds Me of Lauren Greenfield

Waiting on the Popcorn Line, Rodeo Austin - Austin, Texas

Waiting on the Popcorn Line, Rodeo Austin – Austin, Texas

After reviewing the images I took at the carnival and post-processing them in my new color style, I realized that this picture stood out unexpectedly. The subject and the feel of the image reminded me of the work of photographer Lauren Greenfield — in particular this picture comes to mind. You may disagree.

I wasn’t trying to emulate anyone’s style. I just made images of what interested me. Other than the passing similarity of young women with blond-ish hair and dresses, there are other parallels to Ms. Greenfield’s work. I understand that Lauren Greenfield often photographed women, particularly in more affluent circles. I have no idea about these people’s backgrounds, but I will make some assumptions.

While Rodeo Austin and the carnival draw from diverse backgrounds, the people in this picture differ from the usual customer base. The rodeo and livestock portion attract a more rural demographic, while the carnival appears most favored by middle and working-class folk. From what I know about Austin, these teenagers have a distinct West Austin vibe, generally the more affluent part of town.

Interestingly, the two young men who frame the women both feature thin, horizontally striped polos. Are they just friends or brothers? In my opinion, the detail that makes the shot is the person on the right using his smartphone, seemingly divorced from the group’s actions.

Lauren Greenfield worked on a multi-platform projects called “Generational Wealth” including a documentary film available on Amazon Prime.

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4 thoughts on “Reminds Me of Lauren Greenfield”

  1. Good morning I am replying to your message because my attempt at posting a comment was a systemic failure and thought you should know it is not working as you might expect. When I finally got the comment box to open, its not included as part of the post every time you open the link, and entered the text below, selecting post took me to a screen asking me to sign up for a Blogspot account even though I selected to post using my email information. The text of my original comment follows. And keep up the nice work. I do enjoy it. _______________________ I think you are correct. There are similarities in the two photos. Though in this image the two boys make the image, the one on the right in particular. We would have to guess about the relationship between the boys, but not really with the group. The boy on the left is fully engaged with the girls, but the boy on the right is interested in his phone. Why the phone would be another guess. Given that text messaging is the preferred communication method for today’s youth, it may have just alerted him to a message. But the image also gives the impression that he may not be that interested in being part of the group. Your thoughts are as good as mine. PS. My first impression of the new website layout is not that positive. I preferred having the box for leaving comments out in the open. Finding the link to leave a comment at the bottom of the screen is not obvious, and requires several attempts to activate. PaulB

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    Reply

    1. Hi PaulB,

      I’m sorry you had challenging time adding a comment. I didn’t change anything on the blog or the layout, but maybe WordPress changed something automatically for all sites.

      Thanks for your observation of my photo compared to Lauren Greenfield’s. Yes, it’s interesting to speculate what is happing. Of course there is no way for us to know. That’s what make these kinds of pictures interesting.

      Andy

      Reply

      1. Hi Andy   Yes, I think it is a Word Press iOS interaction issue. As with both my phone and iPad, going into articles sometimes the comment box was there and sometimes it wasn’t.  Exit and reenter an article a few time and get a different result.   Though, this article was the first one I opened that didn’t have the box from the start. So I would say this is a recent event or change by Word Press.   PB

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