Gregory Crewdson is a visual story teller, who was born in Brooklyn in 1962. He graduated from the SUNY Purchase and the Yale University School of Art which lead him to becoming a director of graduate studies in Photography. His style of photography is documentary but it is not actually documentary.
“Beneath the Roses”
“Beneath the Roses” is a series of 20 images that took almost 3 years to complete with a crew of more than 100 people. Crewdson explores the recesses of the American psyche and the disturbing dramas at play within ordinary environments. The process and approach that he takes for these images are patently cinematic. After each photo is taken, he continues his process in post-production using state-of-the-art digital composting and special effects.
Gregory works on a Epson Stylus Pro 11880 which is a large format camera. He uses a camera like this to get a massive depth of field and get every single thing in focus rather than having the focus on one section. This is due to every single thing in the image being relevant as there is a reason for everything in his images. His projects are made both on studio soundstages and on location in various small towns. He goes as far as massive flood lights on cranes to light up roads. He uses around 100 light sources whether it be big flood lights or just a interior light in a car.
I love Gregory Crewdson’s work and this project as it is very intriguing and intense. And in the end-like film at its best-Crewdson’s fictions, elaborately staged and plotted though they may be, convey an experience that is intensely real. I love that they leave the viewer to use their own imagination on what is going on and the story behind each image. I think that having this element to it makes it even more eye-catching.
Dejection 