Post by Fish Troll on Apr 30, 2007 21:56:15 GMT -5
'Depth of Field' exhibit opens at Hall
Photographer's work captures classic baseball images
By Ben Couch / Special to MLB.com
While preparing his first photo exhibition on baseball, David Levinthal couldn't find a way to frame his Derek Jeter figurine to produce a satisfactory photo. Previous shots in the series all featured the full figurine, but while shooting the Jeter, something wasn't quite right -- until the artist zoomed in.
By focusing on the miniaturized Yankee from the waist up, Levinthal captured Jeter's iconic batting stance. The profile view shows the Yankees' captain locked in, coolly ready to rap the kind of clutch hit he's become known for.
"I really tried to find one angle," Levinthal said. "In my previous series, I might take two or three different angles. This time, I forced myself to look at the figure really carefully, and say, 'That's the angle; that's the pose,' and make it work."
Twenty-four examples of that work, begun in 2002, have been compiled into a new exhibit, "Depth of Field: The Baseball Photographs of David Levinthal," which opened Friday at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y. In addition to the photos, which depict notable Hall of Famers (Roberto Clemente, Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams), baseball legends (Kirk Gibson, Rickey Henderson, Pete Rose), and current-day stars (Jeter, Hideki Matsui, Ichiro Suzuki), "Depth of Field" features four of the figurines used by Levinthal to create the images.
He recreates historical moments and iconic poses using the toy figurines and deceptively simple props -- creating baseball fields with baking-soda baselines, cardboard grandstands and tiny clay bases. After experimenting with focus and dramatic lighting, Levinthal uses an extremely large-format Polaroid camera to produce giant 20-by-24-inch images that are rich in color and stunning in their detail.
"Depth of field is the key to what I do," Levinthal said. "In making a very narrow depth of field, I can give the perception of truth and reality and movement that doesn't exist for these static figurines."
Levinthal used his photo of Jackie Robinson stealing home against the Yankees in the 1955 World Series to illustrate this effect. The Robinson figurine was much larger than the one of Yogi Berra that serves as the shot's focal point. By playing with the depth and focus used when taking the picture, the scale seems natural and one's eyes perceive Robinson sliding in, despite the brain's knowledge that it's a staged photograph.
While Robinson's steal of home was the only image to receive dual angle attention, Levinthal captured many other classic images from baseball history: the elegant swing of DiMaggio, the clenched fist of Gibson, Carlton Fisk's memorable physical plea for his 1975 World Series home run to stay fair, and a diving Ozzie Smith.
"He manages to tap into what makes each baseball player unique," said Tom Shieber, senior curator for the Museum. "What is it about Kirk Gibson, or what is it about Derek Jeter, or what is it about Yogi Berra that makes them 'Gibson,' 'Jeter,' 'Berra'? He tries to find that in each figurine, and then literally focuses in on what's right. He's focusing on the portions of the figurines that are meaningful, but they're only meaningful because of the memories that the visitors bring. It's not just about the artist."
The exhibit will remain on display throughout 2007 and is located in the Barry Halper Gallery of the Museum, a temporary exhibit center located on the Museum's first floor. The exhibit has been made possible thanks to the Harry M. Stevens Foundation. Admission is included with the purchase of a Museum ticket.
Ben Couch is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
Photographer's work captures classic baseball images
By Ben Couch / Special to MLB.com
While preparing his first photo exhibition on baseball, David Levinthal couldn't find a way to frame his Derek Jeter figurine to produce a satisfactory photo. Previous shots in the series all featured the full figurine, but while shooting the Jeter, something wasn't quite right -- until the artist zoomed in.
By focusing on the miniaturized Yankee from the waist up, Levinthal captured Jeter's iconic batting stance. The profile view shows the Yankees' captain locked in, coolly ready to rap the kind of clutch hit he's become known for.
"I really tried to find one angle," Levinthal said. "In my previous series, I might take two or three different angles. This time, I forced myself to look at the figure really carefully, and say, 'That's the angle; that's the pose,' and make it work."
Twenty-four examples of that work, begun in 2002, have been compiled into a new exhibit, "Depth of Field: The Baseball Photographs of David Levinthal," which opened Friday at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y. In addition to the photos, which depict notable Hall of Famers (Roberto Clemente, Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams), baseball legends (Kirk Gibson, Rickey Henderson, Pete Rose), and current-day stars (Jeter, Hideki Matsui, Ichiro Suzuki), "Depth of Field" features four of the figurines used by Levinthal to create the images.
He recreates historical moments and iconic poses using the toy figurines and deceptively simple props -- creating baseball fields with baking-soda baselines, cardboard grandstands and tiny clay bases. After experimenting with focus and dramatic lighting, Levinthal uses an extremely large-format Polaroid camera to produce giant 20-by-24-inch images that are rich in color and stunning in their detail.
"Depth of field is the key to what I do," Levinthal said. "In making a very narrow depth of field, I can give the perception of truth and reality and movement that doesn't exist for these static figurines."
Levinthal used his photo of Jackie Robinson stealing home against the Yankees in the 1955 World Series to illustrate this effect. The Robinson figurine was much larger than the one of Yogi Berra that serves as the shot's focal point. By playing with the depth and focus used when taking the picture, the scale seems natural and one's eyes perceive Robinson sliding in, despite the brain's knowledge that it's a staged photograph.
While Robinson's steal of home was the only image to receive dual angle attention, Levinthal captured many other classic images from baseball history: the elegant swing of DiMaggio, the clenched fist of Gibson, Carlton Fisk's memorable physical plea for his 1975 World Series home run to stay fair, and a diving Ozzie Smith.
"He manages to tap into what makes each baseball player unique," said Tom Shieber, senior curator for the Museum. "What is it about Kirk Gibson, or what is it about Derek Jeter, or what is it about Yogi Berra that makes them 'Gibson,' 'Jeter,' 'Berra'? He tries to find that in each figurine, and then literally focuses in on what's right. He's focusing on the portions of the figurines that are meaningful, but they're only meaningful because of the memories that the visitors bring. It's not just about the artist."
The exhibit will remain on display throughout 2007 and is located in the Barry Halper Gallery of the Museum, a temporary exhibit center located on the Museum's first floor. The exhibit has been made possible thanks to the Harry M. Stevens Foundation. Admission is included with the purchase of a Museum ticket.
Ben Couch is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
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