These photos of Sauli Niinistö were never used so I might as well post them here. I feel that taking photos of seasoned top politicians is kind of tricky since they know the game. They know what kind of image they want to project and they know how to deliver it. So it was with Sauli. We did the interview at his home (which actually was a surprise that he invited us there) but he was very precise where the photos should be taken. The interview and the shooting was to be done outside, there was no chance that we were going to go in. But when we started there was a moment of chaos and I did miss one potentially interesting photo. This happened: Sauli and his wife Jenni have a French bulldog named Lennu. Kind of comical looking fella, I think. At the very beginning of interview Lennu shoots out from nowhere and rushes the presidential candidate. He his trying to grab the dog while this drooling rocket of energy feverishly climbs on top of Niinistö who at the same moment is shouting “no photos!” This didn’t really matter because I had tele lens and I was standing maybe two meters from him so I missed the moment. Why I hated that I wasn’t able get the photo? Because something unexpected and uncontrolled happened.
Anyway, I don’t know if it transcends to the viewer as a great image but I was pleased with the shot where he is standing his arm stretched out. This is because it was the only moment when he seemed to be somewhat absent and not conscious about being photographed.

Posted by Jarkko
4 Comments on this blog article.

Some reportage stuff from last summer. This one is from Åland. The topic was basically about the traditions and the present of this special area. The writer and I tried to think about the stereotypes related to finnish Archipelago – you know, stuff in tourist brochures- and then compare that ideological landscape to concepts that we percieved as “reality”. This was done by finding people with different kind of stories: workers from Thailand, footballers from US, local rockers and so on. So it was also a sort of “outsiders looking in”  angle to the identity of Åland. The story itself turned out to be ok but in the photos this method resulted as a very scattered outcome. The result wasn’t a catastrophe but I’ve should have had balls to take more focused visual approach. But you’ll live and learn. Hopefully. These images are mostly the same ones used in the paper.  The story was published in Helsingin Sanomat.

EDIT: One photo added.

Posted by Jarkko
0 comments on this blog article.

Last week I went to take some photos of a new work by Charles Sandison. He is an artist based in Tampere and the winner of Ars Fennica 2010. His latest piece is presented in Hämeenlinna Art Museum and it is something that you should check out. I was familiar with some of his work before but the scale of this was just pretty overwhelming. 26 projectors making constantly changing patterns and shapes, all based on his C++ coding. And what I understood the projectors are not screening individually, they all are projecting the same piece. So it is not a static video projection but a kind of living form of code or scripture filling this big space. Back in the days the exhibition room used to be an old granary and the whole idea for the work stemmed from this notion. Sandison scanned some old granary accountbooks from this era and by some strange way turned them into coding. Anyway, the work is a visual blast.

Posted by Jarkko
0 comments on this blog article.

You guy’s ever heard of lights and shadows in terms of photography? Well go outside, there’s a lot of both right now!

Nothing too original about these photos, just playing with the light before the dark winter as well as getting to know the lens I just bought!

Posted by Konsta
0 comments on this blog article.

I’m having a struggle whether or not to buy this amazing old school 35mm lens. I’m having a test-go with it right now and shot these two with it.. I’m starting to think ‘yes, i need this piece of work.’

If you don’t think I should, stand up now or silence forever. But do it fast, I have to decide before Jarkko get’s home from work!

Posted by Konsta
9 Comments on this blog article.

Posted by Konsta
0 comments on this blog article.

Spot a fellow journalist! Some photos from the “Pelastakaa Reijo” demonstration from last wednesday. Konsta and Jarkko were able to attend and here are some shots. The portrait gallery was made by Konsta. The event itself went well so big thanks goes to the people who took the time to make it happen. We will not go into details of what the demonstration was all about because anyone interested in journalism should be very well informed! And as always there is some mischief going on in the photos but it does not change the fact that we feel strongly for this one. The cause is very much justified. And no one really asked us but we’ll say it anyway: signing contracts with such terms is a definite no-go. This goes for all of us at Partakuva.

Some additional information can be found at http://www.pelastakaareijo.fi/

Posted by Konsta
1 Comment on this blog article.

I didn’t think much of Helsinki before. With a stubborn reservation I kept an emotional distance between myself and the city. I got lost there everytime, as I never really bothered to adopt the map.

But as time has passed it has been harder for me to ignore how unique Helsinki actually is. Nowhere else in Finland there’s such a variation of atmospheres among the city districts, like towns within a town. I wouldn’t want to live there – not for now at least – but I find myself quite excited everytime I have some business there.

I had a couple of assignments in Helsinki on monday and a couple of hours in between them, so I just enjoyed the crowd and the sunlight reflecting from windows. The photos actually looked better in colors, but I wanna grasp the black&white, really learn it. Some people do it with such amazing style.

By the way, there’s a Reijo-demonstration in Helsinki today, so I’m heading there again today as soon as I hit the “publish” on this post. See you there!

Posted by Konsta
0 comments on this blog article.

I’m a friend of brash aggravation, so here’s finland, folks.

After we called the police since no one else seemed to care, he became alert, rised up, shouted “Fuck!” and tried to strike me with his bottle of booze.

But then he fell again.

And the bottle was plastic anyway.

Posted by Konsta
0 comments on this blog article.

Don’t I just love these assignments: “Konsta, there’s this dance spectacle going on in Kuopio Musiikkikeskus. Just stay there, shoot whatever you want. You’ll get a page.”

I feel I’m at my best when I get to just shoot what I want. Then again who isn’t?

Posted by Konsta
2 Comments on this blog article.