Finding Vivian Maier

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AnalogPaper

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I didn't know anything about photographer Vivian Maier until my boyfriend introduced me to her this afternoon. She was a nanny in a wealthy suburb of Chicago who created a large and incredibly beautiful body of work. She never showed her photographs to anyone and it wasn't until thousands of negatives were found posthumously in a storage locker that she was discovered.

I found Maier's self-portraits truly inspiring and I wanted to hear what you guys thought. As scrapbookers, It's interesting to think about what drives us to photograph and document our lives and the world around us. I know many of you are mothers and these memories are a legacy you want to preserve for your children--did you scrapbook or journal before motherhood? Do you take self-portraits and include yourself in the story? What inspires you to pick up a camera?

http://www.vivianmaier.com/
 
Never heard of her, but wow, those are some great shots!

I don't in any way imagine that I'm a photographer, but once I had the girls and realized that I don't have any pics of me pregnant to show them later when they grow up, or many pics of me at all for that matter, I became obsessed with documenting. I'm not good at journaling, but I have lots of notebooks where I've written down dates with little stories, or just notes to the girls. I've been trying to incorporate them into my scrapping. I want them to know all the stories, and be able to see the love I have for them one day when I'm gone. I know one day I won't be here to tell them all the stories so I want them to have that in my scrapbooks.

So now, I photograph a lot of random moments :) They make for good layouts. I also frequently pose my girls to get the shots where I can see them changing... like in this - I love that side by side all these pics show them changing and growing.
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I try to scrap more about myself as well, for them someday, too. Little things about me here and there that they can look back on. I'm hoping they'll love the scrapbooks as much as I do :)

So, that's why I scrap :)
 
That's so beautiful Brie! I know your girls will love all the stories you're preserving for them . . . Are the notebooks presents for your girls too? They sound amazing . . . entries written in your own hand. . . whether they're polished stories, or just little reminders/thoughts . . . sounds lovely :)
 
I love her. Especially her street photography. I think her ability to blend in and shoot with the camera at waist level) so people didn't know they were being photographed) allowed her to capture such great moments. Of course she was brilliant in her ability to "see" those moments.

Interestingly, my new Canon, the D6, has the ability to be remotely/wirelessly controlled by my iphone. You can "see" what you are shooting and focus through the iphone, so you could shoot with the camera just hanging from your neck (or wherever). I've been thinking about trying out some secret street photography using that feature -- I'm sure it's harder than it looks to compose great shots! Plus I'll probably look like a crazy person waving my upper body around trying to "compose" something. :)

I have started to take a lot more self-portraits. Not so much from an "artistic" perspective, but more because I know that my family wants me to be a part of our family story. I try to pass the camera off to my DH once in a while too and my teen-aged daughter is a real shutterbug with her iphone which has increased the number of photos I'm in by a million percent. :) I have been thinking about this lately because I've been working on some genealogy and I really value the old photos that family members share with me. It really helps to bring a person to life and I guess as I get older I do want a record that "HEY, I WAS HERE!" On the other hand, some old photos don't mean much to me unless I know who the person was and something about their life. So, to me, the value is really in the photos combined with the story, or even photos that tell a story in themselves, rather than just portraits. I guess that's why I've always enjoyed more of a photojournalism style and, by extension, why I now scrapbook in a Project Life format which allows you to capture a lot of small details to tell the story of your life.
 
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:D I wish my notes were that organized! I always have a notebook for something, reminder notes, appointments, grocery lists... I just jot stuff down in whatever notebook I'm currently using, so they're all scattered and some are just notes written on random pieces of paper, or whatever was handy when I wanted to get something down and stuck in there. That's why I'm trying to get them into the scrapbook :) It's nice though, because when I come to a certain photo that never got scrapped from 2 years ago, I have little stories from 2 years ago to put into the layout, and I don't have think of anything to journal, because it's right there for me.

That sounds really cool, Dawn!! You'll have to post some pics here when you try it out!
 
I know Libby! I was so psyched after looking through her work . . .

Dawn--you have to keep me updated too! I would love to see your images . . . and I totally agree . . . Maier's waist level shots are amaaazing. love.

re: your daughter taking pics--I really love that cameras are so much more accessible to younger photographers now. It's so interesting to look at my nieces' photos and gain new insights on their points of view. I was reading a Mom's blogpost about her daughter's love of arranging and photographing all her toys . . . now that's photojournalism!! How stinkin cute would that little girl's photo journal be?

re: looking at old photographs and what a photographer is--I think every photo tells a story and the patina of time often informs our perceptions . . . in other words, you may not think your photos artistic, but how could they not be if they're honest? I just found this old picture of my grandmother and aunt and I'm obsessed with it, but I wonder if people thought it was kind of random at the time it taken . . .

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Wow. I love her portfolio and her self portraits are awesome. I do try to get in more photos now and take some of my self, too. I can see my son really getting into photography someday. He has a kiddie camera and he takes hundreds of selfies on his iPod. Its fun to look at later.
 
I just found this old picture of my grandmother and aunt and I'm obsessed with it, but I wonder if people thought it was kind of random at the time it taken . . .
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I love this photo. Love how your grandmother is focused on moving forward, while your aunt is being hurried along while trying to look at something -- is that a bicycle? Or maybe there's something else she's seeing off camera. A little mysterious and totally awesome. Very symbolic of adulthood vs. childhood.
 
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Wonderful photos. I love the color one of the purse and flowers. I would never think to take a photo at that angle but it is gorgeous. I am the worst photographer ever. I barely remember to take photos most of the time and when I do they turn out terrible. For a while I was doing a lot of selfie, but I stopped when I started regaining weight and just haven't felt like doing it. So stupid, cause I really enjoyed it and it helped keep me motivated. Need to get back to both the diet and the photography.

I also think it is because I am more of a writer. My son has my old books of poetry and every once in a while will ask me what I was thinking about when I wrote something, or who a poem is about, etc... Since he is a writer, we really connect at that level more than we do over my layouts. But he is my biggest fan and critic with scrapping too and takes more of an interest in what I do than I think the average 21 year old male does.

Finally, I think I may have mentioned this in a past post, every year since his first birthday, I write him a birthday letter about that year, his growth, life lessons, etc, seal them in an envelope with a small trinket I want him to have and tuck them in a box. Last year he found the box and asked me what they were. I explained it to him and he asked it he could have them. I said of course. He took them to read on his own and told me he saves them to read when he needs some happiness. He has not gotten through them all yet, but he has told me they are the best gift he has ever received and made me promise to keep writing to him, so I have started another box. :)
 
I don't take selfies either Lori and I always tell myself I'm going to start, but I never do. I think we're always hardest on ourselves and I know I should stop being so critical . . . so we should both start!

Also, I loved reading those stories of your son--your bond with him and the little rituals you two share are so sweet . . .Have you ever photographed your letters to him? They sound like beautiful keepsakes :)
 
I read about her recently and was also very inspired. I did scrapbook and journal when I was younger, pre-kids, but I didn't really call it scrapbooking. I'm really bad about getting in front of the camera, I have good intentions but it makes me feel so uncomfortable, I think I'm naturally an observer. I'm trying to be better.
 
AnalogPaper said:
I don't take selfies either Lori and I always tell myself I'm going to start, but I never do. I think we're always hardest on ourselves and I know I should stop being so critical . . . so we should both start!

Also, I loved reading those stories of your son--your bond with him and the little rituals you two share are so sweet . . .Have you ever photographed your letters to him? They sound like beautiful keepsakes :)
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You should check out Robin's 2013 selfie challenge ;) I haven't updated my thread in a while, but I'm still taking selfies regularly. Sometime ago I discovered that I liked doing all about me pages and use them as a springboard for some art journaling or even just regular talk-to-myself journaling.


Her photographs are absolutely beautiful--what an awesome way to look at and capture the world. It definitely drives home my point that I really much rather prefer more everyday photography than that of events.
 
Lorie--I got a soft cover pocket sized Blurb book printed this year (my first photobook ever) and I fell in love . . . now all I ever think is, that would make a perfect photobook. Like when I read your post, I was oh that's a perfect photo essay to document in a book

Lex--I thought I saw that thread somewhere but I didn't think there were any updates to it . . . I'll look for it again . . . I wanna check out everyone's steez to get some ideas lol I'm so bad at selfies!
 
I spent so much time today going through her photos... thanks so much for sharing. Her photos are so captivating. An edge of sadness to them? It's intriguing!
 
It is Brook--I jumped on the forum literally right after my boyfriend showed me her work. I found myself so fascinated, not just by her incredible images, but also by her story. She never showed her stuff to anyone?? That's what grabbed me at first . . . I was whoa this b----- is righteous and then I felt so sad. Photography was such a huge part of her life, so maybe she really didn't have anyone to share with? But there was still this drive to keep creating
 
wow... what an artist... I wish I had an 1/8 of her talent! Is that a Rolleifex camera? I have one of those in my "collection"...

I used to be more "artsy" with my photos, however now I just want to capture the moment... it's a trick to get my kid to stop moving around so that I can get a decent photo! haha

This year I'm trying to take more selfies... I've been doing Robin's challenge, but like Lex.. have kept up with the photos, just haven't updated the thread in a very, very long time... :o My hubby never remembers to take my photo unless I push him to do it. My son is 6 and he just likes the "click" sound, so his photos aren't the greatest, yet...
 
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