Impulse | Junior Ballett Zürich's Production at Theater Winterthur
I was invited to photograph the studio- and stage rehearsals of Impulse, Ballet Zürich’s Junior Ballet evening.
It consisted of three world premieres: Entropy by Craig Davidson, Pure Coincidence by Bryan Arias, and Union in Poetry by Juliano Nunes, and was streamed live from the Theater Winterhur on the 27th of February 2021.
The streaming will remain available online and free of charge until the end of April.
Further information: opernhaus.ch/en/digital
Please enjoy the photos, showing the development from studio to stage:
Entropy
Choreography Craig Davidson Stage Design Craig Davidson
Costumes Alana Sargent Lighting Martin Gebhardt
Junior Ballett | Ballett Zürich
Pure Coincidence
Choreography Bryan Arias Stage Design Bryan Arias
Costumes Bregje van Balen Lighting Martin Gebhardt
Junior Ballett | Ballett Zürich
Union in Poetry
Choreography Juliano Nunes Stage Design Juliano Nunes Costumes Juliano Nunes
Lighting Martin Gebhardt
Junior Ballett | Ballett Zürich
Exploring Street Photography
Street photography forces you to be present and really see your surroundings. When I step out onto the sidewalk I see so many interesting stories taking place. It is exciting, but frustrating at the same time, as it is so hard to be able to capture one of those little stories or situations without getting in closer.
I needed a project. One that involved actually taking photos as opposed to just sitting in front of my computer going through my archives*.
*More on that in a future post
I wanted to explore a different form of photography, one which - most importantly - would get me out of my comfort zone. I’ve always been a huge admirer of the “father of street photography”, Henry Cartier-Bresson, and other masters like Robert Doisneau. Their work made me fall in love with black-and-white photography. When you remove that seductive colour from an image, the photograph gets stripped down, exposing its basic elements: light and shadow, line and shape. To quote the photographer Ted Grant:
“When you photograph people in colour you photograph their clothes. When you photograph people in black and white, you photograph their souls.”
I bought a little 23mm fixed lens Fujifilm camera, the X100F, for my street photography. It is small, inconspicuous, and cost me half the price of the very much praised newer version: The X100V.
Street photography forces you to be present and really see your surroundings. When I step out onto the sidewalk I see so many interesting stories taking place. It is exciting, but frustrating at the same time, as it is so hard to be able to capture one of those little stories or situations without getting in closer. At the beginning I felt anxious taking photos of people without them knowing. I felt like a spy. If I asked someone to take their photo they would either decline, or the situation would be gone and therefore the "magic" of the photograph gone with it.
Therefore I chose to stop asking my subjects for permission. I decided to walk around with a more open and relaxed attitude. The few times someone has seen me taking their photograph I would give them a smile and show them that I mean no harm. It has lead to interesting conversations with people I would never have met. Maybe I haven't been doing this long enough, but no-one has asked me to delete a photo yet. And if they do I would gladly comply.
In any genre of photography you, the photographer, have a responsibility: To have empathy for your subjects, to not exploit or take advantage of them. Street photography is a very important form of photography- documenting life as it really is: Unfiltered. Not like the over-manipulated selfie-world society is obsessed with today.
Below I’ve added a few photos from my recent wanderings with my camera. I’m posting them on my personal Instagram profile too, if you are interested in following my experimentation with photography there: @admill_explores
Kreationen Rehearsal Photos | Ballett Zürich - Junior Ballett
I would like to share some dance photos I took of the Zürich Junior Ballett’s rehearsals for their production “Kreationen”. At least they were still able to have one performance before everything got shut down due to the pandemic.
Hey, how is everyone doing? Hope you are finding ways to stay healthy, both mentally and physically. One of the best ways to cope is by creating a good routine for every day. It’s a great time to read and learn new things.
Now is the time to use the internet in the way it was always meant to be used - communicating with friends and loved ones all over the world, supporting each other, and sharing helpful information and resources.
I would like to share some dance photos I took of the Zürich Junior Ballett’s rehearsals for their production “Kreationen”. At least they were still able to have one performance before everything got shut down due to the pandemic.
Enjoy the photos, I hope they bring you inspiration in this uncertain time.
I wish everyone hope and courage, stay optimistic. Hang in there!
Kreationen featuring: Dancers of the Junior Ballett in "Echo of Elements" by Filipe Portugal, "Wounded" by Louis Stiens and "Submerge" by Goyo Montero.
Many thanks to the Zürich Ballett
Dance, and then what?
All dancers have to face that question, sooner or later. I know that most dancers don’t even think about it until that day comes.
Ed Louzardo in rehearsal for “Attacke.”
Choreography by Reginaldo Oliveira, Badisches Staatsballett Karlsruhe
The former World No. 1 golfer, Ernie Els, also known as “The Big Easy," said that his family was all obviously very proud of him, but that his gran kept asking him when he was going to get a proper job. This is probably a question most ballet dancers have to hear from their relatives too. Ballet dancers fit the role of the “Starving Artist," doing what they love for the passion of the art itself.
In countries like Germany, it is possible for a dancer to have a more or less decent standard of living. But in most other countries, dancers either need a rich family to support them, or they’ll have to scrape by to make a living. The love of dance alone doesn’t pay the bills. And theatres everywhere are cutting positions in order to save money. Fewer dancers in a company means more hours of work. Overworked dancers are more prone to injuries. Injuries make the short career of a dancer even shorter. And then what? All dancers have to face that question, sooner or later. I know that most dancers don’t even think about it until that day comes.
Dancers rarely have the savings of a professional sportsman to help make the transition. A friend of mine recently said that he admired me for starting out on a completely new career path and that he would be scared sh*tless. I am scared sh*tless. But do I have a choice, other than to start something new?
Even though I thought a lot about my transition during my dance career, I’m still unsure, I still feel like I’m making a big leap. It’s a very important choice; I was lucky to have a long career of almost 20 years, but the career thereafter would hopefully last 30 years or more, if I live that long. Dancers don’t always have the luxury to “build a bridge” to their next career. I did try, but being a professional ballet dancer takes all your focus and energy. You can’t ask your boss to only work half-time while you build your new business or study something on the side.
There is a wonderful foundation in Berlin, called Stiftung Tanz, which helps dancers with the process of transition. A quote from their website:
"We accompany and support dancers from the beginning of their education through every stage of their career up until the conclusion of their process of transition”.
A lady from the foundation came to speak at our ballet company. She said that dancers have to start thinking about their possibilities as early as they can. I wish that more countries had foundations like these. But even with their help, transition is scary. I knew the day would come for me, but I didn’t realise that the one thing I’d need most is patience. Life is much more of a marathon than a sprint. I’m slowly building up contacts and gaining opportunities. But it has to happen naturally.
Before, my life was organised by my work schedule at the theatre. To become self-employed I need to create my own schedule. I need to take full responsibility. It is scary, but there is freedom in that too.
I have to now really live in the moment. I need to learn to celebrate the small victories, to enjoy the journey. I want to be a photographer, because I need to create art. I need to be flexible and experience different things everyday. I want to continue living my passion for dance through photography. And there is no better time to try. I’d rather fail than never try.
I’m hoping that my transition into my next career will continue evolving, that the career itself is a transition that never ends.
Are you an ex-dancer that is in the middle of their transition, or are you already through your transition and have something to share? I would love to hear about your thoughts, worries, success stories and ideas. Are you a dancer exploring the possibilities for what is to come? Even if you don’t have anything to do with the dance world, but have a similar story which may help others, please use the comment section below to continue the discussion. Let’s help each other.
What is most important in photography?
This photo marks the point where I fell in love with photography. It was in 2010 during a stage rehearsal for the Young Choreographer’s evening in Karlsruhe, the ballet was Reginaldo Oliveira’s first choreography with the title: “Attempt”.
I took it with a Nikon D5000 and some crappy 3rd party lens. It’s a bit blurry. There’s a lot of noise in the image. And honestly, I don’t care. The image projects a feeling. That is all that matters in photography. An image only fails if it says nothing. Who cares what camera you used?
Diego de Paula, Bruna Andrade and Bram Koch
This photo marks the point where I fell in love with photography. It was in 2010 during a stage rehearsal for the Young Choreographer’s evening in Karlsruhe, the ballet was Reginaldo Oliveira’s first choreography with the title: “Attempt”.
I took it with a Nikon D5000 and some crappy 3rd party lens. It’s a bit blurry. There’s a lot of noise in the image. But the image projects a feeling. An image only fails if it says nothing. Who cares what camera you used? Do you care what pots and pans a chef used to make you that delicious dinner? I highly doubt that even the best pixel peepers (someone who zooms in so far they can make out the atoms holding a photo together) could tell you which camera was used to create an image. So many times people have asked me what camera I use. As if it really matters. There is no magic camera. Of course, I always strive to for the highest technical quality in my images, using the best gear available to me, but the emotion the image provokes and/or the story it tells, is by far more important to me.
Why do so many people add filters or film grain to their images? Because without them the images look too perfect. The imperfection is what makes an image interesting. Perfect is boring. Life is far from perfect. Life is interesting. So many people get plastic surgery and Botox. They all end up looking the same.
Many people want overly-photoshopped images. One day they'll look back and think: “what did I really look like back then?”. That is, if they ever look at the images again. Usually the photos just end up disappearing on their computer or phone’s hard drive after their 0,000058 seconds of fame on social media.
Whenever a new camera or lens is announced, photographers increase their mortgages and start selling their kidneys to be the first to buy it. In today’s culture people think that buying the latest and the greatest is the solution to all their problems. Today’s cameras are a 1000 times more advanced than 10 years ago, they can do everything and more than what you’ll ever need as a photographer. People took amazing photos 90 years ago. What cameras did they use?
Understanding the technicalities of photography will surely give you more control over your images. A better camera can surely help you achieve the image you are after. But don’t listen to someone who says that real photographers only take photos with “real cameras” set to Manual mode. Did you take a photo of your cat with your Cheap Chinese Mobile Phone, that is “badly lit”, but you just love it? Then print it out and frame it. You’re a photographer.