41 thoughts on “rob august – ubah”

  1. JC

    Talks about:
    Strength, passion, calm, after-burn…

    Simple composition, strong contrasts

    Is it part of a sequence ?

    Regards

  3. anon

    Dear Mr. Editor-in-Chief:

    I still think you should name the jpegs so that the photog’s name appears:

    rob_august-ubah.jpg

    instead of ubah-4-628×800.jpg

    because people DO drag these to their desktops… and it’s just good photographic “hygiene” to consistently name your images with your name in them.

    that’s it — my .02…

  4. ben

    yeah i kind of like this. not your typical model shot. there is something “ugly” about the picture that i can’t put my finger on. i don’t feel like the image is about beauty. there’s something more primitive about the model than pure beauty.

    my first point of reference was Helmut Newton, or maybe Avedon – but this has a different feel, less slick, a bit more earthy.

    i’m having trouble placing it into a context, but as a standalone image i think it still works.

  5. Matt

    Just a few thoughts. I like this. Since this doesn’t fall under reportage… a few critiques, the neck lines distract me. The vascular shadows on the arms don’t though. Love the veins in the shoulders actually!! Strong. Ben, dead on. I thought the same. Less slick. Although I wouldn’t say Newton’s work is slick, but that word felt right in this context. This is a strong shot- but not “Newton” strong. Still very lovely.

    On another note… I just gotta say…
    I love how organized and ‘diverse’ Burn is, in comparison to the former.
    DAH, as an editor (ringleader) of this troup. I really love the diversity of shots you decided to post. I was afraid this would be one reportage/essay shot(s) after another. The mix really keeps me coming back, and I feel a part of the group again. I admit, I almost wrote it off.

  7. Subhrajit

    burn is literally burning now with this photograph! i would personally have liked a little more hint of the face but then, the photographr’s emphasis is somewhere else and one quite understands that and probably this one titillates more. hmmm….great work mr rob august. what a nice way to start a friday morning!!! :)

  9. Concerned photographer

    Why do you feel the need to download other peoples images? Isn’t looking at them online enough? You have said this twice now. Why do you feel the need to download someone else images to your hard drive. They are easily viewable online I seen no need for you to download them or archive them on your own system.

  10. Concerned photographer

    Also how do you know they aren’t named for their own system, which why would you need your own name I mean come on just enjoy the pictures instead of downloading them.

  17. Joe

    i like this image loads Rob, Bravo!

    for me it amplifies a gender paradox and to some extent i wonder if that’s by design Rob?

    it surely telegraphs just as much masculine as feminine features; which includes the metallic rendering and the masking of evidence for a more certain gender conclusion due to the posture.

    it actually makes me feel a bit weird liking it the way I do… weird is good, all provocation is good. again, great image Rob.
    ..

  18. abele quaregna

    It’s a good image, even if I would have liked the girl more de-contextualized (a flat sky without clouds and no buildings in the background) giving emphasis to the high-contrast (almost “graphical”) rendition of the skin. btw I would have liked the legs showing the same “glossy” appearance as the torso. My reference in this case is Albert Watson.

  19. Haik

    it buzzes lightyears of beautiful female anatomy, luzz. John Vink found a security issue in the same communication channel.

  20. Cliff

    This is a nice image. I like the dark skin with its sheen contrasted against the background. The line of her lower arms, the ribs, her breast cover, the lines in her neck, all seem to lead toward the heart. I think strength is conveyed but with her upturned face, I see it more as a spiritual strength. A high degree of androgny is also conveyed…neck, veins, lean figure, suspenders….making it more of a human image for me rather than a gender image. Without the earrings and bracelet it would be even more so. Her legs are more developed, athletic in appearance. I know I sound like a coroner dissecting her body but without a facial reference, I believe this image is about the body or what’s on it.Interestingly, my wife pointed out to me she seems to be wearing hose…I don’t know, there are some lines running laterally and vertically in the legs. It could be the light but if it is hose….why?? All in all, a very engaging image.

  21. anon

    i don’t download them — just did to look recently but have discard the images — but i am pretty sure that an interested photo editor or art director might — they don’t just bookmark stuff, they’ll put it in a folder on their hard drive — this happens in the real world — it just makes sense when you post your work on the web that you have your name in the file name and/or info in the photoshop “file info” box.

  22. wendy

    **… with her head leaned back, gives me the feeling of ‘release’- but her body portrays something entirely different… I like the tension in this photo… and love her stockings!!!! **

  25. Lassal

    She is wearing a typical dancer’s outfit. She looks like she could be a dancer too … But yes, the bracelet & earrings distract from this.

  27. mustafah

    This is one of my favorite images by Rob. The bar, separated Ubah from the urban landscape, her gripping it and almost pushing up….it’s epic.

  28. luzz biteyear

    apart from the photographic skills, what is this picture really communicating? to me, nothing really.
    Stirring the pot? mmmh…..

  31. mat

    interesting shot. i like the fact that the models face is not shown which takes the focus from beauty and puts it on the strength of the woman. kind of the strength of serenity or the serenity of strength.. either way.. i think it’s quite nice.

  33. david alan harvey

    MAT…

    i have not forgotten you….i still am scrambling and traveling, but your site is my top priority when i get some time (either this weekend or early next week)..there is no point for me to take quick a look and do a rush review….thanks for your patience…

    cheers, david

  36. Magnus

    The lack of overly processed skin is very refreshing here. There are lines, tones, textures. This is not a Barbie doll, and I think that is what appeals to me.

    The lack of contrast between the sky and the clouds in the background is a little regrettable. Might have been nicer with a polarizer?

  37. luzz biteyear

    david,

    that’s pretty aggressive from you…
    like saying you’re not human since you disagree with the general opinion…
    I’m sure 9 out of 10 of your colleagues at magnum would agree with me (about this shot’s qualities).
    That said, I love what you’re doing wit Burn here: Keep it up!

  39. Concerned Photographer

    I totally agree about the file info. Maybe this is a question for Anton but seems that at least one person out of all of these would have done it so there must be some automated thing going on that takes it out when uploaded to the site. Also if you want to look at the file info and you use firefox you can download an add on to view the image exif data without downloading it that is something I use quite often.

  40. jared iorio

    Looks like Magnum In Motion is causing some ripples through the old media, good stuff, and glad to see it.

    Newspapers better get local, quick, it’s the only news that city papers can do well that other outlets on the internet can’t, and this is a good way to go about it.

    Thanks for the link.

  41. bobblack

    when i first saw this photograph (i needed a few days to be silent, as i’ve been fighting a 2 week flu and havent been in the best of mind), I was stopped literally cold, drop dead: wow!…

    I am not certain why, but Rob’s photograph reminds me of the great film “Chinatown.”
    (http://www.filmsite.org/chin.html)….I am not sure exactly why, but all the things I loved best about LosAngeles and the film are here in Rob’s powerful and enigmatic picture. I absolutely love the contrast between her faceless-face and the intimacy of her stomach and vulva: we have no idea who this woman is (no face) and yet we have such a clear and precise observation of her stomach, arms, vulva etc. And she’s in a moment of ecstasy (orgasm?), when noticing her face, her clenched hands, the tension in her stomach and arm muscles….and distant, dreamy los angeles….again, i dont know why, but all of that tension and sexual alarm and weird distance just makes me think of Chinatown…

    and the technical shit of the pic is terrific…love the opaque, missing sky, the thread of the city skyline and all the greased-up silver of her bodies center…

    terrific image….

    what a wild ride this Burn magazine :)))

    cheers
    bob

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