Franco Fontana

 Franco Fontana was born in Italy in 1933. Starting as an "mere" amateur.

Franco Fontana is known for his colorful and painting like aesthetic that he adds to his pictures. Each and every one of his photos are vibrant and highly saturated with color. He accomplishes the flattened look by using a telephoto lens. This takes away the perception of depth that most photographers use as way to add to their images. This is what I find so interesting about his work. He does the opposite of what is taught and it creates a very unique and special form of art. When I first saw his work I didn't even realize that they were digital photos, and I think that is a very common first reaction.

The first image is one of my favorite pieces of his. It reminds me of the cover of the Dr Suess book "Oh The Places We Go". It looks like an abstract painting when in reality its just a picture of mountain ranges. The different shades of green and the strip of yellow really add the perfect touch. If it were all one shade of green I don't think he would've been able to accomplish such an eye catching picture. 

I also believe that the tree in this image is perfectly placed and adds just the right amount of detail. It blends perfectly with the background especially because of the way its placed right in between the lines of the light green strip. If it were crossing over to another shade of green the picture would lose so much of it's power. I think that's something I really admire about Fontanas work. He is able to see the potential in such a simple setting. He is able to point his camera perfectly and capture a beautiful piece out of a scene that isn't necessarily intersting and that is definitely not easy to do. 

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