Devon Akmon » Art & Design

i.Phoneography International Photography Exhibition

Devon Akmon — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 15:43:47 +0000

It’s time for another iPhoneography exhibition! This one is called i.Phoneography and it’s Italy’s first juried exhibition of iPhone photography. Here are the details on the i.Phoneography International Photography Exhibition:

Do you still believe that the camera makes the photographer? i.Phoneography believes in the creative power of the gaze, in a new way to describe contemporaneity. Organized by Arteaparte, iPhoneography is the first Italian contest of photographs taken and edited with an iPhone. This is a language for images that becomes an art laboratory, and that involves a growing number of iPhoneographers from all around the world.

The rules:

The contest is cost-free for contributors, but participation is restricted to iPhone’s taken and edited photographs.
Each participant can send a maximum of six images through the submission form.
Maximum size accepted 1536 x 2048 px.
All material must be submitted online by 30 August 2010.

Here are my entries into this juried exhibition:

Here’s a link to my gallery at iPhonepgraphy.com.

You can find more of my iPhoneography on Flickr.

- Devon Akmon

iPix 365: iPhoneography for April 2010

Devon Akmon — Sat, 08 May 2010 01:00:17 +0000

I began this year with a small but ambitious creative project: to take at least one photograph per day using my iPhone. Here are the photos for April 2010. All of the images in the following collection were photographed using an iPhone and edited, toned and processed with the device as well.

Be sure to check out earlier collections:

The EYE’EM Award

Devon Akmon — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 22:29:07 +0000

It appears there are more and more exhibits and competitions for mobile phone photography. I’m glad to see the medium grow. Recently, I submitted five images to the EYE’EM Award, “an international competition dedicated to the rise of mobile photography as a new artform.” Here are the four most important rules for the competition (see the complete rules & requirements):

Images must be taken with a mobile phone camera
Participants may enter up to five pictures free of charge
Both mobile as well as desktop applications are permitted for retouching images (I’m not too keen on allowing desktop editing)
The deadline to enter is April 25, 2010

The winning images will be exhibited in Berlin and the finalists will be featured in an exhibit book.

Here’s a link to the images I submitted to the contest.

EYE'EM Submission by Devon Akmon

iPix 365: iPhoneography for March 2010

Devon Akmon — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 13:30:40 +0000

These past few weeks have been an incredibly busy time for me. In short, this has caused my daily iPhone photography project to suffer. Of the thirty-one days in March, I was only able to shoot a daily image fifteen times. When I began this project I was hoping for roughly a ninety percent success rate. In other words, I would shoot at least 329 daily photographs out of a possible 365 days. Because of March, I really need to tighten up my shooting for the remainder of the project.

Because there are so few images for March, I thought I would feature my five favorites for the month instead of creating a video. So, here is my portfolio images for March 2010:

iPic: 59/365 March 01 2010

iPic: 61/365 March 03 2010

iPic: 62/365 March 04 2010

iPic: 64/365 March 06 2010

iPic: 70/365 March 21 2010

- Devon Akmon

Featured on iPhoneography.com

Devon Akmon — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 17:15:07 +0000

A portfolio of my iPhone photography work is currently on display over at the iPhoneography blog. Most of the images in this portfolio are from my 2010 iPic of the Day collection. Stop by and take a look. This is a great blog for those interested in iPhone photography.

Work featured on iPhoneography.com.

Devon Akmon

iPix 365: iPhoneography for February 2010

Devon Akmon — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 01:06:56 +0000

It’s hard to believe that February has already come to an end. Speaking to that, here is my collection of iPhone photographs for February.

All of the images in the following collection were photographed using an iPhone and edited, toned and processed with the device as well.

If you missed January’s collection, point your browser to iPixs 365: iPhoneography for January 2010.

- Devon Akmon

The Implosion of J.L. Hudson’s Flagship Store in Detroit

Devon Akmon — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 17:53:24 +0000

At 5:47 PM on October 24, 1998, the iconic J.L. Hudson’s flagship department store in downtown Detroit was imploded. As I recall, there was much controversy surrounding former Mayor Dennis Archer’s decision to bring down this _______ (eyesore; historically significant structure; reminder of better days in a tired city; etc.). Sadly, to this day, nothing has been built upon this massive footprint in the city. Almost twelve years have passed and I can’t help but wonder what could have happened had that magnificent building been restored, rehabilitated and/or adaptively reused.

As a young art student with a love for the city – most of my creative work focused on Detroit – I made a point of attending the destruction of this icon. In hindsight, it probably wasn’t the smartest move I’ve made in my life. Who knows what I inhaled in the plume that engulfed the city following the implosion that day (I’m sure I lost a couple years of my life). I remember feeling both exhilarated and depressed, simultaneously. I documented the destruction I saw with my 35mm SLR camera. My goal was to eventually do something with the series of images.

Originally, I planned to print a series of nine images showing the collapse of the structure. However, after further thought this didn’t seem appropriate. Later, I thought about screenprinting the series on Hudson’s store bags. The name of the series was to be 13 Hour Sale! (yeah, it’s satire for those familiar with Hudson’s). In the end, my ambivalence and personal confusion over the building prohibited me from finishing the series.

Today, I’m snowed in and feeling a bit nostalgic. I recently located some scans of the images on an old Zip disk (yes, the quality of the scans is poor). I thought I’d share them here with you today. Only a handful of friends and family have ever seen these images. If you have recollections of the building or old Detroit, please do share your thoughts in the comment section below (or email me if you prefer to be private).

Hudson's Implosion 01

Hudson's Implosion 02

Hudson's Implosion 03

Hudson's Implosion 04

Hudson's Implosion 05

Hudson's Implosion 06

Hudson's Implosion 07

Hudson's Implosion 08

Hudson's Implosion 09

Other resources:

Here is a video of the implosion.
The Detroit News: How J.L. Hudson changed the way we shop
Check out the book Hudson’s: Detroit’s Legendary Department Store (Images of America)
And, if you can find a copy, check out Gary Glaser’s documentary The Hudson’s Building

- Devon Akmon

Hipstamatic iPhoneography Photo Contest

Devon Akmon — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 14:30:36 +0000

It’s time for another iPhone photo contest. This one is for images taken with the Hipstamatic application and it’s brought to you by iPhoneography.org. Entries will be accepted through March 2, 2010.

Contest details:

The Hipstamatic iPhone app is creating quite a buzz in the world of iPhoneography. Do you have a hot Hipstamatic shot? Submit your Hipstamatic images for a chance to be one of three featured iPhoneographers on iPhoneography.org.

You know the drill: check out the rules and then enter as many images as you want. Be aware that the option for voting on images requires you to create an account.

Here are the two images I submitted. If you get a chance, please vote for Downtown A2 and Campesino. Thanks!

Campesino

Vote here!" width="550" height="550" class="size-full wp-image-887" />

Downtown A2

- Devon Akmon

Digital SLR Pinhole Camera, Part 1

Devon Akmon — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 15:20:56 +0000

I recently checked out the handbook Hacking Digital Cameras from the Ann Arbor District Library. I was happy to find within this book instructions for building a pinhole lens for a digital camera. I’ve been wanting to build a quality pinhole for quite some time. However, I didn’t think I’d be making a digital pinhole camera.

The project was really quite simple. I ordered two new body caps for my Canon EOS digital camera (the second was in case I screwed up the first!) from B&H Photo. In addition to the body cap, the only other supplies you’ll need for this project are a very small drill bit, a cordless drill and a needle or shirt-pin.

The first step is to measure the body cap to locate the center. Once marked, grab you’re drill and small bit and slowly start creating the hole. Don’t drill all the way through the cap! Go slowly until you have created a small dimple on the opposite side (front) of the cap. Finally, create the pinhole using the needle. Be sure to carefully run the needle through both sides of the cap. I used some 1000 grit sandpaper to gently clean up the hole.

Pretty simple, eh? Below you will find my first pictures taken with the pinhole. Yep, they’re pretty unremarkable. Currently, I’m taking things one step at a time. My next few experiments will focus on varying the size of the pinhole, trying to build a “closed pinhole” and maybe even working with some zone plates.

As a side note, if you’re looking for analog pinhole cameras, check out Eric Renner’s Leonardo cameras or this handmade wooden pinhole camera from Zero Image. Also, here’s instructions to other digital pinhole projects: $0 digital pinhole camera via Make or this one from Instructables.

I think I am going to finish one more project from the book before returning it to the library: hacking an old point-and-shoot digital camera so that it can create infrared pictures!

DSLR Pinhole Image 01

DSLR Pinhole Image 02

- Devon Akmon

Ice House Detroit

Devon Akmon — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 22:15:28 +0000

This afternoon a colleague and I took a break from our work to check out Gregory Holm and Matthew Radune’s art project, Ice House Detroit, on the city’s east side. Holm (a photographer) and Radune (an architect), both of Brooklyn, acquired the abandoned house at 3926 McClellan from the Michigan State Land Bank in exchange for paying the back taxes on another area home. In short, the project was an attempt at drawing attention to the mortgage foreclosure crisis.

For more info on the Ice House art project, visit:

Today the temperature was a warm 38 degrees Fahrenheit, the sun was shining and there was not a cloud in the sky during our visit. Yeah, you guessed it, the Ice House was melting. In fact, I was really surprised to discover that a substantial portion of the project had already melted away. Here are some photos I took of the Ice House using my DSLR. I also shot a role of film using my Holga, which I’ll share soon, and some images with my iPhone. The whole collection can be viewed on Flickr. I wish I would have gotten over to the Ice House this past weekend before it began to melt. Oh well.

Ice House Detroit 01

Ice House Detroit 02

Ice House Detroit 03

Ice House Detroit 04

Ice House Detroit 05

Ice House Detroit 06

Ice House Detroit 07

- Devon Akmon