A quote I stumbled upon recently had me thinking about the concept of atmosphere when it comes to photographs. The quote is from Alfred Stieglitz, a photographer perhaps most well-known for activism in promoting photographs as pieces of art in the early 1900s. And while I think there is perhaps a technical interpretation of his words with regards to perceptions of depth, I couldn’t help but think about photographs I’ve made or come across that have a certain atmospheric aesthetic to them.

Atmosphere is the medium through which we see all things. In order, therefore, to see them in their true value on a photograph, as we do in Nature, atmosphere must be there. Atmosphere softens all lines; it graduates the transition from light to shade; it is essential to the reproduction of the sense of distance. That dimness of outline which is characteristic for distant objects is due to atmosphere. Now, what atmosphere is to Nature, tone is to a picture.

~ Alfred Stieglitz, 1864-1946

What is an atmospheric aesthetic?

While all photographs have to contend with elements of the atmosphere, sometimes negatively in cases of smog or haze, an atmospheric aesthetic includes elements that are essential to the character of the final image. And for me, “atmosphere” isn’t always just what’s in the elemental air of the scene, but can use other elements to create similar impressions. For example, in the featured image of this post, the background lighting striking other elements in the scene, combined with using a long lens and shallow depth-of-field to photograph this lupine gives an atmospheric aesthetic.

On the contrary, I’ve made many such images of flowers with a long lens, shooting through leaves or grasses that did NOT feel atmospheric to me. So it isn’t some sort of recipe. I think of it as a situation where the light and surroundings are swirling around and supporting a subject in a sense. It can be one of those things that are hard to adequately define, but you know it when you see it.

I do know that one thing that would have killed the atmosphere in this particular Lupine image is using a diffuser to essentially put the whole scene in shade. And that is a bit counterintuitive to how I learned to photograph flowers – carry a diffuser to even out the light around it. That is perfectly fine for certain types of photographs, just not for the kind I created here.

Weather elements contribute to mood

If someone were to ask me what is the first atmospheric element I initially think of when it comes to photographs – my answer would be fog. But not fog alone, usually some type of interesting light is involved in interacting with it. There is just something about a foggy scene that brings a sense of mystery and interest to me. Perhaps it is because the fog obscures a lot of detail normally there on a clear day, leaving your imagination to wander a bit. It also acts like a great simplifier, which helps maintain attention on primary elements. Yet, without the fog, it is a completely different image.

Time contributing to atmosphere

I’ve always thought that long exposures can contribute an atmospheric element to photographs – even if the actual air isn’t visualized. Photographs that portray an illusion of time passing by in a still image – such as clouds, waves, maybe even objects, and light interactions.

Again, I’d hate to suggest that such things can be formulaic. In looking for images to illustrate this post, I did one search under my keyword for ‘blur.’ And while all of those images had some element of blur to them, I wouldn’t necessarily call each and every one atmospheric. Even waterfall images often portrayed as silky flowing water don’t always evoke this type of characteristic for me.

And quite frankly, I don’t think I’ve ever gone out looking for such images – these are all just things that I stumble upon. Sometimes I know right away, like in the foggy images above, you can just tell by looking at the camera screen you’ve witnessed a unique moment. Sometimes it is later in development that I realize it is taking on this certain feel. Sometimes it comes from “breaking the rules” – shooting into the sun with strongly backlit subjects just to see how the light dances through the scene.

And if I revisit the words of Stieglitz – the qualities of softening lines, graduating light transitions, and providing some sense of depth are indeed qualities I find in each of these photographs. You can almost feel the scene changing before your eyes.

If any of this made any sense (or didn’t whatsoever! 🙂 ) – feel free to leave a comment about qualities you enjoy in such atmospheric photographs.