Reflecting on reflections

For whatever reason, I've always been drawn to incorporating reflections in my photography, and in this I know I am certainly not alone. One of the most well known photographs with a reflection was that taken by that astonishing master of the photographic art, Henri Cartier-Bresson, recording a man leaping over (or into) a puddle. The photograph, entitled Derriere la Gare Saint-Lazare was regarded by Time Magazine as the ‘Photograph of the Century'. Without doubt it is a superb photograph, and certainly one that proves my point that you're in the best of company if you use reflections in your work.

Using reflections in my own photographs

Reflections work best for me to help give a certain mood to a photograph, or more often, to help emphasise abstraction and colour.

I find that the swirls, smudges and softening that reflections can bring to a photograph make it seem more impressionistic, and I particularly appreciate how digital camera seem to assist in this regard, as I find they are extremely good at capturing reflections faithfully.

The use of reflection in painting

Monet of course created some of the most famous (and exquisite) paintings that contained reflections, not least the beautiful Reflections of Clouds on the Water-Lily Pond.

As you might expect, reflection has been used extensively by a number of artists, not least by the incorporation of a mirror (or it's substitute) in the work. The following examples by Picasso, Manet, and Van Eyck being only a small sample.

The mirrored shield of Perseus

I couldn't leave this topic without mentioning one of my favourite references of the use of reflection in literature - the mirrored shield of Perseus. As you may remember, whomsoever dares to look at Medusa is turned to stone, a fate Perseus cleverly avoids by using his shining shield (a gift from Athena) to allow him to see her reflection only. Now that really would be a photograph worth seeing!

Further resources

• An academic paper on reflection in art by Patrick Cavanagh and others.
• A basic but useful overview on photographing reflections in The Guardian.
• Digital Camera World - Water reflection techniques: how to increase the impact of your landscapes.

Originally published by this author on quietsilence.net

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