This week’s featured artist is Rodion Yefymov, a self-taught photographer originally from Ukraine who is now living in the UK.
Rodion’s photography most often explores the effects of light itself—and does so brilliantly, as seen in the following three images.
In Hope, below, Rodion captured a light source within his composition (the street lamp) which practically carves out a three-dimensional, visible space from the darkness.
The various textures surrounding the lamp help break up the space and add interest, while a darkly foreboding doorway on the right acts as a great visual counterbalance to the lamp’s pure light.
From this single shot, it’s impossible to tell if there are more lights down the street—I’d assume there are, but the way Rodion’s cropped the image, it appears as though this lamp, alone, lights the way.
Overall, it’s fantastic image, made all the more powerful by it’s monochromatic colors.
In Pink, Rodion went a different route all together, blowing out his highlights and leaving almost no shadows to create a soft, beautifully delicate floral treatment.
The slightest touch of intensity found in the flower on the right side gives this image just enough contrast to be a success.
Any less, and the photograph would appear washed out - too much contrast, however, and the image would lose it’s soft appeal.
That balance, I think, is what I like about so many of Rodion’s photos. Light vs. dark, color vs. black and white—they balance out so often in his photographs that it’s easy to take for granted how excellent his images are.
I mean, how beautiful is that sunset, especially with the high contrast rocks below?
For more photos by Rodion Yefymov, please check out his online photo gallery or visit myspace.com/rodionlight. You may have to sign into (or sign up for) a MySpace account, but it’s definitely worth the effort.
