Conceptualizing Visual Approach Photographer: Bill Armstrong

After Robert Doisneau, The Fall, 2019

When I think about the visual approach in work, I think of a style that sticks with the individual. In photography, one’s visual approach is unique to the individual trying to portray something. Color, angles, shapes, contrast, and other ways can illustrate a subject differently. A notable example of a visual approach comes from the work of Bill Armstrong. 

Bill Armstrong’s work is truly fascinating. It heavily relies on color and is out of focus on the subject and environment. The visual approach that Bill Armstrong works with is blurred focus and color effects. Bill Armstrong primarily works on this since color provides a more lush and semi-abstract while the blurriness gives it a temporal feeling of the moment. This visual approach is very sporadic but does an excellent job of providing a different feeling when looking at his work.

What do I think about his work? As seen above, his work on the Falling series is a great demonstration of the visual approach he is well known for. The Fall, 2019 (image above) is my favorite of his work. The use of color and blurriness gives it a sense of the moment when someone falls and is unaware of the outcome. The way the subject falls, with yellow being the more dominant color, correlates very well. Overall, Bill Armstrong provided a unique style approach throughout his work, perceiving things differently within photography.