Sam Kaplan Born: Boston 1985 Profession: Photographer, specializing in still life and commercial photography
Personal Background Sam Kaplan was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts. He has degrees in Studio Art and Art History from Wesleyan, the school he attended and graduated from in the spring of 2007. Currently he lives in New York City. Some of his clients include The New York Times Magazine, New York Magazine, Fortune, Men's Health, and Budweiser. His personal philosophy that he says he applies to his everyday is "simplify".
Style and Philosophy Sam Kaplan has always said he values simplicity. He shows this in his works. Most of his images are commercial and compare to those of Fernando Decillis. I think their work is very similar because they both obviously value simplicity and show it in their photos. Their images both really show what ever product they are advertising. Like I mentioned earlier Sam Kaplan really tries to incorporate as little as possible to get his messages across. I think that his photos really tell what he is trying to say whether it is “look at this sturdy table” or “buy these beautiful shades of lipstick”. Kaplan also does images with motion which are really cool. They allow you to see more of the product than you thought possible. Sam Kaplan’s images are the epitome of innovation and uncomplicated.
Influences Kaplan's works have really encouraged me to look beyond the surface of images. He captures so much without using a lot. He also uses things I would have never thought to photograph. For instance, he takes pictures of just an everyday cup of water. I have become more of a perceptive photographer while analyzing and re- creating his art.
Compare and Contrast In my final images I chose to photograph some photographers resembling some of Sam Kaplan’s. I chose one that is a photo originally meant to promote Hershey’s Chocolate and it’s use in the popular summer food s’mores. The second I chose was a still life of bright red strawberries surrounding bright pink strawberry Starburts, this picture was taken in an effort to promote Starburts candy. My next image was as simple as most of Kaplan’s works, this one included two identical glasses of water with different amounts of water in each. All of the photos I chose are also motion photos available on Kaplan’s website. I think that Sam Kaplan’s photos look more professional than mine, as they should, and also I think because most of the images are based so heavily upon the presentation of pattern mine look different because of the lacking of exact execution of his patterns used.
Personal Artist Statement My images all focus greatly on pattern and balance. I think that in the photos specifically of patterned food and treats there is an immense amount of pattern and balance. In my photo of the water glasses I think that way the light comes in really affects the photos and I am glad I shot somewhere and at sometime where there was enough natural light to show in my photo. I also think that the photo showing the strawberries shows different things presented the same way, both of the objects in the photos are given the same name but they are different.
Sources List
Bio_kaplan. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 May 2017. <http://www.pdns30.com/gallery/2012/bio/kaplan.shtml>.
"10 minutes with Sam Kaplan." This is the what. N.p., 08 May 2013. Web. 31 May 2017. <http://www.thisisthewhat.com/2013/05/10-minutes-with-sam-kaplan/>.
"Art Producers Speak: Sam Kaplan." A Photo Editor. N.p., 07 Nov. 2013. Web. 31 May 2017. <http://aphotoeditor.com/2013/11/07/art-producers-speak-sam-kaplan/>.
Kaplan, Sam. "Sam Kaplan." Communication Arts. N.p., 12 Oct. 2015. Web. 31 May 2017. <http://www.commarts.com/fresh/sam-kaplan>.
"SAM KAPLAN PHOTOGRAPHY." Sam Kaplan Photography :: Still Life :: Commercial :: Advertising :: Editorial :: Product :: New York. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 May 2017. <https://www.samkaplan.com/FOOD/thumbs>.
"{{pageTitle}}." Sarah Laird. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 May 2017. <http://www.sarahlaird.com/artists/samkaplan>.