Slide shows that don't suck

Is this thing on?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bfxH62ULjw

Well, I think most everybody might consider checking out the above link for Bob Dylan's new slide show music video featuring Bruce Davidson's vintage photographs of Brooklyn gangs. The song is a terrific album opener for Dylan's new record- Together through Life. Bruce Davidson is a great photographer.


The slide show does a good job of "respecting the print," but still giving us a little bit of movement within the print. (There wasn't much movement at the Portland show.)

One of the issues with slide shows is how you deal with portrait oriented shots in a slideshow's landscape world." This show takes a simple direct and effective approach of a black background and putting the portrait oriented shots on one at a time. Do you think it works?

[By the way, I don't want to imply that I believe that RESPECTING the PRINT is always a good thing. However, I recognize that most of you here probably feel some sort of nostalgic respect for the old guy... and I will respect that, for now.]


I'd say that about half the songs on Dylan's new album, "Together through Life" are really good. Don't us photographers wish we always batted that well? I'd pick,

"Beyond here lies nothin" ( the slide show song)

"I just want to say that Hell's 'My Wife's Hometown' " -- how could a love song with a line like that not be good?

"Jolene"
"this dream of you"
"I feel a change coming on"
"It's all good"

And there is a mood in the music that is more real than in anything he's done recently (except for the last bootleg album -- Tell tale Signs.)

So -- do you like the new Dylan album? Would you kiss ass to get the assignment to do a slide show for your favorite musician?

Does anyone else have a slide show that is more than the sum of its parts? Something that does something interesting with the form?

Is anyone using "Photo to Movie"? It is a damn good program for putting a little movement into you slide shows.

Are we going to have a discussion?

Sample images © Bruce Davidson are attached.