New York, Karl Struss, 1909

cyanotype, h 73mm × w 92mm More details
© erven Karl Struss

This street scene consists of only a few shades of blue. The printing technique Struss used for this photograph – cyanotype – often creates a pronounced contrast. Struss could thus suppress many of the details in the dark areas. This light degree of abstraction and simplification lends the photograph a modern appearance. Had he used a different printing technique, many more different tints – and thus details – would have been visible.