Was joining Woofer Magazine crowfounding worth it?
Photo: Noah Addis, Future Cities
If you’re active on Instagram and interested in photography (especially film), you’ve probably come across Woofer.
In a very short time, Woofer has grown from an Instagram profile into a platform gathering specific, art-focused audience, showcasing highly refined and impactful photography. It presents artful, fresh perspectives on social and cultural themes. The photography so good that it has been asking to leave a footprint outside the digital world.
After a successful crowdfunding campaign, Woofer published its first issue. I received my copy of the inaugural edition just a few days ago. It didn’t dissapoint.
Woofer Magazine No. 1 is a well-curated selection of 100 outstanding photographs spanning real-life scenes, nature, urban and rural landscapes, and conceptual photography.
Below is my list of favorite photos - a very subjective top 10, listed in chronological order, as they appear in the magazine.
Fran Balseiro
A picture from the project On the road: “the endless project that (…) never ends, there is always a path and a highway to travel, places, villages, towns and cities to visit, in many cases an aimless journey. (…) a journey in which we see the passage of time, the abandonment and depopulation of rural areas.” Despite the absence of people in most of the photos, you can feel their presence and the traces they left behind. Unsettling, nostalgic, and perfectly on point.
William Sheepskin Surprise tropical rainstorm
I highly recommend checking out his profile and/or a website. With his use of unconventional focal lengths and perspectives for portraits, his work is impossible to overlook.
Matteo Abbondanza
Most of Matteo's works are perfectly balanced compositions, where geometric shapes and colors play leading role. His photographs blend mathematics and the ability to perceive harmony even in less obvious spaces.
Looking at his photos, it’s almost hard to believe that such harmony could truly exist in our visually chaotic world.
Francesco Saviero Lopazio Ballad of the white horse
It’s the kind of photographs that ask questions and leaves plenty of room for answers - much like many of Francesco’s other works.
I recommend checking out his Instagram profile: @fralopaz. Unfortunately, his last posts are from 2021, and he doesn’t have a website, but luckily, a quick Google search revealed that he is still active as a photographer.
Noah Addis
The photo of the boy playing soccer comes from the Future Cities series. Until I explored Noah’s website, I didn’t actually realize that the whole project focuses on slums.
Noah captures the beauty and order of the settlements, that are most often seen as as dirty, chaotic, and sprawling spaces.
This series, like other long-term projects by Noah, is an important voice in the discussion of income and social inequality, the housing problem, viewed through the lens of climate change and other social crises.
The title of the series made me thinking. About twenty years ago, Future Cities would have referred to the vision of cities full ultra modern architecture and high tech solutions. Nowadays, however, it foreshadows a grim reality in which over 3 billion people will live in slums by the middle of the century (currently, this number exceeds 1 billion already).
Taras Bychko
Taras describes his photography as life photography, driven by the motivation to show the truth rather than glitter and glamour.
Head straight to his website. A big part of his work is focused on life in (pre-war) Ukraine. These images resonate with me even more deeply because originally I come from neighboring Poland, and I find glimpses of my childhood in them.
Jonathan Petit-Matsuzawa
A perfect shot featuring two dogs - because who doesn’t like to see pups basking in the sun?
Unfortunately, so far, I haven’t been able to find Jonathan’s Instagram profile or website to learn more about him. If I manage to discover more of his work, I’ll be sure to update.
Danyiel Broski
You see his photos, even out of context, and you think - California. And you’re not wrong. The colors, the sunlight, the vibe.
I love those perfectly positioned clouds hanging over colorful houses. Nothing here strikes or moves deeply; it’s just summer, heat, and rows of middle- or lower-class homes basking in the sun, with a cloud perfectly complementing the composition.
Ruben Rosa
When it comes to clouds complementing the composition, Ruben Rosa's photo is my undisputed favorite. It’s also my favorite in the entire Woofer edition. A monochrome, super-minimalistic, simple shot where everything falls into place.
I especially admire Ruben's minimalistic photographs. His body of work definitely deserves a photo book and I will be awaiting one.
Lochblick
Rural Austria captured in black-and-white grainy pictures. Unsettling, misty landscapes, power lines, winding roads, footprints in the snow. These are very cinematic shots, evoking scenes from black-and-white films.
This photography is truly timeless; it could have been created anywhere and anytime, and that’s its greatest strength.
Woofer Magazine no 2
The day Woofer Magazine became a printed publication was the day when probably many had their faith in humanity restored. There’s so many beautiful and touching photos that can easily get lost in the depths of the internet.
Woofer tries to save at least some of them giving them a chance to exist by being more kind that social media algorithms. Big ups to publishers.
Seeing these photos on paper and owning them exclusively is a true pleasure, even though many of them tackle uncomfortable topics.
I hope the response that the physical Woofer received will lead to regular print editions. If only this will happen, I will inform about it.
Houdoe and see you in the next one (hopefully soon)!