Final Images

My project was a success because, after two photoshoots, I have been able to produce some final images that I quite like. For my first photoshoot, I was able to use a few people from my class as models and the shoot was rather quick and simple. My first shoot was without the powder paints because it was more of a practice so I could figure out what I needed to do to take some close-ups. I was able to take some really good images in my first photoshoot that could be final image-worthy. My second photoshoot was with the powder paints and this was really messy. I initially planned to do the shoot outside because of the mess that it would create but it was forecast rain on that specific day so I had to find a way to do it inside. I could not reschedule the day because it was the only day that all of my models were free, however most of my models didn't turn up on the day so I had to do some timed self-portraits to widen my range of images. I didn't actually realise how much mess we created during the shoot because my main focus was the models and taking images so I had to spend 2 hours cleaning up.

My initial intentions were to challenge the perspective of portraiture by using vibrant colours and I’ve definitely achieved this with the use of my powder paints. My ideas didn’t exactly change throughout my project, but they did develop into greater ideas because I began thinking of poses and I even thought of doing a few action images. I thought of more things to do with the powder paint before and during the photoshoot because I knew I’d only really get one chance with the powder paints and I wasn’t to make my final images look better.

The strongest part of my project, in my opinion, were the close-up photoshoots because of how much time I spent trying to get the exposure and focus correct to capture the detail in my model’s eyes. I also think my photoshoots as a whole are a strong part of my project because of how I directed my models with confidence and a clear idea in my mind.

At first, I chose my final images because I liked how they looked after the small amounts of editing. However, looking over my final images, I realised they all had something in common; they all hold the same message or subject of ‘identity’ which, in my opinion, makes my main final image more powerful due to the way the model is looking down and the powder paints are covering most of his skin as though he’s trying to hide his ‘identity’.

Shoot Two

For my second shoot, the models used the powder paints and threw it at each other. This created a huge, colorful mess but I am rather proud of the images that I've produced. The main problem I faced was three of my main models not turning up so I had to make-do with two models, but I directed one of the models to take some images so I could step in and become an extra model. To direct my model, I changed the settings so the camera had the correct shutter speed, aperture and ISO. I wasn't able to get many close-up shots because the close-ups were going to be on the three models that turned up, so I decided to focus the close-ups on eyes and also fingertips/hands. I didn't take that many pictures but it felt like I took quite a lot during the shoot so I think I would've had a wider range of images if I took more. When it came to the clues-up shots on their eyes, I had a little bit of a struggle with the exposure due to the use of a studio light; I was using the ceiling lights for the action shots for a low-key effect.

Final Image Ideas
After looking through the images, I have finally decided on a couple of final images. Three of the final images are close-ups on eyes. One of the images is a portrait of a model with their hat on which looks interesting because the colours are bright and stand out. I haven't edited the images a lot because I think they look fine as they are, however I have cropped the images and enhanced the vibrance. My editing technique for enhancing the vibrance is rather simplistic, I used the vibrance adjustment tool and changed the vibrance to brighten to colours. In my opinion, my strongest image from this shoot is the portrait at the bottom with the brightly coloured hat; I think this is because the model is not facing the camera and the colours stand out, I also think the low-key lighting completes the image because there's not too much going on in the image. For my final images, I will be using some from the plain photoshoot but also some from the powder paint shoot, I think this will create a nice contrast because the shoots seem to compliment each other well.

Exhibition Poster

The layout for this poster is rather simple. An image has been used as the entire background with writing around the main part of the image. The use of white writing compliments Steichen's image because it's more subtle than if a bright colour was used. I think the simplistic but organized design shows what type of exhibition it will be; organized, colourless, simple but powerful.













Again, this poster is rather simplistic but it's purpose is rather clear. The writing avoids the main part of the image so it is rather similar to the Edward Steichen poster.














Typography
Typography is the art and technique of arranging type to make written words readable and appealing. The arrangement of the type involves selecting typefaces, point size, line-spacing, letter-spacing, and adjusting the space between letter pairs. Typography is usually used for posters but can also be used in digital art. The typography allows you to decide how you would like your typed words to look, making it easier to design posters.

My Poster Designs

To create my first poster, I opened an A4 file with a white background. I had a quick look through my images and decided to use the image of both eyes because the colours stand out and it's an insight to what my project is without giving too much away. I decided to centre the image because I think it makes the writing more eye-catching. I decided to use Lithos Pro as my typeface because I think it looks rather greek which gives the poster and the overall exhibition an authentic look. To add the names of the exhibitors, I decided to google a website which put your lists into alphabetical order and typed every single name into there, then I had to simply copy and paste the names onto the poster. I'm quite happy with how this poster looks because it seems rather professional.

 For my second poster, I decided to use a close-up of one of the model's tattoos as the entire background. I used the image as the entire background because I think it adds colour to the overall poster which makes it more eye-catching. Instead of putting the title at the top of the image, I decided to put it at the bottom because the main part of the tattoo is uncovered this way. I chose to use white text because I feel as though it doesn't overpower the colour of the tattoo. Just like in poster 1, I added a list of exhibitors in alphabetical order and kept the list to one side of the poster. I think this poster is professional and successful because the colours don't overpower each other and the writing isn't covering the main image too much.

For my third poster, I decided to add a textured background. For the background, I used an old paper image and used two images instead of one. I put the title in the middle of the poster because it stands out. I think the images compliment each other because they're opposite eyes but completely different colours. I kept the colour of the text as a plain black but I changed the opacity of the main title because I felt as though it was too bold.

Generating Ideas - Portraiture

I was asked to take portraits with a unique approach. I decided to try to take candid images of my friends. I had a little experiment with taking images with glass between the subject and the camera; I tried this experiment in two different settings. I first tried the experiment with a clean window and my friend stood outside, on the other side of the glass; I don't think these images were too successful because you cannot tell that there is glass between the camera and the subject and there isn't anything different if I were on the same side of the glass with the subject. I then tried the experiment whilst my friend's band were recording for their EP so I was taking more images through the glass that separates the recording room to the studio, I found this to be slightly difficult because I kept capturing people's reflections in the shots. After I took some images through the glass, I decided to take some candid shots. 

Generating Ideas - Landscape

Landscape photography show spaces in the world that can be nature or man-made environments, usually both. Photography that involves man-made objects such as buildings or bridges is called Urban Photography. The difference between natural and urban landscape is that natural focuses more on the beauty of nature; this usually includes plants, mountains, rivers, lakes, seas, etc.
The things that need to be taken into consideration when doing landscape photography is mainly the weather when you are shooting outside, but the other considerations are composition, lighting, time of day, locations, the equipment you will need and how much it could cost for you to reach the location you want to shoot.
For landscape photography, the time of day is crucial because of the the position of the sun, length of shadows, the warmth of the light, etc.

Larry Chait
I think Chait's work is interesting because the camera focuses on one object, for example a house, and the rest of the image is blurred as though he (or the land) is moving. I would love to recreate Chait's work because I think it makes landscape photography look really interesting.








Panorama
I attempted to make a panorama in the amphitheater. I did this by taking an image and then moving the camera slightly (either horizontally or vertically) and taking a new image and repeating the process. Some of the images seem slightly over-exposed because the leaves on the trees look more white than green, I also think I could have composed the image better instead of losing most of the amphitheater.

Generating Ideas - Still Life

Harold Edgerton
I find Edgerton's work interesting because he captures movement within his still life which challenges the perspective. I think Edgerton makes the whole perspective of still life seem more appealing and interesting. I think it would be truly challenging to the perspective to produce images that are inspired by Edgerton, with the idea of adding movement to a still object.

David Lachapelle
I'm not too keen on this image by Lachapelle because I feel as though it's too crowded. The image fits into the horror genre due to the severed mannequin parts. I think that there is too much going on within this image which can be confusing because there is so much to look at.

For my still life image, I decided to take an image of a dress so it looks like someone's wearing it. To do this, I took an image of a model wearing the dress and carefully selected the dress and then cut and paste it on a plain background. I quite like the look of this image because it shows the figure of a person, but that person isn't there. I think this image could have been improved if the model's figure was more clear.

Shoot One

For my first shoot, I decided to stay in the studio and take images of models without the powder paint. I did the shoot like this because I wanted to focus on getting close-ups, rather than the use of vibrant colours. For this shoot, I decided to focus on the eyes but there is an image of one of the model's tattoos because it's a feature that stands out. It took me a while to get the exposure correct and to arrange the lights in a way to get the most detail in the eyes. Even though I was able to take close-up images, I will be cropping the images and enhancing them slightly using PhotoShop to bring out the detail and the different colours in the eyes. If any of the models ask me to remove any flaws on their skin then I will use PhotoShop to edit them out. I think this shoot was rather successful because I was able to test out different settings and the images are well focused. My next shoot will be with the powder paints so I will have to make sure that I tidy up afterwards because it will get slightly messy. I plan on doing my next shoot on Friday because that's when all of my models are free, however it is forecast rain on that day so I will need to find a place inside to do this shoot. I'm hoping to have access to the theatre for the next shoot because it is inside and there is a choice of large backdrops so it will help the colours stand out more when I take images of their body parts.

Edits

I decided to pick a few images to edit on PhotoShop, this included cropping, adjusting the brightness and contrast, removing any flaws, and using the curves adjustment to bring out the colours more. 

For this image, I decided to do a tight crop around the tattoo so there wasn't too much unneeded space and so the main focus is the tattoo. I didn't adjust the brightness and colours too much because I felt as though the image looks great as it is. I used the healing tool to erase any dark hairs that stood out to.

 I didn't do much to edit this image on PhotoShop. I decided to simply change the brightness to brighten the skin tone slightly.

 This image is completely unedited, this is only cropped. I think this image is brilliant because of the clear detail in her eye and how there isn't anything to distract the viewer's eyes from the main subject.














I cropped this image tightly to keep the same pattern of the other crops. This image required some editing because the model asked me to reduce the black bags under his eyes. I thought his eyes were slightly under-exposed so I decided to chance the brightness of his eye slightly which enhanced the colour and detail. I think I could improve this by using a different light because you can see the reflection of the beauty dish.










Again, I cropped the image tightly around his eye. I decided to use the spot healing tool to clear the visible spots on this model's face. I also selected his eye and changed the brightness by +10 so the detail in his eye is more visible. I think this could be improved if his hair was not in front of his face because it creates a shadow over his eye.

Project Plan

For this project, I plan to challenge the perspectives of portraiture by adding vibrant colours and taking close-up images of body features/parts. To add the vibrant colours, I plan on using powder paints on the models to add bright colours to the image and make the images stand out; however, instead of taking the traditional portraits, I will be taking close-up shots and action shots of the models. The close-up shots will be focusing on the model's facial features such as their eyes and their lips but also body parts such as their hands. The action shots will be taken when the models are throwing the powder paints at each other and I will experiment with different shutter speeds. I plan on doing my shoot on the sand dunes in St. Annes because the powder will either get blown away by the wind or get mixed into the sand, this will make the cleaning up process much easier.

I would like to have a few final images and I will present the images either in A3 frames or on a slideshow.