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// I M A G E S //

A little bit of a tidy up before the exam dates start. I have a selection of images ready to print and experiment with from my external shoots featuring Maya, Emily, Beth and Jack with internal shoots complete for Maya and Jack only. These remaining shoots will be taken over the next few days in preparation for the exam time. They can then be printed and experimented with in order to create the final presentation of post cards. This may also make use of a display board with printed images being mounted next to each other with supporting images (i’m thinking from Maya’s shoots in particular here). The stamp element is something else which should be taken into consideration but is heavily time dependent. If the postcards are successful within the physical experimentation and printing then I will have time to create, print and experiment with my internal images and how they could make stamps which reflect home. The surveys are complete and can be either hand written or printed on the reverse of each card. I have also included the visual development of images which have been edited as a before and after setup.

Maya – ORIGINAL IMAGE
Maya – The North Coast

This image has been digitally enhanced in Adobe Photoshop and was shot in RAW allowing for a large amount of editing to take place. The main adjustments I have made are colour enhancements and shading variations – especially with the use of contrast.

Emily – Bonne Nuit
Beth – Green Island
Jack – Val De Le Mar

Seeing the two finished sets of images together below shows the clear similarities and differences with the sets of images. Visually, there are obvious aspects of appeal across the two sets – especially in terms of colours and pallets. The internal shots are both heavily determined and characterised by the muted colourings that suggests a theme of boredom and importantly, limitations. The external shoots however are there to show freedom and a love for the outdoors. The colours are vivid and excitable. Bright shades and big open spaces, shown often in block colours which is visible in Maya’s portrait. The pink-ish hues of the bedrooms are heavily contrasted with the rich blues and greens of the plants, sky and ocean which plays such an important part in the lives of people moving away.

Experimentation, Recording

3rd Shoot (Progress)

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Destroying Negatives, Progress Update

26/04/2017:

  • I have now collected all of the water from the different locations and they are in the buckets.
  • Getting the sample from the desalination plant proved more difficult than I expected because there was no way to get in without breaking the law. But I managed to get the water sample by asking one of the workers to get the sample instead, he was very nice about this and helped me.
  • Last night I submerged all of the negatives in their respective buckets of water and left them all overnight except for one.
  • The water from my friend’s swimming pool I kept my eye on because this was the one where I was not sure about the potential result. After 30 minutes I checked the tester piece and it had changed colour. It went from the dark brown of the negatives to a very light brown. I decided to check back in another 30 minutes and when I did the test sheet was a very pale white colour. When I saw this I pulled out the real negatives and hung them up to dry off, I did this because I did not want the images to be completely destroyed which is what I expected would have happened if I had left them overnight.
Bleached Negatives After 1 Hour In Pool Water

27/04/2017:

  • I moved the buckets into my shed to keep them out of the rain, and hopefully to keep them a little warmer to help any fungus to grow.

 30/04/2017:

  • I removed the negatives that were dipped in the two saltwater solutions because the images were starting to deteriorate. The top yellow layer began to fall off and was no longer attached to the other layers. I tried to make sure that it didn’t just come completely off and for the most part this worked well, after this I kept the negatives flat to make sure that the layers did not completely remove themselves while they dried. One of them had a lot of sand on it so I washed this off from the undamaged end.
  • In total only three images were damaged by this process, so I’m going to put the other ends of the strips into the water to see if I can get the same effect to happen again.
Negatives Damaged By Salt Water

03/05/2017

  • This morning I checked on the negatives that were till in the water and I got a bit of a shock. The tap water negatives were almost completely destroyed in the submerged part. The damage to it is far beyond what I had expected. I tried to remove the negative as carefully as possible from the water but unfortunately almost all of the of the gelatine layer on the third image from the right was removed and the other images were also very heavily ruined. This has really surprised me because the tap water was the one that I thought would damage the negatives the least but it has done easily the most damage the the physical gelatin layers.
  • At this point I also removed all of the other remaining negatives and have left them to dry before being scanned and printed. The negatives in the saltwater buckets seemed to have had the same kind of separation of the layers that they did before but to a lesser degree.
Negatives That Were Suspended In Tap Water

04/05/2017

  • I got all of my negatives, print and scans back from the shop today and I am really pleased with the results. I did not expect the images to turn out as well as they have. I will not post them all here because I am going to do their own blog post for them but I will post a few of the more abstract ones.
  • Now that the process of making the images is complete I will move on to displaying them.
Damaged by Water from Desalination Plant
Damaged by Tap Water
Evaluation, Presentation, Recording

Documentary: Recycling Centre – Results

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The images below show my last planned shoot for this project, taken at the newly opened La Collette Recycling centre. These images are a follow-up to my last shoot depicting where Jersey’s household waste is taken and what happens to our un-separated rubbish. The new La Collette recycling centre opened on Monday the 16th of January this year and replaces the old household recycling centre at that was located at Bellozanne. Here you can bring household waste and recycling as well as donate anything and everything that could be reused by someone else. Below I have added the long list of the types of waste that can be recycled instead of burned at the La Collette facility…

After completing my previous research and shoots looking at the different varieties of waste pollution, where it’s found, and where it ends up. My last shoot for this project, presented below, portrays the options we have on our island and how easy it is to make a small difference in our lives and use it. Although I was planning on simply taking a documentary look at Jersey’s new and improved facility there were also a lot of beautiful and abstract features which I couldn’t help but present below. When completing this shoot I had to come back on two different occasions due to the workers there being instructed not to allow any unauthorised publicity or photographs. On my second visit, I was instructed of some safety features, giving a high visibility vest and asked to sign in and out in order to be allowed to continue. Apart from this slight set back all I needed to complete this shoot was my camera the location, as it is usually found, and natural light from the sun. The location is key in this shoot as my goal for these images is to simply spread awareness about this new facility and hopefully encourage my viewers to use it. Below are some of my original unedited photographs displayed in a contact sheet…To chose between these photographs and produce my final outcomes, I was particularly interested in having a mixture of dynamic straight photography as well as abstract photography to intrigue my viewers. When editing the landscape documentary photographs I experimented with the highlighting to really emphasise the dramatic sky. With the more abstract pieces, however, I concentrated on really bringing out the vibrant colours and brilliant texture. Unlike with most of my previous shoots, I have decided to keep all of my finals in colour. This is because, unlike my previous shoots, these images attempt to show something good and hopeful towards the environment. Below are my final chosen and edited 6 outcomes for this last shoot in my environmental project…

This first piece above was created by stitching three separate photographs together to make one easy to read piece. I have put them together because the ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ sign featured at the Recycling centre is situated all in one long, hard to capture horizontal line. I love the effect of this sign that has been created using recycled items and kids toys to create a textured, colourful and inspiring outcome. The meaning behind this photograph is obvious as I am simply getting across this clear message from a straight forward perspective. The final result of this, I believe, emphasises the written message and brings out the beautiful and striking details.

These next two outcomes are my more abstracted results featuring some beautiful and inspiring artwork I captured when visiting the location. The meaning behind these two photographs is to intrigue the viewer about the recycling centre itself as well as spread the message of its importance. The first outcome on the left depicts a beautifully crafted recycling symbol made from a vast amount of green and red discarded children’s toys. I love the depth and contrast between the tiny objects as well as the vibrancy and texture of the whole piece. Next is a more abstract piece featuring the side and rooftop of the decorated facility building along with part of a growing tree. I love the strange symbolism in this piece and I like how, without context, the audience is forced to come to their own conclusions.

For this next documentary look at Jersey’s new and improved recycling facility, I have attempted to capture the location featuring as many important aspects as possible. My outcome above portrays the main recycling building on the left, the elegant car system running around the facility and a few of the many many drop-off points for waste that continues all the way around. The meaning behind this image is to show how the recycling centre now works and how effortless it is to drive around and dispose of our pollution safely. I have chosen this image as a final as I love the angled perspective of the facility and the dramatic overtones created with the contrast of the sky.

Lastly are two more of my documentary outcomes depicting the main features of the new recycling centre; the variety of different drop-off points. The meaning behind these photographs is simple as, like with the outcome above, I am trying to show the extent as to which they have improved Jersey’s recycling facility and made it as easy as possible for the public to use. The first image on the left depicts the electricals, mixed glass, metals and bulky waste containers with two members of staff in high-visibility jackets who are happy to help. Next, the image on the right depicts the same signs and more along with a member of the public discarding something into the bulky waste container. I like the perspective of the drop-off points in this picture and the contrast of the facility against the dramatic yet natural sky. 

Recording

Oh Look More Images

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// E M I L Y //

The next model for this project follows my friend Emily in the location of her choice; Bonne Nuit. When asking why she liked this area it was mainly about the size, isolation and close proximity of the rocks, bay and beach. The area itself is somewhat remote giving a feeling of isolation. Even when the sun is out it appears this isn’t a particularly busy area adding a level of serenity to the scene. The images I shot of her here follow the same formatting as the rest of this series. Bright colours were highlighted as points of interest and I took a selection of images of the figure around the area exploring different sections of the space. The main image I needed to produce was the backwards postcard shot which will ultimately make up the front of my card. Below is a small selection of images from the day where we adventured around the beach and over the rocks. There were two selected images for this which I will discuss further below. The main question was about the level of detail I wanted in the shot and how it changes the overall image.

For this feature image – which will ultimately create the front of my postcard design – I took two ‘final’ images to select from. In reality there were over 50 different angles but these two were the ones I was most confident with. The main difference is the level of detail included in the image which is mainly through the addition of the green tinted rocks in the foreground. The model’s rich purple hair works brilliantly to juxtapose the blues and greens of her chosen landscape.

Final image – Emily

The final image selected from this shoot was the less cluttered figure shown below which does not have the extra detail in the foreground. This image shows a crisper final print and will work more effectively as a postcard image. Shooting the second part of Emily’s section for this project may be difficult as she is limited for the number of visitors allowed in her physical home. Because of this, we also shot in a second location which she said was important to her just in case of the impossibility of shooting in her home. Though straying from the stylized portraits in other shoots for this project, the image below was one of my preferred from the day and offers itself to a lot of experimentation. I aim to explore the images taken on this day further to produce some stamps for Emily’s section of the project.

Recording

More Shoots

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// JOE + BETH //

The next shoot was with two characters, Beth was the subject I had intended to shoot with but the addition of a second figure (Joe) worked very well in the images. Below, as before, is a set of images showing a variety of shots from the shoot which took place at Beth’s location of choice – Green Island. These photos were taken just after golden hour making use of the eery blue lighting and it’s soft, pastel effects. With enough light to shoot but limited colours and shadows there is certainly something beautiful in the muted colour palette. I selected two external images, one which just showed Beth overlooking the bay and a  second image featuring both Joe and Beth which provided a varied alternative to this themed project. Ultimately, it was the single figure image I was after so that one came out on top.

As with all these shoots, I asked the model [Beth] to answer a series of questions about the location [Green Island] she choose.

Where is home for you? Why is this place home? Are your family there? Do you feel safe here? What is it that makes this particular place home?

Home is at my house in my room where I can be with friends and just chill. Stuff is less complicated there and I can block out school and shitty people and relax a bit. 

What makes Jersey important to you? Do you have good memories here?

Jersey means friends and friends are home. There are lots of important places here which mean a lot to me. Because I can drive now there’s lots of places I can get to which I didn’t know about before. It also means I can walk my dog in new places which means i get to see a lot more of the island and don’t have to rely on other people to drive me.

Where in Jersey holds the best memories for you? Why is it positive for you?

My favourite on island place right now is Green Island beach where I can walk my dog in the evenings. The sky is normally lighter around there and the sunsets can be really nice. If it’s high tide you can walk along the path at the top of the beach and sit on the benches which overlook the sea. It’s a good place to be on stormy days when the sea is high aswell.

Analysis, Presentation, Recording

Documentary: Energy from Waste – Results

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Since being invited to have a insiders look of Jersey’s ‘Energy from Waste’ facility, I set out to meet with them at our arranged time. Before completing this shoot I have researched the facility located at La Collette and gathered amazing inspiration from topographic photographers Bernhard and Hilla Becher. As I explained in my planning, my main aim for this shoot was to capture the scene and show exactly what happens to Jersey’s household/commercial waste once it is thrown away. By doing this I hope to get across the message of the importance of recycling which I will back up in my next shoot depicting La Collette’s recycling centre. To complete this shoot all I needed was my camera and the safety equipment that was provided to me when I got there. Upon arriving at the location I headed up to the reception, signed myself in, and had an initial explanation of what we were doing during my tour. Fortunately, this opportunity turned out to be a great success as I was actually shown around the entire facility for 2 hours and explained exactly what happens to Jersey’s waste and how we can reuse it for energy. To take these images below I used a slightly faster shutter speed than normal, capturing as much light and detail as possible using the limited natural and artificial light. Below are some of the original unedited photographs from this shoot presented in a contact sheet…Because of my original plan to take as many photographs as possible of every aspect I was shown, the contact sheet above only shows 47 out of the 500+ images I took during my visit. To narrow down my outcomes from this selection above was quite difficult as I really liked many of the angles and compositions that I managed to capture. Below are the 14 images I have chosen as my final outcomes, although I won’t be using every image in my end result, I wanted to include them in this post for future reference to my efforts. As well as this, as requested by the manager of the energy from waste facility, Ian Williams, I have edited and saved about 16 more images to send to the department for unknown reasons. This shoot, much like my previous documentary shoots, shows a mixture of colour and black and white photographs depending on their style. Below I have displayed my final 14 outcomes along with four other images presented at the bottom that helps me to tell this documentary narrative…

This first group of my final outcomes above depicts the waste before transformation, the burning of the waste, and the ashy result of the process.  The first two images on the top row depict the difference between the amount of household and commercial waste produced on our Island. The image on the left presents an average sized machine transporting commercial rubbish from one spot to another whereas the image on the right shows a gigantic claw machine, capable of moving up to 3 tonnes of household waste.  For use in my project, I love the photograph on the right because of it dramatic intensity as well as its ability to give my viewers an idea of how much we produce.  This image is one of my favourites overall and was taken through one of the ‘rubbish shoots’ after the operator kindly positioned the claw for me.  The two pieces on the bottom row can show what could be seen of the burning process alongside with the final outcome of this waste. I love the orange glow and intriguing composition/aperture of the image on the right whereas the one on the left shows an important part of what happens to Jersey’s un-recycled waste. – this ash is actually re-purposed to be used in Jersey and England to create buildings and roads.

This next image is one of my favourite topographic style outcomes which was taken from inside the ‘Energy from Waste’ facility during my tour. This image depicts two massive pipes coming up from a lower floor and curling around the edge of my composition. I love the perfect symmetry I have captured in this piece and the topographic/straightforward style it was taken in. The reason I have decided to edit this image in black and white is to emphasise it dynamic features as well as resemble the many blast furnaces captured by my inspirations Bernhard and Hilla Becher. The meaning behind this image is to show a specific section of the massive machinery that combined, works to process the safe disposal of our island’s waste and turn it to clean energy.

These next group of final outcomes from my shoot show more specific details from inside the ‘Energy from Waste’ facility. The meaning behind these images, along with the final outcome above, is to show exactly how much work and complicated technology goes into this process. These images can give an idea of just how difficult it is to cleanly produce only 7% of our island’s energy at the same time as disposing of our waste. The first and largest image on the top left is my favourite from this and depicts a scene through the building completely filled with pipes and machinery. I love the high contrast and dramatic overtones of this image and I think the intricacy of the pipe work really helps prove my point. The next two images on the right of this piece depict a few close-up detailed shots of specific parts of this extensive setup. I love the simplicity of these images as I feel they share a very strong topographic style. Lastly, the two photographs on the bottom row depict some amazing shadows and angels looking through the facility as well as more intricate pipe work hanging down from the ceiling.

Next are some important outcomes depicting a few of the elements that go into the purification of the smoke produced from burning the rubbish. According to CSBC, the La Colette ‘Energy to Waste’ facility meets the highest air quality standards in the whole of Europe. If their emission levels are outside of the licensed limits the plant is shut down and any underlying problem is rectified before the plant is started up again. The fist three images on the left depict some features that help keep track and purify the smoke before it is released. First is the point where samples are taken for testing, next on the top is a monitor for viewing the levels of each element and finally, the bottom image shows a very small part of the machine that acts as a filter. Lastly, on the right of this contact sheet is the view from outside the window looking up at the JEC chimney and the pipes that connect the two facilities.

Lastly are some images I have taken that are not intended to contribute to my topographic photography style like the images above. Instead, I have chosen to add them to my blog simply to give a little more insight into how the facility actually works. The first two photographs on the left depict the building releasing steam from the perspective over the top of Mount Bingham. I have included these images to present the clean white steam that is let out of their small chimney which has just been through a system of turbines to create energy. The black and white image situated in the middle of the contact sheet represents how we still have a long way to go before beating the use of fossil fuels and powering the whole island cleanly. The last two images on the right are just quick snapshots of some of the tables and graphs the operators use to carefully monitor the waste disposal emissions and make sure they are under the licenced limit. By looking closely at this information we can start to understand just what types of chemicals are released from the burning of waste and exactly how much is being pumped into the atmosphere. 

Experimentation, Recording

Art Student Shoot 2 – Editing

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Above is the initial contact sheet from my second, more fashion forward art student photoshoot. As seen above I experimented with using both my pink and blue backdrop but during the editing process I decided to use the photo with the pink backdrop incase I decided to display both art student stereotypes as a diptych. If I did decided to do this I felt that there would be a greater sense of contrast if the images had different background colours and the different coloured backgrounds connote ideas of masculinity and femininity, the first scruffy art student is more masculine and the second more fashion conscious art student is more feminine. When shortlisting the photos I also decided against using photos from the second outfit I used because I liked that the blue of the fluffy monster’s inc backpack would work well with the blue background of another images if I decide to use it as part of a diptych.

Here are the shortlisted photos from my fashion forward art student photoshoot. I selected these images because I felt that they captured the bubbly nature of the instagram active, stylish art student. As stated in my planning post I experimented with miming taking selfies and I shortlisted one of these images (above, centre). I edited these photos by cropping them as appropriate, increasing the brightness and contrast and slightly adjusting the levels. I also used the spot healing tool to remove any distracting blemishes and using the brush tool to smooth out the background as my pink backdrop was very wrinkled, even after ironing it as I couldn’t use the iron on too higher setting as I was at risk of melting the vinyl.

Experimentation, Recording

Art Student shoot 1- Editing

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Above is the initial contact shoot from my first art student shoot. I made the decision before conducting the shoot to only use my blue backdrop because I felt that the maroon colour of my hoodie would clash with the pink background. I also felt that the masculine connotations of the colour blue would work better with my scruffy artist look. I also decided to wear no makeup for this shoot despite including an image of dark lipstick in my mood board because I felt that this was more realistic as I don’t really wear makeup on the days when I am home just doing art. I experimented in the shoot with different poses although they are relative predicable and similar, I am assessing a hypothetic piece of art, mixing paint and miming making brush strokes.

I shortlisted these images for my scruffy art student shoot because I felt that these three images depicted three different moments and feelings I experience when painting or working on a piece of art. The first image depicts a sense of contentment and flow, I sometimes experience this when I really get into the flow of a piece, although this doesn’t happen very often. The second image depicts a sense of concentration which is definitely something I experience often, when working at home my family often make fun of my frowning concentration face. The last image depicts a moment of pause where I appear to be considering what colour to use of what action to take next, this image really shows of the colours in my water colour palette nicely. In the editing process I cropped the images as a appropriate and adjusted the brightness, contrast and levels. I also used the spot healing tool to remove a large blemish on my chin.

Experimentation, Recording

Beauty Queen – Editing

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Above is the contact sheet from my beauty queen photoshoot. I experimented with different poses and expressions although they were all rather similar so it would fit with the format of an official title holder photoshoot that I discussed in my planning post for this shoot. The hand on hips poses with the big smile were an attempt to capture the all-american beauty queen persona but the images just came out looking silly and pantomimic so I decided not to use them, after all the project was about trying to capture a slightly exaggerated version of myself rather than someone else altogether. I found the process of this shoot really enjoyable although walking to and from the camera to check the images as set off the shutter in a full length ballgown with many petticoats proved both difficult and time consuming.

Here are my shortlisted photos from this shoot. I selected these images because they both capture a flattering, exaggerated version of me without being garish or pantomimic. I edited these photos by cropping them in a way that framed the figure nicely as well as showing off the volume of the skirt an my full title printed on the sash. I also increased the contrast, brightness, colour saturation and levels. I used the spit healing tool to remove any blemishes as my skin was not very good on the day that I conducted this shoot. I smoothed out the back drop as there were still some wrinkles even after attempting to iron the vinyl. I personally think that I will use the image on the right because I felt that it is both flattering, serious and dignified which was something I wanted to capture in this portrait.

 

Recording

Jack Goes Outside

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// J A C K PART 2 //

The second shoot with Jack was the external environment which was selected by the model, Jack. I asked each participant three questions before I planned out the shoots which are shown below.

Where is home for you? Why is this place home? Are your family there? Do you feel safe here? What is it that makes this particular place home?

Home is wherever my family is and a place that I feel comfortable. It normally tales me a while to settle in somewhere, but I always have family and friends and try to stay positive and surround myself with positive people. Anywhere can be home as long as I’m happy. 

What makes Jersey important to you? Do you have good memories here?

Jersey is the place I have grown up, it will always he special to me. It hasn’t always been easy, but then again it isn’t going to be easy anywhere. I have made so many amazing friends and happy memories here. I’ll never forget this lil rock and the awesome times I’ve shared here with my friends and the little adventures I took to find quiet places to relax and unwind. 

Where in Jersey holds the best memories for you? Why is it positive for you?

My favourite place is actually a newly discovered area. It was previously the top of the hill in St. Brelades (just beyond the wayside cafè). My mum took me up to Val de la mar reservoir and I immediately fell in love with it. There are so many paths and unique plant life in the separate areas. Parts I like most are the Australian and Japanese sections. But my absolute favourite part is just above the Japanese section where there is an incredible view over the reservoir and St. Ouen’s bay.

With this response from Jack to work with, we went up to explore around the area and shoot in each of the places previously mentioned. Below is a small selection from the session.

The images above are from the walk we took and show a more varied selection of photos facing different angles with changeable lighting. Below are a selection of images which might be suitable for the final picture of this project section. The portraits are stylized and feature people looking at a particular landscape from the back. details on the body are limited – so no facial features are visible – and there is a much higher emphasis on the area itself. Contrasting this with the inside portraits which feature characters looking strait on, there is a bigger focus on the environment rather than the person here.

J A C K 

The two images I have ultimately selected for this project share a continued line of similarity across their compositions and photographic structure. The first from the home shoot is exactly what I was looking for. A blank expression that shows the figure in their home environment around the things they have grown up with. For many of my models they are still in rooms which they have had since they were very young which is visible in the images. There is something surreal about the contrast between the figure and the backdrop. It is more than typical to surround yourself – and in particular your room – with things that mean the most to you. In a way these portraits are reflective not only in the character shown but also in their room which is ultimately a self portrait of their attitude and emotions.

The internal shoot produced this outcome below which shows the character, Jack, sat in his bedroom at his mum’s house. There is a lot happening in the image so to highlight the central figure I adjusted – mainly through trial and error – the lighting and curtains in order to alter the natural highlights produced across  the face. The duvet and blankets mirror several of the colours featured in the background a