Overall I found my chosen stance regarding the topic of political landscapes went well. Though I was a bit unsure of what to do at the beginning, after some more research I came to a conclusion of what I wanted do and achieve in the project, looking at how consumerism impacts the environment around us through industrialization.  I found that the photographers I studied, Edward Burtynsky, Henry J Fair and Andreas Gursky proved to be great examples of what I wanted to do, with their unique photography style providing inspiration throughout the course for what I referred back to. My favorite project from them is called ‘Industrial Scars’, a book that consisted of aerial perspectives of industrial landscapes and the chemicals produced by them. This as a result led to me exploring a variety of landscapes present within Jersey such as quarries, shops and dumps, essentially the three main sectors of any consumerist industry. When I arrived at the designated area for photography I made sure to capture the subject in a straight documentary approach, a style that I really like regarding how political visions are put across, leading me to not use manipulation when editing the shoots as I wanted to keep it as close as possible to the reality I saw it as. I used Burtynsky’s style of photography to capture the landscape of the area in a more documentary style and Fair’s style to create abstract aesthetic results of rubbish and signs, and finally using Gursky’s work as a reference when photographing aisles of food and consumerist products. What I wanted from this was to present how we treat the environment in relation to the idea of our ever-increasing demands of societies needs, exploring how the present threat of wanting the newest thing leads to the destruction of landscapes not necessarily seen by the general public, but present enough to pose as a disruption to our we preserve land. As a result I wanted use straight photography as my leading cause for these topics where I would present a single sided perspective disregarding any other form of opinion as a means of causing debate and attraction the attention of the audiences.

Through the project I have explored various techniques to enhance my images such as gradients and black + white, which all the while have improved my overall skills and perspective regarding my stance and interpretation of intended matters. This project has taught me about how we perceive the issues in Jersey, whether they are seen or unseen by the eye, giving me opinions that I would have never taken into consideration if I’d never done the chosen topic, giving me opportunities to take images of things I never imagined I would do. The whole process I have gone through has given me a new understanding of how composition affects the viewers opinion and its warping of perspectives regarding my take on issues, allowing me to explore a variety of different styles that I would not have originally not used.

Once I had finished with the design of the book I then proceeded to go onto framing some of the photos I had previous taken in a few shoots. Before I got onto the actual framing I wanted to decide on a layout that I could present them in before I actually did it. Here is a mood-board of some of the various compositions that I might consider when framing up the images:

I then proceeded to choose the images I wanted to frame, I selected the photos that I thought best reflected the topic and looked the best visually, technically and conceptually. These are the six images I chose for my framing outcomes:

After I had completed selecting the photos I then went onto choosing the way I wanted them framed, the composition I chose presents the photos in descending size order (A3, A4, A5). By doing this it would allow me to create two separate frames where each size would represent a different area to consumerism and its process being creating, selling and ridding. However I thought that doing it would be too plain by itself so decided to create frames where the image sinks into the paper. To create this I would have to map out the composition on paper to then cut it out and stick the images on the other side of the sheet, giving the impression of a sunken photo. These were my results:

Overall I was really happy with the outcome of the composition as I thought by arranging the photos in an order where the biggest issue is presented as the biggest photo really highlights the issue of consumerism and the process it goes through all the while effect out environment. I also really like how the image size descended as I found that it really produced an aesthetic feel where the issue is represented by the size of the photos (waste being the most harmful).

For my final I titled the book ‘Preserved Consumption’. Here I used a play on words where the idea behind it was how the scarring of our environmental landscape almost preserves man’s indentation and destruction of that particular area, and so the preserving of this destruction can be seen in a negative manner as it highlights our societies ever-growing need to consume the latest thing. Here is the layout for my final design of the book: This is the final layout and design for my book titled ‘Preserved Consumption’. The book includes three different sections including production, product and waste, all of which link into the theme of consumption and its permanent scarring on the landscape (hence the title preserved). Within I have included a variety of different page layouts such as double spreads, boxed in imagery and centred photos, all of which I have experimented with along the way, helping me to conclude which layouts are most effective at accompanying the previous and next photo. Regarding certain images I have included a white border due to it preventing the photo from becoming too overpowering and out-of-place, only really doing so for the larger pieces. For the majority of the pages I have used a white backdrop as I found that it complimented the images the most, stopping any attention being drawn away from the images and to the colours, something I made sure to do from the beginning. Before each category I made sure to add a title page to inform the viewer of the subcategory in the book, giving the layout a narrative as a result which I found is one of the key characteristics of the entire book. Finally I added my essay in the end pages of the book,  this was because I wanted to allow the readers to interpret the topic of the book before actually reading about what I had to say about regarding it, with images depicting the studied photographers works and my responses alongside them.

Once I had completed my initial draft for the composition, I then decided where to place my essay and various text throughout to add to the narration. To do this I wanted to include a few title pages which highlighted the topic themes as you progressed, whilst putting the essay towards the end of the book so that the audience could interpret the message behind the pictures before actually knowing what the book is about. I wanted to use a clean layout that properly that includes bright colours and a clear intention. These were my results from the experimentation’s:

Front And Back Cover
For the cover I decided to use a rustic effect taken from one of the corroding metal sheets, choosing to use a white New Times Roman font as the main go to for text fonts. I made sure to place this in an area of the page that would make it clear enough to make out and read for the viewer, so by placing it against a blue backdrop seemed to be the logical choice. I  selected the title ‘Preserved Consumption’ because of its referencing to how out activities that scar the landscape preserve man actions towards the environment. Along the spine I placed the title and my name in the same font and colour to add the effect of consistency before actually opening the book.

Topic Title Pages:  I then proceeded to implement title pages for each of the three topics which would separate the sections of the book out to create a narrative. Once again I used the font New Times Roman to create the impression of consistency, using numbers to represent the intended topic. When laying it out I made sure to include the text underneath the number so that it would fill more space whilst providing the book with an aesthetic result, which by complimenting it with a sky blue really brought out the result. For each of the titles I made sure they had a relevance to the topic they were before, allowing a certain expectation of what will be in it to arise before going through any of the pages.

Essay:
Finally for the essay I made sure to include it at the end of the book, by doing this it would allow for the viewer to interpret the message of the book throughout, with only at the end there being any real answer to what I wanted to explore. Like the rest of the book I made sure to use the font New Times Roman, using varying font sizes throughout the essay on things such as bibliography, title, text and references so that some degree of aestheticism could be put across. Accompanied across the pages of the text I included the photos that the book referenced to and the photographers I studied when making my results, this compliments the essay nicely as the reader can switch between the pages to gain a broader insight into what I wanted to achieve. Composition wise I made sure that the images were placed in an visually appeasing area that did not draw any attention away from the text across the page. When positioning the text for the essay I made sure it started on the left hand side of the page and ended on the right, by doing this it gave the opposite pages more breathing space between them, preventing anything from becoming too eye sore.

Once I had made a first draft for the layout of my book I decided to implement text into it. The text I wanted to add into the book would be quotes of the chosen photographers I studied, with my essay at the beginning. For me not only would this provide relevant text that links to the images, but also wouldn’t distract the viewer from the image causing it to lose its qualities. To do this I would firstly research various quotes from the photographers Edward Burtynsky and Henry J Fair, aiming to have them relate to the topic of consumerism, here I produced a mood-board which consisted of the quotes I found best related to the overall theme. These are my results: By implementing these quotes into blank spaces I hoped to utilize the area, preventing it from becoming useless and instead allowing it to serve as a more aesthetic implementation into the book. Below I explored a few ways in which the text could be positioned next to the designated images:When looking over the text positions I found that the left and right alignment would pose as the best position due to them taking up little space as possible, whilst aligning themselves aesthetically against the side of the photo chosen. The center position however I did not think would suit the design of the book and its layout, this is because of how it did not have any end or beginning to it, leading to an unorganized look which didn’t compliment the environment it would be put in at all. Some examples of how I would like the text to be positioned next to the images can be seen below: I found the text to be most effective when looking over various books to be ending as the image starts, this creates an aesthetic effect which does not draw attention from the photos but instead subtly adds a bit of information. I would probably place the text near the top or bottom of the desired page due to the being the most implicit compositions to place it in, as the middle would be to clear. As a result of this I have concluded that the text should be placed in an isolated area of the blank space which does not take away from a photos visual appearance, whilst only being seen when observed closely.

I decided to design my book using the software Blurb, this was because it presented me with a huge variety of different template in which I could easily layout my images in. When designing the book I made sure to constantly refer back to my photography book reference, Jessica Backhaus, A Trilogy. This gave me a huge inspiration for my page layouts where I tried to utilise the negative space which surrounded the images effectively, using a matte colour to fill it in instead. Overall the book led me to use my four main shoots which focused on the development of consumerism. Using the three topics of producing, consuming and waste as my main influence throughout, narrowing down my original thousand strong image selection down to about fifty. Here is my current composition for the book:

What I really wanted to put across from my layout of the book was a narrative, this would allow for me to tell a political storey through the narration of various images divided into separate categories  that could be analysed and viewed in relation to the rest of images in that topic. To begin with I experimented with about six individual pages layouts, presenting a broader way in which I could compose the photos taken, such as full page spreads, double-page spreads and boxed in imagery. I wanted to leave a few spaces that I would be able to place text in such as my essay and titles for pages and photos.

Some of the issues I am having though consist of the images losing quality as they are enhanced, leading me to have to consider alternative design layouts for their pages. Another issue is the flow of the book which I am struggling to order images in order of relevance to the pages before them, as I want to tell a narrative which is becoming harder to do as I progress through the book. My final issue is the composition of information pages, as I didn’t want the writing to overpower the pictures on the same page and had to re-design blank areas multiple times in order to come to some sort of satisfactory result.

Before I finished with the design of the book I decided to fit in one more experimental edit. This would once again explore how the use of editing techniques could alter the portrayal of an image, using various colours to do so. I want to use the gradient because of its effects of changing the overall tone of a photo, whether it be bronze silver or two contrasting colours, something I found to be interesting when exploring conventions of the camera. Here I would be using the software Adobe Photoshop again due to its huge variety of tools available for use when looking at techniques not commonly used. This is the process of the development regarding the images used for experimentation:     After I had experimented with a variety of different gradients upon certain pictures I then selected the best photos that used the gradient the most effectively. I wanted to change the atmosphere of each image to a more surreal and unusual portrayal that used metallic colours to highlight certain aspects of them. Here are my favorite outcomes for gradient use: When looking over the images I found that I really liked the see-through metallic film placed over the photos, as it gave them an tinted and old effect that I hadn’t seen in any of my previous work. Accompanied through the slightest change of colour tone, the effects of the gradient seems to product abstract and surreal results that overall I was really happy with.

Book in hand: How does it feel? Smell, sniff the paper. 

The book’s cover is made of a smooth matte card surface which folds back to reveal extra photography. The texture of the paper seems to be smooth with small indentations possible to reflect the type of material she has photographed inside the book. However the back of the book’s texture resembles the wall paper photographed, being more textured and harder to run your hand across, adding interaction with the reader.

Paper and ink: Use of different paper/textures/colour or B&W or both. 

All the paper in the book seems to be thin paper, slightly thicker than your average printing paper in order to represent the type of materials photographed. Within the book however there are detached pages which provide extra information that informs the viewer of the overall intentions of the photographer, seen through yellow paper with black ink. The ink used is relatively thin and small compared to the size of the photos, consisting of only one variation of font. The further you progress into the book it does feel like the pages become slightly more textured and thicker to the touch as you pass through the three sections.

Format, size and orientation: Portraiture/landscape/square/A5, A4, A3/number of pages: 

The book itself is A4 sized, done to compliment the graphics within it which require an equal amount of neutral space to cover each page. This is complimented through her use of a portrait styled book, allowing her to capture the textures created perfectly, something that could not have been achieved through the use of a landscape book. Overall there are 167 pages to the book, with roughly 50 pages per section and the rest being informative pages, presenting consistence throughout.

Binding, soft/hard cover. Image wrap/dust jacket. Saddle stitch/swiss binding/Japanese stab-binding/leperello

The book uses a dust cover across the font of the book which is then stuck down as it reaches the back. This makes it extremely user-friendly as it prevents the buyer from possibly losing or damaging the cover of the book, stopping it from wearing in the long run.

Title: Literal of poetic/relevant or intriguing?

The title is a literal representation of the books topic, as it consists of three individual books put in order of relevance to make one. To me this is intriguing as it presents all of the images in a new light previously not seen before.

Narrative: What is story/subject matter: How is it told?

The book is based around the experimentation of layered paper and gradients, whilst using aesthetic matte colours to allow images to pop out at you. As you progress through the book the techniques used to make these collages seem to become more and more advanced, showing the artists improvement over time.

Structure and architecture: The design/repeating motifs/specific features developing a concept or constructive narrative

The imagery inside the book tends to be based around the same subjects, paper. This is consistent throughout the book in different variations, however much of the pages have a double-sided plain matte backdrop to separate images and topics.

Design and layout: Image size on pages/single page, double-spread/images/grid, fold- outs/inserts:

Each photo is A4 within the book, with no double page or alternative styled pages. This adds a sort of consistency throughout the book which can be viewed equally, with the only other use of page design being the implementation of loose information sheets.

Editing and sequencing: Selection of images/juxtaposition of photographs/editing process:

The images inside the book seem to have been edited using software such as Photoshop and Lightroom. This enhances the matte colours in each photo massively as it presents a contrast not seen by the camera. As a result of this it produced more abstract and conceptual type photography as the colours used seem to out there to be real.

Images and text: Are they linked? Introduction/essay/statement by artists or others. Use of captions (If any).

The text inside the book mainly is about the style of photography she uses, and her biography, read through on the loose pieces of paper throughout the pages. There is no introduction to the book which instead head straight into the first topic, the same goes towards the tags which are also absent in the book.

What is the book about? The artist’s new trilogy brings together three series of approximately 40 works each. The first series, Beyond Blue, is devoted completely to colourful threads, staged against coloured backgrounds. The viewer feels compelled to linger in this radical reduction, trying to unravel the entanglement of the seemingly unspectacular with the resulting aura of contemplation. In Shifting Clouds, Backhaus considers and documents this very transition – a reality that lies in between things. The second series shows fragments and visions that are poised on the verge of becoming, caught in limbo: reflections, chaotically appealing surfaces, shapes imaginatively metamorphosing, upbeat tones, intensely coloured sensations. In the third series, New Horizon, the artist presents free-flowing and persuasive poetic impressions. The compositions captivate with their variety and puzzle-like elements. Backhaus is breaking new ground in photography, incorporating components of mixed media, painting, and collage that expand and deepen these abstractions.Who is Jessica Backhaus? 

Jessica Backhaus was born in Cuxhaven, Germany in 1970 and grew up in an artistic family. At the age of sixteen, she moved to Paris, where she later studied photography and visual communications. Here she met Gisele Freund in 1992, who became her mentor. In 1995 her passion for photography drew her to New York, where she assisted photographers, pursued her own projects and lived until 2009. Jessica Backhaus is regarded as one of the most distinguished voices in contemporary photography in Germany today. Her work has been shown in numerous solo and group exhibitions, including the National Portrait Gallery, London, and the Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin and the Kunsthalle in Erfurt. To date, she has eight publications to her name; Jesus and the Cherries, 2005, What Still Remains, 2008, One Day in November, 2008, I Wanted to See the World, 2010, ONE DAY- 10 photographers, 2010, Once, still and forever, 2012, Six degrees of freedom, 2015 and A TRILOGY, 2017, all published by Kehrer Verlag, Heidelberg, Berlin.Her work is also featured in the book: Women Photographers by Boris Friedewald (Prestel Verlag 2014 and 2018).
Her photographs are in many prominent art collections including Art Collection Deutsche Börse, Germany, ING Art Collection, Belgium, Collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, USA and the Margulies Collection, Miami, USA.

When making my book I would love to split it up into three sections reflecting the process of consumerism, using almost three different style of photography that link together to represent a common cause. What I loved most was how the pages in  the book end to reveal text and carry on once the text finishes, producing a smooth an aesthetic look for the viewer.