After having researched the ‘Earth’ photography book published by  teNeues i came across the photographer Darren Almond – Page 94 of Earth book. His work instantly drew me in and i was inspired to look at his work in more detail and research information about the photographer. Immediately i was inspired to create a similar approach to photographing the environment when I saw his work.

Darren James Almond, born August 1971, is an English artist, based in London. Almond graduated from Winchester School of Art in 1993, with a BA (hons) degree in Fine Arts. He works in a variety of media including photography and film, which he uses to explore the effects of time on the individual. He uses sculpture, film and photography to produce work that harnesses the symbolic and emotional potential of objects, places and situations, producing works which have universal as well as personal resonances. 

One of Almound’s projects that stood out in particular was his full moon project taken in Patagonia and Cape Verde. Almond shot by the light of a full moon. He stood attentively by his camera waiting for clouds to clear, then used long exposures of between 12 and 30 minutes. The results are both natural and unearthly, recognizable and oddly alien.

Quoted by Sean O’Hagan from The Gaurdian – “Volcanic rock emerges from a sea that looks like misty cloud seen from an aeroplane window. A river’s torrent is rendered smooth and sculptural, and the eucalyptus forest it runs through seems impressionistic and ghostly. Shadows lose their edges; they become soft and almost indistinct.” “With long exposures, you can never see what you are shooting,” Almond told me when I walked around the exhibition with him. “But you are giving the landscape longer to express itself.”

Image Analysis

This photograph appears to have been taken with only natural light of the moon as this photo comes from Almound’s ‘full moon’ photo book.  Typically, wide angle lenses are used to capture landscape photos, which is likely what would have been used to create this image. This image has a large tonal range, with the background and parts of rock formations very dark and sinister to the illuminated tranquil water. This image entails a large depth of field as the closest parts of the image are sharp and in focus as well as the furthest points such as the trees. A slow shutter speed would have been used to capture this image because we can see there is clear motion blur within the river. Thus helping to create a silky and smooth feel to the water.

There is a great use of leading lines within this photo as the river and trees/banks on either side of it, leads the viewers through the photo and almost takes them on a journey down the river. The composition of this photo is effective and uses the rule of thirds to its potential. The use of the rule of thirds can be seen through the river positioned on the left vertical line and the main focal points positioned on the cross over points. The  use of the rule of thirds is used because Almound is trying to show how beautiful the landscape is and by concentrating on visual and technical aspects of the actual photograph it influences the viewer that the thing being photographed is better than it actually is.

In ‘Fullmoon’, British artist Darren Almond catches landscapes around the globe, under the particular light of a full moon. With the shutter kept open for over a quarter of an hour, rivers, meadows and mountains are illuminated almost like daybreak, but the atmosphere is different: a mild glow emanates even from the shadows, star-lines cross the sky, and water blankets the earth like a misty froth. The enhanced moonlight fill the landscapes with a sense of the surreal or the sublime, and with haunting ideas of time, nature and beauty.

The conceptual idea behind this series of photographs and this one in particular is to leave you wondering what words like landscape and nature can possibly mean in a world where environmental change is so rapid that both are fast disappearing into myth and memory.

The aim of my personal investigation is to record a personal exploration into my family and origins within my family

The inspiration for my project and the sort of outcome I would like to achieve in my project comes from artists such as Birthe Piontek  and Donja Nasseri who are artists the explore similar topics such as family relationships and identity. In my project I would like to create images like the ones by Donja Nasseri where the finds interesting ways photograph objects or physical images that have a significant meaning, I intend to use those more abstract colorful images as a juxtaposition with some more poetic images with inspiration from artists such ad Birthe Piontek.

The following questions are past examples from previous projects which I have taken inspiration from to construct my own question.

• Compare How Phillip Toledano’s  and Nancy Borowick’s photography represent the concept of loss?
• How is the work of Claude Cahun and Cindy Sherman questioning the politics of gender and female stereotypes?
• In what way does Francasca Woodman and Yury Toroptsov use a narrative response to portray their story?
• How are dreams represented in the work of Surrealist photographers Ben Goossens, Kevin Corrado and Tommy Ingberg?
• Issues in Landscape Photography: Romantic or idyllic representation of nature vs culture and the man-made world.
• How can elements of Surrealism be used to express and visualise the personal, iner emotions of people suffering from mental health issues?

Using inspiration from the above questions i have formulated some possible questions that could be used for my project. 

• How can the representations of romanticism and the man made world be seen in the work of Guillaume Bression and Carlos Ayesta and Fernando Maselli?
• How is the work of Guillaume Bression and Carlos Ayesta and Fernando Maselli questioning the politics of environmental issues and the way in which we treat our earth?
• Compare the ways in which Guillaume Bression and Carlos Ayesta and Fernando Maselli have approached the ideas about our changing environment.

After having researched and explored a variety of artists I have come to the decision to focus on the contrast between the sublime environment and the urbanization that is present. I want to try and show the audience how our land is being wasted and nature is being lost to the rapid growth of cities. I have already looked at the sublime environment however i intend on exaggerating this by creating fantasy images using Photoshop.  I intend to document the urban land in a negative way to influence the viewer of it’s causes of environmental problems.  I also will look at ways of combining the two types of environment as i believe it will have a strong impact in raising awareness of the political issue of environmental destruction. Examples of the fantasy land that I intend to replicate can be seen below .

The idea of preserving and appreciating our land/natural environment is what i plan and represent throughout this project. As well as this I will incorporate a sense of environmental issues that are having negative impacts on the sublime environment such as a loss of habitat. In relation to my photo book, I intend to create the narrative that focuses on the changing mind set of people through the way in which they view the environment and in particular the natural/sublime environment. I want to try and show that people can make a difference to the environment and help to be eco-friendly and simply view the environment in a positive way which will naturally stem positive behavior towards nature. I will portray the natural environment in a positive way by showing the sense of freedom that can be experienced in the nature. This will be displayed through the incorporation of levitation photography to show this freedom and privilege of being in a natural environment.

The main influences for this project idea was Fernando Maselli and Guilliaume Bression and Carlos. They both look at the environment in two different ways however with the same finalizing idea of making our earth a better place.

The syllabus state clearly that you have to be aware of some of the methods employed by critics and historians within the history of art and photography.

One of the criteria in the syllabus is for you to:

• Select artists work, methods and art movements appropriate to your previous coursework work as a suitable basis for your study.

To demonstrate your knowledge and understanding you will have to write a paragraph in your essay providing historical context about your chosen artists/ photographers and how their their work and practice is linked to a specific art movement/ ism or theory.

For this task you need to select an art movement/ ism that is relevant to your Personal Study and make a 5 min presentation in class.

Follow these instructions:

Mock Exam Lesson 2: Tue 20/ Wed 21 Nov

Choose one of these four isms/movements  – you can choose to work alone in pair up with fellow student:

• Pictorialism
• Realism / Straight Photography
• Modernism
• Post-modernism

Start by looking at the PPT presentations here which will provide you with an overview.

M:\Departments\Photography\Students\Resources\Personal Study

Find two other sources, article on  internet, text in book, youtube video etc and identify relevant quotes, at least two that you can incorporate into your blog post/ presentation.

Use Art Movements & Isms sheet as a prompt with information that is required in your presentation

Make a 5 mins presentation of the above in class

Your presentation must include visual examples of artists making work within that ism/movement.

Complete and upload to blog by end of Mock Exam.

Homework task – Independent Study: 
Respond to the art movement/ ism that you have researched and make an image or a set of images that represent the methods/ techniques/ processes/ approach/ styles / aesthetics used by artists working within that is ism or movement.

This photograph is clearly a shocking and emotional image that immediately connects to the audience in a horrific way that makes the audience think about the disasters that are occurring. Through a variety of ways this image is effective in connecting with the audience and telling a story and the image can provoke such emotion and story through the technical, visual, contextual and conceptual factors.

The technicality  is a vital aspect in creating an image and in particular within this image it is key to portray the real events. The natural lighting used to construct this image is significant in portraying the event as realistic and truthful manner. The natural light used shows a clear documentary approach to the photography as appose to a tableaux style where artificial light is used and the photograph is staged. The technicality of the picture doesn’t appear to be very good and this shows a correlation between the rush and chaos of the location in which meant the photographer was unable to sort out the best settings on her camera for the shoot. There is a slight blur within the main subjects and the shutter speed appears to have been on for a bit too long with a slight over exposure which appears to be present. Also, the ISO seems to be at around 400-800 due to the noise and grain that is incorporated. Whether intentional or not i believe that this is effective in showing the chaotic and emotion within the area.

Visually, this image is empowering in creating the story of what happened within the Brussels terror attack. To me, the stand out visual aspect is the variety of textures that show the utter destruction that has occurred and injuries as a result too. Mainly rough textures are involved which highlight the suffering and misery within the scene. Further rough textures that are present can be seen on the women’s clothing and the hand of the women on the left and foot of the women on the right. I believe these aspects of the image can influence an emotional response with the audience as they will feel sympathy for the suffering that the people in the attack are experiencing.

This photograph was captured by the photo journalist Ketevan Kardava in Bruseels Airport, Belgium. It was taken after the explosions were heard Tuesday, march 22, 2016.   Ketevan Kardava, a special correspondent for the Georgian Public Broadcaster network has had her  photograph published and shared across the world including on the front page of the New York Times. Kardava was on her way to Geneva to report on talks between Russia and her home country, Georgia, when the first of two suicide bombers detonated his explosive vest. “Doors and windows were flying,” Kardava tells TIME. “Everything was dust and smoke. Around me there were dozens of people without legs, lying in blood.” Her first instinct was to look down at her own legs. “I couldn’t believe I still had my legs. I was in a state of shock.” “I wanted to run to a safe place too, but I also wanted to take pictures. As a journalist, it was my duty to take these photos and show the world what was going on. I knew I was the only one at this spot.”  The photo above is thought to have been the first photo that she captured on the location.

This photograph is a clear representation of the truth of the horrific events that took place in Brussels. In contrast with some photo journalism, this is a truthful representation and has no signs of photo manipulation or hidden subject matter. The journalist took a realistic and truthful approach to trustfully document the attacks that were occurring. Although the images are in some peoples views insensitive and too graphic, i believe that photojournalism is supposed to be impact and essential to allow knowledge for the community to see what is happening in our world. Without these powerful images impacting individuals and creating an emotional response, it is likely that the consumers are unable to realise the impact of these events and there will be less help and support for situations like so.

After having researched and explored a variety of artists I have come to the decision to focus on the strong contrast between the sublime environment and the dereliction/wastefulness that is present. I have already looked at these two issues and by combining them i believe it will have a strong impact in raising awareness of the political issue of environmental destruction. I want to try and influence a larger appreciation for our earth by showing off the sublime but also ensuring people are aware of the dereliction that we are creating. Thus having negative impacts on the sublime environment such as a loss of habitat. In relation to my photo book, I intend to create the narrative that focuses on the changing mind set of people through the way in which they view the environment and in particular the environment within Jersey. I want to try and show that people can make a difference to the environment and help to be eco-friendly and simply view the environment in a positive way which will naturally stem positive behaviour towards nature.

Within Jersey there is a clear issue in the way society take our rural and costal areas for granted. By showing off the sublime in a positive way i believe i can allow for these people to come to the realisation that we live in a wonderful place here in Jersey. By photographing the urbanised areas in a negative manner by mainly focusing on dereliction and boring subject matters i hope to show the uneccessary need for these buildings. I also intend on doing a minimalistic shoot in the urban area to try and reflect the structured and organised society that we live in. This correlates to the negative mindset towards the beauty of our island that the community cannot see.

The two main themes within my project are the sublime/natural environment and the urbanized/man made features of our earth. The conflict between keeping things natural and building upon land is a huge political debate which causes uproar across many communities. Many people believe in building high rises everywhere to accommodate businesses and people to benefit the economy. where as others believe that it is important to keep the environment natural to protect the wildlife.

Urban areas attract many people towards them due to the promise of jobs and easy commute to work, among other factors such as the energetic vibe, entertainment, social opportunities and dining options there are many features that make a city attractive. But in cities two of the most pressing problems facing the world today also come together: poverty and environmental degradation. Poor air and water quality, insufficient water availability, waste-disposal problems, and high energy consumption are exacerbated by the increasing population density and demands of urban environments. For not just these reasons alone but many others too I am in influenced by the movement of being Eco-friendly and appreciating/respecting the natural environment.

So, through my project my main aims are to try and influence people about the beauty of our natural environment and hopefully change their mindsets about cities due to the problems they create and how they impact the nature. I intend to approach this in a variety of ways by looking at the negative aspects to urban areas such as the dereliction and poor waste removal to make people have a bad view on urbanized areas. In contrast I will portray the natural environment in a positive light by creating aesthetically pleasing images that make people want to visit these sublime areas.

To conclude my photo book/project, I intend to produce a photo shoot with manipulated images that shows the transfer of a person through a portal which is in reference to the change of mindset that the images in my project will create. The portals will be within a sublime environment to highlight the importance to me and how i want people to focus on this and respect it. Portals are often used to transport a person to a hyper reality and surreal place which shows how i view the natural environment and what i want my audience to think too. I also will incorporate a variety of surreal/futuristic images towards the end of my project to exaggerate the importance of our environment and show how significant it is.

Bullet Pointed Plan

• Exploration of the sublime/natural environment
• Photograph the natural environment inspired by my artist without people involved and then with people too.
• Further experimenting with the sublime and photograph long exposure pictures on the coast to give the sublime a tranquil atmosphere.
• Exploration of the urban environment – photoshoot in abandoned place.
• Further photoshoot incorporating objects wrapped in cellophane to show the environmental issues within an urban area such as air pollution,
• Minimalistic shoot to reflect society as structured and organised. Shows the structured mindset of people in jersey and how they take our natural features for granted.
• NEW YORK photoshoot to contrast the natural environment with the urbanised and use a photo manipulation approach to combine the New York sky line into environment pictures.
• Collect litter found in urban area and natural area too and photograph it levitating above a persons hand within the natural environment.
• Photo shoot involving technology being used in a natural environment to show peoples reluctant attitude towards appreciating the natural environment.
• Levitation within natural environment to show freedom and emotional connection within the sublime.
• Edit futuristic looking photos to show the fast developing world and bring a realisation to how the world is being over developed/incorporate environmental issues into these edits.
• Final shoot will involve people going through a portal which shows their journey through my project and their new understanding of treating the environment with respect and appreciating it.

 In what way can the work of Lewis Bush and Clare Rae both be considered political?

In this essay i will be investigating the ways in which the work of the photographers Lewis Bush and Clare Rae can both be considered political. I will be evaluating the work of these artists and looking into their background too to help answer the question of how their work can be considered political. Lewis bush is a photographer whos work explores forms of contemporary power and Clare Rae whos work considers the physical and cultural landscapes of jersey while imagining her body in relation to the place. Both of the photographers have been artists in the residence of jersey therefore i am going to analyse their approaches to photographing the island whilst conveying their political messages. So, through this essay i am trying to prove that through Lewis Bush’s financial industry project ‘trading zones’ and Clare Rae’s exploration of gender representation and sexuality are considered as being political matters.

Lewis Bush is a British photographer, writer, curator and educator. He recently created a project in Jersey called “Trading Zones”. The idea of the project was to show the state of the financial industry in Jersey and draw attention to forms of invisible power that operate in the world. Through this project he shows the development of the finance center in jersey and shows how finance depicts the capital of St Helier. “Trading Zones is the result of six months spent as the 2018 Archisle photographer in residence at the Société Jersiaise. There are various differing sectors to the project and the main section that stood out to me was the portrait section in which Bush photographed what appears to be hundreds of corporate financial workers and blending them all together to result in what the average finance worker may look like. By combining many of the workers faces it brings the financial working community together as one and shows their dominance as a community however shows how powerless they are as an individual. The blending of the portraits shows that as an individual each worker means nothing and too when blended together to make the ‘average’ financial worker this discredits them as an individual and depicts them as only being ‘average’. This shows the dominating power of finance as a large corporate business and how all of their workers have no significance and are all looked at as ‘just the average finance worker. This section of his project also shows the changes in style and appearance of a financial worker over time and this is exploring the political landscape of change over time

The final product of “Trading Zones” was presented by Lewis creatively in Jersey’s old police station which was once the center for financial crime investigations. In my opinion this sets the tone of Lewis’s opinion of the finical sector in Jersey.  His personal view of finance in jersey is that is it “the accidental product of events going back almost a thousand yeats, but is also the result of every international choices made over the last half century”. Furthermore, after reading comments left by people who had viewed the expedition it is clear that the majority share that negative view. Lewis Bush’s work is very clearly political by the way it causes debate and makes people question what they really think about who is operating the financial sector and who’s best interests they have at heart.

Clare Rae’s work is most definitely considered political through the exploration of feminism and the representation of gender which is in huge discussion of people in the community. The topics of gender fluidity, identity and gender are all aspects of Clare Rae’s work and are major topics of controversy in which has caused a division between people, not only in Jersey but across the world. The project that she worked on in Jersey was titled ‘Entre Nous’ and brought together her representations of gender by exploiting her body in relation the the jersey landscape. She was influenced by a queer surrelaist artist named Claude Cahun who lived in Paris in the 1920’s. “In 2017 I undertook an artist’s residency with Archisle: the Jersey Contemporary Photography Programme to research the archive of Claude Cahun works held by Jersey Heritage. During my time there I began capturing a series of photographs alongside my research, starting with the sites inhabited and imaged by Cahun on the island, from the 1910s until her death in 1954”  – “My series, Never standing on two feet, considers Cahun’s engagement with the physical and cultural landscapes of Jersey, an aspect of her work that has received little analysis to date”Claude Cahun came to Jersey after the Germans declared war on France as she was Jewish and wanted to escape the threat of being taken to a concentration camp. While Cahun was in Jersey she liked to cause trouble: she would write rude notes in German and sneak them into the German soldiers pockets but she was once caught and sentenced to death. Jersey was liberated before she was killed but she would have rather died for her cause. Clair Ray came to Jersey to use its unique landscape to recreate Cahun’s work with her own style to it too. Jersey also holds the largest collection of Cahun’s original work which further inspired the project of Claire Rae. Cahun’s self portrait photographs and texts have become highly influential for artists dealing with questions of gender identity and representations of the female body and Claire Rae takes inspiration from this with the clear intentions to “unsettle traditional representations of the female figure”. This clearly shows that Claire Rae’s work can be considered political in the sense that she is tackling the controversial thoughts about gender and identity and portraying what she believes in through her photographs which people may disagree with.

I think that it is important for artists like Claire Rae to provide artwork like this to deal with political issues and creatively get their message out. I like her work and her approach to this political issue by exploiting her body in relation to the jersey landscape to which challenges the idea of male dominance and female empowerment. The idea of the project has these clear challenging ideas about women being adventurous and exploring the outdoors which challenge the traditional stereotypes of only men being accepted to do this. The project could have been included to perhaps include the challenging stereotypes of men too. Although this doesn’t directly relate to the artists story of herself being gay it would improve the project to give a more diverse approach to the project.

There are a variety of similarities and differences between Bush’s work on ‘Trading zones’ and Rae’s project ‘ Entre Nous’. For example they were both based in Jersey for the duration of their project however approached the island in a very different way. Bush chose to come to Jersey out of freedom because he wanted to focus on the financial sector. On the other hand Claire Rae was somewhat influenced to come over by Claude Cahun. Lewis Bush’s work is made within the genre of documentary photography in the sense he captures the political problems in a truthful way without staging his photographs and bending the truth. Where as Rae’s work uses a tableaux approach as she uses a staged approach to structure her political messages in the photo. A definite similarity between both of the photographers are that they are both exploring through their work the changes that are occuring within society and the response of these changes that society have. Although the fundamental concept of their work is somewhat similar with the theme of ‘change’ bush photographs the changing financial sector in jersey whilst RAe photographs the changing views on gender and idenity which are very different subjects. In conclusion, the work that i have focused on of Lewis Bush’s and Claire Rae’s are considered political due to the fact they are dealing with issues that are in conversation within society and they both aim to stem a debate about an issue or raise awareness about it.

Bibliography: 

http://www.lewisbush.com/trading-zones/

http://www.clarerae.com/work/never-standing-on-two-feet

In what way can the work of Lewis Bush and Clare Rae both be considered political?

In this essay I am going to explore the work of two completely different photographers and discuss how both of their works can be considered political. Clare Rae is an artist who explores performance and gesture with the use of gender, feminist theories and the female body. Lewis bush on the other hand is a photographer who works with facts, research and historic archives. By looking into how they incorporate their political perspectives into their art I want to compare and contrast how this can be done in so many different ways, through documentary or conceptual, I will also explore how their images can be perceived and viewed through different political opinions and perspectives to create completely new meaning.

Lewis Bush created a body of work named “Trading Zones” in 2018 whist staying in Jersey as the Archisle photographer in residence. As well as being a small, beautiful, scenic island, Jersey is also a huge finance centre where thousands of offshore jurisdictions locate. This method is used by many big companies to avoid tax and stamp duty which would otherwise be extreme and could effect the success of their businesses. In 2014 jersey held an estimated £92 billion for Uk property making it one of the biggest tax havens. But it not only recently that jersey has been used as a safe place to store money, a hoard dating back to the iron age was found in 2012 containing 70,000 coins and ancient jewellery. ‘Trading zones’ comments on various areas of Jersey’s relationship to finance, Lewis Bush has used information from campaign groups, mainstream sources and his own primary research to create his detailed library of work.

As we can see in the above photo, Lewis has used archival accounts such as bank notes to show the development of finance in the island. I think an interesting part of Lewis’ work is his landscapes, at first they just look like simple images showing a contrast between the built up finance buildings and the natural beauty of the island. But after reading the accompanying description I learnt that they were in fact the views out to see in the direction of significant onshore companies that relate and use the islands finance facilities. Jersey has been in the limelight in the last year due to a leak of paradise papers, documents relating to offshore investments. This has stirred up an active debate on whether it is ethical for the companies to legally avoid tax on such a large scale and avoid paying money to the government which is used for things such as health care and education. Lewis has also centred some of his work around the people including islanders that have contact with the finance industry. From protesters fighting against the development of the new finance centre to to people who work in the buildings

Clare Rea’s work from Entre Nous heavily influenced and inspired by the work of Claude Cahun, a French photographer in the early 20th century who’s work become popular due to the controversial subject of gender and sexuality explored in her work. Claude settled in jersey In 1937 and stayed in the island during the occupation where she continued to create activist artwork. She used her work to undermine authority which was not approved by the German forces occupying the island, who finally arrested Claude and sentenced her to death however the island was liberated before this happened. Clare has taken inspiration from Claude’s work in her own series of images ‘Like Cahun’s, my photographs depict my body in relation to place’ ‘They explore an idea of self within the immediate environment and were produced in collaboration with her lover, Marcel Moore.’ (Clare Rae, 2018, 1) In the gallery space she displayed her work n a very thought out format which reflects the political meaning behind the images. She got the rights to used copies of Claude’s work as an asset to her own work to show the similarities and and connections between them. The work was separated into two rooms with connecting doors allowing us to move freely from one to the other but also see the work standing alone. It was interesting to see how the work linked, for example Clare’s images taken near dolmens on the island, these are ancient burial grounds which have been preserved and are now on protected land. In the photos Clare is performing for the camera in this natural setting, the one bellow shows her wrapping her arms around the stone, this makes us question the way female bodies are represented through the use of the physical environment. This could link and contrast with modern culture and the media where woman’s bodies are often over sexualised and vied as a objects rather than people. politically women are making progress and receiving more equality everyday from gaining the vote in 1918 to justice for sexual assault victims in the me too movement which started in 2017.

To conclude I think that the work of both lewis bush and Clare Rae can be considered political due to the modern and relevant issues they relate to. The economy and finance are in a way a taboo subjects which is often glossed over by artist because it can be perceived as boring however lewis bushes work shows us an alternative angle where politics and photography collide. Clare’s work can be seen as political due to the focus on gender and the feminism both of which are hot topics in politics and modern culture.

Bibliography:

http://www.lewisbush.com/trading-zones/

interview with Lewis Bush in online photography magazine ASX

http://www.clarerae.com/work/never-standing-on-two-feet

 Within Fernando Maselli’s pictures he will refrain from using people to primarily focus in on the sublime environment. I think that also without the presence of people shows the environment that we could have without the presence of people that often destroy it. I wanted to include people in this second shoot to try and portray my ideas about having a society that cares for and looks after the environment. Threw directing my model, i tried to capture her engaging with the environment and appreciating it whilst not disturbing or destroying it. The intentions for this shoot were to focus in on the future of our community that i believe in where everybody can appreciate and respect nature.

Contact Sheet

Edited Images (Lightroom)

I believe this shoot was successful in responding to the artist I have researched however incorporating my own ideas too. Within these photos i have used my model to show a sense of appropriation of the sublime. Overall, i believe that the edits are effective in the way that they stand out especially with the natural light upon my models face. Also, the contrast and colors help to reach out to the viewer and bring the image to life with an emotional connection between the viewer and the environment. The way in which i have directed my model to be looking at the nature was intentionally created to influence the viewer to imitate these actions when also surrounded by a sublime environment.

Analysis

I think that this image has been my most successful in connecting my message with the audience and for aesthetics too. I believe that the dark background creates a strong contrast between the waterfall droplets, model and rock formations. These features are the main focal points in creating the story I intend and therefore the dark background is effective in showing this off. I have directed my model well in her position and the way that the natural light has illuminated her face to highlight her facial expressions and emotional connection with the environment. This was the most important factor when constructing this shoot and i believe that it has worked out well. I ensured that my model wore a white top so that the contrast was prominent and she stood out as the main subject. Another reason that this image was a success was due to the expression on the models face that comes across as natural and relaxed. I used a fast shutter speed to try and capture the water droplets however  there is still motion blur on the droplets which help in creating the falling water effect which was occurring from the waterfall.