These are the final results from my war tunnels photo shoot:

Out of all of Francis Foot’s work I have decided to analysis this particular image described as ‘Foot’s daughter Dora poses as a milkmaid.

Visual:

For the visual aspect of this image it is clearly a black and white as during the time Foot was around and producing his image this was the one materials available at that time, although the black and white feature wasn’t necessarily an intentional feature I believe it to create and more authentic feel to image. Furthermore the tone of the image suggests the weather wasn’t the best at the time the image was taken and give suggestions of a darker feel through the inky shades, alongside the texture of the image. The photographs main subject of Dora and the cow are although not that clear are evidently the main focus of the image and provide the main focal point and slowly deteriorating the quality of the photograph around the outsides, which heightens the central kingpin of the image. This photograph has a lack of a 3D feeling due to the lack of shadows from the woman and cow and also could be due to the fault of the quality of the picture. There is no repetition to be exact however the continuing blurry trees in the shot create a more consistent and realistic back drop, similarly to the minimal use of straight and sharp lines which also could be to the fault of the quality of the image which furthermore presents the development of photography through time.

Technical:

From this image it can be presented hard to estimate the techniques used to produce the lighting, shadows and patterns, although from my own knowledge of the time it’s most likely to have only used natural light which also would explain the plain black and white shads. It’s unlikely that flash was used as the image lacks the features of flash used, furthermore the positioning of Dora- Francis’ daughter and the cow it strategically placed in the centre of the picture to draw most of the attention to the cow and woman. There is a lack of technical aspect due to the lack of equipment available at the time Francis Foot was developing his photography skills. The lens was most likely to be basic and caused the blur around the outside of the image, not necessarily on purpose, contrasting with the somewhat focused centre of the shot. This factor reflects my earlier point of the lack of quality of camera suggesting a larger lens supported by the bigger area of landscape covered in the snapshot. The exposure in this image seems to be minimal although over exposure could be suggested from the overall white sky section in the top half of the image, however is controlled by the other darker features presented. There is evidently a high sensitivity which is seen through the grainy like quality yet again giving a more authentic feel and experience about the photograph, as well as this point the snapshot has a much colder temperature due to the lack of colour accuracy and colour cast and recommends levels of white balance.

Conceptual:

Conceptual: From this image I get the feeling of Francis Foot trying to represent Jersey and ‘show off’ it is amazing traits and features it possesses as well as the aspect of how important his family is to him. Firstly, through the use of the landscapes, the island is portrayed as a beautiful and peaceful locations through the nature and greenery and the large field in which the cow and woman are placed. This feature is also highlighted by the lack of building that are not seen for miles over the field and therefore increases the idea of a peaceful location that Jersey is. Secondly, the use of the cow in the image demonstrates jerseys pride possessions and shows off the angelic and usefulness of the classic Jersey cows. Lastly the fact Foot uses his own daughter to dress up as a milkmaid alongside the cow and the scenic background, which portrays the importance of family and the community which additionally shines a light on the island and adds further positive connotations.

Contextual

MBE, Bob Le Sueur was 19 when World War II started, he came into school to talk about his stories of the occupation and how he helped escaped Russian slaves.

The first story he told us was was of the German’s arrival which took place in 1940 on July 1st. He lived on Victoria’s Avenue seafront and saw these two parachutes in the sky but there weren’t people attached to them but cylinders. Inside the cylinders were messages addressed to the bailiff, saying that Jersey had 24 hours to surrender or the Nazi’s would carpet-bomb the whole island. The British had demilitarized the channel islands leaving them weaponless, all they said was for the Islands to ‘do the best they can’.

The second story was how escaped Russians slaves were sheltered by locals. Bob once helped a Russian but this particular story was about his two mates who kept a Russian, who was labelled as a Polish to protect his identity. If you were known to the Nazi’s as a ‘Slav’ you were taken as a slave and were called sub-human. Rations were already very low so the two men bought an illegal identification card in order to gain another ration book, so all was working well. September 1944, it was announced that this was the last day the island would have a gas supply, so not more gas cooking, only open fire. These two men decided to hold a party for this occasion, so they invited people over for drinks and to have one final celebration, but it all went pair shaped when the Russian drank too much and started doing Russian dances, word got around by nothing came from it as most locals hid Russians and wouldn’t snitch.

The third story was of Liberation day and how it had been announced that Hitler had died defending his country (which we now know is fake news) and that an armistice is being written. 7:14 am the liberation of the channel Islands was signed on a British Destroyer at St.Peter’s Port Harbour. Bob went with his friends on their bicycles made from garden hoses to the pier by the bottom of Mount Bingham to see the boat come in. As they were arriving they went past two Germans holding rifles, Bob’s bike in that instant broke and let of a large gun shot sound which alerted the Germans and when he looked up thy were pointing there rifles at him. This moment was intense but the Germans retreated when they realised what had happened. Overall this story gave a message that we are all humans are the same at the end of the day and Bob was saying how the Germans could have shot him there and then but they didn’t. Bob also was reminiscing on how he regretted not shaking the Germans hands.

During this project I’m going to be looking at a classical reference and a modern reference whilst looking at the topic Occupation Vs Liberation. These two references will come from this mind map.

Visual:

For the visual aspect of this image it evidently has vivid colours, this point is help supported by the refreshing green shade illuminating the main focus of the image, the stones. The tone of the image has a much brighter feels to it this is due the nature of the tree and the grass highlighting bright green shades, this factor is the supporting the importance of the centre piece of the stones. The surface of the rocks is uneven and compliantly different colours with aspects of lighter and darker colours this help create the more uneven texture of the rocks. This point helps lead to the idea of the image having features that create a 3D structure and furthermore add emphasis to the minor repetition produced by the positioning of the rocks with three stones lined up and a fourth one laid across the three stones, this layout adds aspects of symmetry and creates a more aesthetically pleasing view. Finally there is not evident or strong line structure to the image as the stones and in fact are quite the opposite due to the uneven lines, textures and colour coming from the stones.

Technical:

From this image it’s clear natural lighting from the sun in the main source of illumination therefore producing the natural shadows from the trees and stones due to the over whelming over exposure from the daylight. The historical stones are places on a land field, on what looks like fresh green grass which overall help as contrasting colours to the image. Overall the image looks fairly natural and does not look manipulated to look a certain way rather the photographer using the natural lighting and the camera control to get the perfect view feel to the feel. The photograph has a large strong sharp feeling towards it make the stones really stand out against the contrasting green trees and grass. The photography is clearly focused rather than blurred i believe this to give the best effects on the deeper meaning of the importance of the historical features. From the image its suggests that there is a much slower shutter speed due to the slight feature that lead to the conclusion of over exposure. The photograph leads to the connotations of the idea that the image has high sensitivity, this is seen through the lack of graininess.

Conceptual/ Contextual:

The idea behind this image is that it is a representation of the beauty and historical aspects of the stunning current location. Using the natural aspects of nature through the greenery of the grass and trees, next to the huge grainy rocks that holds the historical feelings of the island and portrays the significance. The deeper meaning of the image holds the similar feeling as the conceptual aspect, as the rocks itself has deeper meaning into the historical aspect of stones adding further connotations.