ABOUT:
Irving Penn was born on the 16th July 1917 and died on the 7th October 2009 and was an American photographer and was best known for his fashion photography, portraits and still life. Penn was well known and worked with a wide variety of famous companies for example Vogue Magazine and went on to take a more independent approach to advertising approach for specific clients like Issey Miyake and Clinique. Penn’s work has been exhibited all around the work including international sites and continues to inform the art of photography as well as still being a dramatic influential character and photographer.
TECHNICAL: From just looking at the image it is evident the lighting being produced in artificial and most likely took place in a photography studio using a jet black background to help contrast with the white skull which helps make the definitions of the skull stand out. Overall there is a good exposure level supported by the manipulation of the editing done of the skull, the images shows no signs of reflection however due to the brightness of the skull illuminating against the jet black background it is possible that flash was used to help aid this point even more and create an even stronger contrast. The focal point of the image is clearly the front face of the skull and in great focus with no blurred aspects which further provides evidence the camera lens type and size. The image also has low sensitivity due through the lack of grain seen in the image with fine and specific textures of the skull adding more realistic view for the audience. The image only presents a black and white image so therefore is slightly harder to determine the temperature of the image however due to the contextual factors (the image being a skull) to me it presents a more colder temperature to the images also supported by the conceptual evidence.
VISUAL: From the photograph we can clearly see that there are only black and white colours used which adds a more dramatic feel, due to the jet black background which extensively contrasts with the fresh white skull, this visual aspects supports the point that the main focal point is the skull. Additionally, the overall tone presented is a light tone due the the bright white skull standing out and can be seen through the formation of the skulls- one facing forward, one facing to the side and one facing down all transformed to merge all together, this point also brings up the idea of symmetry which is some way can be seen but not crystal clear however showing a 3D representation of the skull.
CONCEPTUAL: Overall the image does not give much of a story which i believe helps make the audience really think deeper about the true meaning about the photograph and why it has been edited in that certain way. To me, after analysing the visual and technique points of the image i believe the image could be seen as a reflection on human life or even the idea of the beauty of the human body with the brain being the most essential part of the body to be able to function the rest of the body. so therefore the presentation of the image, the illuminated white skull being contrasted against the jet black background showing the main significance and main focal point of the image therefore making the view concentrate on the skull itself and look deeper into the distortions of the skull.