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Personal Investigation – Essay

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Can photographs actually capture feelings and emotions or can they not be taken on face value?

“Every portrait that is painted with feelings is a portrait of the artist, not of the sitter” (D. Lewis, 2015; Face)

No matter what I’m doing I’m always in deep thought about something, be it something small like thinking about what I might wear today or something seemingly more personal and relevant to just me like the way that argument was left unresolved the previous night. Every wake up is different to the day before. You know more, you’ve seen more, you’ve thought more. Even though someone can present themselves a certain way, they are the only person that they have shared every breath and life experience with. The only person that truly understands the ins and outs of their own mind. I’m a strong believer in the chaos theory, the concept that each and every one of our experiences in life shape our complete development as people, down to how we look at life, how we think and how we react in certain situations. If you knew everything someone had been through and felt, their actions and mind set could become completely predictable. This is why it is possible to understand another person on a deeper level such as a friend, family member or lover. It is the sharing and relating of ideologies and experiences that unlock the secrets to a person’s true self.

This leads me on to my personal investigation, which focuses on the close interpersonal connections between my close friends and I, and the complexities of social science involved in the making of a friendship. Is it possible to form a friendship with anyone or does there have to be a certain level of compatibility? In the same way many of us believe ‘compatibility’ to be a key factor when it comes to finding love romantically, does it have an impact in a platonic way, can you learn to love and form a bond with anyone or is the possibility of a relationship between two people predetermined by other factors?

I will be analysing the work of two photographers: Bruce Gilden and Daren You. Both photographers work very differently. Gilden often focuses on strangers, he selects individuals he knows nothing about on the streets of New York and photographs them in obscure ways to emphasise a point of their character. He will interact with a subject he finds intriguing or out of the ordinary, allowing opportunity to find him, getting up close and personal with them, inspired by Robert Capa’s saying “If your photographs aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough”. I was inspired by the fact that he just takes a photo when he sees something interesting rather than going out and looking for it. This links with my personal investigation as I use candid portrait images throughout the project. The best compositions stemming from genuine moments and expressions captured in an image.

This composition features two men, one assisting the other in lighting a cigarette. The image appears candid due to the startled facial expressions of the man on the right. The image is black and white, which draws attention to their faces, hands and the cigarette and its smoke as the focal points of the image. Both are dressed in suits and shirts and look relatively formal. The buildings and structures in the background are slanted, which when paired with the men leaning in to each other creates a bold structure. The man on the left has his eyes covered with black sunglasses and a blank expression while the man on the right seems to be aware of the photographer. Gilden’s intentions with this image are to display the characters of the subjects without having previous knowledge of them as individuals, allowing truly candid images that say something about himself as well as the two suited men. The effect of this image is that it tells the viewer something about the subjects without any prior information on the couple. It allows the viewer to create their own reality and idea of the subjects, in this sense the image is quite liberal, there are no right or wrong ways to interpret this image. Giving power to the mind of the beholder.

Daren You similarly allows the opportunity of a good photograph to find him. You uses different techniques while developing his images, using reticulated film through a high temperature developing process, inkjet printing, darkroom printing, liquid emulsion and encaustic painting. The final result of the layering of these images creates a completely random image that looks very different from the original image he shot. In this way he explores the beauty of randomness as his art is created through both skill and chance.

This image depicts the surface of the full moon against a grainy black emptiness, this light contrast draws focus to the protruding sphere front and centre. The image appears quite plain at first glance but closer inspection of the moon itself reveals an array of light and dark scratches, lines and craters which form a shade mosaic of beautiful randomness. You’s intentions with this piece are to create an eye catching monochrome image which shows something recognisable by anyone, in a different way. Through the developing process of the image he has made something ‘random’ even more so by the unique appearance of the final outcome. This piece has a powerful effect on the viewer, seeming almost three-dimensional due to the nature of the shadow cast by the moon itself.

These photographers link with my investigation as I’m exploring the ability to convey genuine feelings and emotion through photography and whether it is possible to show the deeper aspects of relationship. Both photographers work in very different ways. Gilden is more candid. His rapid approach to photographing his subjects in action results in a variety of unique shots showcasing individuals and their unique story. You works more with the manipulation of the developing process to create visual diversity in the way the image appears rather than the matter in the photo. I am inspired by his processes of changing the image and have decided to have a theme for editing my images. This theme involves changing colours and the hue of images, to then change the tessellation of the image to create a semi-random composition with a stark and unique feel to it. Following this editing process resulted in a lot of strong photographs turning out very differently and many being discarded. The final images therefore being a combination of my camera skills and controlled factors included in a photo shoot such as lighting, camera setting and subject matter and the selective editing and choosing processes.

I will be responding to the work of Daren You and Bruce Gilden and my essay question, to investigate whether photographs can convey the thoughts and emotions of the subject, through the production of a photobook called “Understated”. This photobook showcases my friends and myself in a series of images which incorporate our friendship and inter personal relationships with each other in a range of settings where we often find ourselves. The majority of the portraits developed throughout my personal investigation were candid shots as I wished to portray the genuine nature of our relationship and how we act around people we are comfortable with without it being forced or staged.

Other images in this photobook consist of still life, close up shots of items used and located in our usual environment. The combination of portrait and still life imagery are a reflection of my two inspirations for this investigation; Gilden and You. The combination of these different mediums allowed me to explore not only the relationship between the subjects and myself but how our common interests add a distinctive dynamic between friends which is totally unique to us as individuals. The visual cultures relating to my investigation are solarisation and superimposition, both of which I have showed an interest in throughout the course. Solarisation is the method by which part of, or an entire photograph is reversed. This makes the dark areas appear light and the lighter areas appear dark. This interested me as the same image can look completely different and allow the viewer to focus on different parts of the composition simply by flipping what appears light and dark. Superimposition involves the placement of an image on top of an existing image, usually this is done to add to the overall effect of the image, but this method can also be used to conceal something. I achieved this by massively lowering the shutter speed and taking a photo of the subject in action or in the middle of a movement. This created the effect of double exposure. In some cases I followed these steps while adjusting the zoom, this created a double exposure which appeared to zoom in on an image.

My personal investigation follows a post-modernist approach to photography. Post-modernism was a movement developed in the late 20th century. Architects were at the head of this movement as they criticised the international style of architecture which up until then had followed a modernist approach. These architects felt that their international style had become repressive and orthodox and was losing its artistic value. Post-modernism follows the idea that while for modernists the image is captured from the photographer’s point of view, which leads the viewer to see one meaning, while post-modernisms focuses on the notion that there can be a lot of different interpretations and different understandings of a piece of work. This allows the photographer to tap into more debatable and taboo topics which different individuals can interpret in different ways. Post-modernism also explores the social forces exerted and their power to shape individual identities and even cultures and sub-cultures as the value of this type of photography isn’t its universal and timeless nature but the fact that it is hard hitting, relevant and accessible. These post-modernist themes are displayed throughout my work as I am discussing an individual and personal topic which is easily relatable. My investigation focuses on social norms and differences, the unique factors that bring my friends and myself together and the sub-cultures that we fall into as a group of people.

While my work in this project has a certain meaning to me, it is open to interpretation on behalf of the viewer. Different people can take away different feelings and emotions from my work, relating to different aspects of it in different ways. This leads me back to my opening quote “Every portrait that is painted with feelings is a portrait of the artist, not of the sitter” (D. Lewis, 2015; Face). As it can be said that the interpretation of a portrait can be determined by the viewer, by their mood and outlook at the time of viewing a piece of work. In this way, my work is relatively open ended as it can mean different things to different people. It can represent fun and friendships as the images display the possibility to make these connotation, however there could also be an element of rebelliousness or irrationality. The almost abstract nature of my project makes it very timeless. The series can be given thought and meaning but can also be viewed as aesthetically pleasing images which are simply enjoyable to look at. Therefore I conclude that it is possible to capture true emotions in a photograph but I feel that unlocking that emotional connection is down to the artist and the viewer. Feelings can be conveyed in an image, perhaps not in the form of a smile or frown of the subject in question, but the emotion and ‘feelings’ felt when the images are interpreted inside the mind of the viewer. This makes it subjective as it is a different thing to view an image and to understand it, but the subjective nature of photography in its entirety is what allows it to be so accessible and globally powerful.

Bibliography:

https://www.picturecorrect.com/tips/the-artist-behind-the-viewfinder-emotional-photography-insight/
BRUCE GILDEN INTERVIEW

https://www.lensculture.com/articles/daren-you-chaos

https://www.lensc

AO2 Explore Ideas, AO4 Present Ideas

PHOTO-BOOK – Front Cover Experimentation

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I decided upon using ‘Zawody’ as my final title for the book. This is the polish word for occupations under the context of work synonymous of professions as a form of wordplay due to the forced labour of many Europeans used in the construction of the subjects within my photo-book. The initial title was simply ‘Occupations’ however I had felt that this didn’t bring any personal connection to the title, as such I chose to use the polish translation of the word in it’s stead.

I had decided that I wanted to include a strong graphical element in my title-page and thus I began studying German military markings used during WW2 and looked for one that i believed would be of sufficient impact for a title-page. I decided upon the general composition of the title-page prior to creating it digitally.

The original edit consisted of a deadpan shot of the sea wall, converted to monochrome with very low levels with minimal highlights to suggest the presence of texture. I did this as i didn’t want to simply use a black background due to the lack of room for further experimentation given that approach.

The marking was then created and weathered using blending options on Photoshop combined with a low radius Gaussian blur filter in order to reduce any aliasing produced by the blending.

I later decided that the yellow was too harsh a contrast to the rest of the subject matter within the book and thus brought it down to a more subtle tone.

The decision was later made to have the title-page on the first double page spread of the book instead of as a cover, leaving a linen cover. Due to this decision the title-page once more harshly contrasted the rest of the book, thus I brought up the shadows quite heavily and reduced the contrast. The text and markings were also brought to a tone and colour closer to that of the sand in the images.

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ESSAY – Final Text

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How does the work of Darren Harvey-Regan explore abstraction as an intention and process? 

 “Something I’ve tried to cloud in the past by showing photographs alongside the exact objects they depict. While that considers the interplay around the translation of object to image – a photographic object being located at an intriguing point of overlap between the two –The Erratics does attempt to reach wider, bringing the flattening of that fourth dimension into the picture.” (Darren Harvey-Regan on Naomi Itami. 11.Dec.2016: ¶5) 

This quote explores the idea that the medium of photography as a whole is an abstraction of times as it is able to capture that moment with no context of the prior nor future events, potentially meaning that abstraction is an unintentional reality for all works of photography. In my personal investigation I am looking to explore the concept of abstract photography, its application and the process of intentionally practicing abstraction. This work intrigues me as it is – at times – able to derive the basest elements of a complex three-dimensional form, resulting in a visually interesting product. The best works of abstraction are able to reduce a form to the point where there are no discernible three dimensional forms in the image similar to the works in The Erratics, the merging of three and two dimensional forms seamlessly through precise lighting and composition. I will be primarily exploring the works of Darren Harvey-Regan in The Erratics due to the use of shape and black & white photography to approach abstraction in a variety of forms of photography and lighting, revolving around a primary subject. Previously I have studied abstraction of forms using a large aperture and close up photography; I am now looking to practice abstraction via subject and lighting manipulation as opposed to camera/ editing tricks. I am looking to photograph the sea wall and establishing shots of the surrounds as well as forming sculpture from similar aggregates used in the sea wall in order to explore the forced labour used to construct the German defensive structures in Jersey. I will be shooting using a small aperture in order to capture the full detail in the image in conjunction with a tripod in order to allow the use of longer shutter speeds to capture any darker details. “If manipulation is the first thing someone thinks of in connection to photography, what does that say about the photograph as a reflection of reality?” (Bright, S. and Van Erp, H. 2019: 17) as such post-processing will be kept minimal and will mostly consist of contrast adjustments and/ or making the images black & white in particular cases as I want the image to closely resemble that of reality while not being immediately recognizable as an untouched image. 

– Abstraction in Modernism – 

This paragraph will be exploring the concept of abstraction in photography, relating to the modernist movement and its strong themes of abstraction. I will also briefly address the idea of abstraction time. The idea that photography is intrinsically an abstraction of time stems from the fact that photos capture a scene at a moment in time, quintessentially removing itself from the fourth dimension “bringing the flattening of that fourth dimension into the picture.” (Itami, N. 11.Dec.2016: ¶5). Since abstraction can be defined as the consideration of something separate from its attributes or associations, all photography has an element of abstraction as time is an intrinsic property of the scene however the scene is removed from time in a photograph. Abstract photography began amassing popularity approaching the 1920s, this was spurred on by the works of those such as Christian Schad and Man Ray and was preceded by several years by what many consider the birth of modernist photography. Modernism in design and art had already began in the late 19th century however photography picked up modernism in the 1910s. The term ‘abstract photography’ is incredibly ambiguous however from the definition of abstraction it can at least be inferred that a defining property of abstract artwork is the detachment from different attributes or associations. This definition can be interpreted in numerous ways; many of the early abstract photographers used this to explore taboo socio-political matters including that of the gradual absolution of gender roles within the modern world or tackling issues of racism and segregation prevalent at the time. Abstraction can however also be tackled in a more visual sense via the removal of dimensions to create visually interesting compositions, most commonly the removal of the third dimension in order to explore textural work or the interaction of different tones and colours together. Many of the early abstract photographers explored the possibility of creating photography without the use of a camera. This would be done by placing objects directly onto photosensitive paper, essentially removing the third dimension as only the surface in contact with the photosensitive paper would transfer onto it resulting in a flat composition with only texture, shape tone and colour. This relates to the ideas of modernist photography as works prior to the movement were to comply with the confines of traditional art in order to have a chance at being considered as art, this movement however served to defy these confines thus helping bring photography into an artistic medium of its own and not simply an imitation of traditional paintings.   

– Darren Harvey-Regan – 

“The photography of British artist Darren Harvey-Regan (b.1974) embraces the convergence of genres: abstract, landscape and still life. Darren’s photographs are not saturated with objects. He defines his focus towards particular sculptural forms and geometrical shapes, often looking towards nature’s own lines and curves – in order to create pure abstract worlds with mixed dimensions and clean contours.” (Savitskaya, A. 15.May.2015: ¶1). 

This quote defines the aspects of Darren Harvey -Regan’s photography I am looking to explore. His work on The Erratics perfectly exemplifies this quote. The Erratics is a collection of work comprised of sculptures, photography as well as a book created by Darren Harvey-Regan. The word ‘erratic’ referring to “a rock that has been transported by a glacier to somewhere far from its native environment.” (Graham, T. 11.May.2017: ¶1). The body of work is focused of rock formations and sculpted chalk with the subject of the photos alternating across pages between the found rocks (particularly the stones within the desert at the start of the book) where these monolithic structures are contrasted with the manmade chalk sculptures. The outdoor shots spanned from the white cliffs of Dover to eastern Egypt. The use of sliced chalk facilitates the contrast of the textured, natural surface of the stone as well as the smooth faces where it has been cut. This results in an interesting reaction from the subject with the lighting; the lighting appears to be a single source painstakingly placed at an angle at which the drop shadows from the subject aren’t harsh despite detailing a lot of the texture surface while creating flat lighting of the smooth surfaces of the chalk resulting in an abstraction of the three dimensional forms by creating these surfaces which appear flat in the three dimensional space. The flat subjects are aligned with the edges of the plinth upon which it is placed. The plinth itself is cuboidal thus complimenting the sharp cut faces of the sculpture. By aligning the sculptures in this manner, it creates the illusion that the images are composed of two or more separate exposures, combined in the post-production process. The creative choice to shoot in black and white allows the white levels of the sculptures, plinth and the background as well as hiding any colour differences in frame. The lack of colour also allows for better control over tone by allowing the colour levels to be adjusted (assuming the images where originally, digitally shot in colour) while having no bearing on the saturation nor vibrancy of the image. Contrast and detail are essential to creating impactful images of such subjects when shot in this manner. The images shot in the desert are considerably more chaotic due to the lack of control over lighting conditions thus much of the work feature harsher lighting with more interesting background conditions. This work displays the erosion of these rock formations over time, linking back to the idea of abstraction of time. 

For my response to The Erratics I decided it would be fitting to my narrative to use pieces of concrete collected from various defensive sites that had been chipped off on account of decades of weathering; as a result, the indentations are filled with various sediments giving more colour depth than the concrete alone. Outward facing surfaces of the concrete are also visibly worn down, creating a variety of textures in each image.  

My responses were shot using single point lighting (with negligible ambient lighting) in the studio, using a still life table. All photos were taken using 200 ISO, 55mm focal length, 1/50th second shutter and an aperture of f/ 5.6. 

I decided not to use a plinth to hold the concrete and instead used an infinity screen. This allowed me to better explore texture as opposed to shape. In reflection, more ambient lighting (and potentially backlighting) would’ve been beneficial as it would minimize the drop shadow further abstracting the third dimension. The presence of the reflection doesn’t bother me as it still appears flat and doesn’t add to form in the manner of a drop shadow. In spite of these issues, the images still serve their purpose from a contextual standpoint as it gives a closer look to the workmanship of the slave labourers. I believe my responses do visually reflect the work of Harvey-Regan to an extent due to the similar level of contrast however my images do feature a brighter white level although this may be a result of Harvey-Regan’s work being scanned from prints.  

– Donald Weber –  

“Once the link between flatness and immediacy is severed a concern with the surface does not vanish. It is rather that the surface is refigured and consequently it becomes possible to reintroduce the surface, though now as open space without a single unified texture. Hence-forth the surface will have been freed from the necessity to be a single texture and thus will have been opened up such that not only can it bear the complexity of the art’s work, but it can represent itself as the field of that work” (Benjamin, A. 1996: p.42) 

Immediacy is a philosophical concept with implications of an event or object destitute of any intervening medium. An exemplar of this being viewing an artwork and experiencing the scene as your own, unlike the sense of viewing a photograph or painting and instead experiencing the moment captured by the artist, Irregardless of the medium. This is a philosophical concept that primarily lends itself to realism in photography or ‘Trompe-l’œil’ painting. The quote above can be summarised as breaking the link between flat artwork and realism or representation, implying that art doesn’t have to represent the real world, and this applies to photography. This idea and its antithesis are explored throughout War Sand by both including Tableaux vivants images comprised of figurines and sand samples, re-enacting the Normandy landings while also photographing everyday scenes in a manner which abstracts form from the scene and by using spectroscopic imagery of various sand samples from the beaches of Normandy – known under the alias of micro-archaeology – providing an unusual perspective on an all too usual subject. This medium allows the highlighting of the remaining shrapnel across Normandy from the infamous D-Day landings; this metaphorically explores the long-lasting impact caused by WW2, still experienced today by people across the globe. Many of images in the given body of work are shot featuring overcast weather thus creating an abundance of ambient light resultantly lacking in drop shadows and minimising saturation subsequently maintaining a documentary approach while exploring abstraction of form. Many of the images are quite similar and can appear repetitive by design; this appears to be a conscious choice made by Donald Weber to maintain the clinical approach to this body of work, further emphasized by the inclusion of spectroscopic imagery towards the conclusion of book. These images are later contrasted by the Tableaux images which ironically are more familiar to the viewer than the images of the – so to speak – real subjects.  

In response to Donald Weber, I have decided to stick to photographing solely landscape subjects as I found that the tableaux and spectroscopic imagery wouldn’t fit thematically nor aesthetically with my body of work.  

My response shots were taken using natural lighting under overcast conditions to create soft drop shadows and diminished contrast and saturation. The photos were taken using a variety of camera settings according to the different lighting situations encountered as well as differing subjects. All photos however used an ISO tending towards 1600 and the shutter speed matched the inverse of the focal length in mm in allow adequate exposure without capturing motion blur – to a reasonable degree – and an aperture of f/ 5.6 to allow more light to reach the sensor.  

I believe that my images quite closely resembled those of Weber in composition however due to my choice of lighting and editorial choices to keep the images muted they do not resemble his images tonally nor in saturation. 

– Conclusion –  

In conclusion I have found that abstraction is more than simply a genre and is however a powerful tool that can be used to explore a wide array of subject manner, ranging from simply exploring interesting visual compositions to peacefully protesting various socio-political taboos. The introduction of influence from the likes of Weber and Harvey-Regan have allowed me to develop my work in a manner that allowed me to better explore abstraction of visual elements. The studio shots allowed me to explore shape and lighting in a manner similar to that of Harvey-Regan while having an element of texture within the primary subject while introducing elements of my own artistic identity. While this did distract from the initial intention of the artist study, I believe this did help me to grow as both a photographer and an artist, while deepening my overall understanding of abstraction as a medium as there is no precise definition to abstraction in art, only loose guidelines and implications associated with the genre. My artist study of Weber was more faithful in a visual regard as I believed that his style of composition particularly fit my desired aesthetic. I did however take some artistic liberties when choosing both the timing and weather conditions for my shoots as well as the choices made in post-production as my work is more muted than Weber’s body of work. My study on Weber was an excellent opportunity to explore texture in photography as the lack of discernible three-dimensional forms left ample room to incorporate form without resulting in an image that looks overly cluttered. 

Bibliography: Bright, S. and Van Erp, H. (2019). Photography Decoded. London: Ilex. 

Itami, N. (11.Dec.2016). Darren Harvey-Regan/ The Erratics/ Interview. Berlin: Hatjecantz. 

Graham, T. (19.May.2017). Snapshot: ‘The Erratics’ by Darren Harvey-Regan. London: Financial Times. 

Savitskaya, A. (15.May.2015). I think we confuse photography and art by trying to harmonize all its possible contexts – interview with Darren Harvey-Regan. Belgium: ArtDependance.  

Benjamin, A. (1996). What is Abstraction. London: ACADEMY EDITIONS. 

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Jeff Wall essay

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How does Jeff Walls tableaux approach depict a seemingly photo journalistic approach?

“Walls images have all the drama and spontaneity of street photography but the exacting precision of a film set” (Shelley Jones, July 2019)

Jeff Walls approach to photography may seem at first to some, as simple street photography, the subjects caught in the act of going about their everyday lives. However, this is not the case, as Wall is a world renowned tableaux photographer, who focuses on creating the perfect picture and adopting a meticulous and tedious process to obtain the perfect depiction of his ideas. Some shoots typically taking hours or even days just to process one image. Wall has been known to hire out masses of industry professionals such as prop makers, lighting technicians and stylists to really bring his images to life and portray his ideas as clear as he sees them in his own head. “Wall, 68, refers to his approach as cinematography or near documentary”(E. Lipsy Karaz, Wall Street Journal 2015). With Wall referring to his own approach as cinematography, it raises the question of How? How does wall achieve the approach of cinematography and produce a well-orchestrated and descriptive image?

The answer lies within the image itself. At first glance, Many of Wall’s images simply seem to be images of chance occurrences within the environment Wall is shooting in, However that is far from the case, as Wall conducts his shoots and arranges subjects on set based upon his own personal experience of situations he finds of interest. For example, in one of Wall’s most renowned pieces of work, Mimic 1982, we are presented with an image of a well-dressed, clean looking male subject of Asian heritage walking through a suburban area of Vancouver, Canada.  Alongside him is a more unkempt male subject grasping the hand of his seemingly disgusted female partner. The male subject has his finger dragged to the corner of his eye, making an obscene/ racist gesture aimed towards the Asian subject. This image may seem at first a chance occurrence that Wall happened to be in the right place and the right time for. However, if we are to look behind the scenes, we would soon come to the realization that in fact, we are unable to view the immense production team responsible for the creation of this image. The idea from the image comes from a personal experience of Wall’s, where he was walking along a suburban sidewalk in Vancouver and witnessed this exact event unfolding in front of his eyes. Wall was disgusted by this racist act, but at the same time intrigued, as the event he witnessed really depicted the social unease at the time between Asian immigrants and local Canadians due to the recent events of the Vietnam war creating a surge in Vietnamese refugees seeking asylum within the United States and Canada. In 1923, The Canadian Government passed the Chinese Immigration Act, which restricted Chinese nationals from immigrating to Canada, and this act later expanded to cover all Asian nationals. The Act was later repealed in 1947, however the majority of Asian Immigrants came to the US and Canada in the wake of the Korean and Vietnam Wars respectively. The vast Majority of Asian Immigrant families reside in Downtown Vancouver, where this particular image was shot, and Wall wished to use this image to highlight the silent war of abuse and unrest towards Asian members of the public. Wall’s ability to reconstruct this image aided the creation of a conversation on immigrant rights and protection from discrimination, and in 1982, The Canadian Parliament passed the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, stating all Canadian citizens be treated equally under the eyes of the law. This Charter was no doubt influenced by the cultural impact of Mimic 1982. The fact that Wall was able to reconstruct this exact image from memory is remarkable, and this must also be considered in the fine attention to detail in all of Walls works, with some shoots consisting of multiple of seemingly the same image, yet only one was deemed perfect due to something as small as a crease in a shirt, or the positioning of a cloud. This has assisted Wall in standing out in the world of photography, as a man of process and above all, meticulous selection, further proving he is one of the many greats of tableaux photography

‘Mimic, 1982’- Jeff Wall
Image result for jeff wall milk
‘Milk’- Jeff Wall 1984

In this image titled simply “Milk”, Wall has depicted a male holding a milk drink and squeezing it, causing the milk to erupt in the subjects hands. The subject is in full focus and the background seems to be that of the exterior of a well kept and clean building, Whereas the subject appears dirty and scruffy, With greasy hair and dirty clothes. This creates a contrasting image, With a sense of cleanliness making up the background with the focus being on the messiness of the main subject of the image. The explosion of the milk carton makes us question why this is happening. Is the man angry? is he undergoing stress? or is he potentially in a crazed mental state?. This image essentially allows for the critic to create their own context to the image and create their own story due to the multiple scenarios that may be at play here in a contextual mannerism. Wall quotes from his interview with David Campany ” I think the pictorial problems emerge from the accidental encounter that reveals the subject”. I find that his quote means in a sense that the use of the medium of photography has opened up a conversation regarding the issues the subject themselves could potentially be dealing with, and that photography can be used to portray an individuals expression of their inner selves. The composition of the image in terms of contrast plays a role in telling the story as well, As the background is bright, contrasted by the small shadow of the wall of the windowed building. The usage of tinted blue for the glass and the green of the plant give the background an uplifting feel due to the bright colours. However this is contrasted by the ragged appearance of the male subject in the foreground, Depicted by his dark coloured clothing and dark hair. The white of the milk drink exploding instantly draws us to the image due to the absence of white in the background as well as the shape and texture of the liquid itself captured in the time frame it was captured in. The explosion of the milk carton creates a dramatic contrast when observed in comparison to the solid, tranquil background of the image. The eruption of the milk itself creates a talking point. Why is the milk exploding in this manner? What is the subject currently feeling in terms of emotion? Was there an event that caused this reaction?

Historical and Theoretical Context

“Many street photographers also tend to interact with their subjects as a form of gaining context to a persons background and the situation being photographed. Street photography has been used throughout the years as a platform to address issues to the public, such as homelessness, poverty and racism“

I have taken this quote from a previous blog post of mine, exploring photographic movements. The particular movement this extract is taken from concerns street photography, a movement Jeff Wall is no stranger to. Street Photography is a movement that is widely associated with photojournalism and photojournalism is a relation of documentary photography. The idea of reality concerning photojournalism constantly resounds, The idea that we may not be seeing the bigger picture, and the information fed to us is altered to suit the eye of the photographer and tell the story they wish to rather than them conveying us the truth at times. Then the question of propaganda arises. Is the sole purpose of some forms and elements of photojournalism simply to influence our attitudes and bend our minds to conform to the beliefs of those in control of the media? or is what we see through the mediums of photojournalism the real deal and an accurate representation of the topic covered? In a society where forms of media are readily available in the palm of our hands in the form of digital news outlets and social media platforms, The subject of reality is one that many of us question on a daily basis. Fake news stories are being slapped in front of us as a society on a regular occurrence and those in control of the media have become masters of creating a reality from a myth through the means available to them. Tableaux photography when done correctly, can influence a viewer to believe the events they are presented with before them are real events that have actually occurred. To the untrained eye, Tableaux works can be highly convincing, Thus creating a culture of dictation and false information, further tweaking the minds of society and conforming it to the views of those in positions of power. Even news and media outlets that are deemed legitimate and credible may even be giving us only half of the actual story, or the story they or a higher power wish to tell. The movement of photojournalism is one that carries with it the burden of deception at times. Some photojournalists working for large media outlets have proven that in some instances, they are employed to give a differing perspective of a story than the true perspective of the story.

Conclusion

Within images taken by photojournalists, we are often led to believe that what we see is what we get. For example, a disheveled elderly man sleeping rough will be seen by many as simply a homeless person, poor and dirty, struggling for survival. But many are quick to just claim this is nothing new and bat an eyelid and move on. Now what if this man were to actually be a military veteran, kicked out on the street after a long fought battle with mental health issues. The perspective would instantly change, further highlighting the representation of subjects of photojournalism and the photographers responsibility for the image of a subject. Jeff Wall however, is not a photo journalist, but rather an artist whom recreates an image solely from memory and events he has witnessed. The meticulous recreation of these memorised scenes is regarded as tableaux photography to the trained eye of a photographer, yet to the general public, this is seen as a reality occurring right before them, and they are left completely oblivious to the staged nature of the image and the industrial process behind the creation of the single image in front of them, and this can cause deception among most as they deem this image to be a real life event, captured at exactly the right second by a photographer who just so happened to be in the right place at the right time, whereas in the case of Jeff Wall, this is far from the case.

AO2 Explore Ideas, Uncategorized

Still life-analysis

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Intro

In this blog post i will be experimenting with different kind of still life categories and researching all the different ones to decide which genre of still life do i want to focus on to talk about and then research and finally experimenting to create some photographs of that genre.

So i started by choosing my favorite two genres which were dead animal still life and symbolic still life.

Dead Animal Still Life

After doing my research about dead animal still life i concluded that it is not much more than just a still life of something rather iconic but with not much meaning behind. It is just basically a still life photograph that includes the body of a dead organism that represent something else but not much of a reason behind that.

This is a still life of a scene were there is a dead rabbit and dead birds, but what really caught my eye is that the actor chose to keep one animal alive which was a grey African parrot on the top of an exotic fruit basket. I did a lot of research about it but still didn’t find an exact reason for why did the artist chose to draw some dead animals but keep one particular animal alive.

Symbolic Still Life

 This is a wider category that denotes any type of still life with an overt symbolic narrative, usually religious or quasi-religious in nature. which i really liked because there is a reason and/or meaning behind everything in a symbolic still life which makes it very interesting and eye catching. What i really enjoyed about this genre is that you can get lost in it as in to understanding the meaning or reason behind everything in the still life.

After a lot of research i could identify what the objects in this still life represent, with the skull representing mortality, on the other hand the burnt out candle represent death, with the book under the skull meaning the transmitting of information, and finally the finished sand clock on the side representing the finishing of passing time.

Vanitas (Latin for vanity).  These are paintings with still life symbolism around a central theme with a moral message.  They remind the viewer of death, the fragility of human life, and the brevity of our existence.   The artist would use items like a skull, timepiece, snuffed out candle to represent the passage of time.  Books, musical instruments (very expensive items during the time period) are there to warn of the futility of worldy pursuits.

Conclusion

So in conclusion i chose symbolic still life as my focus in the still life project as i can experiment with a lot of stuff while taking my photographs and in the same time sending a message with the final photographs to represent something.

AO2 Explore Ideas, AO3 Record Ideas, AO4 Present Ideas, Uncategorized

Photo montges

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In this blog post I will be exploring the use of montages to express mental illness. I think montages may be the best way to convey this event because it’s something that is difficult to picture with a camera, but easier to show by manipulating and combining images. Below is a mood board with images I used as inspiration when creating my photo montages. In the images, most of the subjects are obscured from the images.

Mood board.
Images are not my own.

The image below I also used as a prime example, by my case study Diana Markosian.

“This is the closet thing I had to an image of my father. A cut out of him in my mother’s photo album.”

Editing images:

  • first montage
  • second montage

I began with an image of my mother, and me as a baby. I used the quick selection tool to select her, then right clicked pressing layer via cut, I then removed the layer, leaving a blank space in the image where my mother originally was. You can see the final output above. Although I thought it was a successful image I wanted to experiment with some variations. Because of this I added an image of her medication, and layered it over the top, and changed the opacity to around 50% so the original layer was visible. This is the 4th image you see above. I think overall both images are effective in conveying mental illness, however I think the second image gives more context to the situation. Ultimately, the image I will end up using will be the one that fits in more with the photo selection from my book, which I think will be the initial montage.

  • Similar to the process above I used the quick selection tool to obscure my mother from the image
  • first montage
  • second montage

To complete the montages above I followed the same process stated at the beginning, the only difference being the image I layered on top of my archival image.

AO1 Develop Ideas, AO2 Explore Ideas, AO3 Record Ideas, AO4 Present Ideas, Component 1 Personal Investigation

Text Within the Photo-Book: Essay

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I needed to find a way to incorporate my essay in a visually appropriate and practical way, while not taking away from the main purpose of the book (the photos). In order to do this, I pasted the essay into Light-room, and from there I experimented with the placement of text, titles and photos that I would use to layout my essay and present it at the back of my book. My first draft of organizing and layout of the essay in my book was as below:

With this initial layout, I placed the essay in paragraphs, and tried to make sure each paragraph was written with a corresponding image on the page next to it, this way I could maintain the viewers attention, and give examples of the concepts and works that I was referencing in the essay. As my historical context paragraph was longer than the others, I gave that section of my essay a double page spread, and decided to include 2 images over the following 2 pages to present examples for the viewer to better understand the contents of the historical context portion of the essay. This double page of images also allows for a split in the essay after the 2 whole pages of text, therefore I find it important to add in order to split the essay into manageable chunks.

After placing my essay using the initial layout, I decided to restructure the layout so that it fit more flush with the pages, and the size was small enough to fit and work on the page, but large enough to be read without issue.

Firstly, I decided to keep the title at 12 pt, and move it into the middle of the page. I felt like this allowed for the title to stand out against the essay, and gave the reader a clear beginning to start reading. I differentiated from the title by placing the essay in 11 pt (a size large enough to read but small enough to fit on the page). Furthermore, I increased the padding from the left and right sides of the page to 26 pt, as I did not want the text to spill out into the gutter of the book (where the paper begins to bend over) as I felt that this would make it difficult to read.

I used the same 11 pt font and 26 pt padding across all of the pages with my essay on (to ensure continuity). I feel like this layout gives the essay pages more structure, and I am happy that the text does not come too close to the edges of the paper, or the gutter of the book.

Below is the final layout for the essay portion of my book:

When comparing between my first and second draft, I fee like my second layout has a lot more structure to it, and allows the reader to navigate the essay much more easily.

AO2 Explore Ideas, Component 1 Personal Investigation

Print Layouts

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As well as producing my photo-book I have printed some of my other photographs which I took and edited digitally but did nor fo onto using in my photo-book, I plan to explore different layouts for mounting them either on foam board or using a window mount.

Below shows the images I have chosen to print and also what size I have chosen to print them in, over the course of having them I will experiment with the different layouts of them of how they can fit together as photographs.

I began by researching and looking into different ways that I could trial laying out my photographs on board or in window mounts, as my photographs create and tell one fluid story, narrative I feel I should lay them out in a way which leads the story or highlights important parts of them which I would like to emphasise.

Looking at the photographs I printed out I made three in three different sizes, A4, A3 and A5, I printed out two of each of these sizes to give me some variation in what way I could lay them out. I am still unsure as to whether I place them all collectively together or as separate displays. My photographs are showing two different parts of the story each, one that leads on towards the other, however I am unsure as to whether I should put them all together as one larger narrative or in two separate narratives to keep the two parts separate from each other and as individual stories. This would also allow me to experiment more with my layouts as I could have two different versions rather than one.

Below are four of my trials for display options for my printed photographs, I trialled having my photographs separated onto two different displays and also all together as one collective display, I feel some my photographs might have more of an impact being displayed on foam board and some on window mounts so I want to trail and see how I feel that they would fit and work together, due to having 6 and 3 different sizes I feel that one display may become too crowded which is not what I want to eventually achieve so I feel for this reason I may begin to split up my photographs.

Final Display Plans

Below I have my plans for my final prints, I decided on doing three separate displays due to the types of photographs I had, my middle display I felt is a strong image any itself so decided to keep it singular and in a window mount to keep it in a frame. My left display I felt the photographs worked well together with the repetition of the subjects but also the colour schemes going through the two photographs, I have also decided to window mount these photographs as I feel they will work well with the dark black paper, sunken into the display as the sink into the dark musty green colours of the background I feel works well together. For my last display I paired these three photographs together as they all have very similar colour hues which ascetically work well with each other, as well with the subject matter the close up of the eyes works well in contrast to the action of them being blinded and hidden in my other two photographs which is why I have chosen to place them all together working with each other, I will be displaying this on foam board as I feel they should stand out above the page as well the white I feel will work with the bright blues and purple colours coming through in the photographs.

AO2 Explore Ideas, Component 1 Personal Investigation

Photobook: Text

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Text is an important part of my photo-book as my images were telling a story. The photographs tell a narrative themselves however I felt it important to include the written stories I was telling to make more sense for the viewer and to help the narrative of the book flow.

Narrative Text

I began with the narrative text, experimenting with the placing and the images I was going ton put the text to. I put each story down into 3 paragraphs or miniature stories each. I found this work best as a sequence and then wanted to keep each story the same to help with the flow of the book. I also had to trial and experiment with putting the text at the top, bottom and centre of the page. I personally found that in the centre worked best as my images were mainly centred that I was using so it worked on the adjacent page to have the text in a symmetrical position. I placed a subheading at the beginning of each paragraph as I felt this looked better but also gave some context towards the stories and what was going to be told to come.

I began experimenting with the size of text as well as its compression, I started with size 15.4 text and moved it down to the main body of text being size 11 with the heading being size 12, this worked best as in industry production this is the regular size text would be and it won’t look overly large and too big on the A4 size paper that I have. I also began to add a buffer to my text boxes, making the lines shorter but adding the text onto more lines, this worked better than having all of my text stretched out it made it look more clean and put together and neater than having it stretched out, this also helped with the centring of the text on the page.

Essay Text

I personally chose to add my essay into the end of my photo-book as I felt this was an added touch to finish of the whole personal investigation together. I chose to stick to some similar layouts throughout as I felt it looked better with consistency rather than changing it every single page. I tried to make each spread round off and finish in a good place so to make sense and to help the flow, using the size 11 text I felt this was the best size for large bodies of text and then further used size 10 for the image labels and captions so that the did not begin to get too bulky or take up too much room compared to the main large body of text.