Xavier uses muted yellow tones in his photos which i have tried to replicate on photo shop. Using the image -adjustments tool and then using a different process on each photo. I looked at the main cathedral in new Zealand when i went there in Christ church and the destruction that the earthquake caused and how the city and nature moves around it with out taking much notice because it has just become normality. This links in well with Xavier's work because its all about how society just molds and grows round destruction and damage
Barbara Kruger generally uses black and white photographs with heavy contrast as her background layer underneath bold red text boxes usually stating strong, somewhat controversial lines.
As I knew beforehand that I was going to be editing these images more than I usually would, I wanted to use natural lighting portraits as my background to even that out.
Although Kruger doesn’t use her photos as a ‘series’ I did want to use mine this way, whilst also addressing some topics that I’m extremely passionate about – the effects of mental illness, abuse, and the stigma that inevitably follows.
Editing
first edit: when i recover; i won’t blame myself anymore
The first thing I did to this image was increase the canvas size so that I could then create the thick red border around the image – I increased the height and width to 1.5cm after a bit of trial and error to see which thickness I thought appeared best.
I created a ‘colour fill’ layer and dragged that underneath ‘layer 0’ in the layers column. I used the rectangle tool to create some rectangles, filled with the same shade red as the border, where I wanted the text to go.
I used the horizontal text tool to then place the text where I wanted it – I opened the ‘properties’ panel to adjust the font, size and colour of the text.
I then started to edit my photograph. I decreased the brightness to -20 and increased the contrast to +20. This made the whole image a bit darker but the colours a bit brighter – I did this so that when I put the image into black and white, I’d know which parts of the image were going to be darker and which were going to be lighter.
I put the photo into black and white, but I played around with some of the colour settings until the photo looked how I wanted it to look, this resulted in;
reds -2%
blues 143%
magentas -42%
I added some grain ((noise)) to this image to make it look more dramatic and give it some harsher editing, I increased the noise to 5.5% .
To finish this edit I added some dust and scratches, I left radius at 1 pixel and increased threshold to 35 levels.
second edit; you can’t have a rainbow, without a little pain
I started this edit by doing the same as the previous with the red border and text, however I used a brighter, more vibrant red as this was a more positive photo.
I started editing this image by decreasing the brightness to -40 and increasing the contrast to +40, I wanted the background to appear brighter, and as the subjects skin tone was slightly washed out, I decreased the brightness.
I kept adjusting the exposure settings until I was happy with how the photo was looking, the final settings were:
exposure +0.5
offset -0.002
gamma correction 0.83
I changed some of the settings in shadows/highlights:
shadows
amount 18%
tone 23%
radius 28
highlights
amount 49%
radius 13
adjustments
colour -93%
midtones +1
To finish this edit I added noise at 10%, uniform.
The aim of this photo shoot is to clearly show my response to Saul Seinberg and mask photography. As mentioned before I felt that Seinberg’s work presented too much of an identity and therefore conducted research into mask photography. In this photo shoot I will be using two types of masks, a whole face mask and a half face mask, in order to present the theme of loss of identity. The location of this photo shoot will be both indoors and outdoors, to gain a mixture of environments. I want to be able to use natural lighting throughout this shoot, in order to make the images seem more natural. Doing this will present the theme of loss of identity as a more natural and realistic occurrence, making viewers more aware of the idea that someone can loose their identity. I will be keep the camera settings pretty standard, with the shutter speed being quick, the ISO on 400-800 and the white balance being on daylight. On Occasion I will alter the shutter speed and ISO in order to make the images seem lighter and darker depending of the location of the image and how I envision the final image to look like. I will direct my model to sit in different positions, do different actions and to look in certain places which will ensure that the images taken are how I want them to look.
Contact Sheets
To evaluate this photo shoot I felt that I have been able to produce some strong outcomes towards mask photography. I looked at surrealism within mask photography, bed cover over head, and a more naturalistic look with a plain white mask. I felt that I was able to successfully meet the aim of this photo shoot. In the editing process I want to ensure that all personality and identity is extracted from these images, so I will look at adjusting the levels, curves, hue and saturation. I want to be able to create a eerie and sinister tone to the final outcomes, to represent the eerie and sinister feelings people gain when they loose their identity.
For my ‘final ideas’ photo shoot, I wanted to piece together all of my ideas together i did this by deciding to do self portraits because it meant I could portray the ideas I wanted to get across from personal experience. I also did this so that the wrong message wasn’t put across.
As my setting I used a shower (which represents being isolated from the outside world – a safe place) and for my more basic portraits I used a basic set up of a black cloth, a tripod and a 10 second camera timer. This all together reflected my idea of inner emotions escaping my mind.
For my final piece, I am focusing on ‘Mental Identity’: inner state of identity. I will focus more on how behind closed doors, no one knows how they truly impact someone else and the effect on their emotions.
Artist References
Gabriella Mendez
I admire Mendez’ work due to her perspective and imagination shrouding colours complimenting skin tones. She also uses stickers, projections and objects to portray her ideas of fashion and culture. I really admired her idea of using appliques and drawings on faces to reflect a certain idea.
Analysis
VISUAL
Mendez’ work often displays a colourful background with one/two people as the centre focus. In these images she has used bold solid coloured back drops, she then correlates the costume and make up with this colour scheme. With the photo on the left Mendez has correlated the eye and foliage make up to the off-mustard background, then has a contrasting top on the model to vary where the eye’s attention else where. Within the picture on the left however Mendez has made it so that the models foliage and top to contrast the background. This collectively draws the direct attention to the models neutral face in contrast to the boldly coloured extras.
TECHNICAL
In order to create this image Mendez has used a warm toned soft box light so that light isn’t direct, its even dispersed within the studio. During the editing process she has increased the images saturation and contrast to make the image soft and not harsh with lots of colours happening.
Francesca Woodman
Francesca Stern Woodman was an American photographer best known for her black and white pictures featuring either herself or female models. Many of her photographs show women, naked or clothed, blurred, merging with their surroundings, or whose faces are obscured.
What I admire about Woodman’s work is how she uses her self as the centre focus: she uses her self to reflect her feelings towards her belonging and how she felt about not feeling like the standard person. I originally used this idea to project my emotions and thoughts about myself not fitting into the mold everyone around me has created for me.
Analysis
VISUAL
Within this composition, Woodman has used her body to curve around the wall, she is peaking around the corner at her reflection (given off by a mirror on the floor). This in my opinion gives the feeling of searching, and in Woodman’s case searching for herself. This self portrait is set within a decaying empty room with once painted white walls and hard concrete floors. This contrast between her body and the harsh man made structures reflects her innocent self against the harsh world.
TECHNICAL
In order to create lighting in this image, Woodman has used the natural lighting from an unseen window. This light then hits the concrete floor and potentially bounces off the mirror this creates a ‘spotlight’ feel to where Woodman is placed, this is due to the foreground and background corners are unlit. This draws attention to woodman and her reflection.
By utilizing both these artists’ views and my own, I wish to create compositions that reflect my sense of not fitting into the world I was brought into. I aim to show how our inner thoughts cannot be contained once alone. Either through feelings or none at all, the pain of not knowing where to go is the closest rival to death. This all relates down to the epicentre of all of our problems: wanting perfection. In the ideal world, perfection doesn’t exist, we would aim to reach our own maximum capacity, not to correlate with numbers and code.
“Warning: If you are reading this then this warning is for you. Every word you read of this useless fine print is another second off your life. Don’t you have other things to do? Is your life so empty that you honestly can’t think of a better way to spend these moments? Or are you so impressed with authority that you give respect and credence to all that claim it? Do you read everything you’re supposed to read? Do you think every thing you’re supposed to think? Buy what you’re told to want? Get out of your apartment. Meet a member of the opposite sex. Stop the excessive shopping and masturbation. Quit your job. Start a fight. Prove you’re alive. If you don’t claim your humanity you will become a statistic. You have been warned.” ― Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club
Steinberg captured people with paper bags over there face, hiding and disguising their identity. On the paper bags there are shapes creating a cartoon style face. When someone looses their identity they tend to hide their emotions with fake ones, the paper bag acts metaphorically to show the fake emotions that a person is likely to present when they loose their identity, which presents the conceptual elements within this photographic series. Technically speaking the models are located in the centre of the frame, allowing them to be the main focus point. The background is used to present the background of the person, the type of people they are. In this case they seem rich due to the posh fireplace and large amount of space surrounding them. The photograph is presented in black and white which allows the image to be high in tonal contrast allowing details to be shown clearer. Space, tone and texture are the main formal elements which are being presented within this image. They are all presented through the background and the model, which all add the effect of loosing an identity. The camera settings when taking these images where precise, the ISO seems to be slightly high as there seems to be an intended noise, this also contextually shows the time period (1962) that these images were captured in. The shutter speed seems to be quick as there is no intended blur, moreover there is a large depth of field due to the whole frame being in focus. This photograph presents cold artificial lighting, which adds to the depressing and sinister tone which Steinberg is creating around the idea of someone loosing their identity and trying to be someone whom they aren’t. Contextually, Steinberg wanted to show that everyone is society ‘wears a mask’ to hide the true identity, whether it is metaphorically or physically, through makeup. He said that this was because it acted as “a protection against revelation.”. Applying this to loss of identity, it shows how when people loose their identity they try and pretend to be someone they are not, so people do not find out what they are going through. To apply this contextual idea to this image the paper bags are suggesting that because these people are rich they have to act rude and snobby towards others due to the class system.
Based on this artist research I want to conduct a study where I look at capturing my model disguising their identity. In order to present a stronger relationship between the artist and loss of identity, I intended to use plain white masks and plain simplistic background, so no identity is built around the background of the model. Moreover, I intended to use a similar soft cold lighting in order to create a depressing tone to my work. In order for more inspiration with the use of masks and paper bags, to disguise and present the idea that my model has lost their identity and pretending that they are okay, I intended to conduct visual inspiration through a mood board, were further interests surrounding this topic can be presented.
Mood Board Of Other Artists Work With Masks
While exploring further into mask photography, I got a glimpse of the idea of surrealism with masks. Within this I saw a thin white material like a bed sheet around the head of the model, which takes the viewer away from naturalistic photographs. This presents loss of identity as it shows that there is nothing left when you lose your identity, the white sheet presents metaphorically that the person who loses their identity is left with emptiness. This is an aspect which I think could inspire my photoshoot of masks
Another aspect which present clear ideas is the use of a blank white mask. These masks can be considered eerie and scary, which can present the emotions that a person feels when they loose their identity. Moreover, the mask physically covers the face of the model which shows the loss of their identity.
By conducting this further research of mask photography I have clear ideas and visions that I want to bring forward to my photoshoot which will be inspired by Steinberg’s use of paper bags/masks.
For my identity project into the influence that adults have on the development of children’s identity, I have decided to take inspiration from the work of Tish Murtha, a social documentary photographer who worked in Britain. she is was best known for documenting more marginalized communities, such as the working class in the North East of England.
Her photography is documentary style, and often uses candid photography in order to truly show a true to life representation of the life, struggles and social workings of the groups she photographed. Examples of her work can be seen below:
Her work often shows the raw emotion on the faces of her subjects, allowing for the identity of the subjects to be presented through their emotions, feelings and reactions to their present situations.
Murtha uses her photography to inject personality into the individuals who are often simply stereotyped and grouped into certain groups of people. Her photography gives individual personalities to the people who are often shun by society due to their social class, position in society, age, gender or job.
Murtha produced exhibitions such as Youth Unemployed (1981), Elswick Kids (1978) and Juvenile Jazz Bands (1979), which showed the struggles of children living in the lower bands of society during the 70’s and 80’s, using photography to display real life issues such as poverty, unemployment, conflict and a lack of individual identity within the children of the working class.
Through her photography, Murtha raised important issues about society with the public, as her work depicted the struggles of the working class, and the social issues they face, which the viewer can then compare to the issues they themselves face.
Murtha, born in South Shields in the North East of England, was accustomed to the poverty and deprivation that was common in the area. Her work focused a lot of attention to proving that, although the subjects in the photographs often look care-free and happy, the environment in which they live is often poverty-stricken, run down, and appears to lack any outside help in order to make it safe and appropriate for living in.
The above image was taken by Murtha as part of her Youth Unemployment exhibition. This image uses the shock factor of the young boy holding a cigarette so nonchalantly in his mouth, in order to draw the attention of the viewer, before allowing them to understand the underlying meaning. This image portrays the children in a situation (playing cards and smoking cigarettes) that would normally be associated with adult behavior. Here, Murtha is commenting on the fact that a deprived environment often forces children to grow up faster than they should, and the situation they are placed in (poverty) influences them to take the identity of the adults around them.
The above image is an example of where Murtha took close up head-shots of individuals living in the run down areas of Newcastle. Murtha incorporated elements of both candid and posed photography. The above image focuses on the appearance of the subject in the foreground, who appears to come from a poorer, lower class background. While the subject appears to be from a less privileged background, his facial expression does not convey negative emotions, rather he seems distracted by something interesting.
This image by Murtha really conveys the theme that all of her work follows. The young girl in the image is seen jumping on an abandoned car, a dangerous activity in a hazardous run down area that now days, would violate health and safety regulations immediately. However, the context of the image indicates that the subjects are actually enjoying this activity, with the subject in the background moving to stand back on the car roof (presumably after already jumping off). Here, Murtha is able to covey that, even among the deprivation and poverty, children still adapt to their environment and create fun out of seemingly dangerous or boring situations.
In order to experiment with photo-montage, I have decided to create a response to the artist Peter Kennard. His work focuses on portraying his views on political and social issues, such as war, politicians and environmental concerns. His work often criticizes the use of nuclear weapons, and highlights the importance of protecting the earth and innocent lives from the consequences of war
Below is a montage of the work of Kennard that challenges the current politics and social issues:
Taking inspiration from Kennard, and his criticisms of politics, the first photo-montage I created involved using Photoshop to cut and paste different facial features of different well known politicians onto the face of the current prime minister of England. For this image, I have taken inspiration from an image created by Peter Kennard, who used an image of the prime minister and photos-shopped another politician into her head. This is a statement made by Kennard voicing his opinion on UKIP, and the decisions made by the politicians involved.
The image I have created also criticizes the current political situation of the UK, and incorporates the same style as Kennard (using a black and white color scheme, and using a black background in order to draw maximum attention to the image in the foreground).
My photo-montage“Where’s UKIP now?” – Peter Kennard
As well as criticizing politics, Kennard also uses his photo-montage work to criticize the physical state of the world and environment. He uses photo-montage to show his opinions on how human activity destroys and disrupts the environment.
Kennards photo-montage depicting a nuclear power plant as the top half of earth, created to criticize human use of resources that produce waste harmful to the environment
In order to further experiment with photo-montage, I decided to take inspiration from Kennards work revolving around criticisms of environmental issues, and created the following photo-montage:
This image uses the same color scheme (grey-scale) as Kennard, which helps to emphasis the image in the foreground. As well as taking inspiration from Kennards work for the color scheme, I have also used a plain black background, as I feel like this allows for the image in the foreground to warrant maximum attention of the viewer, and helps to show the issue presented in the montage as an issue separate from anything else, allowing the viewer to focus all attention on the issue at hand.
After looking further into Kennards work, I have produced a variety of images that take inspiration from his photo-montage style, but do not replicate his work exactly (they include some original ideas and concepts). Below are the results of this:
When I went to take the images I changed the way that I did the images and set them up. One way that it changed was that I was planning on taking the photos so that they lined up perfectly with the background, the way that i re did this is that I lined up one major feature within the picture and the same in the background like a door frame or a window.
For the first image there are multiple attempts as I was trying to line up the shot and then changed to the style of showing that I am in the same location by including features and the scene.
This Photo-shoot was inspired in terms of composure by the images of Zhao Xiaomeng. I used an ISO of 1600 in these images in order to have some grain in the images while allowing for well lit sharp images without a tripod. All images in this photo-shoot were taken using the same settings apart from the first 4 which were taken using a lower ISO than the other images in the series, as for other settings i used an F stop of 5.0 and a shutter speed of 1/125. All these images were taken using raw images in the CR2 format, this allowed for more options when it came to editing the images in light-room.
My personal favourites of this photo-shoot are photos 4584, 4590, 4592, 4593, 4596, 4598, 4601, 4606, 4608, 4610, 4614.
The above image was taken by Murtha as part of her Youth Unemployment exhibition. This image uses the shock factor of the young boy holding a cigarette so nonchalantly in his mouth, in order to draw the attention of the viewer, before allowing them to understand the underlying meaning. This image portrays the children in a situation (playing cards and smoking cigarettes) that would normally be associated with adult behavior. Here, Murtha is commenting on the fact that a deprived environment often forces children to grow up faster than they should, and the situation they are placed in (poverty) influences them to take the identity of the adults around them.
