Monthly Archives: November 2020

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Independent, Task

Portraits

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A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person

What makes a portrait a portrait?It should say something about the person you are photographing or the person you are creating with the camera

An environmental portrait is a portrait executed in the subject’s usual environment, such as in their home or workplace, and typically illuminates the subject’s life and surroundings. The term is most frequently used of a genre of photography.

The best to take an environmental portrait is to spend time getting to know the individual you’re photographing, chose the perfect location, use props if you need to, posing, direct eye contact to make sure the subject is engaged with the camera and use good camera settings.

LOOKING AT ENVIRONMENTAL PORTRAITS-

“An environmental portrait is a portrait executed in the subject’s usual environment, such as in their home or workplace, and typically illuminates the subject’s life and surroundings.

Examples of some well known environmental photographs –

Image result for famous environmental portraits
Arnold Newman : Leonard Bernstein , 1968
Image result for august sander
August Sander : Brick Layer, 1928

The photographer I chose to look at – Mary Ellen Mark

Mary Ellen Mark was an American photographer known for her photojournalism, documentary photography, portraiture, and advertising photography. She photographed people who were “away from mainstream society and toward its more interesting, often troubled fringes

Analyzing one of her photographs–

Looking Back at a Master: Mary Ellen Mark | Shutterbug
looking back at a master Mary Ellen Mark, 2010

In this portrait you can see that the young boy isn’t posing and it’s not a formal shoot as he’s leaning back on the camper van behind him. It’s a half body portrait and it’s been taken further away than a normal head shot would be taken. The portrait is taken from the same angel as the boy’s perspective. It’s in black and white which in some way creates a sad effect and mood as there’s no bright colours.

An environmental portrait can tell you a lot about the subject being photographed, for instance, in this photo you can assume that the boy hasn’t been raised in a wealthy area due to the background around him and the dirty clothes. The boy is holding an animal which implies he might have been raised on the countryside. On the other hand the dove he’s holding may symbolize innocence and hope as he’s only young and is living in poor life conditions. He isn’t directly engaging with the camera as there’s no eye contact but his facial expression is sad as he isn’t smiling which might indicate fear.

Composition- in the photo the black and white lines behind the boy on the camper van are drawing the attention directly towards the boy as they’re slightly slanted and go directly towards him making him the main subject. The campus he’s at is quite dirty and depressing as there’s nothing pleasing to look at.

My photo-shoot action plan-

  • who– a stranger/worker in their everyday working environment or a family member
  • what– an individual working and someone was is surrounded in their working environment.
  • when– after school , go to the market or shop and ask permission to take photos.
  • why- to capture people in their everyday environment and the background that surrounds them on a daily basis.
  • how- take them on my camera in natural lighting.

MY CONTACT SHEET-

I went into town , to the market and fishmarket, to take photos of workers in their working environment. I photographed a few different sections of the market to get a variety of different backgrounds.

Some of my favourite and edited photos;

These are my favourite photos I took because I think they all capture the working environment perfectly as well as it being a portrait. Only one photo I took was a full body shot and the rest you could only see half of their body as they were behind desks. I wanted them to smile to create the mood of a happy working environment instead of them looking sad.

Independent, Task

Street Photography Introduction

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Street photography, also known as candid photography, captures unstaged incidents often in public places. Street photography can focus on people and their behaviour in public, or used to record people’s history. However, people being featured in the image is not a necessity within street photography. For example some photographers often produce photos without people included in the frame, but their presence is suggested by the subject matter.

“Jeu de Paume” – Garry Winogrand (Circa 1980-1983)

Helen Levitt

“NYC” – Helen Levitt (1938)

Helen Levitt, born in Brooklyn, NYC, in 1913, was known as “the most celebrated and least known photographer of her time”. Whilst teaching art classes to children in the 1930’s, Levitt became fascinated by chalk drawings that were part of the New York children’s street culture at the time. This led her to buying her first camera to capture the drawings and the children who made them. This resulted in her publishing these images in 1987, naming them “In The Street: chalk drawings and messages, New York City” (1938-1947). Levitt continued to take photos throughout the 30’s and 40’s, with her work first being published in the Fortune magazine’s 1939 issue. Helen Levitt received her first grant in 1946 from the Museum of Modern Art in 1946, and received two grants in 1959 and 1960 from the Guggenheim Foundation fro her colour photography work. She then published her first major collection, “A Way of Seeing”, in 1965 and became a Photography Fellow of the National Endowment for the Arts.

Analysis of Helen Levitt’s work

“New York, 1940” – Helen Levitt (1940)

Helen Levitt started her career by taking photographs of the inhabitants of poorer neighbourhoods in New York, such as the Bronx and Harlem. Here she photographs children in the streets of their neighbourhood.

The lighting used in this image is very low and dull. This suggests natural lighting was used as there is little representation of shadows or highlights. The use of natural lighting adds a sense of rawness to the image, as she captures the scene in its pure form, almost without purpose but simply to capture the moment.

There is little example of line within the photograph, however it could be argued that the placement of the pavement can be seen as a leading line to direct the viewers eyes to the focal point of the children, and the frame.

There is no form of repetition in the photograph as the composition is not purposely set up. There is also no use of echo or reflection in the photograph for the same reason.

The only use of shape in this photograph is the geometric square shape in the centre of the frame that the children are holding in the centre third of the image. Otherwise, the shapes in the photo are all organic and don’t have any relation to each other.

There is a wide depth of field within this photograph as both the background and foreground are in focus, this provides a strong sense of depth as the environment further displays the culture and meaning behind the focal point of the children.

There is little sense of texture in this photograph, however some may say the leading line of the edge of the pavement has a more uneven and rough surface, giving the overall image a harsher texture. However this is contrasted with the smoother surface of the pavement, on which the children stand.

There is a limited range of tones in this photograph as the image has a monochrome filter. The lightest parts of the photograph are the lighter-tones clothing of the people, which is juxtaposed with the harsh, black frame in the centre of the image. The dark frame takes up the majority of the photo, causing the image to tend towards the darker tones.

There is a lack of colour in this photograph, which is a common factor for Helen Levitt’s earlier work. This is most likely because colour photography was only made accessible in the 1930’s, therefore the majority of Levitt’s work was black and white until her later work in the late 1960’s. The lack of colour accentuates the strong contrast between light and dark.

The composition of the image is unbalanced and unorganised. This is because Levitt’s main focus in this shoot was to capture the joy and interest of the children in the poorer neighbourhood’s of New York, therefore the image is not set up and captured in the spur of the moment. Although there is a lack of thirds in this photograph, the focal point (that being the black frame) is coincidentally placed in the centre of the image.

Independent, Reading, Task

Portrait / Environmental PORTRAITURE

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What Is Portraiture?

Portrait photography draws attention to the subject. This is normally achieved through some combination of a shallow depth of field, composition, color, and lighting. It is aimed toward capturing the personality of a person or group of people.

Mood Board

These are photos are inspirational, and I plan to take some of my own in a similar style.

Images from Google “famous/iconic portrait photography”

Complementary Photography

Complementary photography is marked by the current time period, and reflects our values and, challenges at that point in time.

Environmental Photography

Environmental photography is when you take a photo of someone working in there environment, wearing there uniform, to create a more informative and dramatic photo.

Images from Google “environmental portrait photography”

Steve McCurry

He is an American portraiture photographer, he was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He made many trips to India and Pakistan, he was also smuggled into Afghanistan. He  is best known for his evocative colour photographs that document both human struggles and joy. Having travelled the globe for over thirty years, McCurry has photographed warzones, burning oil fields, refugee camps, ship breaking yards and monsoons all over the world.

All images were taken by McCurry and published on https://www.stevemccurry.com/

Photo Shoot Plan

I plan to go into town and ask people that are working if i can take photos of them working naturally or stage a quick photo shot with them.

I plan to ask post men, bakers, shop assistants, fishmongers, and anyone else working in there environment.

I can take photos of them from the other side of the counter, which means the products they’re selling will be on display. Which helps the viewer understand their work environment.

My Photos

My Favourite Image

I like this because it shows the fishmonger in front of his filleted fish. The colours are vivid and they pop out as the rest of the image has a cold atmosphere as there are mostly cooling blue colours. The subject is centered, which sets the image up nicely. The whole image is in focus as it hows the work environment off. To take this photo I had to ask if it was ok to photograph them, I had to take it quick so it wasn’t to staged, although there is eye contact with the camera.

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Paul Strand

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Paul Strand tried to communicate the sentiment of the land and its occupants straightforwardly, truly, and with deference. His prints are excellent in detail and resonance, and his methodology has affected American photography incredibly. Strand supported “straight photography,” and shot road representations to city scenes, machine structures, and plants with his particular clearness, accuracy, and mathematical structure. From 1904-09, he studied photography under Lewis Hine at the Ethical Culture School in New York, where he was born. Hine acquainted Strand with Alfred Stieglitz, who supported him and gave him a presentation in 1915, and distributed his work in the two last issues of Camera Work. Dynamic as both a still picture taker and a producer, Strand has been incredibly compelling. 

Strand teamed up with Charles Sheeler in 1921 on the short film Mannahatta, and from 1923 to 1929, he functioned as an independent cinematographer. He filled in as head of photography and cinematography for the Mexican government’s Department of Fine Arts from 1932 until 1934; he administered creation of the government supported documentary The Wave. In 1935 he went overseas with directors of the Group Theater to Moscow, where he met movie chief Sergei Eisenstein. Upon his return, he dealt with Pare Lorentz’s film The Plow That Broke the Plains for the Resettlement Administration. Strand got comfortable in Orgeval, France, in 1951; there his thoughtfulness regarding “the world at his doorstep” moved to the basic excellence of his nursery. He distributed a progression of books on his movements around the globe. 

My interpretation

Who Someone wearing a sign saying “BLIND” around their neck. 
What Stairs with the rail making a line shadow down them or buildings with interesting shadows to take photos of. 
Why Paul Strand liked to take photos using the natural lighting making interesting shadows on the ground, which he focuses his photos on. So the photos I’ll be taking will be focused on the shadows the rail makes and the shadow behind the person wearing a sign. 
When Near the end of the day or the start as I get more shadows going across the ground. With the photo having someone wearing the sign saying blind I want to do it before midday so the lighting would be on the person casting a shadow behind them. 
Where For the stairs photos I will go to millennium park to take photos of the stairs leading up to the park as the sun gets to the rails easily so the lighting will be natural when taking the photos. I will also go around town when the sun is setting to get some abstract photos of buildings casting shadows.  
How With the photo of the sign, I will make it using a piece of card or paper which I will write in bold BLIND or something different like DEAF then punch two holes in the corner of the paper and attach string which the person can then put around their neck.
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REPETITION, PATTERN, RHYTHM REFLECTION AND SYMMETRY

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Paul Strand

 Paul Strand was born in New York in 1890. When he was 17 years old, he began taking photography courses. His photographs moved from soft-focus scenes of modern New York that reflect the energy and movement of the city and its inhabitants more sharp, focused expressions of objective reality. 

Images By Paul Strand

Laszlo Maholy Nagy

Laszlo Moholy-Nagy , born 1946, was a Hungarian painter and photographer as well as a professor in the Bauhaus school. He was highly influenced by constructivism.

Analysis Between Both Photographers

Natural light floods both image from left to right. Pauls work has a strong tonal range from light to dark. Hard shadows are formed from the pillars and stairs and overrules the amount of light take in in both photographs. Laszlo’s image has a higher quantity of objects that create detailed lines , especially when photographed in black and white. These lines are a much softer tone than Pauls work as The pillars form more harsh and thick lines which are repetitively in line with each other along the floor and the left hand side. This refers back to the topic of reflection as the pillars in Pauls work reflected downwards onto the floor. Pattern is found in Laszlo’s work as the thin shadow lines cross over each other forming some sort of chequered pattern. The darkest tone in Pauls image is the nearly completed border that is nearest to the colour black whereas Laszlo’s work has a blurred light formed at the top of the image that fades down to the darkest part of the photograph , the first steps on the bottom left. As both photographs are taken in black and white , the dominant colour black, surrounds the natural light in Pauls work. As for Laszlo’s work , the black and white colour quantity is equal throughout the whole photograph. Both images being in black and white gives a subtle appearance as not too much is going on in the images.

My Photoshoot – Contact Sheet –

I think these images I took of buildings down the waterfront , St.Heiler , are similar to both Lazslo and Paul’s work in a sense that they have pattern and repetition in the structure of the buildings and streets. I took a few of these images into photoshop and changed them into black and white to refer back to both photographers above’s work.

This last image with the mental rails relates back to the theme of patterns and repetition as for the same railing is repetitively put in a straight line and is photographed at an angle that captures a good quantity of the rails. White bricks with dull, contrasting black lines in between , lay on the floor of the image creating a simple, easy pattern.

In all final Photos , a bit of editing such as changing the contrast/brightness levels. As well as darkening the shadows that are formed by the natural light and a bit of toning/cropping/rotating, they came out in my opinion pretty decent.

Independent, Task

Environmental Portraits

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An environmental portrait is a portrait executed in the subjects usual environment, such as their home or workplace, and typically illuminates the subject’s life and surroundings. The term is most frequently used as a genre of photography.

Environmental Portrait Examples

Arnold Newman

Arnold Newman was an American photographer, born in 1918 in New York, well known for his environmental portraiture work, which showcased a formal image of a subject surrounded by their work space or environment. Newman stated that he viewed his photography as an expression of himself, reflecting him and his fascination with people and the world around him. Newman was also often named the “Father of Environmental Portraiture”, with his work being displayed in museums all over the world.

Arnold Newman Environmental Portraits

Analysis

Arnold Newman – Erhard Weyhe – 1948

This black and white, half body portrait, taken by Arnold Newman, clearly displays the genre of environmental portraits, due to the subject of this image being Erhard Weyhe, an art book dealer, sitting among his immense book collection. Furthermore, here the subject, Weyhe, is displaying direct eye contact with the camera showing engagement, also whilst smiling suggesting an informal image. These stacks of books allow for short and interrupted leading lines, that guide your eyes around the background of the image, whilst making what would be empty space around the portrait feel cluttered and meaningful to the story of the subject. These books, that show the essence of his profession also act as a repetition of shape throughout the photograph.

In Addition, the lighting of this image appears to be the natural lighting of the work environment due to the highly contrasting tones between the book pages and the shadowed areas around the room, which would perhaps mean that it could be described as underexposed. Here you can see that Newman has chosen to take this picture with a small aperture, therefore allowing for a large depth of field meaning that the subject’s workplace environment is clearly showcased. Furthermore, the shutter speed used for this image is presented as fast, due to the fact that it is a clear and detailed photograph without any blurs.

In this photograph Newman has intended to present one of the great book dealers of his time, Erhard Weyhe, and to give an incite on his way of living and working. This lifestyle has been presented by Newman as a somewhat labouring and almost chaotic one, due to what looks like an interminable tunnel of books, pilled high. This depiction of Weyhe could be a sign of respect and appreciation from Newman towards his profession.

Environmental Portrait Photo-shoot

Plan

Photo-shoot plan

Contact Sheet

For this photo-shoot I used a fast shutter speed aiming to capture sharp images. Also, I used a small aperture for these portraits so their work environment would be clear due to the nature of the background. Here I have crossed images out in red that I will not edit, either because the subject is not engaging with the camera, or it is too over exposed or blurry. I have also highlighted the images I will edit in green as I believe them to be my best from this shoot, showing the fundamentals of environmental portraiture.

Edited Images

Final Image

I believe that this is my best environmental portrait as it displays a clear half body image, with the subject surrounded by their work environment, shown on the board on the right. In addition, as the subject is smiling it causes the image to feel welcoming, reinforcing the profession qualities of teaching.

Independent, Task

Modern Day Heroes

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For this introduction to portraits, we had to take photographs of key workers or modern day heroes in their work attire. These key workers can come in all forms from the nurses and doctors who work on the front line, to the postmen and women who continued to do their job under such hazardous circumstances.

Contact Sheets

For this project I decided to focus on construction or repair workers that might have had to continue working during the lock-down stages of the pandemic to keep the island running. Here I have crossed out the images in red that I will not edit due to them being to blurry or not focusing on the topic of key workers. I have highlighted the images I will edit in green as I feel they best showcase the essence of the topic.

Edited Images

I believe that these are my best images as they display how life needs to carry on even in a global pandemic, and how people like this allow for that to happen. It could be said that they also incorporate this years theme of hope, as they are building for a future in which this pandemic no longer exists.

Task

Portraits

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Portrait photography is a style of photography which is used to capture and document people, personalities and groups. This can be done through various methods such as environmental, candid, studio, photo montage, staged reality, and controlled condition photography. This genre of photography is important as it allows us to preserve history or display how we wish ourselves or others to be perceived.

Mood Board

Contemporary photography can be defined as a style in which photos showcase our own time period or the current world, rather than from earlier time periods.

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ENVIRONMENTAL Portraits

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An environmental portrait is a portrait executed in the subject’s usual environment, such as in their home or workplace, and typically illuminates the subject’s life and surroundings. The term is most frequently used of a genre of photography.

Environmental Portrait

August Sander

August Sander was born on 17 November 1876 and died on 20 April 1964. He was a German portrait and documentary photographer. He’s best know for environmental portraits during the 1920s and 1930s riding his bike on the muddy German country roads, Sander photographed every type of person he came across in an attempt to capture German society as a whole. Sander photographed middle class families, farmers, students, blind children, war veterans, circus artists and beggars. In each photograph Sander had his models simply stare at the camera, and hold still.

https://www.mprnews.org/story/2008/03/20/augustsander

Image Analysis

August Sander silver-gelatin prints made by Gunther Sander and embossed with the blind stamp of August Sander
Young Soldier, Westerwald, 1945
August Sander

In this photo the lighting is natural and seems to be coming from behind the photographer as you can see the building behind him has made a shadow which is behind the soldier.