The project title suggests a theme of images that when we look back at them we will think that it was unusual but familiar. I took upon myself to photograph COVID-19 testing kits, as I thought it fitted the theme well. It fits the theme well as COVID-19 came out of nowhere and we all got used to it and regularly testing ourselves. Most people are required to take daily tests for work or eduction, therefore it is “strangely familiar”.
I planned to collate a set of 5 images that shows the process in chronological order, showing how the lateral flow tests are used.
Image 1: The Setup. I setup the objects that are in the lateral flow boxes, and placed the two main elements in the centre, the solution and the test strip. I created a focus in the centre of the image by using a shallow depth of field, doing this allowed me to have the information on the bottle label and test strip in focus and sharp. I used a 1 point light setup with a white light on the right to cast shadow which makes the image more dynamic.
Image 2: Droplet. I used a macro lens to capture a droplet at the end of the the pipit. Originally, I was going to try and capture the droplet mid-air, which demonstrates motion. However, I wasn’t able to capture it as clear as I wanted to, as the shutter speed was too slow, otherwise there would have been a lot of noise. I shot on a black background, which I made from a black piece of card. It contrasts the shape of the droplet, and makes it stand out when it’s under the light. I also used a 1 point light setup, however I positioned it on the left this time, as the person holding the pipit was on the right.
Image 3: “Apply 2 Drops”. I used the same techniques and setup as image 2, although I changed the composition, as I wanted to include the test strip in the photo. It shows the part where you add two drops of the testing solution to the test strip. This is my favourite image from the project. The white on a black background works well as it creates a contrast, the black background can be seen in the water droplet, which helps define the shape of it and makes it more noticeable.
Image 4: Wait. This stage happens after you apply the solution to the test strip, and have to wait 15 minutes to see the result. I used one light source in this photo, and it was positioned low to the desk, as it created an outline on the edges of the phone, which adds depth and define the basic shape of the phone. However, the test strip is still well lit, and visible. The black and orange colour scheme, which dominates most of the image works well as it adds a “punch” of colour to the image and contrasts the white test strip.
Image 5: The Result. I collected used test strips and created a frame around one of the negative results. I think this composition works really well as it has a lot of geometric shapes. Firstly, there’s an oval shape where you read the result that is being framed by a triangle, which is contained in the images rectangular aspect ratio. The shallow depth of field really helps shift the focus to the middle of the image where the result is, which is the important part of the whole testing process.
Evaluation: Overall I think this project really fits the title, “strangely familiar” and it has produced some strong images, which shows the unusual process that has became a daily requirement for some people, to protect them and others against COVID-19.
Research and identify 3-5 literary sources from a variety of media such as books, journal/magazines, internet, YouTube/video that relates to your personal study and artists references.
It’s important that you show evidence of reading and draw upon different pints of view – not only your own.
Take notes when you’re reading…key words, concepts, passages. Photojournalism, environment
Write down page number, author, year, title, publisher, place of publication so you can list source in a bibliography
Why should you reference?
To add academic support for your work
To support or disprove your argument
To show evidence of reading
To help readers locate your sources
To show respect for other people’s work
To avoid plagiarism
To achieve higher marks
2. Essay Question
How can photography capture and record an environment, and accurately depict its atmosphere?
How can photography capture and explore an environment, and accurately record it’s atmosphere to a viewer?
3. Essay Plan
Essay question:
Opening quote
Introduction (250-500 words): What is your area study? Which artists will you be analysing and why? How will you be responding to their work and essay question?
Pg 1 (500 words): Historical/ theoretical context within art, photography and visual culture relevant to your area of study. Make links to art movements/ isms and some of the methods employed by critics and historian.
Pg 2 (500 words): Analyse first artist/photographer in relation to your essay question. Present and evaluate your own images and responses.
Pg 3 (500 words): Analyse second artist/photographer in relation to your essay question. Present and evaluate your own images and responses.
Conclusion (250-500 words): Draw parallels, explore differences/ similarities between artists/photographers and that of your own work that you have produced
Bibliography: List all relevant sources used
4. Essay Introduction
Open a new Word document > SAVE AS: Essay draft
Copy essay question into Essay title: Hypothesis > if you don’t have one yet, make one! How can photography capture and explore an environment, and accurately record it’s atmosphere to a viewer?
Copy your essay introduction (from Essay Plan) which will give you a framework to build upon and also copy your Statement of Intent.
STATE OF INTENT My idea is to make a photobook in which I explore the area Bouley Bay, overall I want to capture the activity, views, and close ups of key feature such as rocks, shells, heritage, the hill climb, and the bay. I could also look into the history of the bay and the Jersey Folklore, involving the Black Dog.
It is important to me as I grew up in that area, and have many memories of it. And I hope to capture it in the same way in which remember it. I wish to develop my project by exploring the bay and collecting lots of objects to photograph in a studio, and also to take long exposure, aerial, and underwater of the bay, as I have been inspired by many photographers, such as, Martin J Patterson (@ mjplandscapes on Instagram), Jaun Munoz (@ drjuanmdc on Instagram), and David Aguilar (@ davidaguilar_photo). Using these images I can look into topics such as, beach pollution, environment and beach life. Hanna-Katrina Jędrosz and Barron Bixler have studied environments, so it would be interesting to analyse them and their work.Identify 2 quotes from sources identified in an earlier task using Harvard System of Referencing.
4. Use one quote as an opening quote: Choose a quote from either one of your photographers or critics. It has to be something that relates to your investigation.
You say that you are “interested in the influence of place, and the shape of it around us, as we follow in the footsteps of those who came before.” Could you please elaborate on what this means to you as a photographer and how it influences you’re thinking when picture making?
1.
“This is about how I experience and encounter a place, and I feel that’s important to me when I’m taking photographs. I listen as much as look and am emotionally present when I photograph.”
In-text citation: (Isle, 2019)
Refrence: “I am interested in the influence of place, and the shape of it around us, as we follow in the footsteps of those who came before.” Jędrosz, H.K. (2019) Isle. Avaible at: https://www.isle-stories.co.uk/hanna-jedrosz (Accessed: 12 January 2022).
Foreworld – 9 Truth and landscape – 11 Beauty in photography – 21
2.
“With the help of a camera we can recognize and enjoy an unnamed New Mexican mesa or the Delaware Water Gap. Although we are not as naive as we once were about the accuracy of the pictures, we continue to value them initially as reminders of what is out there, of what is distinct from us.” page 14 beauty of photography
3.
“f64 is the smallest aperture available on most view camera lenses; by its use the depth of focus is maximized, and the most precise possible rendering of detail is achieved.” page 27
4.
“For a picture to be beautiful it does not have to be shocking, but it must in some significant respect be unlike what has preceded it (this is why an artist cannot afford to be ignorant of the tradition within his medium). p27
5.
“A photographer can describe a better world only by better seeing the world as it is in front of him.” p 26
5. Add sources to Bibliograpphy
6. Begin to write a paragraph (250-500 words) answering the following questions below.
Think about an opening that will draw your reader in e.g. you can use an opening quote that sets the scene. Or think more philosophically about the nature of photography and its feeble relationship with reality. You should include in your introduction an outline of your intention of your study e.g. What are you going to investigate. How does this area/ work interest you? What are you trying to prove/challenge, argument/ counter-argument? Whose work (artists/photographers) are you analysing and why? What historical or theoretical context is the work situated within. Include 1 or 2 quotes for or against. What links are there with your previous studies? What have you explored so far in your Coursework or how are you going to respond photographically? How did or will your work develop. What camera skills, techniques or digital processes (post-production) have or are you going to experiment with?
Essay Introduction Draft
How can photography capture and explore an environment, and accurately record it’s atmosphere to a viewer?
Introduction
“I am interested in the influence of place, and the shape of it around us, as we follow in the footsteps of those who came before.” (anna-Katrina Jędrosz, Isle, 2019).
Environmental documentary photographer Hanna-Katrina Jędrosz said this is how she experienced and encountered a place. She is an influential photographer to my project as I’m studying the environment surrounding Bouley Bay in Jersey. I plan to investigate different features, like Fort Leicester, the Islet, and boats, and other elements of the bay through different methods of photography, such as long exposure, aerial photography, and minimalistic close ups in a studio. This location is especially important to me as I grew up in that area, and regularly went to the beach in the summer. There are many memories that brings cheerfulness, for-instance meeting my friends at the pontoon in the bay, and many barbeques in the hot summer evening. I know this area extremely well and is relishing the opportunity to explore it from different perspectives and viewpoints. Using a selection of photos I have produced, I plan to prove that using photography you can accuracy depict an environment in detail. I plan to look at photographers Hanna-Katrina Jędrosz and Robert Adams as they document landscape environments well in in a clear way that captures the area in detail. I am using historical context of the bay from the Societe Jersiaise, because they have images and in-depth information on the history of the bay, which I can use in my project to juxtapose time. There are a few links to my pervious projects, such as the Anthropocene project, and how I linked it to water pollution by capturing images around Bouley Bay, which I used to create a photo manipulation from in Photoshop. I have also taken photos at Bouley Bay in other projects, for example, long exposure of the mini waterfall, and a slow shutter speed of waves crashing on the rocks near the L’Islet. For my current project I would like to develop long exposure photography of the bay, and it’s smaller features, also aerial photography to capture unique angles that showcases the bay that aren’t accessible to the average beachgoer. It would be displayed via a photobook that consists of images of the bay, the history of the bay and, images relating to the bay. All of the images that I will use in the photobook I will edit them in Photoshop, mainly using the camera-raw filter as it works extremely will since I only shot in RAW which, produces a .CR2 image. This helps me bring back shadows, highlights, and colour in post production as there is greater dynamic range. Compared to a JPEG file which uses compressed data as there is less information in the image file, so recovering and editing the images is more challenging. The processes I use the most in Photoshop are gradual and radial filters, spot healing brushes, and the clone stamp tool.
Historical/ theoretical context within art, photography, visual and popular culture
There are four main art movements and isms in photography and, they are, Pictorialism, Realism/Straight Photography , Modernism, and Post-Modernism. I plan to look at modernism, creating images inspired by Robert Adams and, Ansel Adams.
Firstly, pictorialism was most popular in the time period 1880-1920, and the goal of it was to make photographs look like art, and to make them look handmade. There were many methods of creating this effect. The main two ways were to rub Vaseline on the camera lens to blur parts of the picture. Scratch the negative, and use chemicals to create an interesting print, information from The Genius of Photography. (Archive, 2007). Alfred Stieglitz was later dubbed Hill “the father of pictorial photography” and featured his and Adamson’s photographs in his publications and at the Little Galleries of the Photo-Secession in 1906. (TheArtStory, 2018).
Realism and Straight photography was effective approximately around the time period 1915, and its purpose was to use the photographic medium and it’s ability to provide accurate and descriptive records of the visual world, information from The Genius of Photography. (Archive, 2007). Gustave Courbet was the first artist to self-consciously proclaim and practice the realist aesthetic. After his huge canvas The Studio (1854–55) was rejected by the Exposition Universelle of 1855. (Britannica, 2020).
MT: You need to redo the way you reference sources as it doesn’t make sense. Use Harvard system of referencing
Modernism is what relates to my project the most, and I what Robert Adams fits into, as he is most know for taking photos of the American West, which is the same objective that Ansel Adams had, who is considered the most important landscape photographer of the 20th century. (Britannica, 2020). MT: explain the difference between Ansel Adams and Robert Adams. They are both environmentalists and use photography as a tool to highlight areas of the natural world that they care about. However Ansel focuses his lens of nature beauty and produce romanticised images, compared to Robert who photograph the man-made world in the American West.
Modernism is characterised intellectually by a belief that science could save the world and that, through reason, a foundation of universal truths could be established. The common trend was to seek answers to fundamental questions about the nature of art and human experience. (The Genius of Photography, 2007)
Finally, Postmodernism is the newest art movement and ism, and it has been in placed since the second half of the 20th century. Postmodernism is relativism, and it is the belief that no society or culture is more important than any other. It explores power and the way economic and social forces exert that power by shaping the identities of individuals and entire cultures. (The Genius of Photography, 2007). There are many examples of post-modernistic art, however the most recognised founder of the Postmodernism movement is Jacques Lacan, who was a prominent French psychoanalyst and theorist. His ideas had a huge impact on critical theory in the twentieth century and were particularly influential on post-structuralist philosophy and the development of postmodernism. (Tate, 2017)
MT: provide an example of a postmodern work of art – within contemporary photography. For example, Jeff Wall
Hanna-Katrina Jędrosz.
The first photographer I’ve decided to study is Hanna-Katrina Jędrosz. She is a photographer who does documentary work with places, people and the environment in focus. In 2017 she did a photo series on the Rummu quarry. It stands as a remnant of the cold war. She highlighted the recent trials of refurbishing the area into something more beneficial to the nearby society. (Academy, 2021). This links with my study on a geographical point, such as Bouley Bay. I can study how Jędrosz has captured the quarry in a way which makes the viewer see the historical value of the site, before it is destroyed. Jędrosz uses several photographs from different vantage points to represent the location. Doing so she creates unique and interesting angles that reflects the areas age and emotion. The shots consist of a variety of close ups of walls with iron rods in them, barbed wire fences vanishing into the horizon and, a low squatted building on a frozen lake. All of the images have been shot during winter, and what seems to be a single photoshoot. This gives the collection of images a general look, which is a cold atmosphere, however it would have been nice to see the location in different seasonal states, as it would have give the quarry a whole different look. Although, after research, this aproach of showing the area in different lighting, seasons and, moods goes against Jędrosz’s way of work as this question in an interview was asked, “What influenced your photography?”, and she replied, “The people and places I photograph have the biggest influence on my photography. I try not to impose too much, and to respond to what’s happening in front of me in a genuine way, to make photographs that are a documentation of an encounter.” (Academy, 2021). This is evidence that Jędrosz likes to capture the initial, untouched environment, and how she doesn’t want to manipulate the location, as it wouldn’t produce an authentic image. This would take some of the meaning away from the final image. These are my two favourite images from the Rummu Quarry photo collection.
The image on the left is my favourite image. It shows the area in a wider perspective, and Jędrosz has made an extremely powerful composition by including small hints of the side of the cliff, which creates depth to draw the eye into the middle of the image, where the building is located. The spacing between the building and the land is mostly consistent, which adds to create a visually appealing composition. The building having the same colours as the rocky cliffs around it means that the blue, frozen ice emphasis the focus on the building. The blue ice constructs a balance between the light blue, hazed sky, which makes the viewer notice the brown areas more, this is because blue and brown are the main two colours in this image. Overall, the vantage point Jędrosz has taken this image from and inspired me to use high pinot to take images from to get the aerial photo type look.
The photo on the right is extremely different to the other image. It doesn’t show the general area that is surrounded by miles of trees, instead it show the security measures in place and provides a more realistic representation of what it would of been like to work at the quarry when it was open during the rein of the Soviet Union. The meaning changes when you look into the historical context of the quarry. “The workers were drawn from the near by Rummu Prison” (Hanna-Katrina, 2010?). Knowing that prisoners use to work at the quarry creates links to the barbed wire fences, and the graffiti, which could have been done by the released prisoners or street artists.
Robert Adams
The second photographer I have decided to study is Robert Adams, as he is a photographer who has documented the extent and the limits of our damage to the American West, recording it in over fifty books of pictures, both reasons to despair and to hope. (Fraenkel Gallery, 2012) His work is very well known and he fits into the modernism art movement, as his photos embrace its social, political and aesthetic potential, experimenting with light, perspective and developing?, as well as new subjects and abstraction. (Tate, 2016). Adams study on the American West link to my project in the same way that Jędrosz’s work does. This is through the study of an environment within an area. After reading a small section in Robert Adams book, “Beauty in Photography”, Adams describes how an image is meaningful even if it isnt the best image in the world. “For a picture to be beautiful it does not have to be shocking, but it must in some significant respect be unlike what has preceded it (this is why an artist cannot afford to be ignorant of the tradition within his medium). This is quote is from Adams influential book Beauty in Photography (which provides a theory on his approach to landscape photography), and it means Adams feels that for an image to be good it must be different and unique compared to what other people have captured. These are two of his photographs that I picked from a wide range of Adams work in Western America.
These two images where both taken by Robert Adams. The image on the left shows temporary caravan housing which contrasts with the mountain in the background, as the rectangular lines on the caravans clash with the smooth nature lines from the mountains on the horizon. The bottom half of the image being congested creates a busy, active, loud atmosphere that creates a conflict in emotion with the tranquil, clam, peaceful mountains and clear sky. Despite the cameras not being as advanced, this image is very clear and contains lots of details.
The image on the right is a more zoomed in shot to create a deeper personal connection. This effect is achieved by focusing in on the drive way of the house. The image is slightly under exposed, which makes the highlights more noticeable, therefore making the car a focus point. Adams commonly makes the 50/50 split in the image rather than using the rule of thirds, but in both of these image it works out well.
Conclusion
In conclusion, both Jędrosz and Adams capture an environment in detail and, they accurately recreate the atmosphere as if the viewer was there. The main similarities between both photographers, is that they both include a wide variety of shots from the same location to provide more infomation about the place. For example, a wide angle view of the location, and a close up shot of objects in the environment. On the other hand the main difference is that Adams shoots in black and white, where as Jędrosz shoots in colour. MT explain what effect the difference between monochrome and colour has on landscape images.
Another difference is that Adams composition in his images seem more precise, compared to Jędrosz. The main reason I think this happened is because Adams has to setup a massive tripod and allow a lot of time to take the image (MT Adams uses a large-format camera which is much slower to operate and can only make one exposure at a time – research this in more detail)
, whereas Jędrosz uses a digital camera, so she can quickly and efficacy capture images. Both photographers capture different environments in their own style, and affectively showcase a whole geological location in just a few images.
MT, Overall I feel the essay has a lot of potential, but you have not done enough research, especially around Robert Adams. You need to discuss more details and bring in different points of view. There are many interviews with Adams and many reviews of his work. For Jędrosz you need to reflect on her work in relation to how contemporary photographers work within a documentary landscape tradition.
Read this article and incorporate into your analysis
I went on a walk and collected stones, cuttle fish, shells, and sticks that I found on the beach, whilst I was taking long exposure photos in the evening. I put all the different objects in a bag so that I could photograph them under proper lighting.
Then at home I made a mini studio using a 2 or 4 point lighting setup depending on what I thought looked best, as it varied on the object.
I mostly shot under white light, however I also experimented with different coloured light, for example, red. This helps show texture and surface structure.
This is a small contact sheet form the shoot:
Editing
I edited all of the images in Photoshop, after choosing all of the good images by placing tags on a MAC.
I used 4 images of the shells which I took on a black background in the dark, and I placed the shells on top of my phone torch. Then in a portrait document in Photoshop I drew 4 rectangles all the same size, which I aligned with the guides, then I used clipping masks to insert the images into different rectangles. After all the images were in the correct places I used a camera-raw filter to make small adjustments to the colours and tones in the images. I had to use a radial filter on the bottom left shell as it had more extreme shadows.
These images are of the same shells but from a different angle. Since I used a macro lens, I took 2 images, the first image the top of the shell was in focus, the second image the bottom of the shell was in focus. I aligned both images on top of each other then, I used clipping masks to erase the unfocused parts of the image. I used clipping masks so that I can recover anything I erased at anytime, instead of using CTRL Z. After the shell looked good I used a black brush with 50% hardness to brush over areas were the light was escaping, this allowed metro create a minimalistic effect and cleaning up the overall look of the image. Finally, after the image was done I added a camera-raw filter to make final colour adjustments.
For the majority of the images I just loaded them into Photoshop and by default they would open in a camera-raw filter since I shot in RAW. Here I would make all the adjustments that I need to.
Final/Best Images
These are all of the images that I edited and think are the best from this photoshoot.
Overall, I love how simple the images look, and they would work so well to juxtapose other images that I’ve taken. They look like they have been taken in a professional studio, as the lighting and background is setup properly.
I put a GoPro dome attachment on the front of a GoPro, so that I could get a 50/50 shot. Half underwater, half above the water. I couldn’t see what I was shooting as there isn’t a screen on the back of the GoPro, as it is an older version. So I had to point and guess that the subject was in frame and that it was a good composition.
Overall, looking at the photos there were some good images that have a potential after post-production in Photoshop. Due to the water being “foggy” the clarity and dehaze slider will be extremely useful. However, since I shot during midday the water was lighter which allowed me to capture the underwater subject in more detail.
Final/Best Images
These are the best image from the photoshoot, after editing them Photoshop. There was no complicated edits involved, all that I did was make adjustments in a camera-raw filter, and occasionally use gradual and radial filter to emphasis the subject better.
Overall, these are my favourite images, especially the last three. They have a good composition compared to some of the photos that were produced on this shoot. They have great colours that give off summer vibes. The subject fills most of the underwater space in most of the images.
Firstly, I flew my drone around the bay and captured some unique angles of the bay, and a general overview shot of the bay. It allowed me to capture some of the features of the bay in greater detail such as, Fort Leicester (heritage site), and the l’islet. The contact sheet that contains the images from the drone flight of the bay.
I also explored the hill leading the Bouley Bay, as I could compare the images with some of the old photos form the archive. Using the winding road images, means that I could link in some photos of Bouley Bay Hill Climb, which is an iconic event which happens in the area. An example of the contact sheet featuring the hill.
These are the best images that I took with my drone, after being edited in photoshop.
These 2 images are my favourite images. I really like how the sky has a hazed look to it, and has a gradient of overexposed sky, which gives the image a softer look. For the jet ski image, I used the clone stamp tool, and the spot healing brush to remove distractions such as, bright orange buoys, and some floating seaweed.
I made sure to capture images of the road which the Bouley Bay Hill Climb takes place on, which makes linking images of bikers and racers easier to connected relations to.
Overall, I like how the images came out. I feel that I achieved my main goal when taking photos with the drone, which was to show unique angles, that offers a new perspective. I like the images that show the object in a more 3D aspect, rather than the straight down, birds eye view shot. However, it still works well, especially for the cars driving down the road. I found that editing these images were easier as I could easily change the composition at which I took these images, as there were no limits for example, with a normal camera you can only shoot from as high as you climb to reach, where as a drone is controlled remotely.
These are some of the contact sheets that include all of my long exposure images. They weren’t all taken on the same day, which allowed me to capture the area in different light.
Editing
Most of the images have been editing in the same way using similar processes, so I will only show one example of the editing process.
I decided not to use the basic filters, gradual filters, and radial filters. Instead I used the brush as there are lots of different elements that need to be individually focused on. I used the brush to select different parts of the image, for example I started with the pier, I increase the shadows, clarity, and the sharpness. The red is only showing the mask and won’t be there in the final image, as it helps you see where the edited are happening, but I turn it off when making the adjustments. I also used a brush filter on the water where I decreased the temperature, clarity, and texture.
For images that I combined multiple image to create one final image. I made sure that they were all aligned before making them into one image, then made the edits.
Final/Best Images
I edited all of the good images in Photoshop. For some of the images I had to merge approximately 10 images to create a single final image, and then do all of the simple edits, such as gradual and radial filters, brushes, contrast, exposure, etc.
I love the mist look that the water has, due to the long exposure. It is a combination of 8 images, which really helped display the effect. The composition is good as it includes the green, seaweed covered rocks, which balances out the green in the background of the headland.
This image expresses a wide selection of colours as it was shot during sunset. It is a composition of 10-15 images, as this helped it get the surreal look.
These images give off a cold atmosphere, they were shot earlier in the day compared to the two images above. They are my strongest images however they still show great camera skills and they have an interesting composition.
I like this image a lot, although it is not clear it was taken at Bouley Bay, it is clear that it is associated with a bay and the rock formations around a coastline. It strongly captures motion and the black and white edit creates more of a contrast, that brings out the blurred lines that is the highlighted water from where the sun is shining on it.
Another one of my favourite images, however there where boats in the image, but I removed them as they were blurry because they were moving. Plus, it gives a more natural look to they photo, although it takes away from the authentic bay feeling.
This is another more colourful image. It was taken at high tide during a sunset. If gives off tropical ocean blue colours, which contrasts with the pink sky. This colour combination gives off a calming feeling.
This image was taken at the secret bay behind the pier at Bouley Bay. The rocks were just peaking above the water, which made for some interesting shots. The combination of blue and orange gives off a tranquil vibe.
Not the best image, however it showcases the bay during golden hour. And having the water out of focus makes the viewers focus shift to the islet and the headland behind.
Another favourite image, the blue tone creates a surreal, alone, spooky atmosphere. Whilst, the shuttle
Overall, I love how these photos came out. The long exposure effect creates a new perspective on the area
My photos consist of mainly 3 types of categories, underwater, aerial, and long exposure.
Underwater
The main photographers that inspired me to take the underwater photos was, Matt Porteous and Phil de Glanville.
These are Phil de Glanville’s most recent images which he uploaded to Instagram under @ phlyimages. He uses a mix of aerial and underwater photography to build his portfolio. The common, cold, blue theme stays consistent throughout his images which looks amazing makes it visually strong. He also does a bit of photo manipulation, an example is in the bottom right. Phil de Glanville is a great inspiration as he does a bit of everything.
Matt Porteous is an environmental portrait, a Royal family Photographer and, an ocean storyteller. He travels the world capturing images to raise awareness of the state of the ocean. He also a founder of Ocean Culture Life which raises money that goes towards environment protection and cleansing.
Aerial
The main photographer that inspired me to take the aerial photos was, Marc Le Cornu, and Tobias Hägg.
Marc Le Cornu is a Jersey based photographer that mainly focuses on aerial photography, to capture the key features of the island. He has won the NY Photo Awards 2021, Aerial Photography Awards 2020, and the Drone Awards 2019.
I took a lot of inspiration from these photos as they are of places I know.
Tobias Hägg is a photographer & videographer based in the outskirts of Stockholm, Sweden. He’s passionate about exploring landscape, adventures & the great outdoors Tobias travels to the farthest expanses of earth capturing timeless moments from unique perspectives through photography and film.
Long Exposure
The main photographer that inspired me to take the long exposure photos was, Kieran Stone.
Stone is based in Melbourne, and is an NiSi Filters Australia Ambassador, which is why he is creating vibrant and eye catching photography from around the world, whilst creating NFTs and prints.
I like his work of the long exposure of the sea and the waves which is what I tried to capture in my photo book.
1. Research a photo-book and describe the story it is communicating with reference to subject-matter, genre and approach to image-making.
“In the stately ways of our shining capital the dwellings of high and low raise their roofs in rivalry as in the beginning… how often does the mansion of one age turn into the cottages of the next.” (Kamo no Chomei) Tokyo is a visual journey through a city at once futuristic and obsolete, its visionary design worn out – like that of a past era. Johanasson uses photography to index the city, finding form and pragmatic order through accumulation and sequence, revealing the city’s hidden, modular logic: lego-like segments, a basic square unit repeated indefinitely and in various sizes. These images are unpeopled, showing only the architecture of the city, a container of 13 million people, organised around mass movement and the funnelling of human traffic. Between the concrete, glass and steel, the occasional green life sprouts – miniature gardens in the narrow alleyways, or a cluster of flower pots lining the sidewalk. The architecture creates its own topography, and the city is glimpsed as the last outpost of a fading, mechanised world.
2. Who is the photographer? Why did he/she make it? (intentions/ reasons) Who is it for? (audience) How was it received? (any press, reviews, awards, legacy etc.)
Gerry Johansson. a Swedish photographer who lives in Höganäs in southern Sweden. He makes “straight and pragmatic” photographs with “an objective view of a geographic location.”
His books include America, Sweden, Germany, Antartic, Toyko, and American Winter. His work is held in the collection of Moderna Museet in Stockholm, Sweden, where he has had solo exhibitions. He has been awarded the region Skanes kulturpris and the Lars Tunbjork Prize.
Book in hand: how does it feel? Smell, sniff the paper. The book is a hardback, with smooth paper that is easy to flick through, and it smells like paper.
Paper and ink: use of different paper/ textures/ colour or B&W or both. Good quality paper, with black and white photos. The cover is a linen, cloth texture.
Format, size and orientation: portraiture/ landscape/ square/ A5, A4, A3 / number of pages. There is about 50-80 pages of black and white photos. There is one photo per double spread, that is quite big. There are some landscape photos that take up both pages. The orientation is portrait approximately A4 size.
Binding, soft/hard cover. image wrap/dust jacket. perfect binding/saddle stitch/swiss binding/ Japanese stab-binding/ leperello. It is perfect binding, that is sturdy and firm.
Cover: linen/ card. graphic/ printed image. embossed/ debossed. letterpress/ silkscreen/hot-stamping. The front cover has a image printed on the front with linen as the border, on the back there is a shiny imprinted text on blue linen.
Title: literal or poetic / relevant or intriguing. Literal: Tokyo (about Tokyo, title on the back of the book)
Narrative: what is the story/ subject-matter. How is it told? Images of the city and its architecture, not a clear connection to a story. The black and photos showcase Tokyo using minimalism, shapes, and texture.
Structure and architecture: how design/ repeating motifs/ or specific features develops a concept or construct a narrative. Every image is based off buildings, or close ups of walls that include interesting shapes. Images may juxtapose each other using different compositions.
Design and layout: image size on pages/ single page, double-spread/ images/ grid, fold- outs/ inserts. Its either 1 image per page with a thick white border, or 1 image on a double spread that takes up about 3/4 of he space. There or there is a combination of both, a full page image with a white page with a small caption on.
Editing and sequencing: selection of images/ juxtaposition of photographs/ editing process. There is only juxtaposition in how the image in presented, e.g. zoomed in that draws attention to its details.
Images and text: are they linked? Introduction/ essay/ statement by artists or others. Use of captions (if any.) There is no essay or text, there are only captions. For example, 044 Odabia. Most commonly there is one small caption on a small page, or several (3-6) captions in the corner of the blank page.
I plan to take long exposure photos of the bay at high tide, I will have to do this in the evening, as it is too bright in the day and the images will be overexposed, as the I’m using two gradual filters. 1 right way up and 1 upside down to create a homemade ND filter. I will also use a tripod to create a sharp image, to reduce camera shake, and I will use a 2 second delay to give the camera enough time to stabilise after I press the shutter release button.
Shoot 2 – Drone
I will use my drone (DJI Mini 2) to take aerial photos of the bay, the Heritage site, the islet, the pontoon, and the boats/jet skis. This lets the viewer see a angle of the bay that they have never seen before. I can also go up on top of the headland, which gives me access to a wider overall angle of the bay.
Shoot 3 – Underwater
I will also create a set of underwater photographs of people jumping off the pontoon. To achieve the summer look it must be sunny. This will also make the underwater section more clears as the sun is lighting it up. I will use a GoPro and an attachable underwater dome. This allows me to create a half above water and half under water shot. When in the water i can also take photos of the headland around the bay, as the angle offers a unique perspective.
Shoot 4 – Minimalism/Objects
For this shoot I will collect items/objects from the beach and take them to a makeshift studio and photograph them. I will use a black background and 1 light source to create some interesting photos. I can also use these photos to experiment with some photo manipulation and recreate an alive oyster in Photoshop.
Shoot 5 – Day Long Exposure / Shots
I will go down to Boulay Bay when it is high tide in the day time and attempt to take long exposure photos of the waterfall, the water, and water splashing off of the rocks. I’ll need a tripod and ND filters. I have taken some photos for another project, which I feel would fit in very well with this project
