What is a photomontage?

Photomontage is the process and the result of making a photograph by cutting, gluing, rearranging and overlapping two or more photographs into a new image. Sometimes the resulting image is made to look like one photo, whereas other times it may be presented as different photos stacked/layered.

The first photomontages were produced during the mid-Victorian era as experimental photographers aspired to create images that could rank alongside fine art. The practice was at first given the name “combination printing” by Oscar Gustave Rejlander.

Nancy Spero

Nancy Spero (August 24, 1926 – October 18, 2009) was an American visual artist. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Spero lived for much of her life in New York City. As both artist and activist, Nancy Spero had a career that spanned fifty years. She is known for her paintings that depict different political, social, and cultural concerns, often tackling racism, violence, and sexism through her artwork.

Still Life photography is a genre of photography which focuses on objects, or a group of objects, which has been arranged in a way similar to the classic ‘still life’ art style.

Mood Board

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At school, we were tasked with taking Still-Life photographs (in groups) in a studio with objects collected which have a link to heritage.

I chose this as a final image because I liked the way it was laid out, almost like a podium with multiple levels of height. I like the way the light is reflected by the white and grey objects as they make them far more noticeable, as well as how all of the objects are reflected by the surface beneath them. While editing, I wanted to experiment with different tones and colours of light which has made the image far more interesting, especially the image on the top right. On that image the blue light looks almost modern, which, in a way, contrasts with the older objects. I also think that the shadow in the top right and bottom images makes the objects stand out more from their, mainly singular toned, backgrounds.

I chose this image because I liked the wider composition of the image, as well as how the objects themselves are very angular, which, to me, stands out while placed behind an infinity curve. I think the metal box in this image is the most interesting object because not only is it the focal point in the image (because it is the darkest part of the image, which contrasts greatly with the pure white/pink background), but also because of how it would not usually be seen in the same place as the other objects. I chose to make the tone of the image pinkish because I thought it would make the white and red parts on the pea box stand out more and change the pure white background to something more energetic.

I chose this image because it has the most interesting colours and shadows from the photoshoot. I edited the image to make the pink colour from the boards behind it in the original stand out more, which I think made the objects look more compelling. I also made a black and white version to emphasise the shadow in the image, while also possibly relating to an older style of photography, linking closer to ‘Heritage’. I think the viewpoint at which the image was taken (at sort of a partial downwards angle) is interesting as it allows different shadows and shapes to be seen from the object.

UNEDITED

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Final Prints

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UNEDITED – EXTERIORS

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UNEDITED – interiors

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EDITED – EXTERIORS

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EDITED – INTERIORS

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For my first time using Lightroom classic i first uploaded the images i had taken in the studio during out first photoshoot.

Then I went through each image and deciding whether i would pick or reject it. I would press “P” to pick an image I liked and was a good image and I pressed “X” to reject an image that was not up to standard.

After selecting the images that i liked i went through and developed each one by editing multiple aspects including; contrast, exposure, clarity and vibrance.

My Final Images

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My best Images

this is a still life of a jersey milk bottle that has been edited to appear blue.

this is the same still life of a jersey milk bottle but it has been eddit3ed to appear purple.

the shadows have been increased on this image to make it appear more dramatic and the highlights have been increased to show the light reflection of of the milk bottle and bell.

this still life has been edited to bring out the shine in the metallic surface of the syringe and the darker tones of the brass bell. the grainy photograph underneath gives the whole image a vintage tone.

UNEDITED

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EDITED

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Photomontage is the process and the result of making a composite photograph by cutting, gluing, rearranging and overlapping two or more photographs into a new image. Sometimes the resulting composite image is photographed so that the final image may appear as a seamless physical print

MAX-O-MATIC

Max-o-matic (Máximo Tuja). Buenos Aires, 1975. Artist and image maker. Since 2002 he lives and works in Barcelona, creating an imaginary world from torn pieces of the real one.

His work has been exhibited in galleries in Barcelona, London, Madrid, New York, Tokyo, Berlin, Rotterdam, Antwerp, Rome, Lima or México DF, to name just some. He has worked with brands such as Nike, Wired Magazine, Spotify, Newsweek, New York Times, Electronic Arts or Universal Pictures making his signature collage work for commercial and editorial projects.

MY ATTEMPTS AT PHOTOMONTAGE

I especially struggled with photomontage and found it very difficult to create a clean image that I liked- I was massively inspired by Max-O-Matic but overall it is not obvious in my attempts.

My favourite of the three is the last one as the colour scheme and small details in natural of the photos I used reminded me of various paintings by Gustav Klimt. I also really enjoyed playing around with religious imagery such as the stained glass window images alongside nature such as flowers as I believe it created an interesting juxtaposition.

Editing One Image

For my digital photomontages I used the pictures I took in the studio of different objects we got from Jersey Heritage, as well as the images I took on my trip to Hamptonne of the the good wife. I edited them using photoshop.

I edited these pictures in lightroom then did the photomontage in photoshop. I started by tracing the outline of my model using the magnetic lasso tool then making a new layer via copy in order to cut her out. I did this process again and inverted it before making a new layer because I wanted to get the background. I dragged the first copy I made on to the object image and placed where I wanted her to be, then I turned the opacity down and erased the bits that where on top of the object. This is so that it looks like she’s behind it and not on it. At the end I took the background copy that with her cut out and placed it on top of everything.

My Final Edits

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I hate this one I don’t even know what I was trying to do and its just looks bad. the line in the middle is like too clean? and the chicken instead of the apple looks out of place. And I know that’s the point but I hate it