This was a casual duo photoshoot I did thinking about the masculinity vs femininity theme. The models were comfortable in front of the camera, and we played around with gender stereotypes. For example, poses which reflect gender roles as well as poses which may reflect aspects of femininity.
This was part of the previous photoshoot, just focussing on a different subject. This model was also comfortable in front of the camera, this was more inspired by the broad theme of ‘Identity’ with aspects of the femininity theme. Some poses reflected this, for example photographs with the model on her phone.
On the other hand, I also captured some photographs of the model partially covering her face. This links to hiding your identity side, as she is evading communicating information about herself.
These are some photographs I did as part of my ‘Identity’ fruits photoshoot. Some of the first photographs I did were of the model on the floor, with all the fruits in her hair as I believed this fit the theme of femininity.
These are photographs I took of all the girls together with the fruits they had chose for a trio shot.
Claude Cahun was a French artist, writer, and activist who lived from 1894 to 1954. Born Lucy Schwob, they were raised in a wealthy Jewish family in Nantes, France. Cahun and their partner, Marcel Moore (born Suzanne Malherbe), were known for their surrealist photography, which often explored gender identity and sexuality.
Cahun and Moore began their artistic collaboration in the 1920s and continued until Cahun’s death in 1954. Together, they created a body of work that was ahead of its time, exploring themes of gender, identity, and power. Their photographs often featured Cahun dressed in gender-bending costumes, such as a suit and tie or a dress and heels. They would often use props and backdrops to create surreal and dreamlike images.
Cahun was also a writer and published several books of poetry and essays. Their writing often explored themes of identity and the self, and they were known for their feminist and anti-fascist activism. During World War II, Cahun and Moore were active in the French Resistance, distributing anti-Nazi propaganda and helping to smuggle Jewish children out of the country. They were eventually caught by the Gestapo and sentenced to death, but were saved when the Allies liberated the island of Jersey, where they were being held.
Relation to Gender/Idenity
Claude Cahun’s work was deeply concerned with issues of gender and identity. They used their art to explore the fluidity of gender and the constructed nature of identity. Cahun’s photographs often featured them dressed in gender-bending costumes, such as a suit and tie or a dress and heels, and they would use props and backdrops to create surreal and dreamlike images.
Through their work, Cahun challenged traditional notions of gender and identity, suggesting that these are not fixed but rather are constructed through a complex interplay of social, cultural, and historical factors. Cahun’s writing also explored these themes, and they were known for their feminist and anti-fascist activism. Cahun’s work continues to have relevance today, particularly in the context of ongoing debates around gender and identity. Their photographs and writing offer a powerful critique of the ways in which gender is constructed and can be used to control and oppress individuals. Cahun’s legacy as an artist, writer, and activist continues to inspire people today, particularly those who are interested in exploring issues of gender and identity.
Claude Cahun was a French artist, writer, and political activist born in Nantes in 1894. She is known for her surrealist photography, writing, and her resistance work against the Nazi occupation of France during World War II. Cahun was born Lucy Schwob and began using the name Claude Cahun in her early twenties.
Cahun was a prolific writer and translated works by Oscar Wilde and Arthur Rimbaud into French. Her writing explored themes of gender identity, sexuality, and politics. She was an advocate for women’s rights and was involved in the French suffragette movement.
Cahun’s surrealist photography, which she often created with her partner Marcel Moore, challenged traditional gender norms and identity. She frequently dressed in men’s clothing and used mirrors, masks, and other props to create surreal, dreamlike images.
Cahun and Moore were both openly gay and were active in the French lesbian community. They were also members of the French Resistance during World War II and used their artistic skills to create propaganda that challenged the Nazi occupation of France.
Cahun was arrested by the Gestapo in 1944 and sentenced to death. She was saved from execution by the Allied liberation of France later that year. After the war, she continued to write and create art, but her health began to decline. She died in 1954 at the age of 60.
Claude Cahun’s legacy continues to inspire artists and activists today. Her political activism and resistance work demonstrated her courage and commitment to social justice. Her surrealist photography and writing continue to challenge traditional gender norms and inspire others to explore their own identity and creativity.
On the left are images that Robert took, and on the right are one I had taken. I’m using some of his images to compare to mine, with similar aspects to them.
Robert in all of his images used good lighting and positioning, this allowed him to show good definition in specific places he wanted to pop out and show more of. It would also be a good control for how he wanted the image to appear and what he would convey in the images. I used similar techniques by positioning myself in a way where the lighting would work on a specific part of the body id want to appear better, or even as a whole.
Robert also uses a lot of shape in his images, because his images are a majority of the human body, it uses a lot of shape and lines. In this last image comparison we both use shape to convey meaning.
Both our images are used in the context of masculinity, where it shows the male body. However Robert used his images to show people the violence towards homosexuality during this era, and how it should be acceptable to be discriminatory towards them, which does still link to masculinity and choice. Whereas my images are used to convey staying healthy physically and mentally, and how masculinity links into a lot of that now, to stay strong and better than yesterday. Yet both show the beauty of identity.
Evaluation
I should have taken more images in the studio to choose from as I had not done as much as I could have which would allow better outcomes. In that process I should have played around with the lighting more, to determine which would be better for specific parts of the muscles.
Overall they came out good with a bit of editing, I like the use of black and white, as it gives the image good contrast. I used lighting and editing to create good images which related to identity and masculinity.
This image was an environmental portrait image that I had taken after a party, where you could say it was the environment of a teenager, in a home, with alcohol left over and food. I like this image because it uses a good contrast between the blacks and whites and is a good balance. I also like the use of shapes and lines, like the TV, the things on the table and everything else, it allows people to easily understand the environment and what is going on. Lastly I like the positioning of the image, how the person is on the right side of the image, and how everything else is on the left. It gives a good balance to the picture.
This image was taken for headshots, and I had used 2 people for it. I had done this to create a patterned effect and make it look more eye-catching. I had used a good range of lighting using different colours on different sides of the face and different positionings of their face with different expressions. I had also used some lighting effects like the butterfly effect to give a different look to the person.
Lastly I used some of my self portraits, experimenting with different lighting effects, and using small adjustments like where to place my hand and what expression I wanted to convey. I liked the use of black and white because it created a better look for the image, and gave a good balance between the blacks and the whites. The use of a black and white filter allowed for different shapes to be formed on the face, like a diamond shape under a eye, whist the rest of the face was brightly shown, creates an ominous effect.
Throughout the entire project I put a lot of work into it to create some strong outcomes. I really enjoyed being able to creative freedom during the project.
The environmental portraits was a part I struggled to come up with ideas for, changing my idea three or four times before choosing to do what I ended up doing, making images of one of the bakers at Vienna Bakery making the pastries.
One of my favourite parts of this project was experimenting with different lighting techniques, making images with both Rembrandt Lighting and Butterfly Lighting. We also got to do different colours of lighting, using different gels on the lights to make images with brightly coloured lighting.
We tried different experiments like making Diamond Cameos and Double Exposures, my personal favourite out all of them was the Double Exposures and having fun with it.
Finally, the identity mini-topic, this was my favourite part of the portraiture project. I got to express my own identity as an androgynous person through my photography, doing two separate shoots of selfies, looking androgynous. In one shoot, I’m wearing a shirt and blazer and have slightly harsher lighting, showing the masculine side of androgyny and the other shoot, I am showing the more feminine side of androgyny, wearing more typically “feminine” clothing and am in less harsh lighting.
Overall, this portrait topic was my favourite topic we’ve done so far in class, I got to have fun and express myself properly through the images.
